Bill for longer bar hours is under deliberation

A new bill under deliberation may present a catch-22 for local residents.

The bill would allow Philadelphia bars to stay open until 3 a.m. — an hour later than the current closing time — and would donate the extra revenue toward the School District of Philadelphia.

“Education is the single biggest indicator of success for children and youth, and the greatest deterrent from crime,” Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown, who introduced the bill, said in a statement.

However, Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush said extended business hours of bars may cause an increase in alcohol-related crimes around campus.

“Nothing good happens after 2 a.m.,” Rush said. “There’s definitely a correlation between accidents and alcohol.”

“If you make it 3 a.m., they’ll be there until 4 a.m. We don’t want people walking the streets intoxicated at 4 a.m,” she added.

The bill is expected to raise $5 million for the School District of Philadelphia. $42 million of liquor taxes in 2010 will also be donated to the school district.

Currently, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board has sole authority over determining the business hours of the state’s bars. Rep. Vanessa Lowery Brown is introducing the bill to the State House of Representatives to give the city control over bar hours.

The bill must be passed in the State General Assembly to receive approval for practice in Philadelphia.

“In this day and age of budget shortfalls and declining education funding, we must think of creative solutions, thinking outside the box and exhaust unconventional avenues of revenue,” Councilwoman Brown said in a statement.

With the bill still under deliberation, the Division of Public Safety has not made any significant preparations for the potential increase in crime.

“It’s still in a very early stage. We’re already doing all that we can,” Rush said.

Bar staff also hope to prevent alcohol-related incidents.

“As a bartender, you have the authority and responsibility to cut people off. It’s not much different if it’s 2 or 3 a.m.,” said Chris Ryan, a bartender at Smokey Joe’s.

Local bars do not believe the bill would bring significant change to the ebb and flow of patrons.

Blarney Stone owner and manager Rich Roller — who has owned Blarney since he purchased the establishment in 1999 —said he does not believe the new law would increase his sales “because kids will [just] start going out later” and “pregame a little longer.”

According to Roller, business hours at bars do not see a constant stream of business. Instead, sales peak at certain hours and dissipate near the end of the night.

If anything, the new bill will simply shift the peak times back an hour, he added.

“I don’t think it’s going to impact us that much. Other bars in the city, maybe. They might benefit because they get a lot of transient customers,” he said. “It’s not going to add an hour of drinking to their time frame.”

The new law would not have “much of an effect on business,” Ryan agreed. “People are kind of used to leaving at two.”

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