The pandemic caused a lot of hidebound rules and regulations to be looked at with a more critical eye and even now in 2024, laws are being questioned.
One such piece of legislation, is Senate Bill 969, which would allow municipalities and counties, starting in 2025, to designate “entertainment zones” where drinking “alcoholic beverages on public streets, sidewalks, or public rights of way” would be legalized. This is similar to when outdoor – streets and sidewalk seating was greenlit.
It means of you and a brewery are in “the zone” that you can buy a beer and take it outside and drink it on the street. The bill was proposed by state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) who is quoted saying, “We have these very strict alcohol laws in California that sometimes need to be made more flexible.”
I am all for flexible. There are far too many rules for any business, let alone a business that sells alcohol. But I am not seeing how wandering around with a plastic cup of beer is all that great. And where are the boundaries of this zone? Can you get a beer and wander into a bookstore? Or cross a busy street? Creating an outdoor seating oasis on a street near restaurants and bars (and breweries) seems a better idea for a bigger group of people to me.