Foley officials propose downtown entertainment district

FOLEY, Ala. ( WKRG ) — An entertainment district could soon come to downtown Foley.

According to a news release from the city, the city council approved the first reading of an ordinance to establish an entertainment district, which would be located in the downtown area west of Alabama 59.

The release said a final vote on the ordinance will be held in August.

Foley Main Street Executive Director Darrelyn Dunmore said downtown business owners overwhelmingly supported the idea.

“On the petition, we had 150 yes and two no and one neutral,” Dummore told the city council. “This was specifically in downtown Foley. These were all the business owners, people that were going in and supporting it.”

Dunmore discussed cities and communities in the region that have implemented entertainment districts to revitalize their respective downtown areas.

“Gadsden started in 2017,” Dunmore said. “They did a trial period because a couple of council
members were afraid it would turn into New Orleans. It didn’t happen. Everything continues to
go well. They actually expanded their district in 2019.”

Dunmore also discussed OWA’s entertainment district, which was established in 2017. It has seen just 13 alcohol-related calls to police since then.

Foley Mayor Ralph Hellmich supports the idea as well.

“When Main Street started, that was something that we talked about, supporting downtown,” Hellmich said. “It’s a vibrant downtown that we’re looking to expand, particularly our nighttime. In the daytime, we’re really really busy, but at night, it’s pretty quiet.”

Foley City Councilman Charles Ebert III said the entertainment district would offer downtown-goers more things to do while not encouraging public drinking.

“It’s not an area where you can simply walk with an open can of beer or a wine bottle in your
hand,” Ebert said. “Your beverage has to come from one of our vendors in the downtown area
that sells alcohol, and it has to be in that approved cup.”

District-goers would be allowed to leave a bar or restaurant with an alcoholic beverage between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m., but the drink would have to be in a 16-ounce plastic cup marked with the Main Street entertainment district emblem and the name of the business where it was purchased.

The ordinance for the entertainment district would prohibit “brown-bagging,” which is when someone pours alcohol from an outside source into the cup.

“Patrons could not bring a cup from one bar or restaurant into another business in the district,” the release said.

Drinking would be prohibited in certain areas in the district like parking lots. Underage drinking and public intoxication restrictions would also be enforced.

Dunmore said restaurant and bar owners and employees will go through training programs, so they’ll be able to tell district-goers what is and is not allowed in the entertainment district.

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