After piloting a yearlong trial of a downtown social district — a specified outdoor area where alcoholic beverages can be consumed — the Fayetteville City Council on Monday voted 9-1 to adopt the measure permanently, with Councilmember D.J. Haire dissenting.
In addition, during the meeting’s public comment period, more than half of the speakers spoke out about the war in Gaza, with several calling on the council to adopt a ceasefire resolution similar to those passed by other city councils across the United States in recent weeks.
Social district
According to the approved ordinance, the district would be in effect from noon to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sundays.
The district encompasses the downtown corridor from Winslow Street to Person Street and between West Russell Street and Hay Street. It also extends around the Market House to parts of Old Street, Bow Street, Otis F. Jones Parkway and around Segra Stadium, which is one of 26 downtown establishments that are approved to offer to-go alcoholic beverages.
The ordinance states that all beverages purchased in the social district must come from an establishment licensed for the sale of alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption, with to-go containers clearly marking where the drink was bought. The containers can hold no more than 16 fluid ounces.
Another rule of the ordinance states that businesses participating in the social district cannot sell a patron more than two drinks containing beer or wine at the same time, or one mixed beverage or beverage containing spirituous liquor at a time.
Several other cities in North Carolina have enacted downtown social districts, including Greensboro, Raleigh and Durham, after the state legalized the practice in 2021.
The council’s decision to permanently enact the downtown social drink signals local officials' desire to invest in new economic development opportunities, as social districts have been associated with a positive impact on local businesses by business owners and patrons.
Public comments
Five out of the eight speakers at Monday’s meeting focused their comments on the war in Gaza, condemning the mass violence against and killing of Palestinian citizens by the Israeli government in response to the Oct. 7 attack by militant group Hamas. According to Gaza's health ministry, 18,205 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 50,000 have been wounded since the attack, which the Israeli government said killed 1,200 Israelis and resulted in 240 people being taken hostage. Speakers at Monday’s council meeting also condemned the U.S. government’s funding of Israel’s military; the Biden administration has increased its aid significantly to Israel since the Oct. 7 attack.
Sulaiman Kabia, a Muslim resident in Fayetteville, was one of four speakers who called on the council to pass the resolution.
“We're seeing a genocide,” Kabia said. “We're seeing events that are the worst events that we've seen in a very long time in the world.”
Kabia encouraged local residents to stand up for the rights of Palestinian citizens.
“One of the most alarming things about this issue right now is our moral inconsistency on the issue,” Kabia said. “This country and this community specifically have always been staunch opponents of terrorism, as we should, because terrorism is wrong wherever it may happen. … I'm here to give a message to the council — and that message is that the Palestinian people have not despaired and they have not lost hope, and neither have we.”
Three speakers at Monday’s meeting also criticized the Fayetteville Police Department in their comments, including in reference to DeMarcus Brodie, who was shot and killed by a Fayetteville police officer during a traffic stop on Thanksgiving.
“Today I'm here to once again speak about accountability and transparency because another Fayetteville resident has been killed by a Fayetteville police officer on Thanksgiving of all days,” said Fayetteville activist Lisette Rodriguez. “And I want to know how many lives this council will continue to [allow to] be taken and why the general public is left in the dark without answers time and time again.”
Rodriguez mentioned other recent incidents involving Fayetteville Police that have generated public scrutiny, including the death of Lawrence Artis, who police said shot himself while in their custody.
“As the council begins to think about the priorities in 2024,” Rodriguez continued, “I'm urging you to quickly hire a director of OCS [Office of Community Safety] and budget money for a mental health response team under that OCS.”
City officials said on Nov. 16 that they are finalizing a search for the director of the Office of Community Safety, which is designed to fill gaps in the city's public safety initiatives, particularly in coordinating and evaluating the city’s responses to mental health crises, homelessness and violence interruption programs.
In other business:
Council members will not meet again until next month, as the council goes on break for the holidays. The next council meeting is at 5 p.m. Jan. 2 at City Hall, 433 Hay St.
Contact Evey Weisblat at eweisblat@cityviewnc.com or 216-527-3608.
