This Friday marks the one-year anniversary of downtown bars' voluntary weekend drink-special ban, but city officials and bar owners say it is still too soon to decide whether the ban has curbed binge drinking and related violence.
Preliminary data released in May by the Policy, Alternative, Community, and Education Project correlated the first six months of the voluntary ban with a 35 percent decrease in disorderly conduct and a 28 percent decrease in vandalism Friday nights.
But some officials and tavern owners say those statistics do not prove drink specials had a detrimental effect.
\As far as I'm concerned, the jury is still out,"" said Nitty Gritty owner Marsh Shapiro. Shapiro is also the Dane County Tavern League Representative to the Alcohol License Review Committee.
He said more evidence should be collected that shows whether the warm fall weather and football Sundays contribute more to rowdiness than do cheap drinks.
Shapiro said he and the other 24 bar owners participating in the ban had not discussed the issue together since last year. Until police collect more evidence, they will continue not to serve specials Friday and Saturday nights after 8 p.m., according to Shapiro.
Dustin DiMarco, a manager at State Street Brats, 603 State St., agreed.
""Our current plan is to keep going with drink specials,"" he said, adding that most other bars would continue with the ban as well.
Dean Hetue, owner of the Plaza Tavern and Grill, 319 N. Henry St., said he has never served weekend drink specials and will probably continue that system.
""Everyone goes out on weekends,"" Hetue said. ""You shouldn't have to run a special to get people to come to your place on a weekend.""
However, that attitude only works if the playing field remains competitive, he added.
""If every other bar downtown gets busy and I'm dead, I might have to change my tune,"" Hetue said.
PACE Director Sue Crowley said the group decided at its board meeting Tuesday that more evidence is needed before recommending any action. PACE will not push for a new city ban any time soon, she said.
The group will not make any decisions without looking at a full year's data, Crowley said, which will not be available until late October.
Bar owners may continue their specials, without worrying about pressure from the city, according to City Council President Mike Verveer, District 4.
""I don't think there's anything close to the will in city hall to get into the arena of regulating drink prices,"" Verveer said.
Last year, the ALRC recommended that the city council pass an ordinance banning drink specials. Bar owners held off the measure by taking up the voluntary ban and the council dropped the matter.
