City officials tailored a proposed ordinance Wednesday to more specifically target large, underage house parties downtown.
Madison’s Alcohol License Review Committee reviewed the changes, which would allow the city to classify a party as a “nuisance” if it meets four of nine violation criteria.
Originally, the ordinance would require that only two of the nine total criteria be met for a party to be considered a nuisance.
Under the changes, a party can only be defined as a nuisance if two alcohol-related offenses are committed. Offenses include selling liquor without a license or providing liquor to an underage person in addition to two disorder-related offenses, such as noise or fire-code violations.
Downtown Alcohol Policy Coordinator Mark Woulf said these changes “get at defining the nuisance house party and exactly what it is.”
The ordinance would only allow officials like district police captains to determine if a party is a nuisance party after reviewing reports by responding officers.
If a party is determined to be a nuisance party, the host would likely receive citations, and the host’s landlord would receive notification of the incident.
The ordinance would also require that alders be notified of police calls to house parties in their districts to allow them to follow disciplinary proceedings.
According to Ald. Scott Resnick, District 8, there are particular cases where this part of the ordinance could be used as a tool, but “in its entirety, [this part of the ordinance] is not necessary.”
Some committee members expressed a desire for the committee to vote on the ordinance Wednesday, while others wanted a more thorough analysis of the ordinance’s potential benefits and downfalls.
“I would prefer if this were pushed back until the beginning of the spring semester, as this ordinance disproportionately affects students,” Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said.
