Another Post About the Nightlife Ordinance
We're bringing it up because Seattle Times brought it up.
Here's why we hate the idea of making clubs get licensed in order to be clubs: If we happen to have some huge influx of new citizens, you can bet the majority of them aren't coming here simply because they want to sit in a cubicle for nine hours and return home to their ever-tinier condo so they can watch TV. Where people work, they also want to be able to unwind. Your average Jane and Joe want to head to the corner pub for a beer after work, maybe stick around for live music.
Don't get us wrong, we don't think any local official would be stupid enough to want to take away our God-given right to happy hour and live music. We just think the way they're going about looking out for the influx of new residents is all wrong. They're assuming the influx of new citizens will mostly include workaholic humorless yuppies with no desire of a social life.
Granted, we don't want to be kept up all hours of the night while the bar downstairs entertains its loud, drunk patrons. We do, however, think those patrons should have their pick of places to go to be loud and drunk until the wee hours. Furthermore, in terms of club-related crime, Seattlest is proud to say that, after living in cities with actual high crime rates like Buffalo, NY and New Orleans, there's not a lot of bar-lined streets here where we'd be afraid to walk by ourselves at midnight. In fact, we can't think of one.
Says the Times:
Jim Peters, president of the Responsible Hospitality Institute in Santa Cruz, Calif., which promotes discussions on nightlife policy, says Seattle is typical of many cities wrestling with the issue."Where I've seen success is where policymakers, clubs and police come together on an equal plane," Peters said. "Cities where there's this 'us versus them' approach often just have conflicts because there's not the respect of the people operating the businesses."
Before we think about tackling a huge crime wave that may come, before we start blaming clubs that offer relaxation, celebration and inebriation to people who have earned it, why don't we consider the fact that Seattle is still a fairly safe city? The rash of shootings that have taken place have not, for the most part, been randomly executed crimes. If there start to be drive-bys on 2nd Ave or in the area of 11th and Pike, then we'll start worrying. Even then, though, it won't be the fault of Shorty's, the Croc, the Wildrose or Purr.
We think there are laws preventing crime already, and we think people who have a vendetta against someone can just as well get drunk in their own home before setting out to shoot them, as they can at some bar. If the city is seeking to cut down on noise pollution and violent crime, the way to do it is not by increasing the red tape that discourages more clubs from opening to serve the growing populace. The way to do it is by better sound-proofing music venues, setting a noise limit like Austin has done, and making sure law enforcement is readily available when necessary.
Photo courtesy of the Seattlest Flickr pool
