by J. Brooks Terry
Staff Writer
The City Council is letting Houston be its guide as it prepares to address a litany of Super Bowl concerns, ranging from liquor store hours to the availability of taxi cabs.
According to City Council president Lad Daniels, two pieces of legislation are being prepared to address upcoming Super Bowl-related concerns.
Daniels, who attended the Super Bowl last month, said one of the proposed bills may use some of Houston’s legislation as a frame of reference.
He said the bills address everything from street closures to sidewalk vendors and special-events requirements.
“We’re still in the very early stages now,” said Daniels, “but the General Counsel’s Office is reviewing what (Houston) had in place, and we’re going to try to see what we’ll be able to apply locally.”
Anticipating heavy pedestrian traffic downtown, Daniels said “entertainment zone” regulations are a primary concern.
“There will be a lot of people in the area on both sides of the river,” said Daniels, “considerably more people than for something like the Gator Bowl, and they’ll be here for a lot longer.
“It’s important for us figure out how we’ll define that zone and what we’ll allow to happen there. We’ll also have to figure out how we’ll fund the various activities.”
Daniels suggested the Main Street Bridge, now undergoing visual and structural repairs, will be closed from the Thursday prior to the Super Bowl through the weekend.
“I’d assume the bridge will serve as the connector between the North and South banks,” he said. “We’ll discuss that further with the Police and Fire and Rescue Departments because, as I understand it, they have observed previous Super Bowls and they’ll be of tremendous help to us.”
Council member Kevin Hyde has proposed, but not yet introduced, an ordinance promoting responsible alcohol sales that may be incorporated into Daniels’ efforts. Hyde previously suggested that area restaurants who train their staffs to better recognize and account for underage and intoxicated customers be allowed to remain open beyond the current 2 a.m. closing time.
“He’s talked about rewarding those restaurants and bars that provide volunteer training,” said Daniels. “That might be effective, but again, we’re going to be dealing with enormous crowds for that entire week, more than we’re used to, so we’ll have to be sure the training can be effective.”
A second piece of legislation, according to Daniels, will update a City policy enacted over two years ago.
Chaired by Daniels, a special committee on “taxicab services” outlines the requirements of “vehicles for hire” in Jacksonville.
“It was a significant piece of legislation that we revised so we could level the playing field locally,” said Daniels. “It was almost like we took Jacksonville’s standards and put them up against New York City’s.
“When we originally looked at it, we knew we had the Super Bowl to think about in a few years, but we decided we would address those concerns later on. Now it’s time for us to come back to it because we know there will be a lot more of those vehicles being utilized next year.”
Hoping to finalize both bills by June, Daniels, met with Council members Daniel Davis, Gwen Yates and Warren Alvarez Tuesday afternoon to discuss his plans.
“We want to avoid what Houston had to go through,” he said. “They didn’t have their legislation prepared until December. We’d rather give our local restaurants and businesses a better idea of what to expect before that.”