The late-night fate of a handful of Little Rock bars and clubs will be considered at Tuesday's city board meeting.
Two city director’s recommendation to limit the hours of clubs closing at 5 a.m.—such as MidTown Billiards, Club Elevations, Discovery and Electric Cowboy—has made its way into a proposal now up for vote.
Ward 4 City Director Brad Cazort and at-large City Director Gene Forston are behind the proposal, which mandates private clubs exercise a 2 a.m. curfew on weekdays and 3 a.m. on weekends and federal holidays. The proposal cites statistics concerning public safety, and aims to suggest more crime occurs in those hours between 2 and 5 a.m.
Response to Cazort and Forston’s proposal has been varied—some agree that late-night clubs intensify public safety concerns. Yet others question whether restricting hours would really change people’s desire to stay out late and worry it could drive late-night activity underground.
There is another proposed ordinance—which doesn’t seek to limit business hours—on the table. Offered by City Manager Bruce Moore, it calls for increasing security and would grant the police chief more enforcement power. This proposal is favored by the club industry.
