Overview
- The City Council opened a public hearing Tuesday evening with a vote planned on a proposal to let boardwalk-facing restaurants sell and serve alcohol on their premises.
- The plan keeps in place the ban on carrying drinks or drinking on the boardwalk and beach.
- Officials say the update would align the city code with New York’s Liquor Authority, which regulates on‑premises alcohol sales and can override stricter local bans.
- Backers, including Council President Brendan Finn, argue the shift would help businesses and put Long Beach in step with Rockaway and Jones Beach, while Long Beach Aware warns it could normalize alcohol for kids and require more policing.
- The push revives a similar measure the council rejected in 2017 after organized opposition from the prevention group Long Beach Aware.