Proposal: Make beer harder to get on St. Patrick's Day

Savannah could change its St. Patrick's Day festival once again, in another try at making the city's biggest vacation holiday more family-friendly.

Officials have concluded that gates and other measures put in place years ago to control drinking haven't worked. Problems mostly don't relate to the parade, rather what comes after, what some describe as a booze-swilled drunkfest. The city's considering outlawing outdoor beer sales.

Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce President Bill Hubbard says, most visitors come to enjoy the parade in moderation. "I don't think that, over time, that really younger group that comes almost in a Spring Break atmosphere is where the money is made," Hubbard says.

The changes would obviate the need for gates on the waterfront during the festival. The gates allowed outdoor beer sales to those who bought wristbands. The wristbands, in turn, funded three outdoor stages of entertainment organized by the Savannah Waterfront Assocation.

The association's director says this year's festival only will inlcude one stage, but that this was not because of the loss of wristband revenue, but rather the holiday falling mid-week this year. "We had been planning all along to pare it down this year," says Kenny Hill. "The feeling is that we can do without some of the excess."

No changes are being considered to the parade or to the third-rail of Savannah ordinances, the law letting you drink on downtown streets. Savannah's St. Patrick's Day is one the nation's largest, attracting crowds estimated at over a half-million strong.

This year's proposed changes still need the approval of City Council.