INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — County Commissioners voted 4-1 with Commissioner Tim Zorc dissenting, to mirror the new City of Vero Beach ordinance allowing bars and restaurants to serve alcohol until 2 a.m., in the unincorporated areas of the County.
The change in the Vero Beach ordinance was voted in after Council received a petition from bar and restaurant owners claiming patrons were taking business from Vero Beach to neighboring Brevard and St. Lucie counties because of their 2 a.m. curfew.
A letter to Commissioner Peter O’Bryan from Michael Rechter, managing partner of Vero Bowl, expressed concern that Vero Beach’s new ordinance would do even more damage to the bars and restaurants in unincorporated areas of the county if they could not compete.
Vero Bowl, located in an unincorporated area at the Majestic Plaza, is a stone’s throw away from the Indian River Plaza in Vero Beach city limits where Hurricane Grill and Wings is located.
“There is no question that the effect of this law disparity will have a chilling effect on late night business as customers will surely go to the bars/restaurants that are able to stay open until 2 a.m.,” Rechter wrote in his letter.
He also wrote that he was requesting the Board take his concerns under consideration on behalf of, “Vero Bowl, LLC and dozens of other businesses and their customers/employees that are negatively and unfairly impacted as a result of this discrepancy.”
Vero Beach’s ordinance comes with a contingency that the Chief of Police will provide the Council with a report of the public safety effects after one year. The County will request a similar report from the Sheriff’s Office. Both governing bodies will revisit the issue in May next year.
