Overview
- City Council unanimously directed City Manager Tom Modica to report within 45 days on increased DUI patrols, added late-night police staffing, and stepped-up enforcement of public drinking and unpermitted street vending.
- A second directive calls for a 90-day report on how to better regulate alcohol-selling businesses and smoke shops across the city.
- Councilmember Kristina Duggan withdrew her proposal for a yearlong midnight curfew on Second Street after city staff and colleagues pressed for solutions that apply citywide.
- Four Belmont Shore bars that typically stay open until 2 a.m. will voluntarily close at midnight through Dec. 7 as owners explore additional safety measures and staggered closing times.
- The council’s actions follow the fatal shooting of 32-year-old Jeremy Spears and other recent incidents, which Mayor Rex Richardson has denounced as unacceptable.