Downtown Kalamazoo outdoor drinking district expanded to include Bronson Park

KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — Kalamazoo’s established outdoor drinking district downtown will be expanded to include Bronson Park, Kalamazoo City Commissioners voted Monday.

During a virtual meeting, Commissioners discussed the measure at length, which is meant to help struggling businesses in the downtown area under COVID-19 restrictions.

The outdoor district had already been established in August, with its first expansion being approved in November. Officials had already noted previously that the district may be expanded at different times.

According to city documents, the motion to allow Bronson Park to join the district would amend chapters 22 and 33 to “Permit Consumption of Alcoholic Beverages in Public Places and Parks.”

The current district includes several bars and restaurants in the downtown area. In order to participate, an establishment within the district must meet the following requirements:

• the container prominently displays the social district permittee’s trade name or logo or some other mark that is unique to the social district permittee’s on-premises license;
• the container prominently displays a logo or some other mark that is unique to the commons area;
• the container is not glass; and
• the container has a liquid capacity that does not exceed 16 ounces

City documents also state that ordinances generally prohibit the consumption of alcohol in City Park except under limited circumstances.

As written, alcoholic liquor and beverages sold by approved licensed establishments may be possessed and consumed in public spaces and city parks if the City Commission has designated such areas as social district commons areas by resolution, as permitted by Public Act 124 of 2020.

During the meeting, City Attorney Clyde Robinson explained that if it were passed, it would go into effect ten days from its passage, or New Year’s Eve.

Additionally, Andrew Haan of the Kalamazoo Downtown Partnership was on the virtual meeting, who answered questions about how the district has affected businesses, and what the implication of including Bronson Park would be.

“If anyone has been downtown on a Saturday or Sunday the last few weeks, it has been very busy,” Haan said. “We’ve heard very good things from our retailers, which of course are not the ones that are actually selling a cocktail, but are benefiting from that traffic. Many, almost all of them, have been down through November for year on year, but have been up in December, over 2019. I can’t point directly to the social district in the commons area doing that, but certainly there’s a strong correlation. We’re seeing a ton of families downtown, and we know a lot of those families like to go into parks.”

While he couldn’t give an exact dollar amount, Haan did note that there has not been an uptick in any nuisance activity since the district was established.

“We’re prepared to address that if we do, but it has been very well-received, and I think much appreciated by the businesses,” Haan said.

Commissioners such as Eric Cunningham said that passing a measure like this would be beneficial for the local economy as a whole.

“I don’t want to feel as if we are normalizing alcohol, but I think we are in extraordinary times, and it takes extraordinary measures,” Cunningham said. “But I will say the little things count. As Mr. Haan mentioned, we’ve seen an uptick in individuals going downtown to enjoy the scenery and place and space down there. I will say I think the fact that we have more Christmas lights brings a flare to our downtown, and something as simple as that is becoming an attraction. I appreciate the creativity we’re using to expand this zoning, but these are types of things that we need to continuously put on the table to have a discussion.”

Ultimately, the resolution passed in a unanimous vote. As previously stated, the inclusion of Bronson Park is expected to go into effect on December 31.

A video of the virtual meeting can be viewed on YouTube at this link.