A new county ordinance bans the sale and drinking of alcohol between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. The law, passed at the June 6 County Council meeting, says it is for safety reasons, but nightclub owners aren't so sure.
According to the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA) statistics, about 10,839 people died nationwide in alcohol-impaired driving crashes in 2009, the last year that numbers are available. That was a 49 percent drop since 1982, when the NHTSA began keeping statistics on alcohol related accidents and fatalities. There were 15 alcohol-related accidents in Jasper County in 2009, with five fatalities.
If the numbers of alcohol related fatalities are decreasing, why is the Council passing this ordinance this year?
"There were a couple of accidents, and having those clubs open after 2 a.m. causes a number of other problems in that area," Councilman Henry Etheridge said. "The Savannah bars close at 2 a.m. and the clubs in Jasper County on 170 stay open until the last person leaves. The fire department that responds to that area (Levy) brought it up to us, that they were having a lot of accidents in that area, and we got a call from the daughter of a woman who was killed out there a couple of years ago, asking us when we were going to do something about it."
He emphasized the accidents and Levy's fire and rescue response to the area, but did not elaborate on what other problems are caused in the area by having the clubs open during those hours.
Bo Cordray, manager of the Gold Club on SC 170, says that this ordinance is aimed directly at the clubs who are outside of town or city limits in Jasper County - and those clubs are not just bars.
"We do 80 to 90 percent of our business during the hours that the ordinance wants us to close," Cordray said. "This ordinance is illogical at best, irresponsible at worst. Illogical, because it's not going to cut down on drinking and driving. We were told that this would only affect those clubs that are outside of town limits. That means that there are three clubs that would be affected by this ordinance. Three. And all three of them are gentleman's clubs. If it only affects three clubs, how is that reducing drinking and driving or accidents between here and Savannah? All they're doing is changing the hours that people are leaving the clubs, and it looks to us like they're targeting clubs like the Gold because we offer adult entertainment."
According to statistics from the NHTSA, he's correct about the times people are driving while impaired. More alcohol related accidents nationwide take place between the hours of 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. than between midnight and 3 a.m.
Nicki Skodras, owner of Temptations, agrees.
"We pay a lot of money in licensing fees to the state and county agencies, we pay a lot of money in payroll taxes, we pay our property taxes and a lot of money is spent in the local area for the things that we need to operate on a daily basis," Skodras said. "Our business license alone through the county is $1000 annually. This ordinance scares me because the county didn't really care about us as business owners at the council meeting. There was no offer to meet with us, even though we requested it that night. There was absolutely no attempt to look at this from our point of view. We're doing everything we can to run our businesses the right way, to avoid problems and operate within the laws, and we're getting slapped in the face for it. I own another property that is going to be built as a restaurant and bar - I'm not sure that I want to open it now in Jasper County. I'm not sure that I can, with this ordinance, and make any money with it."
"The clubs being open really doesn't have as much to do with drunk driving as personal responsibility does. People drink at home, at friends' homes, and drive afterward. It's not like you have to go to a nightclub to get a drink or that's the only place to buy alcohol. And if it doesn't affect clubs that are within town limits, then what's the point of this ordinance, other than to chase us, in particular, out of business? "
While similar ordinances have been adopted in Charleston and Myrtle Beach, the businesses affected are within a smaller geographical area, inside heavily trafficked areas of tourist destinations, allowing everyone an equal share of tourism dollars. Exemptions have been approved in both jurisdictions, allowing sales for those who meet certain criteria. And make no mistake - tourism dollars are extraordinarily important in poorer counties such as Jasper, with budgets that have been impacted on a wide scale by the economic downturn of the last few years.
With the large amount of traffic that flows between South Carolina and Georgia on SC 170, those dollars are coming into the state, but if this ordinance has a stifling affect on those businesses, it could have an impact on the county's finances.
Ronnie Malphrus, deputy administrator for the Jasper County Finance Department, says that the "potential for loss of jobs is the largest problem. We probably wouldn't see a huge impact from loss of sales revenues, but as far as the tax revenues go, if the business closes, we would definitely be impacted by the loss of property taxes."
According to club owners, the hours covered by the ordinance are their busiest hours, bringing in the lion's share of the money they use to pay those property taxes.
Yai Stringfield, the owner of the Gold Club, spoke at the June 20 County Council meeting, requesting to be placed on the July meeting agenda with a possible exemption clause to the ordinance. While she was placed on the agenda, her request was not exactly welcomed with open arms by the council.
"We have done everything that we can, from having transportation available to making sure that our employees go through TIPS (Training for Intervention ProcedureS) certification to be sure that our customers and the general public are safe, to be sure that we don't have another accident such as the one a couple of years ago," Stringfield said. "Most of us are struggling to stay open in this economy. We at the Gold Club are seriously in debt to the Department of Revenue. If we cannot serve or permit consumption during our busiest hours, how are we supposed to make money to pay our debts? And if we cannot pay our debts, how are we supposed to stay in business?"