2:00 A.M. Bar Closing Time Up For Discussion In Daytona

Daytona Beach, FL – Daytona Beach city leaders will discuss rolling bar hours back an hour, according to an agenda item for Wednesday’s commission meeting. The ordinance—which is continued from a previous meeting in December—will bring Daytona Beach’s bar closing time in-line with a majority of the county, which closes at 2:00 a.m. barring exceptions such as holidays. While some believe it could serve as a disadvantage, city leaders like Mayor Derrick Henry believe the extra hour will alleviate the city of some late night crime and provide a break to Daytona’s police officers and beachside residents. A study included in the agenda item found that 30 percent crime in the beachside area between Glenview Boulevard to Ora Street—including the city’s nightlife hub, Seabreeze Boulevard—occurred between the hours of 12:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m.  A study conducted in Norway found that each additional one-hour extension of bar closing times led to a 16 percent increase in violent crime. Meanwhile, a decision to close bars earlier in Newcastle, Australia led to the city’s late-night assault rate to fall by a third in 18 months. If the ordinance is passed on its first reading it’ll go before the commission again during a public hearing on March 2.