Floatopia May Be Sunk

Monday, July 26, 2010

By Katie Orr

Audio

Floatopia May Be Sunk

Aired 7/26/10

Floatopia could get deflated Monday. A loophole in San Diego's beach alcohol ban allows people to drink while floating in the water. The City Council will now decide whether to amend the ban to prohibit the parties.

SAN DIEGO — Floatopia could get deflated Monday. A loophole in San Diego's beach alcohol ban allows people to drink while floating in the water.

People float on rafts and drink on Sail Bay in Pacific Beach during a Floatopia event on July 17, 2010. The San Diego City Council has since banned the events. But organizers believe they've found a loophole in the law.

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Photo by Katie Orr

Above: People float on rafts and drink on Sail Bay in Pacific Beach during a Floatopia event on July 17, 2010. The San Diego City Council has since banned the events. But organizers believe they've found a loophole in the law.

The City Council will now decide whether to amend the ban to prohibit the parties. The council is considering extending the booze ban into the water for three nautical miles.

Thousands of people have attended several Floatopias over the past year. The events are organized anonymously on social media sites like Facebook.

Lifeguard Chief Rick Wurtz says the parties are dangerous and taxing on his department. In June, he told the council's Public Safety committee about a rescue that occurred at a Floatopia.

"(There was) a person who had consumed so much alcohol that they actually fell in relatively shallow water, water where they could have stood," he said.

The City Council is considering adopting the change as an emergency ordinance, which means it could take effect immediately if passed.

Comments

Avatar image for user 'wondernerd'

wondernerd | July 26, 2010 at 5:42 p.m. ― 1 year, 10 months ago

Republicans make me truly sick. They can not spout off enough about keeping government at bay and preserving our personal freedoms ... but that only applies to the rich class as they rape the middle and lower classes. Keep the government off of their backs. A few youth break existing public disorderly laws and the Republicans ban all alcohol for everyone! Kevin Faulconer and Jerry Sanders should be ashamed of their flagrant hypocrisy. Democrats may be stupid and spineless but the Republicans are evil. I won't always vote for a Democrat but I never again vote for a Republican.

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Avatar image for user 'erica9885'

erica9885 | July 30, 2010 at 2:23 p.m. ― 1 year, 10 months ago

So what was the verdict?

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