TUPELO, Miss. (WTVA) -- The Tupelo City Council is one step closer to adopting a new ordinance regulating nightclubs and alcohol.
Council members drafted an ordinance during a work session Thursday.
"If you have a license through the state and a permit through the city, you still cannot brown bag?" asked Councilman Mike Bryan.
That's just one of the questions that Bryan and others had Thursday afternoon for the city's attorney.
Tupelo Police Chief Tony Carleton, City Planning Director B.J. Teal and the city attorney have been working to draft a new ordinance to regulate nightclubs and alcoholic beverages.
Carleton says the draft would be good for the city with some minor changes.
The move to draft a new ordinance came after the shooting death of a Tupelo man at an establishment once known as Rooster Cats in 2011, according to Carleton.
"That was just something that sparked it and we said we have to get some of these clubs in order and make them safe for the community," said Carleton. "We have to make sure that we do a good job of reaching out to the community. This is another way we can reach out to make these places safe."
Carleton says some of the safety issues include overcrowding and excessive drinking, especially in clubs that allow patrons to bring in alcohol.
"Some of these guys that have a bring-your-own-bottle haven't had any training to know when enough is enough. I don't need to serve this person anymore," said Carleton.
He says club owners and promoters would be required to have a license proving they are trained to know when customers have had enough.
There would also be security requirements.
Under state law, a club owner with an alcohol license cannot allow customers to bring in alcohol.
Tupelo's new alcohol ordinance would require nightclub owners to operate as either a nightclub or restaurant, according to Carleton.
Restaurants would be allowed to have a bring-your-own-bottle policy.
But, restaurants with bars and bands would have to get a nightclub license under the new ordinance, said Carleton.
Nightclubs that serve food would not be able to have a bring-your-own-bottle policy under a new ordinance.
