Van Buren City Council says ‘Cheers!’ to downtown entertainment district

Lori Suggs (right) and Kaylynn Suggs, both of Van Buren, walk past storefronts on Thursday, June 30, 2022, in the Van Buren Historic District in downtown Van Buren. The Van Buren City Council voted Monday to approve an ordinance establishing two entertainment districts in the city, according to the City Clerk’s Office. The two new entertainment districts, which collectively form the Main Street Entertainment District, comprise the 600 block and part of the 800 block of Main Street in downtown Van Buren, the ordinance states. Visit nwaonline.com/220703Daily/ for today's photo gallery.
(NWA Democrat-Gazette/Hank Layton)
Lori Suggs (right) and Kaylynn Suggs, both of Van Buren, walk past storefronts on Thursday, June 30, 2022, in the Van Buren Historic District in downtown Van Buren. The Van Buren City Council voted Monday to approve an ordinance establishing two entertainment districts in the city, according to the City Clerk’s Office. The two new entertainment districts, which collectively form the Main Street Entertainment District, comprise the 600 block and part of the 800 block of Main Street in downtown Van Buren, the ordinance states. Visit nwaonline.com/220703Daily/ for today's photo gallery. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Hank Layton)

VAN BUREN -- Residents will be able to drink alcohol outside of restaurants in the downtown area of Crawford County's largest city.

Van Buren's City Council established two entertainment districts at its meeting Monday . The council also approved an emergency clause making the ordinance effective immediately.

The districts, which collectively form the Main Street Entertainment District, comprise the 600 block and part of the 800 block of Main Street in downtown Van Buren. People will be able to buy alcoholic beverages from restaurants, bars, breweries and vendors at special events in the district, and then consume them outside the establishment as long as they stay within district boundaries.

Julie Murray, president and chief executive officer for the Van Buren Chamber of Commerce, said this new district will hopefully help grow the traffic for downtown businesses, specifically the restaurants.

"If restaurants grow their businesses, that brings more people downtown to visit our other shops," Murray said. "That's the hope."

Murray said increased sales for these businesses would lead to further growth for those they support and the downtown area, as well as increased sales tax revenue for the community.

Maryl Purvis, director of the Van Buren Advertising & Promotions Commission, likewise said the entertainment district will enhance the dining and shopping experience already in place downtown. While she doesn't believe it will have a large impact on its own in terms of drawing people to the area, it will allow people to dine outside with an alcoholic beverage and facilitate more entertainment from the participating businesses, which will help matters.

"I think that anything that we can do to attract people to Main Street, have them stay longer on Main Street, is better for Main Street and the businesses along Main Street," Purvis said.

Teresa Tankersley of the City Clerk-Treasurer's Office said the entertainment district will be the first of its kind in Van Buren. It will operate from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 10 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday, with signs designating boundaries.

The alcoholic beverages people can buy in the district must be contained in a designated cup no larger than 16 ounces provided by a participating business. The business will also provide wristbands verifying the person with the beverage has shown identification proving they are old enough to drink alcohol, which will be required for them to drink outside of where they bought it. Businesses will get the cups, wristbands and signs they need to participate in the district through the city.

Entertainment districts aren't a new concept to the River Valley. Fort Smith city directors established three entertainment districts in the city in 2020: one at The Hub at Chaffee Crossing, one in the Chaffee Crossing Historic Area and one downtown. City directors for nearby Barling established a district of their own in Chaffee Crossing in 2021.

Murray said Wednesday the 600 and 800 blocks of Main Street have one restaurant each that serves alcohol -- the Vault 1905 Sports Grill and Pasta Grill & Catering. Two more such businesses are anticipated to open in the 600 block in the future.

Purvis said although Van Buren is in Crawford County -- a "dry" county -- people can purchase alcohol from businesses with a private club permit from the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration's Alcoholic Beverage Control Division.

Arkansas Act 874 of 2021, passed during last year's state legislative session, amended earlier legislation regarding entertainment districts so they could be created by municipalities in counties with entities authorized to sell alcohol, as opposed to just "wet" areas.

Murray said the members of the Chamber of Commerce and Advertising & Promotions Commission supported this legislation. She argued Van Buren's restaurants would have benefited from being able to serve alcohol outside at the height of the covid-19 pandemic due to the social distancing guidelines that were in place at the time.

"They could serve food, but it would've helped them a great deal if they could've served drinks outside as well," Murray said.

Purvis estimated it won't be long before businesses and residents will be able to partake in the entertainment district, although she couldn't provide specifics. This will depend on how much time it will take to get the necessary material prepared, such as the cups, wristbands and signage.

The ordinance states the city clerk-treasurer is also obligated to notify the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division this entertainment district has been created within 10 days of it passing. Information about the district, including its boundaries, participating businesses and how it will be regulated will be available at the Van Buren Municipal Complex and on the city website and other platforms.

Mayor Joe Hurst said during Monday's meeting the City Council could always repeal the district or expand it at a later time.

  photo  Aaron Dickens and Chelsea Dickens walk past storefronts on Thursday, June 30, 2022, in the Van Buren Historic District in downtown Van Buren. The Van Buren City Council voted Monday to approve an ordinance establishing two entertainment districts in the city, according to the City Clerk’s Office. The two new entertainment districts, which collectively form the Main Street Entertainment District, comprise the 600 block and part of the 800 block of Main Street in downtown Van Buren, the ordinance states. Visit nwaonline.com/220703Daily/ for today's photo gallery. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Hank Layton)
 
 
  photo  Tracy Burba, a merchant of Main Street Threads, walks past storefronts on Thursday, June 30, 2022, in the Van Buren Historic District in downtown Van Buren. The Van Buren City Council voted Monday to approve an ordinance establishing two entertainment districts in the city, according to the City Clerk’s Office. The two new entertainment districts, which collectively form the Main Street Entertainment District, comprise the 600 block and part of the 800 block of Main Street in downtown Van Buren, the ordinance states. Visit nwaonline.com/220703Daily/ for today's photo gallery. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Hank Layton)
 
 
  photo  Shoppers enter Firefly Boutique and Gifts on Thursday, June 30, 2022, in the Van Buren Historic District in downtown Van Buren. The Van Buren City Council voted Monday to approve an ordinance establishing two entertainment districts in the city, according to the City Clerk’s Office. The two new entertainment districts, which collectively form the Main Street Entertainment District, comprise the 600 block and part of the 800 block of Main Street in downtown Van Buren, the ordinance states. Visit nwaonline.com/220703Daily/ for today's photo gallery. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Hank Layton)
 
 
  photo  Pedestrians visit on Thursday, June 30, 2022, in front of a store in the Van Buren Historic District in downtown Van Buren. The Van Buren City Council voted Monday to approve an ordinance establishing two entertainment districts in the city, according to the City Clerk’s Office. The two new entertainment districts, which collectively form the Main Street Entertainment District, comprise the 600 block and part of the 800 block of Main Street in downtown Van Buren, the ordinance states. Visit nwaonline.com/220703Daily/ for today's photo gallery. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Hank Layton)
 
 

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Population

Van Buren had a population of 23,218 as of April 1, 2020.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

 


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