04/19/2011 Meeting Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Council Minutes of 04-19-2011 people to use the Cabin for events. Rudolph asked if there are procedures in place and adequate monitoring to make sure there is no underage alcohol consumption or serving alcohol to people that have had too much to drink. Mayor Kennedy said for larger parties, the Safety Director can recommend having a police officer on duty. Rudolph said is there anyone that would be there that would monitor who is being served alcohol. Police are there for security. Mayor Kennedy said the officer would monitor any problems that would be happening. Rudolph said she can see there being problems with serving underage people. Gareau said no, there is no one who would be monitoring the serving of alcohol. The City of North Olmsted is not going to have a person on site serving in that capacity. Rudolph asked Gareau if he's comfortable with the risk the city would be taking. Gareau said he is not concerned about risk as either the owner of the property, who rents it; from the standpoint that the city does not sponsor the event and does not serve alcohol, he is not concerned about the city's risk in that capacity. The city owns a facility that has served alcohol -Springvale -and the city has never had a claim. Rudolph said Springvale is not in the middle of a children's park like the Community Cabin. Councilman Mahoney said the whereas clause that was amended regarding "beer" was in reference to last year's Community Council festival. This Ordinance as drafted would allow someone granted a permit to serve alcohol -beer, wine and hard alcohol. Councilman Barker said not every party held at the Community Cabin is going to have alcohol. Mayor Kennedy said the Safety Director will determine if it is or is not a party the city would want. Terry Groden, 25211 Chase Drive said he is also here to speak about 2011-33. Alcohol use by people under the age of 21 years is a major health problem according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. According to the US Attorney General, the greatest influence on young peoples' decisions to begin drinking is the world they live in which includes the community. Groden said there is a proposal tonight to serve and consume alcohol in the Cabin in the middle of North Olmsted Park - a park where our kids come to play games and sports and a Cabin that's located right next to their playground. At last weeks Recreation Committee meeting and last year when Council was approving a measure to serve alcohol in the park for homecoming, he supplied data to Council that demonstrates the serious problems that are associated with underage drinking. He also presented research from the US Dept. of Health and an opinion from the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism about the connection between increased exposure to alcohol consumption by adults and the likelihood that minors will imitate that behavior. Parents underestimate the influence their own drinking habits have on their childrens' attitude towards alcohol. Two weeks the MetLife Foundation and Partnership for aDrug-Free America released a study that showed teenage alcohol consumption is increasing. Do we really want to increase young peoples' exposure to alcohol consumption in light of this? Do we want to increase vehicular in and around the park by drivers who may be impaired? He asked if the city has done any cost-benefit analysis to see how much additional revenue that will be realized by this proposal weighed against the risks involved. He is not against responsible alcohol consumption by adults in the presence of adults and we cannot completely shelter kids from consumption from images on TV, but you can do something to limit that exposure. He urged Council to say no to 2011-33. 8