LINCOLN — The bar crowd in this city got an extra hour for nightlife starting early Saturday.
Downtown music venues and college bars were quick to adopt the 2 a.m. closing time approved by the City Council.
Troy Falk, owner-operator of Doc's Place, a martini bar in Lincoln's Haymarket District, plans “late-night happy hours” catering to second-shift workers and restaurant employees who might like to grab an after-work drink with their friends.
He also hopes to attract business travelers and conventioneers in nearby hotels — people who would rather stay out late than sit alone in a hotel room.
Falk and other bar owners have said the later closing time will help Lincoln compete with Omaha's entertainment scene. Omaha adopted the 2 a.m. closing time in July.
With Lincoln's main entertainment draw — the Nebraska football team — out of town this weekend, the scene Friday night was quieter than it might otherwise have been.
Some are skeptical that the change will help Lincoln compete with Omaha. Trish and Heinz Westphal, who own the Garage sports bar in south Lincoln, opposed the 2 a.m. closing plan.
Heinz Westphal said it's Qwest Center Omaha concerts and the Council Bluffs casinos that draw away Lincoln residents, not a 2 a.m. last call.
Westphal said he and his wife weren't sure how late they would stay open under the new ordinance. He said he would let his customers decide.
“If 500 people are in your place, of course, you're going to stay open,” he said. “If there's five, it's time to go home.”
Westphal said he doesn't think that many Lincolnites are that interested in staying out later.
“Omaha has so much more of an entertainment scene,” Westphal said. “Lincoln is more like a Mayberry. It's more conservative.”
Some downtown sandwich shops and other eateries planned to stay open later to accommodate the post-bar crowd. But staffers said they worried about problems with rowdy customers.
Jimmy John's, for example, planned to close at 3 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. Shift manager Angela Tetschner said some employees were upset about the new hours.
“But you know, you've got to make adjustments,” she said.
Jason Azgary, manager of the Gourmet Grill, said his restaurant will keep its 2 a.m. closing time for now. He said staying open later could be hard on his employees, who are students.
He said he didn't think it was a good idea to keep bars open to 2 a.m.
“The more they drink, the more problems,” he said.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln student government provides a free ride service for students between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m.
Justin Solomon, UNL student body president, said there could be more demand for the service if students stay at bars an extra hour and sober ride options begin to disappear.
Lincoln Police Chief Tom Casady changed the hours for several officers who patrol the downtown bar district on bicycles. They now will be on duty from 5 p.m. to 3 a.m., instead of the previous 4 p.m. to 2 a.m.
The one-hour periods immediately after the bars close on Saturday and Sunday mornings usually are the “hottest” hours of the week for police, Casady said.
Casady said he expects the later closing time will simply shift alcohol-related service calls one hour later.
He was skeptical of the idea that later bar closing hours will help Lincoln retain young professionals by improving its nightlife.
“I think most young professionals have to get up and go to work,” Casady said. “That's my operating principle.”
City Council Chairman John Spatz said city officials intend to monitor the effects of the change and, if necessary, seek legislation giving cities more authority over liquor outlets.
The city also plans to start a beverage server licensing program that would require servers to be trained in recognizing when customers have had too much to drink.
Spatz said he had one overriding reason for supporting the change. He feared that if Lincoln kept its 1 a.m. last call, more residents would go to Omaha or nearby towns and possibly drive home drunk.
“To me, that was the worst-case scenario, and 99 percent of the reason I supported this,” Spatz said.
World-Herald staff writer Andrea Vasquez contributed to this report.
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