Fifteen years ago, there were public health initiatives that launched the current era of downtown Iowa City. Downtown had an overabundance of bars. Our city had a reputation for being built around a culture of alcohol. Iowa City was rated as one of the top party schools.
The University of Iowa was working on a variety of programming and advocacy to reduce harm to undergraduates caused by alcohol consumption. The city implemented a zoning ordinance to regulate the number of bars within the “University Impact Zone.”
These rules manage the distance between liquor license holders who can have occupancy between midnight and 2 a.m. A new liquor license holder cannot have occupancy past midnight if there is another license holder that stays open until 2 a.m. within 500 feet of them. The 21-only ordinance came along, with the hopes of reducing underage drinking…