Photo provided by Bubber Hutto: Should Folly Beach ban alcohol on the beach to combat trash?

Recently, a large group of visitors to Folly Beach left a present for residents after the Fourth of July holiday: a huge amount of trash. It is inevitable that many people will visit the beach and that more trash will be created as a result. However, many people left their trash on the beach itself which included coolers, beer cans, boxes and bottles with little regard for what would happen when they left. Fortunately, many concerned volunteers cleaned up the mess. However, it has the City government wondering whether or not alcohol should be banned on the beach in order to combat similar situations. Check out this survey to express your opinion on the matter.

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Council member Eddie Ellis makes his point as the Folly Beach City Council discussed litter and alcohol on the beach during a July 14 work session.

While the term “alcohol ban” has been getting a lot of attention in conjunction with Folly Beach lately, the City Council hardly mentioned it during an emergency work session aimed at dealing with the trash problems that surfaced after recent July 4 celebrations. However, the option is still very much on the table and citizens will have a chance to weigh-in during an August 4 public meeting.

Members of City Council recognized that littering on the beach and alcohol are separate issues. Mayor Carl Beckmann pointed out that Isle of Palms and Sullivan’s Island, both of which already ban alcohol, had the exact same problems with excessive trash, beach litter, and trash receptacles overflowing with bags, bottles, and cans that Folly Beach had during the July 4 weekend. The majority of Council seemed to agree that banning alcohol was not a solution for reducing litter on the beach and they worked hard to focus on solving the litter problem and brainstormed many options that could change the image of Folly Beach from an “anything goes” party to one that demands respect.

Some of the ideas the Council produced to reduce litter included providing trash bags at walkovers, banning styrofoam coolers, and getting rid of the “cup” rule which requires alcohol to be poured into plastic cups but simultaneously creates more trash. Many Council members were hesitant to create more legislation. Instead, they wanted to do a better jof enforcing existing laws. While the City does not have its own litter law, State laws which include jail time and a $1000 fine could be enforced. Council member Eddie Ellis was adamant that new legislation would only work to “water down” the already thin Public Safety Department. One of the more popular ideas that could be immediately implemented was “litter blitzes”, where the Public Safety Department comes out in force over the course of several weekends heavily focused on enforcing litter laws on the beach in order to get the message across.

The Council also worked on another problem: inappropriate behavior. Folly Beach, it seems, has become plagued with disrespectful visitors, and residents as well, who throw trash in peoples’ yards, fight, and even urinate on private property. It was during this discussion that banning alcohol began to raise its head. While Council member Laura Beck said that she preferred not to create more legislation, she led the charge with ideas that focused on banning alcohol in one form or another. Among the suggestions were banning alcohol during “high holidays” such as July 4.

One of the more interesting and popular ideas was a “citizens patrol” idea that was modeled after a Del Rey, Florida program in which volunteers out of the community are trained to patrol particular areas in conjunction with the local police force. Charlie McCarty introduced the idea and pointed out that Folly Beach has over 30 property assocations and groups that could be engaged to patrol their particular areas of the island in order to combat inappropriate behavior.

The Council produced many ideas and will present their suggestions at an August 4 meeting that is expected to be held at the Folly Beach Holiday Inn. Public input will be heard at the meeting. While alcohol and litter are two separate issues for the City Council, Mayor Beckmann stated that a poll would be taken from attendees of the meeting on whether alcohol should be banned in its right. The public sentiment seems to be a 50/50 split, according to the City Council. Details have not been finalized on the August 4 meeting, so contact City Hall for more information. The City Council is scheduled to hold their regular meeting on July 28.

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