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The City Council unanimously denied boardwalk redeveloper Madison Marquette’s request to extend Beach Bar service onto the beach south of Convention Hall.

Mayor John Moor said he did not think it was appropriate to extend bar service to the Fifth Avenue beach, one the busiest areas along the city coastline.

“We granted them permission last year on the north side [of Convention Hall] because the north side was dead,” Moor said. “The Fifth Avenue beach is our most populated beach. To me, the reward isn’t worth the potential problems.”

Madison Marquette asked to extend their Beach Bar service 20 feet south of the stairs, Director of Retail Carrie Turner said. 

“We are disappointed in the denial, but are committed to continuing to offer customers a great experience at both Beach Bar and Anchor’s Bend,” Turner said in an email statement Monday.

Last year, the boardwalk redeveloper was granted a liquor license extension for bar service extending 30 feet north of the Anchor’s Bend stairs on the beach [north of Convention Hall], Turner said.

“Beach Bar customers have been requesting a bar on the beach for quite some time,” Turner said. “We started with the north side to work out any operational kinks of serving alcohol on the beach and experienced enough success that we felt ready to take the next step in responding to our customers’ demands by opening on the beach on the south side.”

Last year’s approval expanded the definition of a public sidewalk or café to include portions of a beach adjacent to a commercial establishment, according to muncipal records.

On Wednesday night, the vote was pulled from the consent agenda items by which the city council votes on a list of matters at one time. It was voted on as a separate matter and although there were no comments from the dais, the expansion was unanimously voted down.

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