A judge has rejected an effort by Orlando bar and music venues downtown to pause a costly city ordinance restricting alcohol sales after midnight, as a lawsuit over the city’s alcohol rules proceeds.
Plaintiffs including popular venues such as The Beacham, The Social, Aero Rooftop Bar and Celine filed a federal lawsuit against the city and Orlando police chief Eric Smith last year over the city ordinance, which was first enacted in 2023 in response to high-profile shootings downtown.
The Orlando ordinance requires certain businesses in the Downtown Entertainment Area to purchase a $250 permit annually in order to sell alcohol after midnight, and requires permit holders with a capacity of at least 125 to pay for mandatory security and costly off-duty police protection. (Off-duty OPD officers, for instance, charge at least $36 per hour at establishments where alcohol is served.)
Several bars downtown, including HighT and 1Up, have closed their doors since the law’s enactment, citing in part “overwhelming financial strain” from recent nightlife restrictions.
The lawsuit against the city claims that its mandatory security measures are costing affected businesses $51,480 to $145,080 annually, while larger sports venues such as the Kia Center, Camping World Stadium and hotels are exempted from such requirements.
“Faced with a need for increased security downtown on a routine basis, the City began looking for ways to finance its increased police presence within the DEA. However, it did not look to the massive stadiums or wealthy professional sports teams that invite thousands of visitors downtown and serve alcohol for several hours before turning them out on the streets of downtown Orlando,” the lawsuit reads.
“Instead, the City imposed a land use permit and related fees on roughly 33 small businesses, the result of which, quite literally, taxes them to pay the City’s full costs for additional police presence, traffic control, and public safety within the DEA from 10:30 pm to 3:30 am every weekend, while letting the City deploy these police officers for any use it deems proper in its unfettered discretion within the DEA,” it continues.
Statistics released by the Orlando Police Department earlier this year found that crime in Orlando actually declined last year, in step with a national downward trend, following a post-pandemic incline. OPD, a sprawling agency with a $263 million budget, reported an 18 percent decrease in total crime in Orlando in 2024 and a 10 percent decrease in violent crime. The department has proposed a nearly 10 percent increase to its operating budget for the next fiscal year.
Plaintiffs argue that “none” of the violent incidents that have taken place in or near downtown Orlando since 2021 have any connection to them or other businesses within the DEA. Instead, the lawsuit argues, “many” of the incidents of concern to city leaders occurred in areas such as public streets and city parking garages.
The lawsuit claims the city ordinance amounts to “unconstitutional government overreach,” in part by unconstitutionally “transferring the cost” of policing the DEA on weekends and elsewhere onto small business owners affected by the ordinance.
Plaintiffs sought an injunction (i.e., a pause) on further enforcement of the ordinance, as well as damages covering fees plaintiffs have paid in relation to the ordinance, attorney fees, litigation costs, “and any other relief that may be appropriate.”
According to WFTV, however, a judge rejected plaintiffs’ bid for an injunction this week, writing, “The court concludes that the motion fails because it does not establish irreparable harm.” This means that enforcement of the ordinance will continue while the lawsuit plays out.
Other cities in Central Florida have similarly enacted their own restrictions on alcohol sales in the late hours since Orlando put its own in place, including Kissimmee and Winter Garden. Orlando City Council reportedly considered further tightening its ordinance earlier this year after a fatal shooting of a man by a police officer, but decided to pursue other measures instead.
City officials reopened traffic on Orange Avenue (previously blocked off downtown) on weekends, and has sought to attract new businesses and visitors to the area through expanded parking options, city-funded micro-transit services, art installations, and financial incentive programs for new retailers and restaurants downtown.
If you are a downtown business owner (or employee) affected by recent restrictions on city nightlife, we want to hear from you. Email news@orlandoweekly.com to get in touch.
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Orlando bars HighT and 1Up to close permanently due to financial strain
This article appears in Aug 6-12, 2025.