The San Diego City Council voted unanimously on July 26 to ban future Floatopias by adding the definition of “bathers” to San Diego Municipal Code 56.54. The code will now ban the consumption of alcohol by those floating in the water or on floatation devices within three nautical miles of the shore. At the meeting council President Ben Hueso opened up the agenda item to public comment. “Further, thousands of attendees that come to these events urinate in our waters, they throw their empty beer bottles and beer cans into the water, they destroy vegetation along the shoreline and they kill untold numbers of fish and birds in their habitats,” said Kelly Cramer, representing San Diego Coastkeeper. Gordon Nall, a representative of Free PB, a nonprofit organization whose mission it is to “prevent the erosion and promote the expansion of individual rights,” commented in support of Floatopia. He blames the passing of the beach alcohol ban for driving people to participate in events such as Floatopia. “I want to make something clear — I am not, nor is Free PB — Floatopia’s creator, organizer, founder, anything like that,” Nall said. His suggestion was to give the public a place to go and drink on the beach and charge money for the privilege. “From my standpoint, some of the biggest concerns I have heard from my constituents is public safety,” said District 2 City Councilman Kevin Faulconer. Capt. Chris Ball of the San Diego Police Department’s Northern Division, said attendees of Floatopias are not in the water to enjoy the sunny day, but rather to consume alcohol. “We have seen kegs out on floats,” Ball said. “The kegs carry about 17 gallons of beer.” Safety officials have to watch participants from the same level as the floaters, making it nearly impossible to see if someone has slipped between the rafts. “What we end of up with first is a very real possibility of someone drowning,” Ball said. City officials are also quite wary of the public safety hazards. “This isn’t just the San Diego City Council saying ‘no,’ ‘no,’ ‘no’ to things. This is the San Diego City Council trying to keep people alive at our beaches,” said Councilwoman Marti Emerald, who chairs the Public Safety and Neighborhood Services Committee. Councilman Tony Young said he supported the ordinance even though he did not support the initial beach alcohol ban. “I believe that people who act like adults should get adult privileges and so when you start taking these privileges away, these are the types of things that happen,” Young said. “You get Floatopia and who knows what’s going to be next?” Young asked if the council should consider other loopholes that should be addressed in the ordinance prior to its passage. Ball told councilmembers that police remain prepared. “I would say this. If we get a dozen people as a result of this out in kayaks that are drinking a beer, we have the resources to handle that,” Ball said. Since the ban passed, friends of the Facebook page “Floatopia SanDiego,” have been actively searching for a new loophole in San Diego Municipal Code 56.54.