A new proposal spearheaded by Madison Mayor Paul Soglin is looking to crack down on “dangerous” house parties and underage drinking, but a critic of the ordinance said he fears almost any house party could fall under the ordinance’s ambiguous language. 

Madison’s Alcohol Policy Coordinator Mark Woulf said the ordinance – co-sponsored in July by Soglin and Ald. Paul Skidmore, District 9 – is something
Soglin has been working to implement in an attempt to decrease the large and often dangerous
alcohol-driven house parties that are notorious throughout the city.

“What we’re talking about are parties with 60 to 100 people hanging off balconies, a
significant number of which are underage folks,” Soglin said.

The ordinance as drafted would allow police to declare a party a nuisance if the attendees violate one of 17 existing laws, ranging from allowing underage drinking to violating fire codes due to overcrowding. Kegs visible from a public sidewalk, street or neighboring property can be cited as an additional reason to label a party a nuisance. If a subsequent nuisance party takes place within the next year, both the landlord and the tenant can be fined from $100 to $5,000 for each violation. 

A landlord can be exempted from the fine if they can prove the nuisance party hosters have been evicted or attempts were made to evict them.

According to Ald. Scott Resnick, District 8, the ordinance was drafted two years ago, but not picked up until Soglin took office and was looking to introduce similar legislation.

“Underage drinking and house parties can be a dangerous environment, disruptive
to neighbors and add additional costs for police, and this is a response to that,” Resnick said. “However, one major criticism from the two committees that have
seen the ordinance so far is that the language is too ambiguous.”

Resnick said while the ordinance may not have been drafted with students in mind it could have a serious impact on the way students enjoy their free time.

“This has a drastic effect on student life,” Resnick said. “Outdoor game day parties now give police reason to enter the premises creating a very detrimental impact to students and unfairly targeting them.”

Woulf said the ordinance would not change the way police break up student parties.
Instead, it holds the landlords slightly more accountable so they will begin to get
more proactive about driving down the numbers of nuisance house parties.

Resnick said one major fear is that the landlord would be penalized, so they may
begin adding extensive provisions to their leases, making it even more difficult for
students to find housing.

Soglin said the major benefit of the ordinance would be public health and safety. He said it
would reduce incidents like that of the stabbings at the 2011 Mifflin Block Party, where there were 20 or more witnesses, none of whom were sober.

“It would certainly reduce the number of conveyances to detox and emergency rooms and make
neighborhoods more tolerable,” Soglin said. “This ordinance provides more flexibility to law enforcement in terms of dealing
with excessive and often times illegal alcohol consumption.”

Woulf said Soglin and Skidmore are working to meet with alders to get to a point
where everyone is comfortable with the language.

Resnick said the ordinance will be a process spread over several months. It is currently referred
to the Housing Committee, which is scheduled to meet in September.