The 15-member La Crosse Alcohol Task Force made proposals to La Crosse City Council officials Feb. 10 intending to make the city safer from alcohol-related deaths and health issues.

Their findings come after last year’s death of 21-year-old University of Wisconsin-La Crosse student Jared Dion, who disappeared April 10. His body was recovered five days later from the Mississippi and an autopsy confirmed a .27 blood-alcohol concentration.

The LATF was created by La Crosse Mayor John Medinger in June and consists of several individuals, including law enforcement officials, business owners and bar owners.

The group is charged with tackling issues related to excessive alcohol use.

“[The LATF] is address[ing] making changes in our alcohol culture,” LATF Chair Petra Roter said. “We found as we kept looking alcohol was turning up more and more.”

According to Susan Crowley, director of the Madison-based Policy Alternatives Community Education project, the study’s recommendations have much to do with La Crosse’s geographic location next to the Mississippi. Crowley testified before the LATF.

“I was really struck during my visit with them. The cultures of different communities really have to play into the kind of recommendations you make,” Crowley said. “The river is the greatest piece of the puzzle for them.”

The LATF recommended 19 changes, including a commissioned engineering study of La Crosse’s river district, the development of a Social Detox Facility and an increase in police patrols in designated alcohol “hot spots.”

Leaders of the study also wish to strengthen pre-existing city ordinances, including increased fines for underage drinking, limiting bar density and holding landlords and tenants responsible for disruptive behavior and underage drinking.

The LATF also recommended reducing the number of tavern facilities and initiating an implementation of keg registration. Keg registration policies are already in effect in Madison.

Roter said the study was not only aimed at university students but other community members as well. In the last seven years, there have been five fatal drinking accidents in La Crosse where blood-alcohol counts varied between .2 and .47, according to Roter.

“This is more community-based; the mayor wanted to look at other safety issues,” Roter said. “If we’re going to do something about it, we’re going to do something about it as a community.”

While La Crosse’s “river-city” status is a serious concern for those looking into preventing alcohol-related deaths, Madison’s “lake-city” status is not seen by most as a hindrance.

According to Crowley, Lake Mendota has not directly been a significant factor in alcohol-related deaths at UW. However, she said because of the city’s isolation, which is a result of the isthmus, Madison accounts for a small-business district where licensed taverns are located.

“In La Crosse, they have students literally falling into the river because of where their taverns are located,” Crowley said. “We don’t have to worry about the lakes because we’ve identified so many other areas that [are prone to high-risk drinking].”

As a result, PACE-involved projects have focused on improving the UW campus scene through a reduction in high-risk drinking.