Outdoor beer gardens around Camp Randall may soon face capacity limits if the city passes a plan proposed by the city's fire department.

Madison Fire Department Marshal Ed Ruckriegel recently met with a subcommittee of the Madison Alcohol License Review Committee and suggested placing a limit on the number of people allowed in a beer garden on football game days.

"Their [reasoning] is what [could happen if] there is a fire or emergency situation inside one of those establishments and the people inside can't get out because the beer gardens are so crowded," said Marsh Shapiro, ALRC member and Dane County Tavern League representative.

According to the proposed plan, the fire department will establish the capacity caps differently for each individual establishment based on components such as the number of exits provided.

While there are capacity limits for the bars inside, a limit on the number of patrons allowed in the outdoor gardens would be the first of its kind.

Though the need for safety regulations may be needed, Shapiro said there may be an underlying reason to establish capacity caps on game days.

"They're trying to put a lid on some of the pre-game and post-game activity," Shapiro added. "I think it's more [an issue of] crowd-control, and they're trying to lessen amount of alcohol consumption."

He also said establishing a cap may "drastically" affect the success of bars hosting beer gardens on game days.

"I'm a little disappointed that they have felt the need to do this," Shapiro, who owns the Nitty Gritty, said. "The places that they're talking about … depend so heavily on football Saturdays for some of their revenues."

Jim Luedtke, owner of Stadium Sports Bar and Eatery on Monroe Street, said a significant part of his bar's revenue rests on the success of beer gardens on fall game days.

"The football beer gardens are the gravy of being in business, and they help pad our profit margins," he said.

Luedtke said a capacity limit is not needed for the businesses in the area.

"I don't think that'll be fair," he said. "[The beer gardens] all have plenty of ways getting out and in. I don't think it's a problem."

Luedtke added his beer garden — the largest in the Camp Randall area — uses Dane County sheriffs to monitor crowd activity within the area.

But Susan Crowley, president of the Policy Alternatives Community Education project, said a capacity cap would benefit public safety.

"There's so much drinking going on, it's a good idea about how many people can be in an area in case there has to be a situation to evacuate," she said.

A capacity cap, according to Crowley, would help slow down the number of people congregating in one area and make police patrol easier.

"Hopefully what'll happen is if people want to enjoy a beer before the game, it will disperse them to a different area — some areas off of Regent Street," she added. "There's still a lot of opportunities to have a beer and a brat, they'll just have to go a little farther."

Crowley said she would most likely speak at the next ALRC meeting on behalf of PACE, an organization that aims to curb binge-drinking on campus.

But Luedtke said he would not prefer to see the limit.

"Yes, our beer gardens get very crowded," he said. "But I think without any doubt that the majority of people enjoy the beer gardens as is."