Don’t waste window of opportunity

Starting June 1, those 19- and 20-year-olds used to bar hopping in Iowa City will have to find something else to do.

Last week, Iowa City Councilors passed an ordinance change prohibiting people younger than 21 from the city's bars after 10 p.m. That was the right move, one widely supported by members of the University of Iowa and Iowa City communities.

It's a move that also has its critics, some of whom have vowed to take the issue to voters next fall.

Regardless of the result of that crusade, there's a five-month window during which underage people won't have access to Iowa City bars.

That's five months for stakeholders to prove that 21 can work. It's time for them to step up.

Business owners should seize this opportunity to provide 19- and 20-year-olds with alcohol-free places to socialize.

The UI and other groups concerned with excessive alcohol consumption should use this opportunity to aggressively attack Iowa City's culture of dangerous drinking.

There's good reason to be concerned about the risky drinking habits of underage drinkers in Iowa City. UI medical professors have said the highest number of alcohol-related hospitalizations there involve people ages 18 and 19.

Underage UI students make up a good portion of that number. On average, University of Iowa students drink more, and drink more often, than their peers at other universities. Research suggests the 21-only ordinance will help bring those numbers down.

But critics of the 21-only ordinance say it will leave the city's thousands of 19- and 20-year-olds without any place to socialize. Some Iowa City bar owners have said the 21-only ordinance could mean the end of their businesses.

Instead, they should think of it as an invitation to evolve. We hope they put at least as much effort into finding new opportunities as they do trying to defeat the 21-only ordinance.

Those former underage bar patrons still will have time and money to spend. They'll still be looking for some place to meet people and cut loose. Smart business owners will target that need and fill it.

University of Iowa leaders have been vocal supporters of the 21-only ordinance. The UI Faculty Senate has endorsed the move, as have the school's administrators.

So it's critical now for the UI community to throw its weight behind campus initiatives that will help reduce risky alcohol consumption - like scheduling more Friday morning classes, providing attractive alcohol-free activities and educating students about the effects of dangerous drinking behaviors.

Community leaders and groups that have fought to keep underage patrons out of bars will face another fight if the issue makes November's ballot. But it would be a mistake for them to wait that long. Act now.