Enforcers of the municipality of Meppel have issued dozens of fines for drinking alcohol on the street for the past weekends. Since July 5, people have been fined who drink alcohol on the street or on the square.
“Sixteen fines were handed out last weekend for drinking on the street. The weekend before that thirty fines were issued,” said a spokesperson for the municipality. With that, Meppel has now collected more than 5,000 euros, a fine costs 110 euros.
The municipality has used extra people to maintain the alcohol ban. With the sharpened checks, Meppel wants to prevent nuisance in the center and at the station area. This includes fights and other violent incidents.
Meppel thinks it is too early to draw conclusions. “Last weekend was only the second weekend in which there was actively maintained towards visitors. We do see that hospitality entrepreneurs make better effort to keep alcoholic drinks within the catering room. However, this approach requires a longer period before the effect is easy to measure.”
In the fight against nuisance in the weekend nights, the municipality is investigating whether fast food chains mandatory in the past can be closed. Now the chains can stay open until 5 a.m. in the morning, while cafés are already closed for two hours. The VVD in Meppel argues for the fast food chains to close half an hour after the pubs close, according to questions asked to the mayor and aldermen.
The same party is critical of alcohol sales in the fast food chains. The chains are allowed to sell cans of beer, but it should not be drunk on the spot because fast food chains do not have a catering license.
“That alcohol is then consumed contrary to the rules on the street. These situations lead to persistent crowds, upsurers and enforcement problems in the center, while most catering establishments are already closed,” says the VVD. According to the college, the tightened alcohol checks are intended to prevent this kind of nuisance.