DowntownTuesday, November 10
Downtown Orlando venues ask the city to suspend after-midnight police fees
The ORLtoday team
The National Independent Venue Association asked Mayor Buddy Dyer and the City Council to suspend fees under downtown's After-Midnight Alcohol Sales permit program. Since May 2023, businesses serving alcohol from midnight to 2 a.m. in the Downtown Entertainment District have needed a permit.
NIVA says the city billed 39 downtown businesses more than $4.3 million for off-duty police officers from June 2023 through August 2025. The group says 10 of them have since closed.
10 of the 39 billed businesses have closed, NIVA says
10 of 39
- have closed
- 29 haven't closed
Source: Orlando Shine
View as table
| Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|
| have closed | 10 | 26% |
| haven't closed | 29 | 74% |
- Beacham: almost $30,000 a month, owner Frank Hamby says
- Celine: just under $10,000 a month, owner Eric Fuller says
- 24 of the 39 were billed more than $100,000 each
The city says the fees cover only a portion of downtown public safety costs, and a spokesperson credited its efforts with a 20% decrease in overall crime downtown. Fuller estimates only 23 of roughly 60 businesses pay. WKMG says a federal case is pending before the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The Beacham and Celine were each billed about $330,000
Source: WFTV
View as table
| Value | |
|---|---|
| The Beacham | $331K |
| Celine | $329K |
Sources: FOX 35 Orlando, WKMG, WESH, Orlando Shine, WFTV