WALNUT CREEK, CALIFORNIA – Love the idea of strolling around your favorite town, cocktail in hand, like it’s 2021 again (but without the hassle of a global pandemic)?
You’re in luck!
The Walnut Creek City Council is moving forward with a plan to create a downtown “Entertainment Zone,” a state-enabled program that would allow adults to buy alcoholic beverages from participating licensed businesses and consume them in designated public areas during permitted events.
The proposal was on the City Council’s April 21 agenda as an ordinance adding an “Entertainment Zones” chapter to the Walnut Creek Municipal Code.
The idea comes out of Senate Bill 969, a California law that lets cities and counties create local entertainment zones where alcohol can be consumed on public streets, sidewalks, or public rights-of-way.
California’s Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control says the law expanded the open-container entertainment-zone concept statewide and allows eligible licensees to let patrons leave their premises with open containers during approved days and hours inside a designated zone.
Where the Zone Would Be
The proposed downtown Walnut Creek zone would cover a core part of the city’s restaurant and shopping district: Locust Street and North Main Street between Mt. Diablo Boulevard and Civic Drive, plus Bonanza and Cypress streets between North California Boulevard and North Broadway.
For those following along at home, that’s the downtown core of Walnut Creek, with tons of restaurants and bars within that zone.
It’s not quite as loose as the “anything goes” days of the 2021 semi-legal cocktail stroll, though.
The draft rules call for the zone to operate only during approved entertainment-zone events, with participating businesses, special-event permits, ABC compliance, security protocols, wristbands, signage, and approved cups.
How It Would Work
Under the proposed system, eligible restaurants, bars, breweries, and wineries could participate if they have the proper alcohol licensing and follow the city’s management plan. Customers would be able to buy an alcoholic drink from a participating business and take it outside into the entertainment zone, but only in approved non-glass and non-metal containers.
The draft management plan also requires wristbands for anyone buying or drinking alcohol in the zone, with the wristband identifying that person as 21 or older. For larger events, IDs could be checked at entrances or other locations within the zone.
Security would also be part of the program. Participating businesses would need to follow a Walnut Creek Police Department-approved security plan, and larger or unique events would require their own security plan before they could happen.
The boundaries would need to be clearly marked, with signs telling people not to carry alcoholic beverages beyond the zone.
Why Walnut Creek Is Considering It
City documents frame the idea as an economic-development tool — a way to activate downtown, support restaurants and bars, and bring more people into Walnut Creek’s retail and dining corridors. The draft management plan lists goals including activating the downtown corridor, increasing revenue for Walnut Creek businesses, attracting visitors, and reinforcing downtown as a cultural hub.
Walnut Creek Downtown Association is identified as the project sponsor in the draft plan, coordinating participating businesses and serving as the point of contact for the entertainment zone.
It Still Has a Few More Steps
Contra Costa News reported that the council backed the idea as a two-year pilot in a 5-0 vote, but also noted that city officials clarified the vote was on the ordinance framework — not yet the enforceable management plan, which would return later.
So don’t get out your Old Fashioned yet. But if things move ahead, you could be strolling the streets of WC, drink in hand, entirely above board!
We’ll follow progress on this new proposal and keep you updated. Make sure to join our free 925 News newsletter:
