Like the last in a line of dominos, James Island is set to follow the city of Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Charleston County and others in setting the earlier closing time.
James Island Town Council already has given a 2 a.m. ordinance first reading, and a town committee recommended last week that council give the law final approval on April 15. Charleston County Sheriff Al Cannon said that if the town fails to act, the concentration of late-night bar action on James Island could be a negative.
But some bar owners question whether there has been a public clamor for an earlier closing time, or whether the domino theory is driving the process.
They say they haven't heard a slew of complaints since bars in Charleston began closing at 2 a.m. a few months ago, pushing the late-night business elsewhere.
"Has anybody asked for this?" said Jeff Haertel, co-owner of Buffalo South on Folly Road. "There is nothing saying it's bad."
Steve Clymer, general manager of The Reef, said the bar has taken steps to handle extra business, such as beefing up security.
"I don't see what the problem is," he said. "We really haven't had any problems."
Cannon said the sheriff's office has been a little busier on James Island in the last few months, but he is reluctant to tie that to 2 a.m. bar closings elsewhere.
He said, however, it's common sense that it might not be good for the island to have a monopoly on late-night bar activity.
"From my perspective, it's not going to be a positive," Cannon said.
A number of islanders agree. Some said residents around The Reef have been circulating a petition in favor of the earlier closing time, and others said that 2 a.m. is late enough, plain and simple.
"As early as the bars can close, the better it is, as far as I'm concerned," said Joyce Southwell, who serves on the town's public safety committee.
"If you don't have enough to drink by 2 a.m., God forbid."
If James Island prohibits late-night bar activity, Folly Beach will be one of the last places in the county to get a drink at a bar after 2 a.m.
The dominos might stop falling at the Folly River, however.
In response to the wave of earlier closing times, Folly Beach considered a 2 a.m. closing in February. The city ultimately decided against it, with several council members arguing that they had not noticed any problems.
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it," said one.
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