Summerville has officially joined the list of South Carolina communities allowing open containers in a designated downtown area.
Summerville Town Council approved a new ordinance Thursday night allowing people to carry beer or wine while walking through certain parts of downtown Summerville. The ordinance took effect immediately.
For residents and visitors, that means enjoying a drink while walking between participating downtown businesses is now allowed — but only within the designated area and during specific hours.
When Are Open Containers Allowed?
Under the new ordinance, open containers are permitted:
Thursday through Saturday
11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The rules apply only within the designated downtown business district.
Where Is the Open Container Area?
The designated area includes portions of several streets surrounding the heart of downtown Summerville, including:
- South Cedar Street
- West Doty Avenue
- East Doty Avenue
- South Magnolia Street
- South Main Street
- East Richardson Avenue
- Central Avenue
- West 2nd South Street
- West Richardson Avenue
The zone is intended to remain confined to the downtown business district rather than allowing open containers throughout the town.
Why Did Summerville Make the Change?
Town leaders say the goal is to encourage more foot traffic downtown while creating additional opportunities for people to visit restaurants, shops and other local businesses.
Mayor Russ Touchberry said council looked at the experience of Hartsville, South Carolina, which has a similar ordinance, before moving forward with Summerville’s plan.
The idea is fairly simple: instead of finishing a drink before leaving one location, someone may be able to continue enjoying it while walking through the designated downtown area.
That could encourage visitors to spend more time downtown, move between businesses and explore more of what the area has to offer.
Businesses Can Choose Whether to Participate
One important part of the ordinance is that participation is not mandatory.
Touchberry described the program as opt-in and opt-out, giving downtown businesses the ability to decide whether participating makes sense for them.
That means the ordinance creates the open container district, but residents and visitors should not assume every downtown business will participate or allow alcoholic beverages inside.
As the program rolls out, participating businesses and any additional rules or signage should help make those distinctions clearer.
What About Safety and Liability?
The proposal has also generated questions.
Some residents and business owners raised concerns about enforcement, liability and who could be responsible if someone drinks downtown and later drives.
Touchberry said he does not expect the ordinance to change the responsibility businesses already have when serving alcohol, including avoiding serving customers who appear to have had too much to drink.
Those concerns will likely remain part of the conversation as Summerville begins operating under the new rules.
What Happens Next?
The ordinance took effect immediately following Thursday night’s approval, so the new rules are now in place.
The bigger test will come over the next several weeks and months as businesses decide whether to participate and residents begin using the new downtown open container area.
Town leaders hope the change results in additional foot traffic and helps create a more active downtown environment.
For now, the basic takeaway is:
Beer and wine may now be carried in designated portions of downtown Summerville from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.
As the program gets underway, What’s Up Summerville will continue watching for additional information about participating businesses, signage and how the new downtown district works in practice.
