Tubers face ban on Jell-O shots
Web Posted: 07/23/2006 10:50 PM CDT
Roger Croteau
Express-News Staff Writer
NEW BRAUNFELS — The City Council here is poised to add to the list of banned activities for tubers on the Comal and Guadalupe rivers: Jell-O shots will be in the council's cross hairs at a meeting tonight.
"We've seen an enormous increase in their use this year," Councilman Ken Valentine said. "They have been used in the past, but not to the extent they are now."
Hundreds of little plastic cups from spent Jell-O shots — small amounts of gelatin that are mixed with alcohol — are left floating in the Comal every weekend, Valentine said.
"It's an environmental assault," he said. "And they contribute to an alcohol problem, which we are trying very hard to manage."
Jell-O shots are also linked with female displays of public nudity. Young men often sit along the banks of the Guadalupe with a cooler of Jell-O shots and a sign advising women that they can have a free shot if they expose their breasts.
"It does not add to the family atmosphere we try to promote," Valentine said.
He said he's even seen "kids feeding Jell-O shots to their dog."
The ordinance to ban the shots would only apply to the Comal River and the portion of the Guadalupe River inside the city limits. The area upstream from Gruene is outside the city limits.
The ordinance does not specifically mention Jell-O shots. Instead, it seeks to keep them off the rivers by making it a misdemeanor to have an open container that can hold 5 ounces or less.
"The City Council asked me to find a way to prohibit people from bringing Jell-O shots on the river, and this was the only way I could figure out that we could do it," said City Attorney Charles Zech.
He said he is confident the ordinance "should withstand any legal challenge."
This summer, the council has also banned the use of "beer bongs" on the river, adding them to a list of banned items or activities that includes jumping into the rivers from trees, jumping from bridges, radios audible from more than 50 feet away, plastic foam containers and glass containers.
Valentine said the ordinances are having an effect.
"The behavior and ambiance on the river has significantly improved," he said. "The police are doing a great job of enforcing the ordinances the City Council has passed. We are really trying to recapture the family atmosphere we had for decades. We were letting things get out of hand."
Story can be found here:
http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/met...s.12a9494.html
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