Council votes for alcohol-free areas for Chryslers event
Albury City Council has resolved to establish temporary alcohol-free areas during next year’s Chryslers on the Murray event to improve public safety during the unofficial night cruising activity.
The decision will see an alcohol prohibited area established in Hovell Tree, Noreuil and Oddies Creek parks, and an alcohol-free zone put in place for Wodonga Place and Townsend St and the connecting roadways between them.
The restrictions will be in place for the duration of the Chryslers on the Murray event, which next year takes place from Friday 14 to Sunday 16 March at Gateway Lakes.
They will allow police to tip out or otherwise confiscate alcohol being consumed.
The decision comes after NSW Police raised concerns about public safety risks from the night cruising and associated anti-social behaviour along Wodonga Place.
While the night cruising is not a sanctioned event activity, it is drawing interest from greater numbers of people each year.
Council will now place the proposal on public exhibition for 30 days and will establish the temporary alcohol-free areas if there are no submissions received during that time.
Albury Mayor, Kevin Mack, said AlburyCity, Wodonga Council, Chryslers on the Murray organisers and police from both sides of the border have been investigating options to ensure public safety is paramount.
“Chryslers on the Murray is the largest Chrysler car show in the southern hemisphere, and it’s been held in Albury-Wodonga since 1992,” he said.
“It brings thousands of attendees and over a million dollars in economic benefit to our community, so it’s essential that we’re proactive in continuing to welcome the event and ensuring it’s done in a safe and family-friendly way.”
Albury already has an alcohol-free zone covering both the Albury and Lavington central business districts, and an alcohol prohibited area in QEII Square.
These, along with the proposed new areas, have an expiry date of September 2026, after which there will be a review into re-establishing all such zones across the local government area.