Last week, Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr. wrote in the Daily News of the “almost Sodom and Gomorrah atmosphere” in Chelsea clubs. Few proposed measures from the City Council come as a surprise. They purport to improve security by improving surveillance. The NYPD is recommending ID scanners to weed out fake ids as well as record each person entering a club. Surveillance cameras (unmanned of course) would similarly invade patron’s privacy by tracking their comings and goings. Vallone explains the most important aspect of club security:

“Nightclub safety begins with the bouncers. They are the ones who decide who goes in, and more importantly who doesn’t. People look to them for help, especially those who are rendered vulnerable by alcohol.”

Adding more security staff might help, especially if they’ve been licensed, or at the bare minimum, have not been convicted of seven felonies. Although, hiring off-duty police officers might be money better spent.

Despite Vallone’s recognition that people are getting crunk up in Chelsea (or “rendered vulnerable by alcohol”), Councilwoman Melinda Katz wants to outlaw bottle service “because it makes people overly drunk.” Their takeaway message seems to be: on a 1 to 10 scale of drunkenness, be a 7. Without bottle service, you should learn to double fist and figure out another way to separate yourselves from the lowly have-nots.

Proving that even in Chicago it all come back to real estate, Chicagoist quotes Harlan Powell, an attorney representing clubs served violation notices for illegal bottle service:

“What customers are buying is not the actual drink, they’re buying real estate.”

Bottle Service! image from damndoozy.