With social districts approved by voters in Concord and Laconia, the planning begins

Bicentennial Square in Concord is home to Margaritas Restaurant and Watering Hole, Wine on Main, and Penuche's Ale House. Concord and Laconia were the only two cities in New Hampshire to clear the way for social districts, where public drinking would be allowed in designated areas. (Photo by William Skipworth/New Hampshire Bulletin)

Voters in Concord and Laconia approved ballot measures earlier this month to allow “social districts” in their cities, and local officials are in the early stages of deciding what they’ll look like.

The districts were enabled by legislation that went into effect in September. The law allows towns and cities to create areas where certain alcohol laws are partially suspended to allow public drinking. Patrons will be required to drink alcohol only out of designated containers, with time limits set and signage posted for the districts.

While Portsmouth, Nashua, and Keene voters all rejected social districts, 52% percent in Concord and 56% in Laconia saw enough upside to grant their approval.

In Laconia, Kristin Bastille, the owner of Defiant Records and Craft Beer and the Candy Bar, is amped for social districts to come to her town. She was among the business owners who pushed city officials to put the measure on the ballot.

Bastille hopes to see a social district on Main Street where Defiant Record and Craft Beer is located. The various festivals and events the city holds — such as the Laconia Pumpkin Festival, the annual Charity Car Show, Laconia Bike Week, and Concerts on Canal — would be ideal times to have these social districts, she said. Laconia already allows outdoor drinking for some events, she said, but not without headaches.

“It’s kind of a process,” Bastille said. “Instead of just being able to automatically be allowed to do that and not be sectioned off. We’re usually in a small section where we can allow it. But for the car shows people automatically assume they can walk the street. So they’ll come out with a beer, and then they’ll try to cross the street or go down the street, and they can’t.”

During the same election in which Laconia voters approved social districts, they also elected Mike Bordes as mayor. Bordes, a three-term state representative, was a co-sponsor of the social districts legislation, House Bill 467. Now, as he prepares to take over City Hall, he is set to implement on the local level a bill he helped pass on the state level.

“A lot of times we cast bills, and we don’t really firsthand get to sculpt out what they become,” Bordes said. “So now we can actually take the bill and put it to action.”

Bordes said he believes social districts will be great for revitalizing downtown, boosting tourism, and bringing foot traffic to local businesses. He hopes to see a social district downtown around Canal Street, but plans to meet with his new colleagues on the city council and staff on the topic over the next few weeks as they work to establish the first social districts.

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City Manager Kirk Beattie said because Laconia has lots of experience with festivals in which alcohol is consumed, “it’s not going to be a huge stretch for us to try to figure out how we want to do it and how we want to create these districts.”

In Concord, planning is in much earlier stages. Mayor Byron Champlin said the city hasn’t even fully decided whether it’s going to implement social districts.

“I think what’s important to realize here is that we’re not talking about a social district,” Champlin said. “We’re talking about the opportunity, if desired, to create one or more social districts.”

He said the ballot measure simply gives city officials the legal authority to implement social districts. He said the reason he supported putting it on the ballot was that, because the legislation requires voter approval, if the city didn’t do it this month, it would’ve had to wait until the next election in late 2027 to consider it again.

“I don’t think having a social district is automatic,” he said. “There are a lot of hoops that have to be gone through.”

Now, he said, bar and restaurant owners must come forward saying they would like to participate in creating a social district. The city council would then need to approve the plan and create guidelines. He said he hasn’t been in communication with any business owners yet.

He said one thing he would consider in any request is how a social district might affect Concord’s family-friendliness.

“If we were looking at Market Days (the annual downtown Concord festival), what would the impact be on Market Days being a family event?” he said. “Would this create any concern on the part of people with their kids downtown if people could be walking around with an open container?”

At-Large City Councilor Amanda Grady-Sexton said she’s seen a lot of excitement around social districts from her constituents.

Grady-Sexton said the issue should be referred to the city’s Public Safety Advisory Board, which she chairs, so the districts could be set up safely with assistance from the police and fire departments. Her hope, she said, is that social districts might help dispel Concord’s reputation as a sleepy town and spruce up downtown.

“That’s what the voters told me,” she said. “And that is absolutely what I heard: that people are looking for new energy. They are looking to find ways to keep young people in the community. Of course, affordable housing has been the number one challenge, but also, the reputational piece. That (Concord is) more of a place where older people convene, or business people, or people leaving the State House, versus a place where all sorts of younger people can come and enjoy downtown. And so I do think that is the reason why this passed. I think Concord voters are very deliberate.”