College student urges changes to ‘teen night’ rules; council asks staff, police to review ordinance

A college student urged Sioux City officials to amend the municipal code provision governing “teen nights” so 18- to 20-year-olds could attend certain bar or event‑space nights, and councilors directed staff to review the ordinance and consult the police chief.

Zaden Reffitt, a student at Morningside University, told the council that the municipal code section cited in the meeting (read as “4 1 2 3 1 40”) creates practical barriers for bars and event venues that want to host supervised 18-plus events. Reffitt said the code requires businesses to lock up alcohol and turn off alcohol-related signs for teen nights, steps owners say make hosting such events impractical.

Reagan Cody, executive director of Downtown Partners, told the council there are already some downtown venues that host 18-plus nights and encouraged using existing event spaces. Council members and staff noted public-safety and liability concerns and asked that the chief of police be consulted before any ordinance change. Staff said they would review comparable examples from other Iowa cities and consider what a revision might look like; no formal motion or ordinance change was made at the meeting.