After most students have left Gainesville for the summer this May and June, city commissioners plan to discuss changes that could impact their weekend nights.
The possible regulations attempt to solve downtown and midtown problems of overcrowding, violence and underage drinking.
Students got a preview Tuesday of the potential changes, which include UF judicial hearings for off-campus underage drinking violations and a 21-and-up age requirement for bars and clubs.
If establishments have good track records, they would be eligible for a permit that would allow them to admit younger patrons.
The forum was hosted by Commissioner Jeanna Mastrodicasa, chairwoman of the Public Safety Committee and UF's assistant vice president of student affairs.
Comments from students at the forum will be kept as written record to be reviewed by commissioners, Mastrodicasa said.
"In case we decide anything over the summer, I didn't want them to feel like it happened without their consent," she said.
Other possible changes include downtown and midtown taxi stands, increased Later Gator routes, monitoring of city parking lots, better-staffed safety kiosks and a ban on full-bottle alcohol sales in clubs and bars.
Some students added their own safety concerns, which Mastrodicasa said the committee would look into, such as fake IDs, exploitative taxi rates, lack of incentive to ride public transportation and poor fire safety.
"Sometimes it's kind of terrifying when there's only one fire exit across the room and you realize there are hundreds of people between you and it," UF student Sen. Matt Michel said.
Others were against certain changes.
"I find it a bit disturbing that judicial affairs is looking at what happens off campus, especially for something as minor as underage drinking," UF freshman Kyle Huey said at the forum.
The changes aren't intended to stop anyone from having fun, Mastrodicasa said, but to make Gainesville a safe place.
"I don't think I'm going to cure underage drinking," she said. "I don't think I can fight it on any massive scale. What I'm trying to do is stop the excessiveness."
