In the first of what will likely be many meetings, UF President Bernie Machen discussed student safety with the owner and general manager of The Jacksonville Landing on Friday.
Janice Lowe, general manager of the strip of shops and restaurants, said Friday/s hour-long discussion was very general, with little mention of Machen/s requested changes to festivities surrounding the game.
Last month, Machen, along with UF/s Vice President for Student Affairs, Patricia Telles-Irvin, sent a letter to Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton asking him to make a number of changes, many of which would affect the Landing.
The changes included limiting the occupancy to the fire marshal/s standards to about 2,500 people on the outside patio and courtyard, banning the sale of liquor shots, halving the number of temporary alcohol vendors and increasing the presence of the Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco.
Machen declined to comment on the meeting in an e-mail, but UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes issued this statement about the meeting: "We/re optimistic our concerns will be addressed by the city of Jacksonville, and we/re waiting to hear from Mayor Peyton."
Lowe also declined to discuss specifics, saying she can/t yet reveal which of Machen/s changes the Landing might put in place.
"We/ll sit down with the city now and figure out what/s best with everybody," she said.
She said she let Machen know the Landing already takes safety very seriously and has enacted many new security measures in the past few years, which a spokeswoman said in an interview earlier this month cost the Landing an additional $50,000 a year.
The spokeswoman also said implementing some of the changes, like limiting crowds, would be difficult, and others would impact the revenues of businesses at the venue.
Tonight, student senators will likely vote on a resolution that condemns Machen/s attempts to restrict legal drinking in Jacksonville during the game.
