Alcohol banned from lots outside of Kibbie Dome
University of Idaho football fans will have to leave campus if they plan on consuming alcohol before games this season, thanks to a decision Thursday from the Idaho State Board of Education.
The SBOE rejected a policy change to allow alcohol consumption in the Kibbie Dome parking lots with a 4-4 vote during a meeting in Pocatello. At least five members needed to vote for the change for it to receive a second reading.
Thursday’s vote doesn’t just affect the UI – it will also affect Boise State and Idaho State as well.
“The board did not receive any reports or incidents of a pattern or of really poor bad behavior, the question is more what kind of environment do we want to promote,” said Blake Youde, the chief communications and legislative affairs officer for the SBOE.
“It really was the issue that when you have large gatherings like this, sometimes they create a situation which people might be more inclined to have a drink more than they should, and we take safety as a top priority,” Youde said. “Safety of our students and educators of the students are really the top two priorities of the board.”
The UI’s practice of allowing alcohol in the parking lots came under scrutiny earlier this year after the issue of alcohol consumption during campus events was reviewed by the board. An SBOE policy revised in 2011 requires schools to request permission on a year-to-year basis for exceptions to the state’s rule banning alcohol on campus, but the UI, where alcohol and tailgating have mixed on campus for two decades, had never made such a request.
The UI had been designating the parking lots as private property on game days and said the activities in the lots were therefore not sponsored by the school. The SBOE disagreed.
“We appreciated the board’s willingness to discuss the issue and entertain a proposal, and they did have a substantive discussion about it,” said Stefany Bales, UI’s executive director of communications and marketing. “But at the end of the day they denied it 4-4, so UI will continue to focus on conduct during pregame events and will work within our resources to ensure that game day events provide a safe and entertaining fan experience that’s consistent with the state board’s guidance on alcohol use.”
Bales said that although the behavior of the fans is often difficult to see, the UI will focus its efforts on fans whose behavior is garnering attention, or if people are openly displaying alcohol.
The board also denied alcohol permits for the UI’s Fan Zone earlier this summer.