Dothan, AL Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)

City Code § 6-3 makes it a misdemeanor to give away, sell, serve, possess an open container of, or drink any alcoholic beverage on city school buildings and grounds, recreation buildings (except private recreation rooms rented to individuals or clubs), city playgrounds, school playgrounds, city parks, athletic fields, or the entire grounds of Rip Hewes Stadium, since all of that property is owned by the City of Dothan. A conviction is punished under the general penalty section, § 1-4. Separately, § 6-4 bans "brown bagging": consuming or possessing alcohol at any establishment or public place not properly licensed by the City of Dothan and the Alabama Beverage Control Board for on-premise consumption.

If any consideration (anything of value exchanged for goods or services) is involved in that consumption or possession, the venue must hold an on-premise license issued by both the city and the state ABC board. The ordinance carves out one specific exemption: events held at the National Peanut Festival Fairgrounds are exempt from the brown-bagging rule, reflecting the festival's role as the city's signature annual event. Enforcement of both sections falls to the Dothan Police Department. Because the open-container ban is tied to city ownership of the property, it reaches every park, playground, and athletic facility maintained by Leisure Services as well as city school grounds, not just downtown streets or the Ross Clark Circle commercial corridor.