Jacksonville Beach, FL Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)

Section 4-3 of the Jacksonville Beach Code has three working parts. Subsection (a) bans consuming or drinking any alcoholic beverage on any public street, sidewalks, boardwalk, or other public place not duly licensed to permit consumption of beverages on the premises. The boardwalk is named in the text itself, so the rule does not depend on whether a given stretch counts as a street.

Subsection (b) turns to licensed businesses. No one can consume alcohol on the premises of an establishment except on a patio or porch where tables and chairs are provided and approved and licensed for outdoor consumption, or within the building which is the address of the establishment. Subsection (b)(2) adds that the section does not authorize drinking anywhere that an alcoholic beverage license, a city zoning regulation or the laws of the state would otherwise prohibit it.

Subsection (c) is the open container rule. Possession of an open container containing an alcoholic beverage by any person in the areas prohibited by the section is prima facie evidence of a violation. An officer who sees an open container on a sidewalk or the boardwalk therefore holds evidence the code treats as presumptively sufficient, without having to watch anyone take a sip.

Section 4-3 does not print a penalty in its own text. Section 1-11(a) sets the fallback for any act made unlawful in the Code where no specific penalty is provided: a fine not exceeding $500.00 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding ninety (90) days, or both, in the discretion of the judge. Each day a violation continues is a separate offense. The cross reference printed under § 4-3 points to Chapter 28, streets, sidewalks and other public places.

Businesses that want to serve outside their licensed footprint follow a separate rule. Section 4-5 makes it unlawful for an establishment to permit consumption in or upon any area outside of or adjacent to its licensed premises unless it obtains a temporary premises extension permit from the city and the State of Florida. A permit runs for a maximum of two (2) business days, a qualified establishment can receive a maximum of two (2) permits per calendar year, and none is issued for any activity after 2:00 a.m. on a federal holiday.