James City County, VA Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)

Chapter 16, Article II of the county code, Regulations Governing Public Parks and Recreation Facilities, bans open-container alcohol use at every public park and recreation facility the county owns, leases or operates and that is open to the public, from riverside parks to ballfields and trailheads. Section 16-2(a) prohibits consuming or possessing an open or previously opened alcoholic beverage container, and separately prohibits being under the influence of alcohol, while on that property. The only built-in exception is for activities otherwise provided for in the rules and regulations promulgated by the director, meaning the director of parks and recreation can authorize alcohol at a specific sanctioned event, such as a permitted festival or a facility rental, through posted rules rather than a section 16-2 exemption itself.

Absent such an authorization, the ban applies uniformly across the system. The chapter's definitions section, 16-1, defines 'public parks and recreation facilities' broadly to include buildings, lands, waters, roadways, recreation equipment and structures under county jurisdiction and open to the public, so the alcohol ban reaches county greenways and boat landings just as much as developed park buildings. Enforcement falls to James City County Police Department officers and park staff, and section 16-24 makes any violation of chapter 16, including this one, a Class 4 misdemeanor unless another penalty is specifically written into the section, with the added consequence that a violator may be ejected from the park, building or facility where the violation happened.