New Berlin, WI Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)

New Berlin Code of Ordinances § 152-4 Q governs alcohol on city-owned property and in public rights-of-way. Subsection Q(1) bans the sale of alcoholic beverages on city property or public rights-of-way unless the seller has an approved Special Event Permit; the city exempts its own City-run events, such as the Fourth of July Festival, Beer Gardens and Winterfest, from that permit requirement. Subsection Q(2) carves out an exception for New Berlin staff selling alcohol in the city's own Municipal Parks under Wis. 06(6). Subsection Q(3) is the consumption rule: the public consumption of alcoholic beverages on City property and public rights-of-way is prohibited outright, and the only two ways around that ban are an Extension of Premise Permit issued to a Class B alcohol beverage seller, or a Temporary Class B License.

Both permits are handled through the same licensing chapter that governs the city's bars and restaurants, so a private group wanting to serve alcohol at a park picnic or block party must secure one of those specific instruments before pouring, not just a generic special-event sign-off. Because the rule sits inside the liquor-licensing chapter rather than a standalone open-container ordinance, it reaches New Berlin's parks, sidewalks, boulevards and any other land the city owns or controls, including street rights-of-way. Officers cite violations under Chapter 152, and the general Code penalty in § 1-18 applies since Q(3) is not on the city's specific citation-deposit schedule.