Scranton, PA Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)

City Code Chapter 158, Alcoholic Beverages, splits the ban into two separate offenses. Section 158-2 bars drinking or consuming liquor, wine, beer or other alcoholic beverages on any public sidewalk, street, lane, parking lot, park or recreation area, or other public property in the City, or in a vehicle on such property. Section 158-3 separately bars having, possessing, carrying or transporting alcohol in an open bottle or other open container on those same public areas or in a vehicle there, an open-container rule distinct from the drinking ban itself.

Section 158-4 adds a related prohibition on discarding beverage containers on public property outside approved receptacles. All three rules bend only for a permitted event. Under Section 158-5, amended May 6, 2025 by Ordinance No. 73-2025, anyone wanting to possess, distribute or consume alcohol on public property must apply to the Superintendent of Police at least three days before the event; there is no permit fee, but the applicant must show they will follow state Liquor Control Board rules, take written responsibility for supervising the event and restoring the site afterward, agree in writing to keep alcohol from minors and intoxicated persons, keep consumption confined to the described premises and stated time, and have no history of violating a prior permit's conditions.