Last call in Wilmington may be later with resolution approved by council

Wilmington bars may soon be open later, but are all establishments on board?

A resolution has passed the Wilmington City Council to allow bars to stay open until 2 a.m. and the measure now heads to the General Assembly. But are all bars happy with the possible change?

WILMINGTON, Del. - Wilmington may soon allow bars to remain open until 2 a.m., if a resolution, passed by the Wilmington City Council is met with approval in the General Assembly.

What we know:

A Wilmington city council member doesn't want the First State to be last when it comes to last call for bars and restaurants. He crafted a resolution in hopes of changing that.

What they're saying:

"When we do go out, like especially when we do get out of the house, we usually do stay out until we can't stay out any longer," said Leighann Anders.

She and Halana Hoyt were headed to Kelly's Logan House in Trolley Square Wednesday evening. They are excited about the possibility of being able to have later nights out without going too far away from home.

"We wouldn't have to drive or commute or get Ubers to and from Philadelphia to just be right here in the neck of the woods," said Hoyt.

Last call:

Wilmington City Councilmember Coby Owens is leading the effort to extend last call from 1 a.m. to 2 a.m.

"In the region, Delaware overall has one of the earliest last calls compared to Pennsylvania, D.C. and Maryland. We would want to change that for the city of Wilmington only," said Owens, (D) 1st District. He says the idea initially came from talking with young professional groups about improving nightlife.

"To allow more leisure spending here but then to also help try to attract and retain young professionals to stay here in the city of Wilmington," he said.

Councilmember Owens says the extra dollars would help with wages but also help fund critical programs without having to raise property taxes.

"Especially our senior repair program and making sure that we have down-payment assistance programs, I'm actually introducing an ordinance tonight that deals with helping educators who want to teach in the city of Wilmington be able to live in the city of Wilmington," he said. He admits there has been some pushback.

Dig deeper:

"Some people think it's all about drinking later and some have concerns about are there going to be more DUIs. We are trending down with DUIs in the City of Wilmington," he said.

Danieel Jones says he does not usually drink up until last call but would love to hang out longer.

"It's just nice having places that are open later where you can hang out and have a good time," he said.

What's next:

The city council approved the resolution earlier this month.  It’s now in Dover and must pass the General Assembly, where its future is unclear, before it can come back to the council. That will not likely happen until after January of next year.

"This not only helps nightlife and bars, but it also helps restaurants, hotels and venue spaces to be able to stay open and have more visitors come into the city as well," said Councilmember Owens.

By the numbers:

During the June 5th council meeting, seven members voted in favor of the resolution, one against it, two did not give a vote and three members were absent.