Depending on one’s perspective, the experience of walking along Mobile’s Dauphin street on a typical Friday or Saturday night can either be overwhelming or exciting. Those placed in the first camp have plenty to complain about if focusing on the young and drunk, stumbling between the various clubs and bars that line the city’s main entertainment strip. The ungraciously loud, mind-numbing repetition and thumping of club music interspersed by the angry beeping of cars resulting from battles over a “good parking spot.” The feedback and guitar rattle of off-pitch cover songs from subpar garage bands assault ears with each and every swing of a live music venue’s front doors as additional bass-heavy music pours out of the open windows of flashy cars. Drivers cruise with the sole purpose of cruising up and down the strip throughout the night like lurking night loiterers of the road. Impatient car honking caused by the heavy crawl of traffic inches forward at a painfully slow pace. Headache-inducing car exhaust mixes with the inescapable clouds of smoke that dot the long sidewalk like checkpoints. The smell of vomit and the occasional waft of urine, if one is especially unlucky. Clearly, this is no place for an 18 year old.

On the flip side and through a different pair of lens, downtown Mobile can be also be exciting. A place where one can get lost in the crowd, let loose and let hair down. A place to forget the week before and ignore the one upcoming. A place to enjoy a nice meal, dance, socialize, flirt, check out a band, play darts, shoot pool, hang out with old friends, and maybe make a few new ones. The downtown district offers all of this, and the right to socialize and enjoy the city’s nightlife is undeniably one of the most popular reasons why young people look forward to turning 18. For some, getting to experience the downtown district, in all of its heady glory and trappings and all, on the night of their 18th birthday is a not only a legal right, it’s a rite of passage.

While much focus of late last year was on the teen curfew that restricted those 18 and under, less attention was put on an ordinance that directly affected a small, but extremely important demographic to many bars, clubs, and music venues: the 18-20 year olds. The City Council had plans set in motion to ban this age group from the bars and clubs as soon as it was put to vote. A hotly contested issue throughout the city, sides were quickly chosen.

In addition to the complaints above, supporters of the ordinance complained that 18-20 year olds were getting served alcohol. Opponents claimed that the government was stripping the rights of law-abiding adults because of a few bad apples. Sure, some underage people were able to get their hands on alcohol despite the efforts of bartenders, bouncers, and doormen throughout downtown, but how could the city legally take away the freedoms of an entire demographic as punishment for the actions of a small minority within a group? While both sides argued their points, the Mobile City Council approved the ordinance late last year, bringing much worry to several of downtown’s bar and club owners.

Perhaps none worried as much as Dave Matthews, co-owner of the Alabama Music Box. Despite having been open only a little over three years when the ordinance passed, the live music venue had firmly established itself as one of the most popular places in Mobile to see live music. A good portion of Mobile’s live music fans viewed the establishment as the place to go to see live bands and as a huge boon to the local music scene in general. However, crucial to the Music Box’s ability to keep doors open was the fact that certain shows were open to 18-20 year olds. More often than not, those same 18-20 year olds would come out to the venue in groups and were willing to pay the higher cover charge for underage patrons. They would then wear the colored wristband indicating that they were underage, and whether they were aware of it or not, they helped the Music Box cover any losses from the shows themselves.

Perhaps because of this, it came as no surprise when some of the strongest opposition to the ban came from the owners, employees, fans and regular patrons of the Music Box. The establishment, because it arguably had the most to lose from the ban, somewhat became the centerpiece of the debate. Soon, people were talking about what seemed to be a long forgotten topic: the local music scene, or lack thereof in the minds of some. And talking about the music scene then led to the topic of why Mobile could never really compete with New Orleans in terms of fostering and supporting its local businesses in the entertainment industry. Critics used the proposed ban as prime example number one. Supporters of it said that Mobile didn’t want the crime and underage drinking that came with having a Bourbon Street of their own. Opinions from both sides appeared on the internet, in the newspapers, on T.V., and in the streets.

Interestingly enough, the introduction of the ordinance appeared to have an unforeseen effect. Instead of the all-too-usual griping of where and how Mobile’s cultural and entertainment scene were lacking, more people started to talk about what the city did have, and more importantly, how to improve it. But when it all came down to the end, it was announced that the ordinance had indeed passed. Some were shocked, some were not, but many were left wondering about the future of not only the Music Box, but the city’s nightlife in general. For some, the passing of the ordinance was the final nail in the coffin for any hopes of a vibrant downtown scene. For others, it was a victory in the battle to keep downtown safe and under control.

It’s been approximately three months since the age requirement was put into place, and the Alabama Music Box is still running.

That’s not to say the transition has been smooth.

“It initially hurt business while we learned to adjust and schedule accordingly,” Matthews said.

Because of the new rules, the Music Box now holds several of their shows much earlier in the night, a change that took some getting used to for some music fans.

“We had to recondition our clientele to the idea of shows actually starting early,” he said. “People will show up expecting to see the headliner after midnight, only to realize that they already missed them.”

“But everybody seems to like the shows being done at a reasonable hour.”

As of now, he said that business has pretty much bounced back to what it was before, and when asked about his current thoughts on the ban, he gave a somewhat surprising answer.

“In the end, I actually feel like it was for the best for both business and customers,” he explained.