St. Cloud Cracking Down on Disruptive Intoxication

ST. CLOUD - St. Cloud is toughening its stance against drunk people creating disturbances in public.

The city adopted the disruptive intoxication ordinance in 2010 as part of an effort to address binge drinking and its negative impacts in the Southside and University neighborhood.

On Monday night, the St. Cloud city council approved making a violation of the ordinance a misdemeanor offense. This makes it a criminal citation enforceable in district court.

The disruptive intoxication ordinance was originally designated as a petty misdemeanor offense, but very few citations have been issued since it was put in place.

Southside residents have brought concerns to the city, saying drunk people have shown up on their property late at night being too noisy. City attorney Matt Staehling says some intoxicated individuals have also tried to get into houses, thinking it's their home.

"We've all heard of acts where someone who is intoxicated at someone's door and waking them up at the middle of the night and it's quite alarming to the people who live there."

The adjustments will not impact bars.