A longtime late-night bar in Gulf Shores will have to be completely vacated of all patrons by 1:30 a.m. and has to finalize a camera security system with footage accessible by police, according to an agreement city officials will soon consider.

The proposal is for Mudbugs Pub & Club along Alabama State Route 59, and comes after Gulf Shores officials weighed whether to renew its business license amid concerns over public safety issues occurring inside or in an adjacent parking lot. The past issues include an alleged sexual assault, fights and a 2021 shooting. The bar is located along a heavily traveled area in the heart of a business district visited by tourists bound for the popular city beaches.

“We presented our concerns to the City Council because as the Deputy Chief (Dan Netemyer) said, ‘Something has to change,’” said Gulf Shores Police Chief Ed Delmore. “At the end of the day, the council agreed and placed the business on what could be described as a form of probation. That comes with a list of things that Mudbugs agreed to do and the council demanded they do.”

The list of agreed upon conditions will allow Mudbugs to operate on a “conditional business license.” Highlights include:

• Vacate all interior and exterior premises of patrons by 1:30 a.m. The bar had operated with a closing time at 3 a.m.
• Install and operate, within 30 days, security cameras covering all interior and exterior portions of the premises with police access to all recordings upon request.
• Engage with a security consultant to train staff on crowd control and safety.
• No violations of an applicable Alcoholic and Beverage Control Board regulations including, without limitation, prohibiting alcoholic sales to minors.
• No employee can consumer alcoholic beverages during work hours.
• No one with a prior conviction or a pending charge of trafficking, sale or distribution of a controlled substance can be employed to work on the premises in any capacity. The restriction also applies to music-related contract workers. The business also has to conduct third-party background checks on employees.
• Install an ID scanner to detect fake ID cards.
• Post signs prohibiting firearms within the building or parking area premises.
• Wand metal detector placed in use at the door from 10 p.m. until close for all entering customers.

Mudbugs will meet monthly with the Gulf Shores Police Department’s command staff to review its progress.

Mark Ryan, an attorney representing Mudbugs, said all of the issues and concerns were resolved “within 24 hours” of a face-to-face meeting with the city’s police department to “understand their concerns and what could be mutually agreed upon.”

Ryan had taken issue with how the city of Gulf Shores was pursuing the case, opting to hold a hearing before the council over the fate of the business license renewal. Ryan claimed the hearing was “illegal” because it is not set up through city ordinance. The Gulf Shores ordinance does include language that allows for a hearing as long as long as an applicant is given a notice 10 days in advance.

A Baldwin County judge intervened in late January to prevent Gulf Shores from taking any action in revoking Mudbugs’ business license until a hearing took place.