Now that’s just clever.
The state of Wisconsin has traditionally had issues with alcohol and binge-drinking, and the city of Eau Claire is no different.
As all Eau Claire residents know, ‘Water Street’ is the place to be when it comes to drinking. Featuring several highly popular bars, this street is well-known for having hundreds of drunken folks stumbling around on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights.
For obvious reasons, the city is not fond of the reputation Water St. has acquired, and is trying their hands at mixing things up for the betterment of the city.
The Eau Claire City Council recently held a town hall to discuss potentially changing the street name from “Water” to “Alcohol.” City Council President Richard S. Oberly defended the idea, noting that the “reverse-psychology is bound to work at some point.”
“The prevalence of binge-drinking on Water Street is almost an epidemic, and I, along with several other City Council members, wanted to make a change. So, we took a look at the street name, and saw an obvious but incredibly subtle solution. Just change the name to Alcohol Street! People weren’t drinking much water before, right? This just makes sense!” – Richard S. Oberly
The City Council still needs to vote to approve of the street name change. However, three of the nine city councilors are out-of-the-closet alcoholics that regularly spend most nights at Dooley’s Pub, so this vote may be a close one.
The Feaux will keep you updated as this story unfolds.
Photo Credits: Werner Rathai
The Feaux 