The float goes on

The Sacramento River will once again be a popular Labor Day weekend destination for students now that they will be able to booze it up during the annual flotilla on the waterway.

On Tuesday (Aug. 30), the Glenn County Board of Supervisors came up one vote shy of prohibiting alcohol along the traditional float route over the holiday weekend (from Saturday through Monday). Two of the five supervisors, Dwight Foltz and Steve Soeth, balked at the ban. Four votes were needed to approve the emergency ordinance.

The panel’s OK was the last step to get the ban in place. A week earlier, the Butte County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a local ordinance to enforce the prohibition. That decision followed the passage of a state law allowing for such a ban during summer holidays on the river.

Local law-enforcement officials have been the biggest champions of the plan. Chico Police Chief Mike Maloney, who has been very vocal about benefits of the ban, expressed disappointment in the decision.