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Osceola County Commissioners voted unanimously Monday to limit the hours hookah bars can operate.

They say by requiring them to be closed between 2 a.m. and 8 a.m., they’re hopeful they’ll see a decrease in crime.

“This ordinance helps protect everyone. I believe it helps protect hookah bar owners. It protects the patrons going into that bar,” Osceola County District 1 Commissioner, Peggy Choudhry, said.

Most of the hookah bars are in Commissioner Choudhry’s district.

She says the decision was made following the murder of 23-year-old Danilee Hernandez.

According to Sheriff Marco Lopez, Hernandez wasn’t the intended target when she was shot and killed outside the Red Star Restaurant and Hookah Bar in October of 2021.

“It’s unfortunate that incidents like what happened, happened. We never ever want to lost a life, we never want anyone injured, so it’s so critical these regulations are put in place and now people see why we have to take these steps,” Choudhry said.

Some hookah bars across the county already close at 2 a.m., but others have their hours of operation listed as 4 a.m. or even 6 a.m.

“This kind of just sets the record straight and it tells everyone that we’re all going to play by the same playing field. Every bar, hookah bar, has to be open at the same times and so forth, so 2 a.m. for the hookah bars is what we set,” Choudhry said.

Lopez says because of the crime, he’s the one who initially contacted the board to make the change.

Choudhry says the ordinance is effective immediately.

Code enforcement and law enforcement will be monitoring the bars. They say penalties include a fine or even jail time.

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