All new restaurants would be barred in the South Side Flats under a new city bill aimed at stopping the spread of bars in the Carson Street corridor.

Last month an Allegheny County Common Pleas Court judge struck down a bill from city Councilman Bruce Kraus that limited the number of restaurants with liquor licenses in the South Side's zoning district, ruling that the city was infringing on the power of the state Liquor Control Board. The new bill, with the support of the city Law Department, would address that by keeping any new restaurants out of the district.

If the measure is "alcohol-neutral, it will be held up by the courts," Mr. Kraus said yesterday.

The councilman has long fought the proliferation of bars in the South Side Flats and said the need for limiting them was underlined this weekend when police charged a city firefighter with drunkenness and assault for an early-morning altercation with a resident of Franklin Court, off South 16th Street. The incident reportedly started when someone in the firefighter's group urinated in the resident's yard.

"If the charges are indeed true, we've really crossed the line in the South Side, and we simply have to get a handle on what's happening there," Mr. Kraus said.

Loutish activity around Carson Street is draining the ability of officers in the city's Zone 3 station to police other neighborhoods south of the rivers, the councilman claimed, and said the street is giving Pittsburgh a bad reputation. He read from a December New York Times article on a Carnegie Mellon/Duke University study of drunkenness that went to the South Side to find test objects.

Participants were "often at a level of intoxication that is greater than is ethical to produce," the study said.

The proposed ordinance will be forwarded to the city Planning Commission before coming back to council for debate.

In other action, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl sent over three new appointments to the five-member Pittsburgh Parking Authority board, effectively remaking the board in advance of debates this year on leasing the agency's parking garages and street meters to bail out the city pension fund. The new members are Councilwoman Natalia Rudiak, city Finance Director Scott Kunka (replacing former Operations Director Art Victor), and Just Ducky tours owner Chris D'Addario (replacing former Steelers defensive lineman L.C. Greenwood).

The mayor also appointed Councilman R. Daniel Lavelle to the Urban Redevelopment Authority board (replacing Councilwoman Tonya Payne) and Councilwoman Theresa Smith to the Alcosan board (replacing ex-Councilman Jim Motznik).

As expected, Councilman Douglas Shields and a majority of other council members reintroduced the city prevailing wage legislation that Mr. Ravenstahl vetoed on New Year's Eve. A competing version from the Ravenstahl administration is expected to be formally introduced next week.

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