Starting the week before Memorial Day, downtown Laconia will permit alcoholic beverages in public for the first time, making the city the first in New Hampshire to launch a social district.

The Laconia City Council approved the plan during this week’s council meeting.

Officials say the decision was part of an extensive project after voters approved the concept during municipal elections last fall.

Not every New Hampshire community has embraced the idea of public drinking.

When the question appeared on ballots last November across the state, Laconia and Concord approved the idea of social districts, while Keene and Portsmouth voted against the idea.