Family Friendly First Friday! 5-10 p.m. After 10, hang on cause yo’ ass bout to get tossed… unless you are over 21. If you’re 18-21 you can still hang around, just not on Broad between 13th and 7th. We’re gonna be keeping an eye on you as you wander the safe sidewalks pulsating with the reassuring strobe of blue lights.
You may be asking yourself how do you sort out thousands of people, find the ones under 21 and flush them out… and keep them out… for five hours while the grown folks hang around and drink? Through an operation reminiscent of a Rube Goldberg machine.
Here’s the plan:
Vendors and side streets should be clear by 10 p.m.
21 and over entertainment district, with a strictly enforced curfew by the Sheriff’s Department. Consider using volunteer college students and the military to hold the line.
CADI will supply basic security until 3 a.m., along with a visible police presence with officers on foot between 13th and 7th Street.
Don’t drive away law-abiding citizens.
Consider alternatives to roadblocks.
Who. The. Hell. Wants to hang out in an area besieged by cops, volunteer students, blue lights, military, roadblocks that are alternatives to roadblocks, etc.?
Here’s an idea. Save the enormous effort and cost of the 21 and up afterparty and end it at 10. Who benefits from the second phase? Restore order to First Friday via a strong police presence on the sidewalks, and at curfew send them packing.
What exactly would the draw be to go to First Friday for grown folks? The level of harassment and BS one would most likely endure would be pretty high. Most would likely avoid it altogether and come down another time. So the plan to enhance the bar business would most likely worsen it.
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The Rube Goldberg Machine
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Posted in Insider