Aside from bringing in outside law enforcement officers to cover the ground the APD and OUPD can’t, city officials are urging students to be smart, civil and safe — and not to use alcohol as an excuse for debauchery — as they embark up and down Mill Street.
As Mill Street residents haphazardly load kegs into tiny trunks, secure an ample supply of red solo cups and clear their living rooms and porches of anything they hold dear, the Athens Police Department is conducting some planning of its own.
Aside from bringing in additional cops from departments outside Athens, helping to cover ground APD and the Ohio University Police Department can’t, city officials are urging students to be smart, civil and safe — and not to use alcohol as an excuse for debauchery — as they embark upon Mill Street.
“It’s like Jekyll and Hyde,” Athens Police Chief Tom Pyle said. “Early in the day, everyone is real respectful, real happy and there’s a good rapport with just about everybody. Alcohol takes effect, and then everybody hates us.”
Last year, APD arrested 12 people at Mill Fest, mostly on alcohol-related offenses, according to a previous Post report.
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Athens Mayor Paul Wiehl said party-goers could potentially avoid a citation or getting arrested if they rent port-o-johns, refrain from dancing on roofs — a minor misdemeanor — obey open container laws and keep their alcohol consumption in check.
“They’re your peers,” Wiehl said about the student attendance at fests. “Let them know that if they’re really wild and crazy, they might not survive the event.”
Wiehl said he’ll attend Mill Fest, but only to “check the tone.”
The dozens of police officers, however, will arrive to Mill Street around 11 a.m.
For students looking to avoid citations or arrests, Pyle said some might want to keep a careful watch on the following:
•Littering
•Public urination
•Launching any kind of projectile off a property
•Failing to control guests
•Crowding a sidewalk
•Assaults or fighting behavior
That’s not to mention the plethora of bad behaviors that can result from too much drinking. Any of those offenses are grounds to shut down a party, Pyle said, or could also result in the homeowner receiving a ticket for a nuisance party.
That ticket carries a $150 fine and is a minor misdemeanor.
“Usually the houses we shut down are pretty problematic early on,” Pyle said. “At some point, they just don’t care because they’re (drunk).”
To avoid some of that conflict, police officers will go door-to-door on days before the Mill, Palmer and High Street fests occur.
“If the focus wasn’t to get hammered and drunk, just to drink and socialize, fests wouldn’t be a problem,” Pyle said. “The problem literally hinges on a razors edge — alcohol takes effect, and they care less what we have to say.”
Last year, Mill Fest saw peak attendance between 3 and 4 p.m., according to a previous Post report. Fests are typically shut down around 6 p.m.
During last year’s fest season, 279 arrests were made in total, an increase from the 266 arrests made in 2013 — though that included undercover arrests via the Ohio Investigative Unit as well.
However, Pyle said he believes this year’s attendance for Mill Fest should be substantially lowered — leading to less trouble overall. He said Saturday is expected to be rainy, and that student interest in street fests is gradually diminishing.
“Quite honestly, due to weather, a lack of interest, our enforcement efforts...I think there’s less interest, at least from outside our community,” Pyle said. “OU students still want fests, but I don’t think it attracts as many people as it did before.”
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