Partygoers question level of police presence during Welcome Weekend
Hundreds of students lined the streets Saturday night celebrating the last day of Welcome Weekend.
This year, police instituted a "zero tolerance policy," upping their presence with officers from departments across central Michigan.
"Last year, the city commissioners said behavior during Welcome Weekend was not acceptable, so we decided to utilize some different resources to ensure safety," said Mount Pleasant Police Officer Jeff Browne. "CMU has a very high concentration of people partying in a very small area, so it can get out of hand."
In 2014, police apprehended two different groups of individuals who came to Mount Pleasant solely to invade people's homes. As a town, residents and city government decided, 'enough is enough.'
With more police on patrol than last year, some students questioned how much is too much. Central Michigan Life observed Welcome Weekend activities on Aug. 29. From students in bear costumes to countless citations, here is what we saw.
A shocking sight
At about 10:30 p.m. on Main and Gaylord Streets, 12 police officers including a mix of city and Michigan State Police Troopers, arrested two men. Within less than five minutes of the arrest, a MPPD transport vehicle arrived and the party rapidly resumed. Trooper Trent Antclife said the two men were being charged with drunken and disorderly conduct.
The sense of an almost overwhelming police force was felt by many, even those who had never experienced Welcome Weekend before. Freshman Austin Mcfarlane said he was shocked by the number of citations he observed.
“I love it. Of course I do,” said Mcfarlane, who was out all weekend. “But they’re giving MIPs to everyone, everywhere.”
Newcomers who thought keeping their heads down with a beer found out the hard way that MPPD was coming strictly enforcing alcohol violations. As Browne was attending to an open intoxicant citation of a 22-year-old man, he explained the level of the night's activities.
“We’re very busy,” Browne said, while simultaneously stopping a student carrying a beer can to ask for an ID.
The man who was issued a citation said this year featured unnecessary police force.
“This year every street is full of cops," he said. "They’re living at the end of Main Street. They’re busting a lot of kids on foot with a beer, and it sucks because there are drunk drivers and robbers and rapists out there and they’re citing someone for beer. I don’t feel like that’s in the interest of keeping people safe.”
People walking up and down Main Street shouted insults police officers stationed on corners. However, some students were empathetic to the increased burden on police. Senior Mike Sweet said police have a lot to deal with on Welcome Weekend.
“CMU has the first Welcome Weekend out of all the universities,” Sweet said. “That means everybody, including a lot of people who don’t go here or live here, are coming to party. It’s definitely more secured this year than it has been in the past.”
Junior Drea Ramirez said a lot of people who visit during Welcome Weekend are unfamiliar with Mount Pleasant, so they end up getting in trouble with the law.
“People who don’t go here, or aren’t yet familiar with CMU, walk around with open beer. They’ll walk right up to a corner full of police. They think if they’re 21 it’s legal,” she said.
Foot traffic control
A little after 11 p.m., police began their first "Push" on Main Street. Designated as a “soft push,” officers systematically proceed south from one end of the street to the other. Roughly a dozen officers walked slowly up each side of the street in a wall formation, using only their lights and whistles to direct the crowd.
These two walls were accompanied by four MPPD squad cars traveling at the same pace as the officers. The police cleared the entire street and sidewalk. Officers ordered people to get off porches and proceed north toward campus. In a matter of minutes, the entire length of Main Street was devoid of students.
Main Street had yet to fill back in at 11:30 p.m., but partiers were not discouraged. Three out of town visitors, Ava Kelly, Ty Satkowiak and Tess Molinari, said they traveled from Southeast Michigan and were put off by the heavy police presence.
“It could be better with less police,” Satkowiak said. “Last night there were so many cops, we were basically trapped in the party we walked into.”
However, the visitors agreed they will be back next year.
Main Street was still notably less crowded at midnight after police worked to clear the streets. Lt. Larry Klaus of CMUPD said he expected Main Street to fill back up. Officers work to clear students two or three times per night.
“Main got so congested that you couldn’t get a car through, which presents a safety hazard," Klaus said. "That’s why officers cleared the street.”
Main and Washington streets were too congested to bring a car through around 1 a.m. MPPD Lt. Andy Latham radioed for another soft push.
Even amid a second clearing of the streets by law enforcement agencies, some partygoers remained determined to stay out. Senior Carl Spradlin said most people won’t be contained by an increased police presence.
“People will do what they want to do,” Spradlin said. “Police are trying to demonstrate a strong presence this year, and they are, but everyone is still here to have a good time. Maybe (CMU doesn't) don’t want to be seen as a partying school anymore, but that does attract people. You can get a good education at lots of universities, why not go to the one where you can have a good time too?”
The strange and somewhat genius
Twenty-eight-year-old Mount Pleasant resident Ed Rath said he looks forward to Welcome Weekend each year. Other residents may disagree, but they don't cash in the way Rath does.
“I love it,” he said. Standing over a metal crate stuffed with recyclables, Rath said all the major weekends yield thousands of cans and bottles to return for the 10-cent deposit.
“Last year between Welcome Weekend, tailgating--and of course Western Weekend--I returned a little over $2,000 in cans and bottles.”
A crowd gathered on Washington Street a little after midnight to watch junior Tim Brown dive into a kiddie pool on someone's front lawn. Brown, who was dressed as a brown bear, said he felt at home in his natural habitat.
“This is not my first Welcome Weekend,” Brown said. “I love the atmosphere, people mixing and having fun, and everyone enjoys the bear costume.”
Senior Desirae Lamoreaux was working at the Shell Station at the intersection of Mission and High streets. She was visibly disturbed by the condition of people meandering in and out of her workplace.
“This weekend is definitely worse than normal,” Lamoreaux said. “Of course we have the drunks who make the bathrooms nasty, but now we’ve had somebody rip the lid off our trash can and break things. People come in and knock over an entire stand, shrug, and say they’re drunk.
And there are a lot of crying girls.”
Later in the night, partying in the streets had calmed down for the most part, with just a handful of stragglers. An ambulance arrived at 210 West Bellows Street for a young man who was unconscious. Observers stated that the man had been walking alone down the street and passed out in front of the building.
When celebrations on Saturday ended, so did another Welcome Weekend at CMU. But, like many students say, there's always next year.
