Breaking news: City efforts spook crowds away from Castro
NEWS
Published 11/08/2007 - Bay Area Reporter
by Matthew S. Bajko
San Francisco's gay neighborhood remained eerily quiet Wednesday night as the usual swarms of Halloween revelers heeded the city's message to stay home this year. By 10:30 p.m. with most bars, shops and restaurants closed, the Castro was a sparsely populated ghost town.
Several thousand people, many in costumes and local residents, did crowd onto the sidewalks near Castro and Market streets. But the crowd was noticeably smaller than in years past, when hundreds of thousands of partygoers crammed into the area and spilled onto the streets.
"I think it is very quiet," said Entertainment Commissioner Audrey Joseph, who spent the early part of the night patrolling the neighborhood.
The streets remained open to traffic last night and police reported little trouble in the vicinity and throughout the city.
"I think the police are doing a great job," said Steve Adams, a Castro resident and president of the area's merchant association. "They got the word out that there is no party here tonight. Even though there is a party, as you can see."
Adams said in contrast to past Halloweens, he recognized more people out on the streets and saw hardly anyone with alcoholic beverages.
"The bridge and tunnel crowds are not here tonight," said Adams. "A lot of people who live here are having house parties, which is great."
Police Chief Heather Fong walked through the neighborhood after 10 p.m. and said the evening had gone well.
"I think so far, so good," said Fong. "I have been driving around the city going to different parties. It is relatively quiet. It seems overall in the city where children are trick or treating there is activity but everywhere else seems under control."
Not everyone was pleased to see the sparse attendance in the Castro. Without the crowds the police presence – said to be more than 500 officers – was palpable. Lookouts stood watch on rooftops while groups of three to five officers stood guard at intersections.
"It is scary with all the barricades. Don't you feel it is a police state?" asked Donna Sachet, who helped form the Citizens for Halloween group in protest of the city's decision to shutter the party. "I hate to see the city I love become a national laughingstock. We are being made fun of on the late-night talk shows."
Peter Fries, 64, a 38-year resident of the city, questioned why the police are not out in such force every night of the week.
"I am not anti-cop at all. I just want them to do their job," said Fries. "We need them walking on the streets 24 hours a day."
At the last minute the city did bring in portable toilets, easing homeowners' fears of having people defecate and urinate on their front doors.
"I was very glad to see them show up," said Dan Glazer, owner of Hot Cookie, which remained open last night. "Hopefully, it will be a busy night."
Nearby clothing store All American Boy had fastened metal sheets over its windows and door, as did several other businesses. Harvey's closed its doors for a private event at 9 p.m. and both the Bar on Castro and Badlands closed by 10.
"It is what it is," commented bar owner Greg Bronstein.
An anti-gay protester shouts words of condemnation at students from Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy during their annual Halloween parade through the Castro Wednesday afternoon.
Mayor Gavin Newsom ordered the annual Castro street party shut down in August after plans to relocate the event to the waterfront fell through. Newsom said he feared someone would be killed if he allowed the celebration to occur, in light of a shooting that left 10 people injured during last year's Halloween party.
Over the last two months the city launched a publicity blitz to spread the word to people throughout the Bay Area to stay in their own cities this year. Stories about the Halloween closure appeared in newspapers and Web sites across the country, from the San Jose Mercury News and the New York Times to USA Today and the Advocate.
Newsom was nowhere to be seen in the Castro Wednesday night, but several of his opponents in next week's mayoral election showed up and chastised him for the botched planning of this year's party.
"Basically Gavin Newsom set out to become the Grinch who stole Halloween. For all it's worth that is all that has happened tonight," said videoblogger Josh Wolf. "I am relieved to see nothing has happened thus far. At the same time it is upsetting to see a San Francisco tradition is laid to rest."
Quintin Mecke, dressed as President Abe Lincoln, said the city's crackdown on the party was why he entered the mayoral race.
"This is embarrassing. The city can't actively manage Halloween so instead we have so many police officers out here it is staggering," said Mecke. "We are not solving homicides but we can shut down Halloween."
Those who did venture out to the Castro bemoaned the overwhelming police presence and hoped the city would be better prepared to handle Halloween next year when it falls on a Friday night.
A funeral procession marking the death of Castro Halloween made its way up Market Street and arrived in the Castro shortly after 7 p.m. Led by "Pope Martin the First" and a grim reaper, the handful of mourners carried a cardboard coffin and laid it to rest in front of the Twin Peaks bar, which had dimmed its rainbow arrow lights at 6 p.m. and shut down by 7:30.
"We are very sad on this very sad day," said one female mourner. "Bless this coffin and Happy Halloween to all. We loved him."
One male mourner added, "It is a sad night for San Francisco. Let's all say a prayer that Castro Halloween comes back next year."
Tony Loncich, who has lived in the city 30 years, dressed up with two friends as the three little maids from schul [Hebrew for school]. He said he couldn't miss Halloween.
"We have been doing this for 10 years together," he said. "We have adopted Halloween as a time we can celebrate all facets of our community. We don't dress like this any other time of the year."
Visitors Kevin Hottinger and James Scobey, a gay couple from Naples, Florida, said they had booked their trip months ago to visit friends and hit the Castro on Halloween night. It wasn't until two weeks ago they saw a story about the party shutdown on the Internet. They decided to check out the Castro anyway and dress up in costumes, with Hottinger a wine box and Scobey a specter. All night passersby stopped the men to photograph them.
"It is really calm," said Hottinger, who added his friends had come in prior years and raved about how much fun the street party had been. "I didn't hear them use the word dangerous at all."
