By 1 a.m. Sunday, 80 police officers patrolled the Mifflin Street block party — double the original plan.
The beginning of the day found partiers in handcuffs posing for pictures, while laid back officers pretended to arrest them. Early on, most officers strictly enforced the city policy prohibiting alcohol on the street and sidewalks, making partiers pour out their beer when caught on city property.
But as the day wore on and the crowd grew, the Madison Police Department was forced to call in re-enforcement for the 40 officers scheduled for the shift, said Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, who represents the Mifflin Street area.
Mifflin Street resident and UW-Madison junior Helen Breitenbach said she noticed a change in police behavior from the annual party last year.
“I didn’t feel like the cops were as active early in the day,” Breitenbach said. “They didn’t interact with the residents as much.”
Officers originally planned to allow people without alcohol to throw footballs and toss Frisbees in the street.
But due to the large number of people crowding the 400 and 500 blocks of the street, officers were unable to keep people from drinking on the street and sidewalks.
“Police abandoned the tactic to not allow beer in the street,” Verveer said. “They had to back off. They just didn’t have enough cops. If they tried to keep [partiers] off the street, they had no where else to go.”
Revelers reported they were then able to walk freely across the street while drinking, facing little resistance from officers.
The increased police presence on the street did not take away from the department’s coverage in other parts of the city. No part of the city was without coverage, since the extra officers brought to Mifflin Street were called from home or kept for extended shifts.
But the event did prove costly for Madison taxpayers. Verveer said the additional police coverage on the street racked up a $15,000 to $20,000 tab for overtime costs billed to the city.
Breitenbach said officers seemed overwhelmed with the large number of intoxicated partiers on the street.
“They seemed to be reasonable, but by the end of the night you could tell they were getting edgy and kind of worried,” she said.
In making plans for the party next year, Verveer said the city would provide for more officers on the street, and would likely not allow people in the street at all — with or without alcohol.
“There’s no hope anymore that the street will ever be barricaded,” Verveer said.
Attempts to contact police officers Sunday were unsuccessful.
