The look on Mike Verveer's face in front of the destroyed University Inn, 441 N. Frances Street, said it all. The City Council President, District 4, who worked for months to prevent last year's Halloween riots, was obviously disappointed by the destruction that occurred at 3 a.m. Sunday morning.
Despite what city officials would have us believe, the wreckage of the 500 block of State Street, which ended with multiple storefronts demolished and looted, was a riot. The Madison Police Department down-played the events, calling them a small \disturbance.""
At this point in the aftermath, little else can be said about the event that is not some form of speculation. What can be said is the police and city did an amazing job being proactive in their efforts to control the drunken masses. With an approach that can be generally be characterized as ""friendly,"" these officers were able to maintain control by stopping fights before they occurred, discretely removing open alcohol containers and writing citations.
There is little the police could do to stop the riot, but their efforts to control it, from blocking off portions of State Street to the dispersal of people with pepper spray, were unfortunate necessities. It can only be imagined how much worse the events would have been if it had not rained and the police had not instituted the glass-free zone on State Street.
What did not help police was the well-intentioned but ill-conceived ""Killer Party."" The music event is already a scapegoat of city officials for the increase of individuals in the lower part of State Street. If the concerts are to continue they should be placed near the Capitol to more effectively spread out the crowd.
What can be done to prevent future riots is unknown, but all Madisonians must begin to take some responsibility. Tell your visitors that poor behavior will not be tolerated, or else we may not have a street to celebrate on in the near future.
