Costumed outsiders still found their way to the Halloween party on Franklin Street this year—despite Chapel Hill’s second straight push for a “Homegrown Halloween.”
As a result of the town’s initiative to keep the Franklin Street tradition local, attendance dropped last year from an estimated 80,000 to 35,000. But the Town of Chapel Hill announced Sunday that this year’s number was back up to about 50,000, as students from North Carolina State University, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and other schools said they had few problems getting to Franklin, which runs through the UNC-Chapel Hill campus, either by foot or by car.
“We’re seeing similar numbers to last year and so far there haven’t been any arrests.” said Lt. Kevin Gunter of the Chapel Hill Police Department when he spoke briefly with reporters at approximately 10:30 p.m.
He soon disappeared into a group of police officers headquartered at the University Baptist Church on Franklin Street. Officers on duty declined to give a substantial statement.
Ghosts, ghouls, and the occasional witch haunted the street, alongside more eclectic costumes, such as Legos, Geico Cavemen and a marauding band of H1N1 viruses. For a single night reality and fantasy melded into one, wizards and fairies ordered lattes from Starbucks and robots, aliens and sea monsters frolicked in the street. But behind the storybook atmosphere was frenetic police activity as law enforcement officials attempted to manage the activities of the night.
At 9:38 p.m., Chapel Hill police officers suspended vehicle traffic, and anxious students and adults immediately poured out from the sidewalks onto the street, turning the road into a Halloween festival ground.
Additional police officers were dispatched to the street and emergency medical technicians were available on site to treat the occasional reveler. Roadblocks were put up, and partygoers were searched and stripped of any potentially dangerous articles.
Students said they expected Franklin Street to be closed earlier, and an Oct. 30 news release from the Town of Chapel Hill said many streets would close at around 8 p.m.
“They said on the news [the police] had shut the street down at 7 p.m.,” said Iva Winstead, an East Carolina University sophomore. “Meanwhile cars were driving right by,” she added.
Other students said they were disappointed that the street was not blocked off until after 9 p.m.
“I think it’s a lot smaller this year,” UNC junior Cradle Harris said. “I think it’s kind of crappy that they haven’t shut the street down, and there aren’t people out walking around like there normally is. It’s pretty packed on the sidewalks, it would be nice if we had space to socialize more.”
Chapel Hill and UNC police increased their presence around 9 p.m., but the streets were well packed before then. By the time the roadblocks and security checkpoints were set up, the streets were already crowded with costumed revelers.
Because UNC was within the boundaries set up by the police, anyone entering from the campus could join the party without being stopped.
Police started to clear streets around 12:20 a.m., and the area was reopened to traffic at around 1:50 a.m.