OCEAN CITY — It remains to be seen if an unsanctioned “College Beach Weekend” event scheduled for this weekend passes quietly without any major incidents, but the town and its police department and allied agencies certainly appear to be prepared.
In June, the Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) issued a warning about an unsanctioned event planned for this weekend that will likely bring thousands of unruly college-age visitors to the resort, reminiscent of a similar unsanctioned and unannounced event during the same time period last summer. The College Beach Weekend event is being promoted on various social media platforms encouraging participants to come to Ocean City on those dates for a variety of planned activities.
This time around, however, the OCPD and its allied law enforcement agencies from across the Lower Shore have been carefully planning for the unsanctioned event’s arrival and are taking steps to ensure against a repeat of last July’s high-profile incidents. In an open letter to the citizens of Ocean City, OCPD Chief Ross Buzzuro last week advised residents and visitors the department has been meticulously planning for this weekend’s unsanctioned event.
“Like all other events in Ocean City, both sanctioned and unsanctioned, my staff and I have been planning and preparing for this event and any isolated incident that may arise for quite some time,” the letter reads. “We have a very comprehensive strategic plan in place that includes assistance from out allied agencies.”
During Monday’s Mayor and Council meeting, Buzzuro outlined just what the assistance from the allied agencies might look like and how it will be deployed.
“We’re going to receive assistance from the Maryland State Police, the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office, the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office and the Maryland Transportation Authority police department,” he said. “Collectively, with the OCPD we will have a full complement of law enforcement officers in town this weekend. Our citizenry, including our visitors and our residents, will see a high visibility of law enforcement officers throughout the weekend,” he said.
In addition, Buzzuro said in his letter last week with the increased police presence and strategic planning and a little cooperation from the event’s participants, the hope is the weekend will be a safe and quiet one.
“As always, we welcome all visitors with the expectation that they will be safe, respectful and abide by our laws and ordinances,” the letter reads. “We are optimistic that the majority of people planning to come to Ocean City July 20-23 are here to enjoy the beach and everything our town has to offer and we are hopeful for yet another safe weekend.”
Even with the extra police presence, the OCPD is also urging residents and business owners to be extra eyes and ears for the department during the three-day unsanctioned event.
“Business owners are encouraged to staff accordingly and employees should be prepared for a busy July weekend,” the letter reads. “Residents are reminded to report any ordinance violations including sleeping in vehicles and noise.”
The business community is already doing its part to a large degree, providing accommodations and meals for the extra law enforcement officers from other jurisdictions during the three-day event. Mayor Rick Meehan said on Monday the Ocean City Hotel-Motel-Restaurant Association (OCHMRA) has reached out to its members to provide assistance for the allied law enforcement agencies and the business community has responded.
“The HMRA has assisted as a partner to supply rooms to allied law enforcement agencies when they come to town to assist us during various special events,” he said. “I think they have been very active in trying to accommodate those requests.”
Buzzuro agreed the OCHMRA and the resort’s hospitality community has responded with support for the OCPD and its partners.
“They have provided a tremendous amount of support for the department,” he said. “We certainly need our allied partners. They have been useful to our effectiveness in public safety. The business community has really stepped up for us during these challenging events.”
If recent history is any indication, most of the attendees will be well-behaved and participate in the College Beach Weekend’s planned activities, but more than a few will become unruly and create problems for the city, its police department and its residents and visitors. During a similar unannounced and unsanctioned event last July, a series of incidents connected with the event led to a dozen arrests after unusually large crowds of college-age individuals roamed the Boardwalk amid the rest of the big crowd on a hot summer night in late July.
The unruliness and mob-mentality witnessed during last year’s College Beach Weekend event began with one individual knocking over a trashcan and spilling its contents on the Boardwalk on a busy Saturday night in late July. When the OCPD arrested the individual, he became aggressive toward the officers and a large, hostile crowd began to form. In that initial incident, numerous suspects assaulted police officers as they attempted to disperse the crowd.
That incident on 1st Street was a precursor of sorts for a larger incident yet to come later the same night further up the Boardwalk. Ocean City Police observed a large, disorderly crowd estimated at over 200 in the area of 7th Street and the Boardwalk. According to police reports, individuals in the crowd were yelling profanities and some began throwing bottles and other objects. The crowd was very hostile and aggressive toward police officers attempting to disperse them in what was characterized by one witness as a “legitimate stampede.” Dozens of officers responded to the scene including additional officers from the Maryland State Police and the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office.
Each April for the last several years, Virginia Beach has hosted an unsanctioned College Beach Weekend event with less than desirable results, although officials there have found it difficult to prevent the crowds associated with the event from coming, or even controlling them when they get there.
For example, in April 2013, the group held a College Takeover Beach Weekend in Virginia Beach with thousands of college-age students invading that resort town, roaming the streets, disrupting traffic, shuttering businesses and generally striking fear in the residents and visitors to the town.
In June 2014, the same group promoted a College Takeover Beach Weekend in Ocean City and the OCPD and allied law enforcement agencies were aware of the pending event and took a proactive approach, including increased manpower and resources. That event passed fairly quietly with no major incidents. The hope this time around is, with the OCPD knowing the group is coming again this weekend, a proactive approach with higher visibility and increased enforcement will curtail the illicit activity while allowing the attendees to peacefully enjoy their events.
