In his letter to The Enterprise (Friday, April 22), Bruce Hupe criticized what he perceived as an out-of-control block party on Harvard Drive during Picnic Day, saying that “the word on the street” was that the police had to come to break it up and that a permit for the party had been issued to a sophomore. Most of what he stated was either a fabrication of the truth or outright false.

As a resident of Harvard Drive and a retired UCD faculty member, I would like to set the record straight and commend the senior and junior students who organized the street event. Its purpose was to promote sustainability (with several informational booths) to go along with Earth Day, making the social gathering educational.

The organizers surveyed the neighborhood several weeks in advance about closing off the street and obtained permits, going to some residences multiple times to ensure that as many residents as possible were informed. On the eve of the event, they came knocking to explain its schedule and structure in detail.

No alcohol was served, a couple of nice bands played, the residences were taped off from the street, two portable toilets were set up, and six professional security officers were on duty, hired and paid for by the organizers themselves.

Because of the permit, the police came by several times to check and each time said that everything was in order. Multiple families attended the event as well as groups of students, and the small children on our block had the time of their lives. By 7 p.m., the street was all cleaned up and everything was hauled away the following day.

A benefit of being a UCD student is having the opportunity to organize and plan events such as Picnic Day and the Whole Earth Festival. Unitrans and the largest restaurant in Yolo County, the Coffee House, are student-owned and -operated. Taking on these responsibilities gives students invaluable experience. That is what the event organizers got from their off-campus Picnic Day event and Harvard Drive is richer from the experience.

Ellen Lange

Davis

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