In some ways, Davis police want this year’s Picnic Day celebration to reflect last year’s event.

Not the drunken debauchery that led to 516 calls for service and 33 arrests, of course. The gropings, fistfights and out-of-control parties they can do without.

But cops say they’re hoping for nice weather and decent-sized crowds so they’ll know whether their preparations for Picnic Day 2011 over the past year were effective.

The Davis Police Department has been part of a Picnic Day “work group” that also included UC Davis administrators and police, the Davis city manager’s office, Chamber of Commerce, Davis Downtown Business Association and various student groups.

Their goal: Create solutions that address the root cause of last year’s Picnic Day problems, “which we can pretty much attribute to alcohol,” said Davis police Lt. Glenn Glasgow, who has led his agency’s effort to make Picnic Day a less rowdy affair.

The measures have included the creation of a “safety-enhancement zone” that doubles certain fines in downtown Davis and along Russell Boulevard, meetings with potential party hosts, and working with local businesses to ensure their patrons celebrate safely and responsibly come Saturday.

“We’re confident that the outreach and education we’ve done to change the culture of Picnic Day should impact the activity level on that day,” he said.

Businesses that serve or sell alcohol have been asked to sign a Picnic Day covenant, pledging among other things to refrain from selling alcohol before 11 a.m. or offering drink specials that encourage overconsumption.

Police believe that early-morning booze sales contributed last year to downtown’s “Mardi-Gras atmosphere,” as one police captain called it. Dozens were arrested for public drunkenness and drunken driving.

As of early April, more than 50 business owners throughout the city had signed the covenant.

Many of them are located within the “safety enhancement zone,” which Glasgow said will be marked with 28 large signs at major entry points. From 6 p.m. Friday until 6 a.m. Sunday, the base fines for having open containers of alcohol, urinating in public, and violating the city’s noise and smoking ordinances will double from $40 to $80.

Add in court costs, and “a total citation is $395 per violation,” Glasgow said.

Police also have educated bar owners and party hosts to plan for controlled Picnic Day festivities. They’ve been provided methods for safely serving alcohol, limiting crowd sizes and recognizing the signs of alcohol poisoning.

Glasgow said his agency also has sought feedback regarding how police can do their jobs better.

One result of that will be the deployment of teams of officers in certain areas of town, primarily in the downtown area and Russell Boulevard, where police experienced the most problems last year, Glasgow said. Teams of two to four officers will be assigned to three-block “beats.”

Yolo County’s “AVOID the 8” DUI task force also will be patrolling the city in search of drunken drivers.

Another change will be a stronger “unified command” involving both city and UC Davis police.

“It means we’ll be working as one organization,” UCD police Lt. Matt Carmichael said. “Our theme has been, we’re a department of one, because in reality we all own this event.”

While the agencies have joined forces before, limited staffing has required UCD police to focus primarily on the tens of thousands of visitors within the campus boundaries.

This year, however, mutual aid from the UC Berkeley, Merced, San Francisco and Santa Cruz police departments, as well as Sacramento State University, will allow the campus force to shift its efforts as crowds move into the city.

“We’ll be allocating resources based on needs throughout the day,” said Carmichael, who has about 50 officers lined up for Saturday’s shift. A bike team of 20 officers will “maneuver crowds and respond to calls quickly.”

Some officers also will be assigned to ride Unitrans buses after drivers from last year complained of large crowds of intoxicated, disruptive riders, Carmichael said.

Come Sunday, police are hoping to tell a far different story than they did last year.

“We know people are going to drink. We know people are going to party. We just hope they do it responsibly,” Glasgow said.

— Reach Lauren Keene at [email protected] or (530) 747-8048.

WarningW

Signs will be posted in downtown Davis to notify residents and visitors of safety enhancement zones on Picnic Day. From 6 p.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Sunday, fines will be doubled for having open containers of alcohol, urinating in public and violating the city’s noise and smoking ordinances in the downtown area and along Russell Boulevard. Sue Cockrell/Enterprise photo

PicnicDaySafetyZoneW

A new safety enhancement zone has been set in downtown Davis and along Russell Boulevard for Picnic Day on Saturday. Fines will be doubled in this area for having an open container of alcohol, urinating in public and violating the city’s smoking and noise ordinances between 6 p.m. Friday and 6 a.m. Sunday. Shawn Collins/Enterprise graphic

Comments

comments