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New Year’s Eve a success

Despite media’s claims that it was a ‘near-riot’, for the most part New Year’s went well Whistler’s New Year’s Eve celebrations made national news this week as the local RCMP reported 106 arrests and "near-riot"

Despite media’s claims that it was a ‘near-riot’, for the most part New Year’s went well

Whistler’s New Year’s Eve celebrations made national news this week as the local RCMP reported 106 arrests and "near-riot" conditions in the village. The National Post and both Vancouver papers ran the story on page one, the Globe and Mail put it on page seven, and the news was featured on both CBC radio and CBC news.

Considering the number of people in the village, the RCMP’s zero tolerance policy, and the success of First Night celebrations, however, event organizers say Whistler’s New Year’s celebrations are being given a bad rap.

"There’s a clear distinction between what happened at First Night and what happened in Village Square," says First Night event manager Maureen Douglas. "In the entire evening there was not one incident, altercation or arrest on the First Night site."

Approximately 3,500 single passes and 3,400 family passes were sold to First Night, which featured jugglers, face painting and live entertainment in Town Plaza.

Part of the confusion was due to an RCMP press release that stated "First Night at Whistler was plagued with drunk and violent behaviour" and that the "situation escalated into a near-riot."

The RCMP has since met with the municipality and First Night organizers and sent out a second press release that stated that the "First Night program in Whistler’s Town Plaza was a success," and that "feedback from participants on the family focused activities and entertainment was favourable."

Media were slower in picking up the second release, and Douglas is concerned that the country has been given the wrong idea.

"The Vancouver Sun showed up at 6:30 a.m. the next day, asking ‘where is all the damage?’ The work crews that were cleaning the village were like ‘what damage?’

"I think there was a lot of eye rolling over this one, that people understand things may have gotten blown out of proportion in the media again, but at the same time we have to address it, and let people know that the early reports were not an accurate depiction.

"Between 5,000 and 6,000 people left the First Night site, and they were happy. At least we’ll have word of mouth on our side," Douglas said.

For their part, the RCMP are sticking by their assessment that things did get out of hand in Village Square.

Shortly after midnight, some of the 5,000-plus crowd in the Village Square started throwing chunks of ice and bottles at one another. Two spectators were hit by ice, and one was taken to the hospital to receive stitches to her head. People were climbing trees and light poles around the village and a tree that was valued at approximately $1,900 was ruined.

There were a number of altercations between party-goers, including an incident in which an RCMP officer was hit while attempting to break up combatants. The RCMP are considering whether to lay charges.

While the number of arrests was up substantially from 67 last year, Staff Sergeant Hilton Haider of the Whistler detachment says that was partially due to the municipality’s "no tolerance" policy and an increased police presence – 95 extra officers from the Lower Mainland were on duty this year, compared to just 70 last year.

"If we had a problem person, they looked like a problem person and acted like a problem person, then we dealt with it," says Haider. "We probably could have arrested 250 people if we wanted to, but we stuck with people that were causing problems."

Of the 106 people that were arrested, 20 were bused to Squamish and 20 to Pemberton to ease crowding at Whistler’s holding facilities. Most of the incidents were alcohol related, and a number of the people held were underage. Many were also from everywhere – Australia, Seattle, Portland, the Lower Mainland, plus a number of locals. The majority of those arrested were males between the ages of 20 and 29.

"Generally I’d have to say the First Night was a success," says Haider. "There was no riot, everyone was very well-behaved. The Village Square was okay until just after midnight when people started throwing things, and that cleared most of the people who were just there for a good time out and left us with trouble makers."

The RCMP also said they thought the "no tolerance" message worked, judging by the fact that people working the gates seized about an eighth as much alcohol as they did last year. "There were people who came from the bars and hotels that were intoxicated, but I don’t think that’s something we had much control over," says Haider.

He says the RCMP were sorry that the media picked up on the "near-riot" reference, and that the first press release was mostly negative, but said that the conditions were in fact getting out of hand at one point. "It was just a case of a tired policeman. Sure, we’ll take some heat from the negative press, but it’s good to get everyone’s attention."

Jay Pare and Antonio Corsi of Quattro say they were frustrated by the negative publicity that the media generated. "For us, it was a fabulous evening. The people were great, everything ran smoothly," says Pare. "We talked to Buffalo Bill’s and they said the same thing.

"It’s frustrating to pick up The Province and read that New Year’s was a ‘near-riot’, when every year a lot of people come to village. It wasn’t any worse than any other year, except maybe the RCMP did a better job of catching people."

There was also some concern from local businesses that a fish fry vendor from the Lower Mainland was given a permit to sell in the village, competing with local restaurants. One local restaurant owner says local establishments should have been allowed to bid for the permit.

According to Douglas, most restaurants were ticketed events and organizers were concerned that there wouldn’t be enough open restaurants or eateries to serve the crowd. "As it was, the one open coffee place was swamped all night, so it’s something we have to look at in the future."