MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - Miami Beach residents and city officials are reflecting on a hectic spring break and what the city needs to accomplish to prepare for next year.
Mayor Dan Gelber said Tuesday he hopes some of the actions the city took this year will make people who come to Miami Beach for the wrong reasons think twice.
“This is a very difficult spring break,” Gelber said. “For some reason, the people that were coming here, some of them, just had bad intentions, and we had to deal with it.”
As the spring break season winds down, Gelber reflected on the boozing, the brawls and the city’s response to this year’s spring break crowds.
One of the most recent violent incidents happened Sunday at a Burger King across the street from the Miami Beach Police Department’s headquarters.
A gambling game took a violent turn after a man lost money. The ensuing brawl spilled out onto the street.
Multiple people were arrested and charged in that incident.
Sunday’s incident is one of many incidents that were caught on video, which has left some Miami Beach residents shaking their heads.
Belinda Vazquez, who has lived in Miami Beach since 1961, said this year’s spring break was both horrible and terrible and said she isn’t happy with the current state of the city.
“You feel like you’re afraid to go out,” Vazquez said. “Why should I feel afraid?”
After a wild St. Patrick’s Day weekend, the city commission held an emergency meeting to figure out what steps to take.
Since then, the city has beefed up police presence and strictly enforced open-container laws.
“Going onto the beaches to enforce our open-container laws was a good idea,” Gelber said.
As for next year, Gelber said a lot of their response will depend on the amount of people coming into the city.
“I think we will probably have to enforce those ordinances early,” Gelber said. “Our hope is that next year, when they think about coming somewhere, they’re not gonna come here because of what we’ve done this year.”
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