Huntington Rowdy on 4th? It’s Just a Memory

After three years of relatively calm Independence Day celebrations, officials in Huntington Beach said Monday that they think they have written the final chapter in their city’s recent history of holiday unruliness.

“We’re confident that we’ve put it behind us,” said Jon Arnold, a spokesman for the Huntington Beach Police Department.

Shirley S. Dettloff, the city’s mayor, agreed. “We’ve turned a corner and we’re no longer newsworthy,” she said. “We had a wonderful Fourth.”

Indeed, only 107 people were arrested in Huntington Beach this Fourth of July, most for alcohol-related offenses. That was about the same number of arrests as last year but only a fraction of the 549 detained in 1996.

All those arrests were made to discourage a repeat performance of what had happened during the city’s two previous Independence Day observances. In 1994 and 1995, holiday revelers ran amok, burning couches in the streets, destroying other property, erupting in sporadic violence and generally creating an atmosphere of lawlessness downtown.

City officials responded by adopting a tough and highly controversial anti-drinking ordinance that, among other things, made it illegal for residents to consume alcohol on their property in unenclosed yards. And police barricaded the streets, dramatically beefed up their presence and imposed virtual martial law.

“We kind of sent a message,” Arnold said.

The restrictions were eased somewhat this year. Residents were allowed to drink in their yards even without the protection of 3-foot-high fences. And, much to the relief of city and law enforcement officials, the makeup of the crowd and atmosphere of the celebration seemed to have changed.

“We are attracting more families and more local residents,” Dettloff said. “We are now a city of young families, and the families are coming downtown.”

In addition to the efforts of law enforcement officials, the mayor said, the change has been hastened by the opening of more restaurants and other amenities in the downtown area.

“The residents of downtown wanted a safe and sane Fourth of July and were very supportive of the actions we took,” Dettloff said. As a result, “we had one of the finest Fourths I can remember, and I’ve been going to them for 35 years.”

City officials say they will be meeting with the chief of police as well as downtown residents and business owners in the coming weeks to review events of the holiday weekend and decide whether restrictions can be eased even more next year.

“We will reexamine the operation and may have a relaxation of the barriers down there,” Arnold said. “The problem sort of emerged as a trend, and it’s easier to downscale slightly each year and be prepared for contingencies--you don’t want to go overboard with the deployment, but you don’t want to back off too soon either.”

At least one neighboring city is adopting a similar stance.

“We had absolutely no problem this year or last,” said Tom Edwards, mayor of Newport Beach, which also has endured unruly Independence Day celebrations. “We’ve gotten information out, the homeowners and residents have taken responsibility, and we have very good communication.”

Among other things, he said, the police were able to establish a presence during the holiday and communicate to young revelers that they should keep their behavior within bounds.

“There’s been a lot of publicity on this,” the mayor said. “I think people got the word out that, hey, if you’re coming down here to make trouble, you’re not welcome.”