Cops, bars see less ‘Cinco’ activity

Despite the potential for Cinco de Mayo festivities, some managers of Main Street bars and restaurants said they saw a decrease in activity last Saturday.

Klondike Kate’s general manager Lauren Hess said less people came than expected. Her staff anticipated a smaller turnout than last year, primarily because many fraternity and sorority members were out of town for their weekend formals.

“We expected it to be slower because of the absence of the Greek community, but it was still pretty slow,” Hess said.

She said last year, Kate’s employees offered a free taco bar to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, but this year they decided to give out free tacos on Thursday.

“We had heard a lot of the fraternities and sororities were going to be away during the weekend,” she said. “We wanted to cater to them so they can still celebrate Cinco de Mayo.”

Kildare’s Irish Pub manager Phil Kaksiak said the restaurant was staffed with extra employees on Saturday, but thought it was more important to over-prepare.

“We wanted extra sets of eyes just to make sure everything was OK,” Kaksiak said.

Santa Fe owner Javier Acuna said approximately the same number of people visited the restaurant as last year.

“We have a lot of experience with this type of event,” Acuna said. “We’re prepared for the extra volume with Cinco de Mayo.”

Newark police spokesman MCpl. Gerald Bryda stated in an email message that his department received few calls during the day.

“The day was viewed as a success from our perspective, as there were no major incidents and relatively few problems,” Bryda said.

Newark police received 23 calls for service related to Cinco de Mayo, Bryda said. During the day, police responded to five incidents of alcohol-related offenses, five instances of loud music and charged three for resisting arrest.

He attributed the low number of incidents Saturday to the large number of police officers patrolling Newark that day.

 “Just their visible presence can deter people from committing a violation,” he said.

While police officers only responded to nine calls during last year’s holiday, Bryda said comparing both years is difficult because last spring Cinco de Mayo fell on a Thursday.

“It is tough to compare without knowing if people celebrated over the weekend,” he said.

University police Chief Patrick Ogden stated in an email message that his department responded to 15 alcohol-related incidents during a 24-hour period starting at 8 a.m. on Saturday morning.

He said collaborative efforts between university and Newark police were effective in preventing dangerous incidents from occurring.

“I think the pre-planning and collaboration with the Newark Police Department contributed to keeping everyone safe,” Ogden said.