Pubdate: Tue, 22 Apr 2014
Source: San Francisco Chronicle (CA)
Page: A1
Copyright: 2014 Hearst Communications Inc.
Contact: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/submissions/#1
Website: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/388
Author: Evan Sernoffsky
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?420 (Cannabis - Popular)

CITY'S CLEANUP, POLICING COSTS TO HIT NEW HIGH

After the masses departed and the smoke cleared, workers descended
Monday on Golden Gate Park to bag up and truck away all that was left
behind by those who celebrated the pot holiday of 4/20 - an annual
event that again tested the patience of some residents and city leaders.

While thousands enjoyed Sunday's informal smoke out, police arrested
11 people around Sharon Meadow, and paramedics tended to four others.
Traffic in the area was jammed all day. And officials estimated the
cleanup cost would exceed last year's tab. "Our goal is to provide
clean, fun, safe parks, and there's a lot about this event that
certainly isn't safe, and it's certainly not clean," said Phil
Ginsburg, the general manager of the city park department, as he
watched employees scoop up piles of trash.

"This meadow isn't designed for a crowd that size," he said. "Until
every piece of trash is picked up, it won't be safe for people to play
here."

Last year, Recreation and Park Department employees and volunteers
were overwhelmed by the heaps of trash left by the hordes of marijuana
lovers. To get a jump on the cleanup this year, a crew of about 20
people were out Sunday night picking up broken glass, cardboard and
piles of barbecue coals burnt into Sharon Meadow and Hippie Hill.

350 bags

About 40 volunteers from Green Cross, a San Francisco medical cannabis
dispensary, also sought to lessen the impact of the event, bringing in
trash cans and asking visitors to be responsible. The volunteers
carted away about 350 bags of trash Sunday, said Holli Bert, a
spokeswoman for the club.

"We heard all the stories about what a state of disaster the park was
left in last year," she said. "We wanted to take the initiative to
make sure that didn't happen again."

Still, early Monday, 40 city workers gathered with trash bags, rakes
and shovels, scooping up the refuse of several thousand people who
converged from all corners of the state.

"We're ahead of the game over last year," said Golden Gate Park
Director Eric Andersen about 7:30 a.m. "We had a lot of resources overnight."

Park officials estimated last year's cleanup cost about $10,000.
Because 4/20 happened on a weekend day again this year - the 2013
event fell on a Saturday - officials said cleanup costs could go
higher. Next year, April 20 falls on a Monday.

Police were out in force Sunday patrolling the outskirts of the park.
Officers arrested 11 people on suspicion of crimes including selling
pot and gun possession, and issued more than 200 warnings to illegal
vendors, campers and people with open alcohol containers, said Sgt.
Danielle Newman.

Paramedics were called when a 20-year-old overdosed at the Sharon
Building, police said. The person's condition was not known Monday.

Officials noted that trying to enforce every law broken at the event
was virtually impossible, so safety became the primary focus of
Sunday's patrols.

'Show some respect'

After threatening to shut down the 4/20 party last year, Supervisor
London Breed, whose district includes Golden Gate Park, said last week
that she wouldn't be a "buzz kill or judge anybody's recreational
activity" as long as everyone was safe and respectful.

On Monday, she said the city had been better prepared to handle the
crowds and trash. All that preparation, though, came at a price, with
the cleanup bill in addition to overtime policing and other costs to
the city.

"I don't have a problem with marijuana," Breed said. "The problem is
the alcohol, the violence and all the other things that come along
with this event. This is San Francisco, we want folks to come and
enjoy but show some respect."

But reining in an unsanctioned event is a challenge. Because 4/20
celebrates marijuana smoking, organizers can't apply for a permit.
Smoking of any kind is not allowed in parks.

"For a fully permitted event, they bring Porta Potties, security, and
the place is spotless when everyone leaves," Andersen said.

While the revelry that takes place every April 20 may be an integral
part of San Francisco's subculture, the frustrations from those who
clean up the mess is mounting. Police, park and city officials plan to
meet in coming weeks to discuss lessons from this year's event.

The Green Cross, meanwhile, hopes to encourage other volunteers to
help out during future events in order to take the burden off the
city, Bert said.

"We think it's unfortunate that it has such a negative impact on the
city. We wish it wasn't that way," she said. "We don't want it to
reflect negatively on the medical cannabis community. We wanted to
make a difference."  
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D