SantaCon makes it official: The fucking thing starts in Tompkins Square Park

There were some people who thought the whole "SantaCon starts in Tompkins Square Park" was a bad dream. Not so! The official SantaCon website makes it official tonight… 10 a.m. in Tompkins Square Park.

Meanwhile, tomorrow, the 9th Precinct's annual children's Christmas event is tomorrow on East Fifth Street from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. (times cut off in the photo)… So…. Do with that information what you will...



Meanwhile Part 2, as BoweryBoogie points out tonight, the Lower East Side allegedly got nixed from the Official SantaCon Bar Crawl Route, according to the LES Dwellers…

'Quite simply, SantaCon is a parasite'

[Photo by A. Sasaki]

At The New York Times today, East Village resident Jason O. Gilbert, a writer and editor at Yahoo News, puts in an opinion piece about SantaCon.

To an excerpt!

Perhaps most distressing about SantaCon is its size and the way that it shuts down and befouls dozens of blocks. Any East Villager (I am one) can tell you that the event makes doing absolutely anything beyond one’s front stoop an impossibility, unless you own swamp waders and a riot shield. Last year, an estimated 30,000 carousers participated in the festivities.

But really, it’s not the disruption or the noise that rankles. New Yorkers can endure street closures and inconveniences for any number of events so long as there is a beneficent impulse, or an obvious reason for the disruption. For a New York City event of its size, however, SantaCon is distinctive, and arguably impressive, in that it contributes absolutely zero value — cultural, artistic, aesthetic, diversionary, culinary or political — to its host neighborhood. Quite simply, SantaCon is a parasite.

Read the whole column here.

Meanwhile, we're still waiting for a positive counter-point… someone to discuss how awesome SantaCon is now, not what it may have been 15 years ago.

[Updated] Report: LIRR will ban booze during SantaCon, though not before it

The Long Island Rail Road has instituted a 24-hour booze ban from noon Saturday through noon Sunday that overlaps with SantaCon, DNAinfo reports.

"We do it based on experience, based on when we've had difficulties….when we're going to be inundated with a lot of people under 21, or maybe just over 21, where they've created problems in the past," LIRR spokesman Salvatore Arena told DNAinfo.

Of course, this year, SantaCon starts at 10 a.m. in Tompkins Square Park... meaning SantaConners arriving via LIRR in the early morning won't be impacted by the ban. So there can be booze business as usual. No word about New Jersey Transit or Metro North.

Metro North and New Jersey Transit have also issued a temporary ban on alcohol this weekend, per Business Insider.

MTA police officers will be patrolling Grand Central Terminal, Penn Station, and other stations, it said. They will confiscate illegal liquor, and those caught drinking can face fines up to $50 or 30 days imprisonment.

SantaCon organizers tweet helpful hints about being a good Santa (spoiler: 'No means no')

SantaCon is fast approaching (Saturday!) … and the SantaConning organizers have been taking to Twitter to remind participants of the proper decorum while staggering around dead-ass drunk enjoying the festivities.

The tweet advice included!

Dirty ol' Santa or Ho Ho Ho, just remember No Means No. #TheSantaCode #NYCSantacon

— santacon (@santacon) December 9, 2013

And!

Don't fuck with KIDS. Don't fuck with COPS. Don't fuck with BAR STAFF. Don't fuck with NYC! #TheSantaCode #NYCSantacon

— santacon (@santacon) December 7, 2013

And!

You better not puke. You better not pee. You better be good on the streets of NYC! #TheSantaCode #NYCSantacon

— santacon (@santacon) December 7, 2013

Helpful? We'll find out! The group is reportedly starting SantaCon this year in Tompkins Square Park at 10 a.m.

[H/T Eater]

Good news & mostly bad news about SantaCon, which reportedly starts in Tompkins Square Park

[Photo of 7th and A from 2007 by Bob Arihood]

SantaCon is fast approaching this year… just nine days 'till Dec. 14. (And just a few more days to book your trip to Greenland!)

And the Daily News casually dropped this bit of info in a feature about this year's Con:

Sources said this year's SantaCon will kick off around Tompkins Square Park and wind its way through the East Village and the Lower East Side before jumping over to Brooklyn.

Oh. Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu Wait, was that a bad dream?

Sources said this year's SantaCon will kick off around Tompkins Square Park and wind its way through the East Village and the Lower East Side before jumping over to Brooklyn.

Start calling 311 in advance, kids!

And was there something about good news?

The organizers will reportedly share the route for the annual pub crawl with the NYPD and elected officials ahead of the event, according to the Daily News.

Uh-huh.

And?

SantaCon organizers confirmed that they also plan to have 80 helper elves along the route to coordinate traffic and make sure their Santas stay respectful to residents and local businesses.

Feel better?

And visit Neither More Nor Less for some of Bob Arihood's photos from when SantaCon visited Tompkins Square Park in 2007. Right here.

Updated high noon:

DNAinfo has an article this morning on SantaCon here.

Excerpt:

"They're going to be there until about noon, and then wind up in Brooklyn somewhere," a police source told DNAinfo New York. "Hopefully it will be a nice safe day, and hopefully things will be much better than last year."

The police source and Community Board 3 District Manager Susan Stetzer said a SantaCon organizer contacted their offices Tuesday.

Stetzer said that she spoke with a SantaCon representative through email, on the phone and in person, adding he was "very friendly and cooperative" in the "several" conversations they had.

"I am hoping management of Santas on sidewalks and streets will be improved," she said.

A good sign?

Maybe some Santas have decided to retire in the face of all that political pressure about SantaCon… EVG regular William Klayer spotted this in the trash along East Ninth Street today… (And are Santa outfits recyclable?)

Previously on EV Grieve:
Local politicians call on SantaCon 'to adopt good-neighbor principles'

East Village resident organizes SantaCon Detour, a SantaCon without the drunks and various amateurs

East Village resident Abby Ehmann, who helped organize the original SantaCon here, is behind SantaCon Detour, which she discussed with DNAinfo yesterday:

"It's a SantaCon for people who have been doing it for 10 or 15 years and are tired of it being co-opted by busloads of college kids from upstate or drunken 22-year-olds from the suburbs."

The alternative SantaCon Detour seeks to recapture what Ehmann and others described as the event's countercultural roots as a "dress-up, anti-shop-'til-you-drop culture jam," and not "a bar crawl" or "puke fest."

And!

"If you're a 22-year-old, you're going to see [Detour SantaCon] is going to be a bunch of 50-year-olds," she said. "We wouldn't want them, and they wouldn't want us. They want to be with slutty Santa elves. They want to be drinking in the streets and jumping on taxis."

SantaCon Detour is now in its second year. It will start at the same location as the main SantaCon on Dec. 14, but then the group will go do their own thing.

According to the SantaCon Detour 2013 description at Wherevent:

If you joined up with us last year, you know the program: Trying to SAVE SantaCon by having our own, smaller contingent … This year I plan to, again, hijack a hoard of my Santa friends after the initial meeting location and take them to a spacious place with seats and some brunchy type food (and booze, of course). From there Santa will be on the move to a few fun photo ops and end in the early evening at a venue with drinks and dancing.

[Stock photo by Maria Dryfhout]

Local politicians call on SantaCon ' to adopt good-neighbor principles'

[Dave on 7th, from 2011]

From the EV Grieve inbox…soundbite alert!

Coalition of Local Elected Officials Calls on SantaCon to Adopt Good-Neighbor Principles

New York, NY – Today, New York State Senator Brad Hoylman, along with State Senators Liz Krueger and Daniel Squadron, Assembly Members Richard Gottfried, Deborah J. Glick and Brian Kavanagh, and City Council Members Daniel Garodnick, Rosie Mendez and Margaret S. Chin, announced a set of principles organizers must follow to rein in the annual scourge known as SantaCon. During this massive pub crawl, thousands of participants dressed as Santa Claus overwhelm neighborhoods, violating numerous laws and regulations and creating major hazards to public safety along the way.

The coalition of officials recognize that SantaCon may be a short-term boon to a select group of local businesses, but it imparts many adverse impacts, such as vomiting in the streets, public urination, vandalism and littering. In a letter sent today, the officials requested that SantaCon adhere to the following three principles:

1) Make public and follow defined routes;

2) Ensure respectful participants; and

3) Implement a comprehensive safety plan.


“What should be a frivolous and lighthearted event has become little more than a costumed parade of drunken lawbreaking,” said Senator Hoylman. “Any large event in New York has to be respectful of its surrounding community. To avoid ending up on the naughty list again, SantaCon organizers must adopt these principles and maintain an orderly event.”

The coalition letter reiterated a request that Senator Hoylman made to SantaCon organizers last month to work with local Community Boards and the New York City Police Department to identify ways the event can significantly mitigate its impact on the communities it visits. Despite assurances from SantaCon organizers that they would work with the NYPD, no details have been made public.

“For hundreds of years merry-making in taverns, beer halls and bars has been part of the fabric of life in our city, but there’s nothing merry about a costumed, abusive crowd wandering the streets spreading mayhem,” said Senator Liz Krueger. “If SantaCon’s organizers want to spread cheer instead of fear in our neighborhoods this holiday season, they’ve got some work to do.”

“’A group of drunks in Santa suits walk into a bar’ might sound like the start of a joke, but there's nothing funny about SantaCon,” said Assembly Member Richard Gottfried, who represents Hell's Kitchen/Clinton. “If the organizers and participating bars can't protect the public, the police and the State Liquor Authority need to act.”

“Our communities have suffered by the actions of participants of SantaCon for too many years. While I appreciate patronage to small, local businesses, this event does so at the expense of public health and safety of participants and community members. A thoughtful, public plan must be established and made available,” said Assembly Member Deborah J. Glick.

“Dress as Santa to go drinking if you must, but you’d BETTER be good, for goodness sake,” said Assembly Member Brian Kavanagh.

“Anytime we have a large, organized event in New York City, we need to ensure that the NYPD and local communities know what to expect,” said Council Member Dan Garodnick. “We are looking to the organizers to develop a plan that allows the fun to continue while respecting the rest of the community.”

“We have made a list of guiding principles for this year’s SantaCon—and we’re checking it twice. While everyone appreciates holiday cheer, it is important that the organizers and participants respect the surrounding neighborhood and work toward a festive but safe event,” said Council Member Margaret S. Chin.

Reactions?

Top cop's SantaCon endorsement: 'It's what makes New York, New York'

[Photo from 2012 by A. Sasaki]

At a time when it seems like a lot of people are rallying against SantaCon, the annual event received a thumbs up from Police Commissioner Ray Kelly.

"This is an event we support. It's what makes New York, New York. There has been some rowdy activity by a small handful of people," Kelly said.

This reminds me of that scene from "Jaws," where Mayor Vaughn says to a reporter, "I'm pleased and happy to repeat the news that we have, in fact, caught and killed a large predator that supposedly injured some bathers."

Anyway! Is SantaCon, which happens this year on Dec. 14, really what makes "New York, New York"?

Meanwhile, here's a SantaCon report from Friday evening on WABC.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Some Midtown bars will now ban drunken SantaCon revelers (52 comments)

How was your SantaCon?

A few scenes from SantaCon 2012: Scourge of the city or good time had by all?

Report: Some Midtown bars will now ban drunken SantaCon revelers

[Image via Eater]

As DNAinfo reports today, the NYPD's Midtown North Precinct sent letters to about 30 bars in Midtown and Hell's Kitchen urging them not to welcome SantaConners.

Per the letter:

The number of participants has grown large enough to completely overwhelm the sidewalks and public spaces...Having thousands of intoxicated partygoers roam the streets urinating, littering, vomiting and vandalizing will not be tolerated in our neighborhood...It is my recommendation that you do not sponsor this event in any way.

SantaCon is scheduled for Dec. 14 this year. For those of you concerned by all this, we've heard that residents should call 311 in advance of Dec. 14 to either request extra NYPD patrols for the day... or at least express concern.

Back on Oct. 17, State Sen. Brad Hoylman sent a letter to organizers, stating in part:

I strongly urge you to work with the New York City Police Department in order to come up with a strong and effective plan to combat public intoxication and to ensure all participants are respectful of the neighborhoods they visit, as well as handling the overwhelming crowds associated with an event this size. In addition, I urge you make this plan available to the affected local Community Boards well in advance of your event so that they have time to comment and help shape it.

H/T Eater

Previously on EV Grieve:
How was your SantaCon?

A few scenes from SantaCon 2012: Scourge of the city or good time had by all?

Noted

Mrs Claus says: pull out the ole' sled & lets do it all over again on Dec 14! http://t.co/TWEBlkROLL http://t.co/9RSNY5AcVZ Happy Halloween

— santacon (@santacon) October 31, 2013

In case you missed the announcement this week... your favorite day of the year is now scheduled!

On Oct. 1, DNAinfo reported that a group of concerned Hell's Kitchen residents reached out to the event's anonymous organizers asking them to avoid their neighborhood ... and the SantaConners responded: "As far as us coming to Hell's Kitchen this year, you don't have anything to worry about."

Meanwhile, on Oct. 17, State Sen. Brad Hoylman sent the following letter to SantaCon organizers:

I am writing to express my concerns regarding SantaCon and the effects it has on the communities it visits. Each year local elected officials, community boards and local precincts are besieged by complaints as SantaCon passes through their neighborhoods.

While SantaCon may be a short-term boon to a select group of local businesses, the many adverse impacts it wreaks, such as vomiting in the streets, public urination, vandalism and littering, disrupt community members’ quality of life. I recognize that at any large event, a few bad actors may disrupt an otherwise orderly affair, but at previous SantaCons bad actors have hardly been the exception. As such, significantly more must be done to combat the neighborhood scourge SantaCon has become.

Further, no matter the behavior of the participants, the event has grown large enough to completely overwhelm sidewalks and public spaces, creating a public safety hazard for all.

I strongly urge you to work with the New York City Police Department in order to come up with a strong and effective plan to combat public intoxication and to ensure all participants are respectful of the neighborhoods they visit, as well as handling the overwhelming crowds associated with an event this size. In addition, I urge you make this plan available to the affected local Community Boards well in advance of your event so that they have time to comment and help shape it.

Sincerely, Brad Hoylman

CC: Community Boards 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 Precincts 1, 6, 9, 10, 13, 17, 20, Midtown South, and Midtown North

Word out of Community Board 3 is that no one from this neighborhood called 311 to complain about SantaCon. Hard to believe.

Previously on EV Grieve:
How was your SantaCon?

A few scenes from SantaCon 2012: Scourge of the city or good time had by all?

SantaCon evil spreads upstate

EV Grieve reader John M. writes in ... he's upstate visiting relatives for the holidays... "and what greets me on the front page of the local newspaper, The Daily Gazette?"

The article is only available online to subscribers... the gist: A local named Michelle takes credit for 'borrowing' the idea from NYC, saying, "I usually go to the one in New York City, but I had my sister and niece visiting from Sicily. I couldn't miss out on all that time with them, so I got really bummed, because I would miss out on an annual thing with all my friends."

The article reports that she then organized her own event, initially for just a few friends, but that snowballed pretty quickly.

Per the article:

"In keeping with the theme of the New York City event, which is a fundraiser, [she] reached out to the Franklin County Community Center and promised to donate food, even if she had to go out and buy everything herself," the article states, and notes that a pickup truck filled with non-perishable food items by early afternoon.

Last paragraph of the story: "[She] hopes that in the future all the local bars will be open early for the event, and she also wants to see it expand with carolers in the streets, like in New York City."

John M. takes exception with that caroling part.

"She calls drunks screaming snatches of Christmas songs at the top of their lungs — even in subway cars — 'carolers?'"

And how was your weekend?

A few observations via Twitter... I know we've been SantaConned to death, but ... there's a movement afoot to curb this in the East Village next year. There was a good deal deal of discussion on this during the weekend on Facebook... several East Village bar owners will likely ban any Santa-clad wooers from entering their establishments... there are letter-writing campaigns under way to various local politicos, most notably Christine Quinn...

When my cab driver and I got to the East Village and saw that it was Drunk Santa day, we both yelled "NOOOOOOO" in unison #vomitbeards

— Amy Rose Spiegel (@AmyRosary) December 15, 2012

Today is SantaCon in the East Village so be prepared for Santa to barf down your chimney.

— Bobby Graves (@bigcitybobby) December 15, 2012

There's a lost Santa on my train this morning, apparently he didn't get the memo that douchebag day was yesterday #Santacon

— Obi Anyanwu (@obianyanwu) December 16, 2012

#santacon is the most ridiculous thing that happens in NY instagr.am/p/TTZPysH0WJ/

— NinaHens (@NinaHens) December 16, 2012

What's the right age to tell your kids that Santa is a drunk girl crying on the sidewalk in the East Village?

— mattcutler (@mattcutler) December 16, 2012

And those "santas" who are completely wasted and destroying the East Village.Congratulations.#fail

— Rafael Mateo (@ChezChefMateo) December 16, 2012

If u r in the EastVillage, safe home.There are a ton of drunk hooligans dressed as Santa vandalizing and harassing people! #whoseidea?

—Douglas Turner (@TurnerDouglas) December 16, 2012

serious q: when did santacon become so loathed? is it a “leading indicator of the east village’s decline” sort of thing?

— maura johnston (@maura) December 15, 2012

OMG. Beware of hitting the east village. There is a mob of idiots 2 blocks long trying to get into the 13th step. God speed.

— Vanessa Bermúdez (@vbermudez) December 15, 2012

Avoiding the East Village because of Santacon. How do you make me want to punch a frat bro even more? Put him in a Santa costume!

— Jordan Bowes (@jbowesmusic) December 15, 2012

Fucking #santacon. Stay away from the east village if you value your sanity, peeps.

— Joshua Conkel (@JoshuaConkel) December 15, 2012

@davidgustav Drunken #santacon chicks BEGGING the bodega guys to use the bathroom. He threw them out! WOOO! #eastvillage

— Liberation (@liberationnyc) December 15, 2012

SantaCon 2012: 'I'm going to fuck your shit up bro!'

On East 29th Street... via Gothamist.

Santas apparently stole this sign from Pangea

Via the Twitter feed for Pangea on Second Avenue...

Has anyone seen this sign in the #Eastvillage tonight. #Santacon ruffians stole it. #cometoyoursenses instagr.am/p/TPD1nwHghO/

— pangea (@pangeanyc) December 16, 2012

A few scenes from SantaCon 2012: Scourge of the city or good time had by all?

As you may have noticed yesterday... Heh. Lordy, I have more photos. Here are just a few from the East Village. You get the idea. Oh, you get the idea. Maybe I'll add more later.

[Photos via Baha]

----

[At Linen Hall on Third Avenue, via EVG reader Corina]

----

[At Tompkins Square Bagels]

Gawker had this post yesterday afternoon: Any Santacon Participant is the Worst Person in New York Right Now

And GammaBlog has more thoughts and photos (and a video) from the East Village yesterday.

Ho ho ho, who wouldn’t go?: The morning after Santa Claus terrorized came to town

[Spotted on St. Mark's Place]

[Spotted at Phebe's]

[Trailer-Park Santa still stands]

Our friends at EV Heave are out and about this morning. So far, there's only this. [WARNING: Do not click unless you really want to go to a site called EV Heave]

Miracle on East 14th Street.

Headline and photo by Andrew Adam Newman on Ave C via Facebook.

FYI

East village is already a disaster #santacon

— Katya (@katya323) December 15, 2012

what's with all the 20 somethings running around the east village dressed like jerry sandusky?

— Jena Friedman (@JenaFriedman) December 15, 2012

IT HAS BEGUN

Receiving all sorts of emails, tweets, etc. this morning with photos of the Santa-suit-clad partygoers beginning to form packs in the East Village ...

[Via Goggla]

[Via William Klayer]

The latest count on Facebook has 30,223 SantaCon attendees ... and that's separate from the Santa pub crawl that meets at the Village Pourhouse this afternoon... already hearing horror stories about the Santas. And this was before 10 a.m. Remember, once exposed to another Santa, the Santa virus begins mutating its host...

Previously on EV Grieve:
Here's where the Santas will be on Saturday (47 comments)