MIAMI, Fla. – It was the start of another round of an 8 p.m. weekend curfew in Miami Beach’s entertainment district. And, on Thursday night, it did not take long for police to clear the streets.
Causeways into the city were restricted, too.
“This particular area needs to be really battened down at night and we are going to continue to do that until it’s pretty clear we don’t have to,” Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber said.
Scenes of packed, raucous crowds have put South Beach in the glare of the national spotlight and has city leaders trying to crack down on crime that has curbed the party for others.
“I’m sorry for the abridgement of the evening activities. There are other places, by the way, in the city and county to go to,” Gelber said.
And other local leaders know that, too. With a midnight curfew elsewhere in the county, Miami’s mayor said his city is preparing.
“We’re telling our residents who may be worried about the consequences of some of the decisions in Miami Beach that we are ready,” Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said.
“We want to warn those who are not in the city from the city who may have been on Miami Beach that the kind of behavior we have seen in Miami Beach is not going to be tolerated,” he said.