According to UCSB’s Halloween 2013 website, no overnight guests are permitted to stay on campus starting Oct. 30 and ending Nov. 3. Santa Barbara students must buy special parking permits for the weekend, and in five areas surrounding campus, all cars must be off of the streets by 3 p.m. Thursday until 6 a.m. Monday.
“Keep it local.”
That’s the message University of California, Santa Barbara is sending to outside visitors this Halloween weekend, reinforced by an advertisement UCSB Associate Dean for Student Life Debbie Fleming bought in Mustang News this past week. But her message might have fallen short.
Out of 40 students surveyed, only three had seen it. Of those, just one had read the letter instead of turning to another page.
Modern languages and literature sophomore Brenda Dorantes, the lone student who said she read the statement, doubted its effectiveness.
“No, I don’t think it will work,” she said. “Everyone already knows what they’re going to do — an ad’s not going to convince them.”
Most echoed her feelings, saying it was “unrealistic” that a letter would change anyone’s plans.
Grace Lutrell, a business administration graduate student, said the effort was “ridiculous.”
“I don’t think you can exclude a group of people,” she said. “You can ask that, but how do you monitor that.”
English freshman Caiti McCallum is one of the Cal Poly students going to Santa Barbara this weekend.
“I’m actually a bit nervous,” she said. “I went down on a regular weekend, and it was insane. But the kind of kids that they’re trying to appeal to are not going to listen to the dean.”
While the students surveyed doubted Fleming’s plan would be effective, they were more ready to believe the increased strictness in Isla Vista during Halloween weekend.
“It’s not that people would listen to the dean necessarily, but they would know that the police down there are cracking down a lot more and that you can’t stay in the dorms,” agricultural business freshman Taylor Campbell said.
According to UCSB’s Halloween 2013 website, no overnight guests are permitted to stay on campus starting Oct. 30 and ending Nov. 3. Santa Barbara students must buy special parking permits for the weekend, and in five areas surrounding campus, all cars must be off of the streets by 3 p.m. Thursday until 6 a.m. Monday.
There is even a “Halloween Law,” that says until Nov. 4, “playing music open to the public” is illegal in Isla Vista. Rule-breakers will be sentenced to a mandatory court appearance and a fine between $200 and $300.
“Basically, you can’t have the stereo on so loud that we can hear it from outside,” Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Ray Vuillemainroy said.
Halloween started slow in Santa Barbara, with only minor problems Thursday night, NoozHawk reported.
“It’s under control so far,” Santa Barbara Police Department Lt. Paul McCaffrey told NoozHawk. “A lot of people, a lot of costumes, but no serous incidents.”