The San Luis Obispo Police Department and University Police are preparing for Halloween weekend with double fines and increased patrols.
Since Halloween falls on a Thursday, double fines were put into effect midnight on Oct. 31 and will be in place through 7 a.m. Nov. 4, according to the Safety Enhancement Zone ordinance passed by the City of San Luis Obispo in 2010.
Noise violations typically start at $350 for noise violations and go up to $1,000, but during the Safety Enhancement Zone, they will start at $700 and go up to $2,000.
For late night celebrations, noise violations can be issued if noise can be heard from the property line between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. according to San Luis Obispo’s noise standards.
It is also a violation if noise can be heard 50 feet from the property line between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m.
Double fines will also be in effect during Halloween weekend for unruly gatherings, social hosts, public urination and open container violations, according to the ordinance.
To prepare for Halloween weekend, the University Police Department (UPD) will provide extra patrols on and off campus, University Spokesperson Matt Lazier wrote in an email to Mustang News.
UPD and the San Luis Obispo Police Department work together to assist each other during the holiday weekend, Lazier wrote.
The Alcoholic Beverage Control, a government agency that regulates the licensing and sales of alcohol, will increase enforcement at, and around, alcohol establishments, including illegal sales, Lazier wrote.
On campus events will also be available to students to offer an alternative to partying.
Associated Students Inc. will host a Halloween Bash in the University Union at 7 p.m. Oct. 31.
Santa Barbara is also taking precautions going into Halloween weekend.
UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) Dean of Students Office warned Cal Poly students not to visit during Halloween weekend.
In a paid advertisement addressed to Cal Poly Students, UCSB outlined law enforcement precautions.
Those enforcement precautions in Isla Vista include sobriety checkpoints in Isla Vista and Goleta areas, enforcement of vehicle code violations, alcohol and beverage control agents monitoring Isla Vista and Goleta and sweeps of Goleta hotels for underage drinking.
California Highway Patrol, UCSB’s police and the sheriff’s department will be running a zero tolerance enforcement, which means no warnings, the advertisement read. It also urges residents to host private celebrations.
“I hope you decide to stay away for your own safety and protection and choose to celebrate Halloween locally in your own community,” Assistant Vice Chancellor and Dean of Student Life, Katya Armistead wrote in the advertisement.