Pure Madnesson

On Saturday, Downtown Madison Incorporated held its 20th annual Frostiball event at the Overture Center. The weekend event began with all of the glamour and glitz of a traditional ball but ended on a sour note. Police in riot gear were called in and used tear gas to disperse the crowd of bejeweled partiers.

Late in the evening, shortly before guests were to leave the Overture Center, DMI President Susan Schmitz reportedly entered the Frostiball Martini Lounge and announced, "CONGA! CONGA!" Drunken party-goers quickly joined her in forming a conga line which then circled through the Overture Center picking up patrons along the way. Hundreds of Madisonians, dressed in formalwear, joined the conga line led by Schmitz.

Schmitz led the group outside to State Street where she found an exentension ladder left by a construction crew. She used the ladder to climb to the top of Overture's inverted dome, and her conga line followed. The group began sliding down the sides of the dome into the center, where a mosh pit quickly formed.

When police arrived, they found chaos atop Overture and on State Street below. Those near the end of the conga line had remained on the ground, lighting bonfires and throwing champagne bottles. Coiffed hair was crushed, nails were broken, and shoes were scuffed.

Police were unable to secure the scene, so they used tear gas to break up the crowd. Police Spokesperson Mike Hanson describes the scene as "utter chaos, and no one would leave. We had to use tear gas to prevent anyone from getting hurt." According to Hanson, there were no serious injuries, though former Mayor Sue Bauman was upset that her hairdo was ruined. Police issued 46 citations for disorderly conduct, and 7 arrests were made. Police are still looking two men, one in a kilt and one wearing bowling shoes who ran from officers while being questioned for urinating off the roof of the Overture Center.

Alderman Paul Skidmore and Former Alderman Ronn Ferrell joined police on the scene with video cameras in hand. They claim to have footage of the public urinators which has been turned over to police for identification. Skidmore also plans to introduce a Wine Registration ordinance at the next City Council meeting. He explains, "Not all of the party-goers got drunk at the event. Many attended house parties and were served large amounts of red wine before coming to the ball. This could be prevented if stores were required to collect identifying information from anyone purchasing full cases of wine or champagne."

Alderman Mike Verveer, who represents the downtown area and attended the event as a DMI board member, calls the event a tragedy. "A few people chose to drink too much and ruin the Frostiball for everyone." Verveer plans to introduce a glass ban for the event in the future, but several DMI members have already voiced objections to drinking from plastic wine glasses.

The city has not yet determined the cost of policing the event, though overtime costs are expected to run over $200,000. Mayor Dave Cieslewicz says that taxpayers will likely be stuck flitting the bill. He vows to cancel the event next year if an appropriate plan cannot be made to prevent such an ending. Cieslewicz also promised to appoint a Frostiball committee headed by Alcohol Policy Coordinator, Joel Plant, to plan for next year's ball. According to Plant, "Alcohol is clearly at the root of the problem. Excessive consumption was definitely a factor in the deterioration of the Frostiball."

Alderman Zach Brandon from Madison's south west side plans to send a letter to the mayor asking him to bill DMI for the policing costs. He will ask other alderpeople to join him in signing the letter. Brandon says, "It's unfair that the taxpayer should continue to cover the costs of policing downtown drinking events. DMI planned the event and should be held responsible for its consequences."