Cruise Nite: ‘Be Safe, Be Smart’

Thank you to Justin Burch for his beautiful images

Cruise Nite: Be Safe, Be Smart KEARNEY – Kearney-area community coalition, Positive Pressure is working proactively with community partners on a campaign aimed to increase “safe and smart” behavior during Kearney’s largest community event, Cruise Nite. This year will mark the 27th annual Cruise Nite.

While the event itself is great for the Kearney area and provides a plethora of family-friendly events, the post-Cruise Nite parties have grown larger and more violent over the years. Positive Pressure is partnering with the Kearney Police Department; Century 21 and property managers, landlords, and homeowners on 22nd-26th streets; UNK; alcohol retailers; and others to work towards building a better Cruise Nite. Read about some of the work we’re doing to make Cruise Nite safer here.

Landlords Take a Stand
Century 21 Property Manager Alexis McNeal speaks with Kearney Police Chief Dan Lynch and another officer after the meeting.
Cruise Nite is a wonderful event for our community and it has been enjoyed by many over the years. However, along with the wonderful attractions the event brings, it also comes with many challenges for our community. These challenges include all-day drinking activities that carry over to large, over-crowded yard parties. These parties have created room for violence, injury, and many more misconducts happening right in front of homes.  Each year the events that take place AFTER hours on Cruise Nite become more and more concerning.

That is why Positive Pressure in conjunction with Century21 Property Manager Alexis McNeal and Kearney Chief of Police Dan Lynch sent a letter to all landlords, property managers, and homeowners with properties along 25th Street. The purpose of the meeting was to come together and work collaboratively toward a solution to reduce the damaging effects happening on properties and on the community.
The meeting proved to be a success, with many interested landlords, property managers, and homeowners, along with law enforcement and Cruise Nite representatives. Many great ideas and probable solutions were generated.

Retailers Omit Glass Bottles
Last year Positive Pressure sent letters to local business owners asking that they restrict or reduce the sale of alcohol in glass bottles Cruise Nite weekend. The letters were signed by Kearney Police Chief Dan Lynch and recommended retailers only sell alcohol in plastic and aluminum containers.

Walgreens, located in the epicenter of the Cruise Nite parade, decided not to sell beer in glass containers on Saturday night. Manager Keven Heese said, “We think it would be better for the community, safer, and easier to clean up. There are always a lot of problems along 2nd Avenue and we just want to help.”. Both businesses claimed they saw no detrimental effects on sales or customer requests.

The Coalition plans to send the letter out again this year with hopes of more retailers participating.

Credit: Republished from Positive Pressure [http://teenagersdrinking.org/archives/937]