Thirsty Thursday Crowd Control Underway During Towson Bar Crawls

TOWSON, MD — Police ramped up crowd control measures for last week's Thirsty Thursday bar crawl in Towson. The efforts are intended to keep the busy York Road corridor safe while also ensuring bars are secure for their customers.

WBFF reported that the new measures include additional security at bars on nights they're open until 2 a.m., liquor board inspectors enforcing ID checks and fire officials checking capacity limits.

There will also be more police patrols and aerial drones, The Baltimore Sun said.

"We will not allow anything to escalate in our community," Nancy Hafford, executive director of the Towson Chamber of Commerce, told WBFF, adding that "Our 92 restaurants and eateries in the area welcome you. But if you come here to cause problems, you're going to be in trouble."

Related: Thirsty Thursdays 'Ruin Our Community,' Draw 'Some Bad Apples' To Towson: Reports

Concerns began on Aug. 28, when a bar's promotion drew hundreds to York Road and left crowds spilling into the street. A TikTok showing the overflow has over 25,000 likes, leaving residents concerned about safety.

Detective Trae Corbin, a spokesperson for the Baltimore County Police Department, told The Baltimore Banner that eight people were arrested Aug. 28 and two were arrested Sept. 4. Corbin told The Banner they face disorderly conduct, assault and firearms-related charges.

Last week, The Banner reported that "around 100 or so youngsters could still be seen walking York Road on Thursday, discreetly vaping, smoking and drinking Cutwaters, beer and buzzballs." The Banner added that "officers issued citations for jaywalking and confiscated alcohol."

"Thirsty Thursday is literally insane," Towson University student Parker Birchfield told The Sun, adding that she doesn't go out often but the extra patrols are "definitely needed."

Public safety, elected and business officials met earlier this month to discuss a path forward.

"These ongoing efforts appear to have contributed to a decrease in crowds week over week and resulted in no arrests last night," Erica Palmisano, a spokesperson for the Baltimore County government, told The Banner in a Friday statement. "We will continue to engage with business owners and stakeholders and look forward to everyone responsibly enjoying all that Towson has to offer."

A photo gallery of the crowds this past Thursday is available in The Banner's story.