CU-Boulder Spent $108K To Shut Down 4/20 Marijuana Party In 2013

Soft Secrets
28 Jun 2013

CU spent roughly $17k less than in 2012, first year campus was closed to public for pot day


CU spent roughly $17k less than in 2012, first year campus was closed to public for pot day

A University of Colorado freshman, who did not want to be identified, joins a crowd smoking marijuana during a "420" gathering at Farrand Field at the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colo. (AP Photo/Longmont Daily Times-Call, Richard M. Hackett, File)

SOURCE: 'The Boulder Daily Camera'
AUTHOR: Brittany Anas

The University of Colorado spent $107,794 this year on its efforts to end the 4/20 smoke-out by shutting down the campus to outside visitors, officials announced today.

CU's spending was roughly $17,000 less than it was in 2012, the inaugural year that CU closed its campus to the public and shut down Norlin Quad entirely.

In previous years, CU's unsanctioned 4/20 smoke-out had drawn more than 12,000 revelers to the quad, causing what CU officials say was a disruption to the school's academic mission.

"While this is not money we are eager to spend, we have to ask ourselves what the costs are to us for having our work disrupted or having a student or bystander injured because we allowed the gathering on the campus," Chancellor Phil DiStefano said in a statement.

Costs for this year's 4/20 campus closure were as follows:

--$70,850 for CU police/security/dispatcher/parking overtime and labor costs for officers from outside agencies;

--$9,881 for Argus security staff assisting with police/parking operations;

--$4,431 for fire department/ambulance coverage;

--$12,025 on miscellaneous expenses, including equipment, supplies, operations facility rental, printing, and food and water for personnel;

--$5,016 for parking equipment/rentals, such as cones, barricades and variable message signs noting the campus closure; and

--$5,591 for overtime labor costs in facilities management (groundskeeping, locksmiths and other facilities employees).

There was no public smoke-out on the Boulder campus this year. Last year, there was a small smoke-out of about 300 people on a field near the Duane Physics building.

Funding for the 4/20 closures came entirely from campus insurance premium rebates resulting from reductions in liability and hazard claims, according to university officials.

(c)2013 the Daily Camera (Boulder, Colo.)

Visit the Daily Camera (Boulder, Colo.) at www.dailycamera.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services

 

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