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November 01, 2005
In line at Riley's
From Ryan @ 11 p.m.
A colorful and sometimes rag-tag bunch of people lined up to seek admission into Riley's tonight.
Renee and Constantine Takwi, of Chico, were waiting for about 35 minutes to get into the bar as the line stretched down the length of the building along Ivy Street.
"I just want to get in there," Renee Takwi said. "I can't wait to have a drink."
Riley's was the first place they had visited tonight after walking around downtown. Renee Takwi, dressed as a vampire, said the neighborhood was "too mellow" with the large number of police present.
This was the Takwis' second Halloween in Chico after their first time in 2003. They said the crowds were similar.
Constantine Takwi said the city could probably reduce the number of police patrolling the event.
"If the city of Chico can relax the amount of security that they put out into the town, I think they'll have more fun," he said.
The line was one of the most active places downtown tonight. As people milled about, a bouncer would occasionally remind people to keep the sidewalk clear unless they were waiting to go in.
At the back of the line, Chico State juniors Jennifer Dingman and Kelly Kreiensieck waited. Dressed as mobster wives, they said this was their first Halloween in Chico.
Dingman said she was having a good time, but she expected more before reading about the enforcement efforts.
"It's not as fun as I thought it would be," she said.
Dingman said her fiancé opted not to come into town because of the commercials discouraging out-of-towners. She said tonight was similar to other nights and called Chico a good town.
Kreiensieck said she felt safe walking through downtown with the significant number of police.
"I don't really think that anybody's going to get out of control," she said.
Posted by Ryan at November 1, 2005 12:41 AM