Facebook page has 1,500 people planning to party for St. Pat’s in Hoboken

HOBOKEN AND BEYOND– The anticipation surrounding Hoboken’s annual St. Patrick’s Day celebration, scheduled for March 5, is beginning to rise.
A Facebook page set up recently (http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=137860896276669) shows that, as of Feb. 3, almost 1,500 people will “attend” the party.
The annual celebration includes bars opening at 9 a.m. and thousands of visitors flooding the mile-square city for a day of drinking and partying.
Councilman Nino Giacchi said at the Feb. 2 council meeting that the city will continue to enforce a zero-tolerance policy, fining people up to $2,000 for transgressions such as public drinking and public urination. House parties were labeled as the largest problem on the parade day last year.
“When a party is deemed to be unreasonably reckless, disorderly, and unsafe, the renter or owner of the apartment or house will be charged with [maintaining a nuisance],” according to the guidelines from last year. Maximum penalties for the house parties are imprisonment of up to six months and fines not to exceed $1,000.
What do you think? Is Hoboken St. Patrick’s Day a good thing for the city, which brings increased revenue to our local bars, or a day where you, the Hoboken residents, head out of town? Leave comments below.