downtown crowd getting rougher?

just wondering if fremont street on the first weekend in july had an awful lot more undesireable sketchy people in the crowd than in the past?
I am not referring only to panhandlers and weird costume people but the crowd in general.

there seemed to be an awful lot you wouldn`t want to get too close too or maybe it was just my perception this time.
I am sure a lot of the pro strip people will chime in on this but security is still good downtown and I will still stay there.

 

I noticed this too that last time I was down there in March. Hard to pinpoint, but just rougher. The crowd has influenced my decision not to stay down there. I've been spending more time "off strip" these days.

 

The crowd was definitely more local on the 4th. It felt more like a football game crowd than a bunch of gamblers.

 

there was an article posted on here recently talking about the "bar district" that is just east of Fremont bringing in a lot of younger people that are not even old enough to drink or get into clubs, but they show up with 30 packs of cheap beer and just stand around and then occasionally get out of control

it was specifically talking about the police closing the street to traffic which the bar owners actually frowned on because it made the street the party VS in the club where there were controls and it also talked about the number of liquor stores that were opening in the area as well which served to supply people with larger quantities of alcohol they could then consume (or pass to others to consume) outside the control of the doorman or the bartender

generally when an area becomes where "the public" can come stand around and mill about aimlessly with impunity you end up attracting the lower end of the social spectrum eventually because large crowds are often where they victimize others and do their crimes (or on the fringes of large crowds or when large crowds are winding down) and "free", "cheap" and uncontrolled is their type of environment to sit and wait for "opportunity"

 

In spite of the pain of construction, I was happy to see the crowds on my last trip. Yeah, there were more beggars and those awful Elvis and kiss impersonators but they were harmless. Everyone seemed to be having a good time and it was no different than previous trips but more business. I was happy to see businesses on Fremont East doing a good business.

It is changing but I hope we don't have to start the, "IS downtown safe?" panic again. Look at how rough the overpasses on the Strip has become, not to mention shootouts and robberies.

I'm still planning on staying downtown on my upcoming trip.

Jimbo338

 

sounds like my kind of fun!!

I will be there in 2 weeks partying with them.

 

Meh, not too concerned. We live in KC, near a very nice part of town known as "The Plaza" which has been getting "rougher" the past few years including a shooting and "flash mobs" of teens. Am I afraid to go out at night? Nope. Would I avoid a large crowd or a situation that appears dangerous? Obviously. But I don't live in fear and I won't be afraid when I am enjoying downtown in 9 days.

(Wow, I used a lot of quotation marks in that one...)

 

I'm planning on 9 days as well this coming Feb. I need this vacation badly, might even add a day or two at a 2nd hotel. Maybe I'll stand with a jar and a cardboard sign reading, "Oh, let's be honest.....Buffet Money".

Jimbo338

 

Ha ha!

I never felt uneasy there but just an observation.

I will stay on fremont again next trip regardless

 

since my first trip... me and my lady dont stay downtown (unless we are booked there) past 1am.

Its really sketchy unless your inside a casino.

 

I have walked all over downtown at all hours of the day and night. Not once have I ever felt uneasy. As with any city and crowds, you always stay cautious of your surroundings.

BTW, 20 more sleeps and staying at the CAL for seven wonderful days!

 

I walk late at night downtown often, Fremont east, Ogden and everywhere. And I'm always packing about $5,000 in my pocket.

Never a hint of a any problem. But then again, I never saw anyone around there that scares me. If challenged, I would welcome some hand-to-hand combat.

 

Went back downtown last year with my GF... no return trip this year necessary...while I can take care of myself... I don't welcome "hand to hand combat"...

 

I have never felt threatened downtown either. And I have walked down to the Western with a pocket full of Benjamines at 2:00 am back in the day....

 

The only thing that really scares me downtown are the big-black-transvestite-hookers that seem to always confront me with offers of a "Good Time Private Party" when I'm in the Golden Nugget... why only the Golden Nugget?

I'm in counseling now trying to overcome this deep seeded psychological issue?

 

This has probably been said ad nauseum here, but I'm more on edge around the porn slappers on the strip than I am drunkards or "rough element" on Fremont.

 

I'm certainly not going to argue that the strip is safer than downtown or vice versa. Like others, I've never feared for my safety in 35-40 trips. But the porn slappers? Seriously? Annoying, sure. But I can't even think of a more harmless group of people in Vegas.

 

What is it about porn slappers that puts you on edge? I've found them to be the most inconsequential people working on the strip in terms of being bothersome. None of them has ever gotten in my face in the least, unlike time share salesmen or bozos dressed like pirates or something who think I'd want a picture with them.

 

I actually had more issue with the show/strip club/club hockers on the Strip this time around than I ever have. Me and the GF would honestly just get followed. It was particularly bad on Sunday for some reason.

On the topic of downtown crowd. My visit last month was on a Friday night, stayed at the GN for a night. Between 11PM-3AM were my hours of walking around and it was strangely dead. Very strange crowd under the canopy. It definitely didn't feel as fun as it normally does.

 

Yep... after 12+ Jack and Cokes I'm positive I can whup anyone's ass!