Myrtle Beach officials:
No more biker rallies
The (Myrtle Beach) Sun News
http://www.thestate.com/breaking/story/417769.html
MYRTLE BEACH - Furious and frustrated after the weekend
shooting death of a 20-year-old Coastal Carolina University student, Myrtle
Beach City Council members said Tuesday that they do not want motorcycle
rallies in the city any more.
A group of local ministers and a
bike-rally event promoter spoke to the council at a morning workshop Tuesday
and implored the city to help them "do something" about the behavior they
witnessed during the past weekend.
Other groups have complained to city
officials in previous years after the Atlantic Beach Bikefest biker rally and
the Harley-Davidson spring rally.
"I experienced something ... enough is
enough," the Rev. Tim McCray told the council on Tuesday. He said he and others
had not slept for the past four days during the Atlantic Beach Bikefest,
staying up to get a firsthand look at the parties that have for years concerned
residents and prompted complaints. "They were up there partying, doing things
they shouldn't be doing."
Grand Strand Connection is an umbrella group
that is trying to help solve "issues that threaten the harmony of Myrtle
Beach," said McCray, the group's founder.
The group is bringing together
local officials, clergy, hotel owners, restaurants and other groups that plan
and hold events geared toward bikers to make the spring and fall bike rallies
more organized.
McCray said he witnessed public sex acts and other
behavior, not among the sport bikers who traditionally have come to the area
during Memorial Day weekend, but among the 16- to 20-year-olds who arrive by
the carload to party during weekend rally.
"We know the NAACP has you
locked down," McCray told the council. The National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People has sued the city and area businesses for what it
has called racist behavior during the Atlantic Beach Bikefest, which is visited
predominantly by African Americans and happens around Memorial Day
weekend.
Others argue that those who come to the Atlantic Beach Bikefest
- whatever their race -don't behave properly, don't respect the city and its
residents and cause more trouble than they are worth financially.
The
NAACP has monitored the Bikefest and the Harley-Davidson spring rally to make
sure people are treated fairly at both events.
Myrtle Beach Councilman
Mike Chestnut, who appeared visibly upset by the weekend shooting of CCU
student Corey Brooks, asked McCray and the others what they expect the city to
do to make bike rallies more successful.
"Why should we invest in this
event when we don't in any other?" Chestnut asked. "Let me tell you what's
going to happen. The City Council is going to shut it down. We're not going to
have a 20-year-old shot because someone is too cheap to pay for a $20 parking
space."
Police have not confirmed a motive in the shooting.
Hakim
Harrell, an event promoter, said he understands the city's concern, but hopes
more organized activities scattered throughout the city would draw people away
from Ocean Boulevard.
"We don't care which rally it is, we'd just as
soon stop them," Mayor John Rhodes told the group.
"We don't need them,"
Rhodes said. "We can fill all the hotel rooms without bike weeks."
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