Police broke up an Asbury Park Drum Circle performance on the boardwalk last night after it attracted a large crowd. The police stepped in because access to the boardwalk was being blocked, city manager Terence Reidy said.
The group posted a statement on its Facebook page shortly after.
“We were told that people were complaining that because the boardwalk area was full, they had to walk on the grass,” a member of the Asbury Park Drum Circle wrote in a statement on the group’s Facebook page. “People were so into the good vibes that it drew more people in to share in the energy. Shame on us!”
The group has a permit for a drum circle of 40 people, the statement said. It began in 1999 and “helped grow the city,” the statement said. “The police at that time told us we made their job easier because when we were there things were good.”
Officials plan to review the ordinance governing the permit process for street performers, Reidy said.
“This is all part of having an active and successful beach front,” Reidy said. “You’re going to get a lot of people. They’re going to come and gather and there’s this whole balance between people having a great time on the boardwalk and other people being able to go back and forth and transgress the boardwalk.”
The city may need to improve communication between street performers and officials, Reidy said. Street performers are not in danger of being regulated out of town, he added.
Asbury Park Drum Circle performs every Tuesday and Saturday, starting at 6:30 p.m., at the boardwalk and Fourth Avenue, according to their Facebook page. Group members could not be reached for comment.
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[Photo courtesy of John Eustor]
