MEMPHIS, Tenn. —
As large crowds gathered to ring in the New Year on Beale Street, the Memphis Police Department (MPD) increased the security measures in downtown Memphis.
Every year, Beale Street draws massive crowds of people from all over, all excited for live music, confetti and the mirror ball.
It’s a night that business owners prepared for all week. Phillip Tate owns Runway Grille in Handy Park. He said he’s been there for over a decade, and it is hard work preparing for big events like New Year’s Eve.
"We're anticipating at least 5,000 to 6,000 people. We always have to prepare for everything so it's a couple days of preparing food and things like that,” said Tate.
The massive crowds also bring concerns for safety. This year, MPD responded to multiple shootings, robberies, and break ins near Beale Street and other downtown areas. That’s why MPD ramped up security downtown for New Year’s Eve.
On Beale Street, MPD and event organizers set up protective layers around the venues and stages.
Also, starting at 9:30 p.m., everyone had to be 21 and older to enter Beale Street.
Business owners, Memphians and visitors welcomed the extra measures and hoped for a safe, incident-free night.
"It needs to be like that all the time so the businesses can do better because it's been a little slower than usual for the last year or so, but hopefully they'll put more security and more MPD out here and it'll keep everything safe,” said owner of We Outside Hookahs Marcus Lewis.
MPD also reminded everyone to make sure no valuables are left in your vehicle.