Mamma Mia at the Galleria!

No, I’m not talking about the ABBA musical.

You’ve likely heard about the street fight that took place in the Galleria parking garage in the wee hours last Sunday morning. I don’t think it’s too much of a stretch to opine that the participants and spectators were a bit polluted from an evening in our high-class entertainment district south of 75th Street and Camelback.

If you haven’t seen the video, it can be viewed here. But if you’re sensitive to blood or profanity, you might want to skip it.

What did you think of the running commentary from the punk Hollywood director wanna-be with his cell phone cam? “This is Scottsdale, Arizona, y’all, the WILD, WILD WEST!”

We had a fist fight, cops on horseback and Tasers…oh my.

A web search for “Scottsdale brawl” brings up a multitude of results depicting the event. Not exactly the kind of PR we want for Scottsdale.

Kudos to the Scottsdale Police for effectively getting this scene under control, especially considering that one of them was attacked in the process. That makes me wonder what it costs our city to provide such patrols. Is it really worth the tax revenue generated by the bar patrons?

I’d love to know what triggered the fight…that is, beyond the obvious reason of alcohol sprinkled over a critical mass of dumb-…well, I’ll stop with the rhyming.

For the record, as long as all were willing participants I’m all for it. Heck, put up a ring and sell tickets. We could put the ring INSIDE the Galleria. Better view for all spectators. We could call it “The Brawl at the Mall.”

I note with some irony that zoning attorney Lynne Lagarde represents the owners of the Galleria, JEMB Realty. Lagarde was quoted in recent AZCentral article resisting the “public” parking agreement JEMB signed with the City:

“The garage was being vandalized, people were driving recklessly . . . and there’s a lot of damage and a lot of cleanup required after the weekend,” she said. “It was a public safety issue and still is.”

It’s a public safety issue, for certain. And for ALL of Downtown Scottsdale, not just the Galleria parking garage. It’s also a real black eye for the City’s reputation as a world-class destination.

My question is this:

How long do these things have to go on before we re-think the concerted efforts of the City Manager and City Council to generate some trickle-down from the bar operators and property owners in the entertainment district?

See more on the entertainment district in our previous posts, Noisy Neighbors and Take Two.