Hoboken Police Prepare Patrols For Infamous Leprecon Bar Crawl

HOBOKEN, NJ — Whether you love them or hate them, Hoboken's holiday-themed bar crawls will return again with a round of "Leprecon" events starting this Saturday.

This Saturday's "Official Hoboken LepreCon Bar Crawl" has 20 bars participating, and will kick off at noon, which is later than the 10 a.m. start time in past years.

Another Hoboken Leprecon event has advertised that it will run for 12 hours on March 21.

The crawls have become controversial due to drunken behavior and house parties that used to accompany them, but police said last year that there were no major arrests connected to the crawls. READ MORE: Traditional Leprecon Weekend Was Quiet

Police have beefed up patrols and advertised steep fines over the years.

"The Hoboken Public Safety Department has been proactively preparing for this weekend’s unsanctioned bar crawl event," a public safety spokesperson told Patch.

"[First responders] will continue coordinating throughout the weekend to address public safety issues, including occupancy and safety inspections of establishments, as well as proactive enforcement of quality-of-life regulations."

They will implement extra patrols and continue a zero-tolerance policy with fines of up to $1,000 for ordinance violations. Fire inspectors will also be on duty to make sure establishments are not violating the fire code, including capacity limits or blocking exits, the spokesperson said. Fines could climb as high as $2,500.

"The city and Public Safety Department stronglyurge participants to continue celebrating responsibly," said a spokesperson. "Do not drink and drive. Please use rideshare services or public transportation."

The Origin

The privately run crawls originated in response to a canceled annual parade.

In 2012, Hoboken's independent St. Patrick's Parade Committee — a decades-old group that was not a part of city government — posted a letter on its website saying it would cancel the 26th annual parade that year. They traditionally held the family-friendly parade the first Saturday in March to secure the best bands. But then-Mayor Dawn Zimmer suggested the event be held on a weeknight instead of Saturday, in order to cut down on house parties and other events that accompanied it.

The organizers said no, and the parade ceased to exist.

Independent entrepreneurs swooped in to fill the void. Bars have said that these holiday crawls provide enough income to get them through slow summer months.

In recent years, public safety officials have said that the holiday crawls, including SantaCon in December, have become more "subdued."

The Christmas and St. Patrick's crawls do tend to attract racy t-shirts and ugly sweaters.

In 2022, after posting a survey about whether to bring back the parade, a local business group sent a float through the streets.

See photos from the last LepreCon before the pandemic lockdown here.