WRIGLEYVILLE — Stanley Cup celebrations in Wrigleyville were mostly peaceful Monday night according to neighbors, but when thousands of fans take over the streets and alcohol is involved, there is bound to be mayhem.
Around 1 a.m. Tuesday, windows of a police vehicle were smashed just west of Clark and Addison streets. Getty Images photographed a child with a head wound being guided to an ambulance after being hit in the head with a bottle.
Windows smashed on squad car near Clark and Addison. Neighbor said it happened at 1 am, shortly before mounted sweep. pic.twitter.com/Zs8lSisNrs
— Ariel Cheung (@arielfab) June 16, 2015Chicago police said six squad cars were damaged in Wrigleyville and five officers were injured, the Tribune reported late Tuesday afternoon. Twenty-five people were arrested, including four on felony charges, according to the Tribune.
Nicole Greenberg, a neighbor and Lake View Citizens Council board member, saw much of the chaos. She said soon after the windows were smashed, the disorder escalated and a police officer was assaulted.
"Somebody took down one of the bike cops, and the bike was destroyed. Somebody was literally setting off mortars in the middle of the street. They're using commercial fireworks lit 100 feet away right in front of the police," Greenberg told DNAinfo Chicago.
Greenberg said she confronted officers, asking why no one was being arrested for the damage and the fireworks.
"I went up to an officer, and he said, 'Sorry, we don't have the manpower.' Nobody was arrested for this stuff. They just didn't have the manpower," Greenberg said.
Soon after, officers mounted on horses arrived and began herding crowds west on Addison toward Racine Street and, eventually, past Southport Avenue.
Addison Street at both intersections was congested, with partiers refusing to let up after three hours of celebration. Cars crammed with fans hanging out of windows drove slowly through the crowd-filled streets, further complicating the situation for officers.
Clark Street began to empty before midnight, meaning stores like The Sports Corner, 952 W. Addison St., enjoyed a night that was "peaceful, for the most part," said business partner Josh Sklar.
While Clark Street was calmer than in years past (the barricades, for example, remained firmly on the ground this time around), officers' efforts to clear it meant nearby intersections saw far more action than in 2012 or 2013.
Andrew Martin, a manager at D'Agostino's Pizza, 1351 W. Addison St., said after "waves of people coming down from Clark" arrived at Southport and Addison, fights began breaking out, and people were throwing glass bottles.
Police managed to clear the area temporarily, but when officers began shuffling the crowds west, the trouble began again, Martin said.
In 2013, he said, Addison and Southport were blocked off during the championship game, even with a single police cruiser, to maintain order.
"It was worse here than in 2013. There were no squad cars at all here. But no one was hurt too badly, and (overall), it was a fun atmosphere," Martin said.
After mounted units herded the crowd past Southport Avenue, Wrigleyville appeared relatively calm. By 2 a.m., crowds had largely dissipated, although small clusters still roamed the streets.
The day after Wrigleyville erupted in celebrations for the Chicago Blackhawks victory, broken glass, empty beer cans and trash littered Addison Street from Clark Street to Southport Avenue. [DNAinfo/Ariel Cheung]
On Tuesday, street sweepers made secondary rounds after doing the majority of the cleanup in the early morning. While the streets themselves were fairly clean, however, broken class, empty beer cans and trash still littered the sidewalks and parkways in Wrigleyville and the Southport Corridor.
"Last night’s celebration was well managed by CPD. SWAP is out in our neighborhood assisting with the cleanup today," said Erin Duffy, director of community outreach for Ald. Tom Tunney (44th).
The Town Hall District declined comment.
After the Chicago Blackhawks triumphed over the Tampa Bay Lightning for the 2015 Stanley Cup, celebrations left many Wrigleyville bars in short supply. On Tuesday, June 16, 2015, a distributor's truck unloads kegs for Red Ivy, 3525 N. Clark St. [DNAinfo/Ariel Cheung]
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