May 26, 2008 1:12 pm US/Eastern
Hip-Hop Weekend To Wrap Up Today
200,000 Expected At Annual Memorial Day Event
157 Arrests Sunday
30-Percent Less Than Last Year
SOUTH BEACH (CBS4) ―
Thousands of people flocked to Miami Beach this weekend for the annual Memorial Day Hip Hop weekend.
Even with a sagging economy nationwide, the crowd and the business on South Beach continues to jam.
"I love it down here, it's very exciting, especially with the shopping. I love the shopping. It has some real exclusive shoes and bags and stuff I have purchased," said tourist Shannon Hawkins.
The crowd was expected to swell to around 200,000 people for the weekend. Hotel occupancy reached about 90-percent and Miami Beach police were busy as well.
According to Miami Beach Police, there were 157 arrests on Sunday, which is 30-percent less than last year. Of those 157 arrests, 19 were for Felonies and 138 were Misdemeanors. In addition, police confiscated more than 2 dozen guns. In the past, most arrests resulted from disorderly conduct and intoxication.
Miami Beach Police Chief Carlos Noriega said he had a vision for a gentler approach during the holiday festivities.
"We're gonna show more tolerance, issuing more warnings, whether it's for minor stuff such as drinking in public, or noise violations," said Noriega. "We'll issue tickets, we'll issue warnings."
The annual bash, known as the "largest urban beach festival" in the world, couldn't have come at a better time.
"It generates money with the restaurants, the room nights, and everything else that comes with people coming into town," Demetrius Hodge of the Park Central Hotel said.
If you need more information, you can call the Miami Beach Answer Center at (305) 604-CITY (2489), or the Tourism Hotline at (305) 673-7400.
How did Urban Beach Week Begin?
According to the website
blackbeachweek.com, Urban Beach Week started 9 years ago as a small urban fashion show for a few thousand people interested in something different for Memorial Day Weekend in Miami.
In 1999, there was a smaller crowd but little did people know it was the start of something that was going to be big in the future.
A lot of urban clothing companies such as FUBU and other well known brands wanted a place where they could show off their new fashions. To model their clothes, those fashion companies brought in entertainers, actors and models to put a spotlight on their fashion. There were fashion shows every day all day.
It was actually called Urban Fashion Week in the beginning and it was very successful.
With that success, word begin to spread to people all over the internet, the Black Beach Week Newsletters and word of mouth, that Miami Beach was the place to go for Memorial Day Weekend.
The very next year in 2000 over 250,000 people shocked Miami Beach when people arrived for an all out party.
Since then, the event has grown and generated huge events such as the Celebrity Basketball Game, reggae festival, vendor area, shopping district, pool parties and it has become the ultimate beach party for the Hip Hop culture.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Jewish Celebrities
Click to enlarge
I-Team: Tracking The Florida Stimulus Money Trail 
Stumble It!
