The annual party on State Street has been taking place since the 1970s, and up until last year was an un-sponsored and ultimately unstructured event.,”Thousands of college students made their yearly trek to Madison this weekend for its infamous Halloween celebration.

The annual party on State Street has been taking place since the 1970s, and up until last year was an un-sponsored and ultimately unstructured event.

From 2002 to 2005, the lack of organization resulted in riots and property damage, and according to City of Madison statistics, more than $600,000 was spent in 2005 to police the event. Starting in 2006, the city fenced off State Street, and anyone wishing to enter, walk down or even cross the street had to pay an admission fee of $5. This year's fee was $7.

Though attendance was still high, many older students who remember the days before the event was officially organized expressed disappointment in its transformation.

Josh Thornton, a junior in the University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering, said he understands the new regulations regarding State Street are ultimately better for safety reasons as well as for the establishments who call the street home.

"However, I know a lot of my friends don't feel the same way," Thornton said, adding that most of his friends didn't even go to State Street this year. "The fact that we have to pay for a ticket seems ridiculous, almost as if the city is trying to profit off of a long-standing tradition."

Sandy Knisely, a junior in the UW-Madison School of Journalism, said she didn't make the journey to State Street for that exact reason.

"I went my freshman year, before they started charging," Knisely said. "It was fun, but it's definitely not worth paying for."

But regardless of whether students did or did not attend State Street festivities, UW-Madison sophomore Jordan Slagowski characterized the weekend as "just ridiculous."

"You see the absolute craziest stuff here," he said.

Friday night, the night before the annual State Street festivities, streets were littered with students, and at least two male UW-Madison students were seen indecently exposing themselves to passersby. House parties were typically shoulder-to-shoulder, featuring loud rap, beer kegs and Jello shots.

Slagowski began his Friday evening around 9 p.m. with about three hours of "pre-gaming" in his apartment. He and his friends played drinking games such as beer pong and flip cup while they put the final touches on their costumes.

Slagowski and two friends dressed as an old Wisconsin standby, Packers quarterback Brett Favre. Other interesting costumes included Bob Barker, a beer keg and the "Superfans," the famous Bears fans of Saturday Night Live.

The night ended at about 3 a.m. Slagowski said he planned on staying out later the next night.

"I'm going to be drunk until Sunday," he said.

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