OFFICIALS CANCEL PARTY AFTER WEB SITE BILLS IT AS RAVE

Washington County Fair Park Director Fears Event Might Have Drawn Drugs

West Bend - Washington County Fair Park officials have canceled a contract
for a New Year's Eve party after learning that it was being advertised as a
rave party on the Internet.

Still, officials remain concerned about potential problems because the
promoters are still advertising the event.

A rave is an all-night dance party fueled by high-energy dance music. In
some instances, rave-goers use drugs like Ecstasy to amplify the experience.

This party, called "The Experience," showed up on two Internet sites
dedicated to rave parties. When booked in October, the party was billed as
a disc jockey party, according to Fair Park director Nancy Herro.

Upsidedown Productions, a West Bend-area entertainment company, rented the
ballroom at the Fair Park pavilion.

"This was supposed to be a showcase for the DJs," Herro said. "Each DJ
would be given a chance to display their work for the audience, but it was
definitely a party."

Herro said she believed the party was a safe bet until she heard from
Washington County Sheriff's Lt. John Buck.

Buck, who heads the county's drug enforcement group, got wind of a rave
party. He checked several Internet pages dedicated to rave and found a
party listed for Jackson, in Washington County. Fair Park is just north of
Jackson in the Town of Polk.

He contacted Herro, and they met with Michael Sickler, who signed the
contract for Upsidedown Productions, and a business partner on Nov. 29.
Herro learned from Sickler that the party was being advertised on a local
radio station and on rave Internet sites.

Yet, Herro said, Fair Park officials were assured that the party was not a
rave.

"Even if you are not calling it a rave but you are advertising on rave
sites, people are going to think it's a rave," she said. "The drugs and
alcohol will follow. He created a rave by putting it on those sites."

The contract was voided, and a $900 deposit was returned to Sickler, Herro
said.

Buck said it's not fair to assume everyone who might attend would be
involved in drug use.

"The history on these types of parties, however, is that they are a haven
for drug activity," Buck said.

Washington County got a taste of raves earlier this year. In Hartford, an
all-night dance party at the Chandelier Ballroom in March was stopped after
one woman was rushed to the hospital with an apparent drug overdose.

That party was never intended to be a rave, promoters said, adding at that
time that if kids wanted it to be a rave party, it could easily become one.

Telephone calls to Upsidedown Productions were not returned. As of
Wednesday, a recording gave directions to the site and said tickets were on
sale at a Milwaukee business.

One site posted an event status report that indicated that the party was
still on and that it had not been canceled or moved.

How to handle the people who might show up remains a problem.

"We've made no decisions yet," Herro said, adding that Sheriff's Department
squad cars may be patrolling the grounds.

Herro and County Board Chairman Ken Miller both said they were concerned
over the loss of revenue. The rental fee is $1,800, and Fair Park gets a
portion of the concessions.

But a rave party - or an event with the potential to become one - was
viewed as not acceptable.

"We don't need this for our reputation," Miller said. "We run a clean
operation. With ads being placed on rave sites, we were misled as to what
it was."

Herro said she had to turn away three other prospective renters, and now
the site would be empty on New Year's Eve.