Ann Arbor property manager: New Year's Eve party organizers did what they could to stop fight
The manager of the property where three men were injured in a New Year's Eve brawl said the party's organizers did what they could to stop the fight.
The interior of the space where a fight broke out on New Year's Eve in Ann Arbor.
Courtesy of ptallen.com
The party was held at this building located at 1250 N. Main St. in Ann Arbor.
Courtesy of ptallen.com
Doug Allen is a property manager for the company Peter Allen and Associates, which owns the Riverfront Building at 1250 N. Main St. in Ann Arbor where the fight occurred. He said he leased the 7,000-square-foot building to a company called Metal Apes LLC for the night.
"They (were) an LLC that puts on events," he said. "These guys seemed legit."
William Fairbanks of Metal Apes LLC did not immediately respond to email messages from AnnArbor.com.
Allen has been renting out the 1930s manufacturing building, which was rehabbed in the 1990s, since it's been vacant for the past year. A number of art showings, events and fundraisers have come through the building.
Allen said Metal Apes signed a security deposit he described as "pretty hefty" and fulfilled its end of the agreement despite the fight that brought police to the party. Ann Arbor police were later dispatched to two area hospitals after receiving reports of three men being beaten and cut by men they didn't know. All men were taken to the hospital, treated and released, according to police.
Allen visited the party twice -- once at 7 p.m. and another time at midnight -- and said it didn't seem to be out of hand.
"It was definitely a party," he said. "It didn't seem crazy."
He estimated that there were about 150 people at the party around midnight. To his knowledge, Allen said the trouble started around 1:30 a.m.
"They kicked people out," he said. "They thought it got out of hand with certain people. As far as I know, people came who shouldn't have been there."
Police said a fight started at the party, then spilled outside. By the time officers arrived around 1:41 a.m., there was no fight in progress and many people were leaving. An 18-year-old Ypsilanti man later told police he was knocked to the ground and beaten by multiple people. He suffered lacerations to his leg and near his clavicle. A 20-year-old Warren man and a 22-year-old Ann Arbor man also reported being beaten in a similar fashion and receiving lacerations, police said.
The 22-year-old said he was hit in the face with a bottle.
"This is unfortunate," Allen said. "They were just trying to have a good party for their friends. My clients I rented to ... did their part to make sure it was safe and secure. They're as surprised as I am."
Allen said the space will continue to be leased for events until it is occupied. He has a couple of interested parties already.
"I'm not going to stop doing events there," Allen said, but added he will probably stop doing New Year's Eve parties. "You don't know who is going to come to a public party."
John Counts covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at johncounts@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.
Comments
JRW
Fri, Jan 4, 2013 : 1:43 a.m.
Party of thugs.
Zhuk
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 5:36 p.m.
So... why is everyone focused on the venue, property manager, and or party organizers rather than finding the unidentified attackers (or even discussing them)? I am surprised that nobody has reported as to what the property manager was wearing or what he had for dinner. Has anyone tried to FOIA the electric bill? Do you know what time the tickets to the party were printed? Did the person who designed the the tickets have a college degree? I am all for wasting time at work, (AA.com please write an article about time wasting, I bet you could easily find some experts) but this story is getting pretty ridiculous.
Forza Azzurri
Fri, Jan 4, 2013 : 2:39 p.m.
Spot on ... when a fight breaks out at a wedding, we usually don't blame the banquet hall manager for renting out to "thugs"
Alan Goldsmith
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 5:33 p.m.
Was admission charged? Was alcohol? Did the party planners, who apparently became an LLC the day after the event have an event permit to sell alcohol? Did this need to be approved by City Council prior to the event? And the guy who has been so hard to reach has been posting on Twitter all day: https://twitter.com/Will_Fairbanks
Nicholas Urfe
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 4:23 p.m.
What is an LLC? Lots of Liquor Consumed? Lots of Liquor for Cash?
Michisbest
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 2:44 p.m.
Crime and fighting becoming ramapnt in Ann Arbor ther were 2 fights at Weber's last week how appaling!
Zhuk
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 5:41 p.m.
Two fights at Webers? I had no idea that Iggy Pop was back in town.
EyeHeartA2
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 2:22 p.m.
There was a fight, at a party on New Years Eve? Also, I think a ball dropped somewhere. and somebody got kissed. All equally predictable and newsworthy.
Davidian
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 2:15 p.m.
New year's is good for cops and mayhem by drunken morons. I've stayed home or gone somewhere low key for many years.
John Counts
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 1:48 p.m.
We are looking into all of these issues and are scheduled to speak with the party organizers at some point this afternoon at which time we will post a follow-up story.
A2comments
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 12:37 p.m.
Metal Apes LLC was approved 1/2/13... Did Doug Allen tell them they had to be an LLC and then they filed? http://www.dleg.state.mi.us/bcs_corp/dt_llc.asp?id_nbr=D8527Y&name_entity=METAL%20APES%20LLC
Lets Get Real
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 1:19 p.m.
Public Record shows the following information for Metal Apes, LLC Searched for: METAL APES LLC ID Num: D8527Y Name:METAL APES LLC Type: Domestic Limited Liability Company Resident Agent: TIMOTHY HOOKER Registered Office Address: 242 ALLEN LAKE DR WHITE LAKE MI 48386 Mailing/Office Address: Formation/Qualification Date:1-2-2013 Jurisdiction of Origin:MICHIGAN Managed by: Members Status: ACTIVE Date: Present
Lets Get Real
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 1:11 p.m.
The link listed, copied and pasted into the URL line reveals no results?
PineyWoodsGuy
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 7:27 a.m.
Obviously alcohol was sold at this "party" by the Metal Apes LLC ("Limited Liability Corporation"). Is the Landlord legally shielded? Probably not; a court could easily "Pierce the Corporate Veil" (Goggle it). In this event Landlord got lucky. Injuries were bruises and scrapes. Next time, if an innocent citizen is killed by a drunken lout driver exiting from Landlord's "establishment," he can count on Ann Arbor "lawdogs" going after all his assets (if any). The gall of this Landlord Boasting that he will continue to rent his dilapidated bldg to the lumpen proletariat! Too bad the man cannot envision his future. More's the pity . . .
CincoDeMayo
Fri, Jan 4, 2013 : 9:51 p.m.
smokeblwr, you're my hero
On The Huron
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 5:53 p.m.
LLC = Limited Liability Company, not Corporation, there is a difference.
actionjackson
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 2:33 p.m.
However, the shoes are "spot on."
smokeblwr
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 1:35 p.m.
The "Goggles" do nothing!
Somewhat Concerned
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 4:22 a.m.
Let's keep this in perspective. The important thing is that the landlord got a "pretty hefty" deposit. He never was in any real danger of not making his money. As long as the mysterious LLC that rented it paid enough, there is nothing to worry about and the landlord intends to keep renting it. A few guys here and there going to the hospital won't stop that as long as there are mysterious LLCs with money to put on the table.
smokeblwr
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 3 a.m.
The Metal Apes is neither a metal band nor a group of apes. This is the biggest case of false advertising since I sued the makers of the movie "The Neverending Story".
EyeHeartA2
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 2:20 p.m.
Mr. Jeremy, I don't use the word 'hero' lightly, but you are the greatest hero in American history.
smokeblwr
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 1:34 p.m.
Oh, who am I fooling with my awesome lies?!?!
Craig Lounsbury
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 12:08 p.m.
Jeremy, I first wrote " Please come up with original material in the future" in a short story for 9th grade English class in 1966.
Jeremy
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 3:19 a.m.
That was Lionel Hutz, not you. Please come up with original material in the future.
Kafkaland
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 1:07 a.m.
Ok, let's keep this a bit in perspective. If all that happens on a New Year's eve in a town of this size and activity level is one fight at one party where three young men ended up with a few scratches and brusies, and nothing more, I think we're doing quite well.
ArthGuinness
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 1:59 a.m.
Better than other places doesn't necessarily mean good enough, but point taken.
dancinginmysoul
Wed, Jan 2, 2013 : 11:45 p.m.
"This guy seems legit"...famous last words. A quick google search shows the only reference to Metal Apes LLC is this article. Interesting.
Adam Schubatis
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 2:15 a.m.
It looks like Metal Apes is a local band. Here are a couple of links I found: http://npaper-wehaa.com/metrotimes/2012/06/06/?g=print#?article=1598009 http://www.reverbnation.com/willfairbanks https://twitter.com/TheeApes It's also possible that Metal Apes LLC was organized for the sole purpose of putting on this event. If so, it would likely not be prominently featured on Google.
croused
Wed, Jan 2, 2013 : 11:35 p.m.
No wonder people were dancing on our ergs!
a2xarob
Wed, Jan 2, 2013 : 11:09 p.m.
People were "beaten" not "beat."
PillowRock
Wed, Jan 2, 2013 : 11:25 p.m.
Remember when news outlets had editors?
justcurious
Wed, Jan 2, 2013 : 10:47 p.m.
Were they charging a cover? Was liquor being served to minors? The police were there but no comments were made about these things.
towncryer
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 5:54 p.m.
"Pecksniff". I learn something new everyday here, lol. Now I need to find ways to incorporate it into my vocab ;)
Kyle Mattson
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 3:44 p.m.
Hi JC- Per one of the organizers Twitter accounts they were charging $15 for tickets which were sold in advance.
actionjackson
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 2:26 p.m.
You know I always look for those "temporary liquor licenses" at the tailgate parties before a UofM home game. Haven't seen one yet.
PineyWoodsGuy
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 4:46 a.m.
Usually you don't get fights unless liquor is present. The LCC can grant a special 24 hr license. Was liquor served? If so, was the license obtained? There are questions that a journalist should ask. The Liquor Law requires the License be posted on the premises. Did AAPD check for that? Was alcohol present? Not being a pecksniff here. I am concerned as a person that may be driving the streets of Ann Arbor and encounter a drunken lout from this "party" of thugs.
Lovaduck
Wed, Jan 2, 2013 : 10:43 p.m.
By the way, the grammar police call your attention to the fact that people were "beaten" not "beat" unless Alan Ginsburg and Jack Kerouac returned from the dead to represent the Beat generation.
Julie Baker
Wed, Jan 2, 2013 : 11:22 p.m.
Thanks, that's fixed.
nickcarraweigh
Wed, Jan 2, 2013 : 10:33 p.m.
The place can be rented out again on the same basis? Jeeze, what an unparalleled opportunity for the woebegotten, the pyromaniacal, the twisted and the fringe elements. Doug Allen, if it's not too much trouble, can you put in one of those glittering, silvery disco ball things for my friends and me?
Homeland Conspiracy
Wed, Jan 2, 2013 : 10 p.m.
I bet "Peter Allen" was in Rio http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCYxTg6svXg
pegret
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 3:45 p.m.
Haha, PRICELESS!
PineyWoodsGuy
Thu, Jan 3, 2013 : 4:43 a.m.
GOOD ONE Homeland Conspiracy!!! ROTFLMAO!!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCYxTg6svXg