Miami Herald

‘It’s not us, it’s you.’ Miami Beach makes impassione­d plea to spring-breakers

- BY MADELEINE MARR mmarr@miamiheral­d.com Madeleine Marr: @madeleinem­arr

Over it.

The city of Miami Beach is just not that into spring break anymore.

In a social-media campaign aimed at taming wild, law-breaking partiers, a few concerned citizens appear in a public-service announceme­nt to give it to them straight.

“Hey,” waves a brunette in a bandanna. “We need to talk.”

“This isn’t working anymore,” says a hunky guy sitting on a bench on Ocean Drive.

“And it’s not us, it’s you,” adds a different woman, riffing off of George Costanza’s infamous line. “We just want different things.”

Another 20-something then holds up her phone with a video of utter chaos. “Do you even remember what happened last March?!”

Then, a montage of headlines about arrests, out-of-control behavior and crackdowns — basically all the things that officials don’t want a repeat of this year.

“The measures I proposed approved by our Commission will ensure that our residents, businesses, and visitors are safe and thrive during Spring Break,” said Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner in a press release about the “Miami Beach is Breaking Up with Spring Break” spot. “Everyone is invited to enjoy the beauty and hospitalit­y of our City. But we are a law and order City and we will enforce our laws all year round, including during March’s Spring Break.”

What this means for potential merrymaker­s: major buzzkills such as bag checks, pricey parking, doubled towing fees for non-residents, DUI checkpoint­s and cops everywhere.

Comments under the post were mixed.

“Oh my God! Yessss!” wrote a traumatize­d local. “I couldn’t leave my apartment for a week last year!”

Others were concerned the mayhem would migrate to other areas, such as Wynwood, the Design District or Midtown, or even back to (eek!) Broward.

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