A crowd of people is seen the day of a pub crawl in Oshkosh April 11, 2026. (Photo courtesy Oshkosh Police Dept.)
OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — This year’s fall pub crawl in Oshkosh had a different vibe.
“A little bit shocking,” said UWO student Landon Farley. “I’ve been here the past four years and pub crawl has always been a lot of fun, and this past pub crawl there were drones out and the streets were a ghost town.”
The unsanctioned semi-annual event is held by UW-Oshkosh students.
The event drew scrutiny after a 17-year old boy was arrested with a gun last October and a teen was shot in the ankle in April.
A new city ordinance carries a 263-dollar fine for excessive noise, crowding, and underage drinking, among other offenses.
Residents say it’s likely the ordinance kept people away from house parties over the weekend.
“There were less than half a dozen foot traffic on our sidewalk,” resident Lori Palmeri said. “Normally it would be in the dozens, you know little small crowds, you know 3 to 5 people every so often. So we were very surprised.”
General Manager of Polito’s Pizza Isaac Johnson said it’s busiest time of year is during pub crawl.
This year was a bit of a change from the usual traffic.
“I would say Friday was better than Saturday, which we did not expect. Saturday was still good, I would say more towards the end of the night was better. Last year and the year before’s pub crawl I would say we were busy the entire day,” he told us.
While Johnson said there was a negligible change to its business flow, he added it’s likely the ordinance did its job to deter rowdy behavior.
“Probably slower than the last couple of years but for obvious reasons ordinance-wise, which is totally fine, I get it. It gives everyone else kind of a rest, a well needed rest,” he explained.
While others say it may have been an excessive overcorrection for the student-led event.
“A couple of my friends who live on Scott, I was like, what’s going on? And they were like, big brother’s watching us, talking about the drone above their house,” Farley said. “It’s a little ticky tacky if you ask me, but it is what it is.”
The Oshkosh Police Department said it will share numbers in regards to pub crawl incidents at a later date.
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