Night Time Trick or Treat in Bay View always falls on the last Saturday of October.

This year’s special Night Time Trick or Treating hours will occur:

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 25TH
5:00 - 8:00 P.M.

Howard to Bay Street
Howell/Chase Avenue to the Lake

Get ready for those ghouls and goblins to arrive!

Bay View hosts nighttime trick-or-treating now in its fourth year
by Linda Spice

Milwaukee, WI – October 16, 2008 - The Bay View neighborhood’s growing tradition of sending its princesses, cowboys and the usual ghouls and goblins door-to-door for nighttime Halloween treats continues for its fourth year on Oct. 25.

Bay View is among only a few neighborhoods that participate in nighttime trick-or-treating in Milwaukee, most of which still hosts the event during the day. Residents in Bay View advocated for the nighttime trick-or-treating in 2005, making it a popular change among residents who get into the fun with adult costumes, spooky music and wacky decorations.

This year’s times are scheduled from 5 to 8 p.m. The trick-or-treat area is bound by Bay St. on the north, Howard Ave. on the south and Chase Ave./Howell Ave. on the west and the lake on the east.

Those neighborhoods will not participate in Milwaukee’s regularly scheduled Sunday hours, which are from 1 to 4 p.m. this year on Oct. 26.

Ald. Tony Zielinski first approved a nighttime change in 2005 after nine months of planning by the Bay View Neighborhood Association’s Holiday Committee. Zielinski OK’d the switch after reviewing responses submitted from a neighborhood survey sent out in his aldermanic newsletter by which about 66% of the respondents supported the nighttime change. He continued the event in 2006 and then again in 2007 and 2008.

“A lot of parents and grandparents want to afford kids the opportunity of what they experienced as kids,” Zielinski said. “All people who had nighttime trick-or-treating had fond memories. It’s just more fun when you’re doing it in the evening.”

Zielinski said he will be in contact with supervisors in the District 2 police station to make them aware of the day and hours so they may adjust staffing for any anticipated patrol needs.

BVNA Trick-or-Treat Chairperson Heather Ryan said the change was sought to “promote a stronger sense of community.”

“I saw more people out at nighttime trick-or-treat than I ever saw at one time on my block,” Ryan said. “That was the great thing. Everybody came out. We talked. We socialized. It was an event that really did promote neighborhood cohesiveness.”