Clarification appended.
Since the closing of midweek hot spot the Fish Company, Wednesday nights have slowed down for students and staff alike.
The Department of Public Safety is aware that Fish Co. closed and has changed some of its operations accordingly, said Paul Shanley, deputy chief of public safety. Before the bar's closing, DPS would deploy two extra officers to patrol the area between Power and Wickenden streets to ensure the safety of the students going to and returning from the bar, Shanley said. But this semester, DPS has seen a "dramatic decrease in foot traffic" in that area and has stopped assigning officers there, he said.
Josiah's managers are also aware of Fish Co.'s closing, Ann Hoffman, director of administration for dining services, wrote in an e-mail to The Herald.
In the past, Jo's frequently requested that DPS station an officer near the cashiers on Wednesday nights, but the eatery has not made such a request recently, Shanley said.
The work environment at Jo's has also changed dramatically because staff members are no longer dealing with a large underage drinking crowd, said Mikel Wiggins '12, the eatery's assistant unit manager. "We usually get the rush on Wednesday nights, but that didn't happen."
Michael Tamayo '14 worked the Wednesday night shift at Jo's last semester. In the beginning, he did not understand why an influx of people started streaming into Jo's late on Wednesday nights, but said he eventually realized it "must be the Fish Co. crowd."
He said he dreaded the rush because lines continued to stack up, and there was no time to take breaks. But toward the end of last semester, as rumors of Fish Co's closing spread, Tamayo noticed a sudden decrease in customers during that time period.
Sophie Soloway '13 worked at the salad station at Jo's last semester, but said she found the rowdiness "more entertaining than a bother."
"Millions of drunks would come streaming in," she said. On most Wednesdays, Soloway would have to deal with issues like female students spilling drinks over the counter and male students asking for impossible salad orders, she said. Though she no longer works at Jo's, Soloway said the eatery has a much calmer Wednesday night crowd this semester.
For students, the loss of Fish Co. has left a void in the middle of their week. Cam Parsons '14 said he has seen "a lot more aimless walking" on Wednesday nights than last semester. "People don't necessarily know what to do with themselves," he said. "Fish Co. gave them a destination."
But potential successors have recently emerged. Adam Weinrib '12 has gone to a few of the new locations and said he sees Colosseum as the future destination for students. "I'm no expert, but it's bigger," Weinrib said. "There seems like there's mass appeal."
Camila Pacheco-Fores '14 described Colosseum as a more upscale, classier version of Fish Co. and said she sees herself going there again.
DPS has yet to hear about any new locations students are going to on Wednesdays, Shanley said. But he said he has heard about an increase in students on Thayer St.
The campus buzz might return once students settle into a new pattern for Wednesday nights, Weinrib said. "Maybe Jo's will become more of what it used to be once people start realizing where everything is," he said.
But Tamayo, who now works at Jo's on weekends, said his shifts are no longer as eventful. "Nothing ever got as busy as Fish Co. Wednesday nights."
A previous version of this article stated that Ann Hoffman, director of administration for dining services, wrote in an e-mail to The Herald that Josiah's managers have adjusted to the Fish Company's closing. Hoffman wrote that Jo's managers were aware of Fish Co.'s closing.
