Miami’s Ultra dance music festival bans minors

By Zachary Fagenson MIAMI (Reuters) – The mayor of Miami has welcomed the decision by one of the world’s largest electronic dance music festivals to ban minors from attending the three-day downtown bacchanal, but urged the organizers to find another location. Local politicians tried to force the Ultra Music Festival out of downtown Miami earlier this year after it came under scrutiny when a security guard was injured in a crush caused by gatecrashers. “They should find another venue eventually, but in this case I think that no minors alleviates the problems that we had,” Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado said on Wednesday, citing issues with alcohol and drugs at the event held each March. In a statement on Tuesday announcing the ban on minors, Ray Martinez, former chief of the Miami Beach police who became the festival’s security director this year, said: “The first step to preserving the unique atmosphere that Ultra is famous for is to be proactive in attracting the right crowd.” The festival, which this year attracted at least 165,000 attendees over three days, is at odds with officials in downtown Miami, where the population has mushroomed in recent years.