A frustrated crowd, a fraction of the size of the usual tens of thousands that show up in the Castro each Halloween, gathered at the corner of Castro and Market. They surrounded a scantly clad drag queen named Starr Ebony.

Ebony announced to the crowd, "They closed the gay area on Halloween. What are they going to cancel next, Christmas? How about Thanksgiving?"

The crowd responded with delighted applause and people shouted, "Down with Newsom."

Castro resident John Johnson yelled, "Kick the police out!"

The San Francisco government's decision to clamp down on the Castro this Halloween followed a series of incidents, including the nine people shot during last year's huge celebration. The decision has provided mixed reactions from students, residents and business owners alike.

Johnson started to gather a crowd with his anti-Gavin Newsom views.

"Newsom ended freedom of expression tonight," Johnson said. "In San Francisco, people don't listen to anyone, but this time they listened to Newsom."

Josh Wolf, one of Newsom's opponents in the upcoming mayoral election and an SF State alumnus, was at the scene recording the event on his video camera. Wolf said he would have tried a different approach, trying to promote parties around the city to make Castro less of a "can of sardines."

He said he wants the event to shed its corporate vibe and return to its roots as an LBGT community event.

Gay activist Tommi Avicolli Mecca had an impassioned response toward Newsom and Supervisor Bevan Dufty, whose district includes the Castro: "How can a pro-gay mayor and a gay supervisor be responsible for this?"

Mecca said that Halloween at the Castro in the 1950's was the only place where you could dress in drag and not get beat up.

"The police would beat us; it was the one night of the year where no one would touch us," Mecca said.

He said the police presence in the Castro Wednesday reminded him of his time in Philadelphia in 1971, and not of the open and progressive San Francisco he lives in today.

About 600 police officers were in the Castro Wednesday night, according to Officer Sal Perez of the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD). Between two and four cops were located every 20-40 feet along Castro and Market streets.

The police seemed to be in good spirits. When asked why, Officer Jim Kreps said, "'Cause nobody's here."

Many businesses in the area were upset with the city's choice. Clark Dorsey the manager at the restaurant Blue on Market Street said that business was worse then even a normal weekday.

"Cops ruin this," he said. "600 cops in the area creates a bad vibe [...] I mean, nine people were shot last year, so I guess it's not all bad, but from a business perspective..."

Todd Gleason and Steven Delante are managers at the Pomodoro restaurant on Market Street.

"Business is a lot slower by far," Delante said. But despite the slowdown, he said he was happy with Halloween this year.

"I think it was a great idea, no people getting stabbed, everything closing early."

One of the few open bars in the area, The Bar on Castro Street, still wasn't generating great revenue, according to manager Eric Hawkes, who said it was slower than usual.

SF State students were largely deterred from attending the event. Haroon Adalat, 18, a cinema major at SF State said, "No one I know is going, I am not going mostly because there isn't a huge concentrated wave like last year."

Danny Banles, 18, an apparel design and merchandising major, was experiencing his first Halloween in San Francisco. "I am going to go check it out, but I'll probably head to Mission soon after that," he said, adding that he just wanted to see what 600 cops would look like.

Banles' friend, Ryan Conlon, 18 said, "It's the Castro. You never know what to expect."