MADISON, Wis. -- After riots and out-of-control partying at past Halloween celebrations in downtown Madison, the city made it a priority to create a fun and safe event on State Street for Halloween last year.

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This year, State Street on Saturday night will once again become a huge, organized party. These new changes allow for more crowd control, but some students said it comes at the expense of tradition.

Jason Smathers, editorial page content editor for the Badger Herald, a University of Wisconsin-Madison student-run newspaper, wrote an article against the city's new activities. He said the city is right to do something to make the event safer than years past, but he's concerned with the numerous sponsors, which he feels don't represent the student body.

"The way that Madison's Freakfest is run now is not the way that Madison does Halloween," Smathers said. "What needs to happen is they need to kind of take the organized element that they have now, and remove the commercialization, because I feel that's what they're getting too close toward. That's what's taking away from the atmosphere that we used to have."

Along State Street, many have an opinion on whether Freakfest is doing Halloween justice.

"I would actually try to keep it the same as it was a couple years ago, but that's just my opinion," says Adam Schraber, a freshman at UW-Madison.

"I like the bands that are coming, so I think that should be a lot of fun," said Alexandra Weiner, a UW-Madison freshman.

Those who have been around to see the chaos of State Street during Halloween said they understand the city's concerns.

"A few years ago, it was getting out of control," said Tom Johannsen, a UW-Madison senior. "Obviously, there was a lot of concern. I mean, it was fun for a lot of people, but I've also heard a lot of horror stories, so to speak, with people getting caught up in fights that they weren't a part of."

In the near future, UW students might forget how crazy State Street used to be because they'll be too young to have experienced them, WISC-TV reported.

Freshman Morgan Crouch said she's just fine with that.

"I would like to be safe on Halloween," Crouch said. "I don't know anyone who would say they want something chaotic and out-of-control."

There are others who are mad about the fact it's not going to be as out-of-control as it was in past years, but they're not in Madison.

The social networking Web site Facebook has several pages of people angry about the changes, WISC-TV reported. One is run by a student at Michigan State University and another by a high school student.

Stay tuned to WISC-TV and Channel 3000 for continuing coverage.