Ben Watts Wants Another 'Shark Attack' Party

The East Hampton Town Board will decide at a meeting on Thursday whether Ben Watts can have a big bash in Montauk, on the heels of last year's party that officials said was out of control.

According to The East Hampton Star, Watts, a fashion photographer and brother of the actress Naomi Watts, recently submitted an application for a mass gathering permit that would allow for 3,900 people at the Montauk Yacht Club during his annual Fourth of July celebration on July 5.

The Star said the party is scheduled to take place between 6 p.m. and 2 a.m., and that is described as a fund-raiser for the Montauk Playhouse. According to the article:

"The permit would allow 20 tents, a lighted stage, and 32 portable toilets. The plan includes parking at Rita’s Stables on West Lake Drive in Montauk, with 15 40-passenger buses to get guests to and from the Yacht Club."

Just last year, East Hampton Patch reported that police and code enforcement shut down Watts' 10th annual "Shark Attack Sounds" party at the East Lake Drive restaurant and marina when nearly three times the amount of people allowed showed up, causing a major traffic jam.

Watts, who has a house in Montauk, threw the party with hotelier Ben Pundole and Mazdack Rassi, the founder of Milk Studios. They had a permit for 800 people, but about 1,200 attended, according to officials at the time, though others estimated there were as many 3,000 people including designer Charlotte Ronson and model Kelly Killoren Bensimone.

An ambulance was unable to get down the street due to cars parked on both sides. A town police officer had to transport the patient in a squad car to meet the ambulance on Montauk Highway, Montauk Fire Department Chief Richard Schoen told Patch last year.

To read up on Watts' proposal for this year's party in The East Hampton Star, click here.

What do you think? Should the town board approve this mass gathering permit? Tell us in the comments below.

Correction: The event is taking place at the Montauk Yacht Club, not Rick's Crabby Cowboy as previously stated.