Jeffco goes 'Phishing' for relief Letter September 10, 1996 - Denver Rocky Mountain News By Charlie Brennan The Phish are gone, but the stench lingers. A month after the popular band concluded a four-night stand at Red Rocks Amphitheater, Jefferson County officials are asking for help in preventing a repeat of troubles that plagued the group's stay in Colorado. Jefferson County Commissioner John Stone and Morrison Mayor Mary Poe sent a letter to Denver Mayor Wellington Webb, stating in strong language that solutions must be found to the problems that overwhelmed Morrison, a town of 470 that is the closest community to the 9,500-seat amphitheater, which is managed by the city of Denver. The letter refers to the band's four-day visit - and the spontaneous encampment by thousands of ''Phish-heads'' who follow the group on tour - as ''the siege of Morrison.'' ''The physical, psychological and economic havoc that the four days of August brought to our community and Jefferson County is not calculable,'' the letter says. ''A repeat of it, or anything like it, is not acceptable under any circumstances.'' The letter says officials have considered legal maneuvers to combat the negative side effects of Red Rocks shows but would rather form a study group with Denver officials to tackle the problems. City theater manager Gary Lane said Denver officials ''would be happy to sit down and talk with them and address their concerns one by one, as we have in the past.'' On the second night of Phish's Red Rocks performances, police were forced to close Morrison's downtown area. Several hundred fans refused to disperse after authorities tried to help a woman injured in an auto accident. About a dozen people were arrested. On the third night, the West Metro Drug Task Force made eight drug-related arrests during an undercover operation; some of those busted had approached undercover officers, bearing signs advertising their contraband. © 1996 Denver Publishing Company