“It’s going to take 24 cops to do it, at least initially, which is a significant number of police officers. That’s an entire patrol shift.”
That’s Sgt. Jeff Dionne with the Grand Rapids Police Department. He says concert nights will undoubtedly place a strain on the department; even more so when an Acrisure Amphitheater concert overlaps with events at the Amway soccer stadium or the Van Andel Arena. In those instances, 32 officers could be required to manage pedestrian and traffic flow.
“That’s going to be a really difficult task for us to do that 50 times in six months, so a couple times a week.”
The city’s Office of Emergency Management is overseeing those efforts. It’s planning severe weather protocols and discussing access routes for first responders in case of medical emergencies.
Sergeant Dionne says the police department will initially overstaff events.
“But as the summer goes along, we’ll realize, ‘Well, we don’t need two officers there. We need one.’ And we’ll be able to shrink it down. How much? I don’t know.”
The Rapids’ Downtown Area Shuttle is considering a shorter public transportation loop through downtown to alleviate congestion around the venue.
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