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FEATURE | ||||
Back to Facility ManagerContents |
Looking west on 35th Street as crowds descend upon U.S. Cellular Field after exiting the CTA Red Line Train en route to the All-Star Game. Times have changed, not only in the United States but across the globe. In the wake of the tragic events of September 11, 2001, our perceptions and expectations of personal and public safety have been drastically redefined. This shift has had a tremendous impact on our normal daily lives. The changes that have occurred to insure public and personal safety are evident not only at the airport but also at the shopping malls, schools, the work place, and right in our own homes. For many of us in the IAAM community and the sports/ entertainment/public assembly industry, the way we react to security issues has an immediate impact on hundreds of thousands of people each and every day. In an attempt to better understand what is being done in our industry to implement security standards and procedures, several industry professionals were asked to share their observations and discuss what measures they have taken at their facilities and what measures remain to be implemented. The following will provide an overview of some of the changes implemented in the operation and design of sports, entertainment and public assembly facilities. The largest impact that new security measures have had in the industry is the increased amount of personnel used to staff an event. Overwhelmingly, operators have identified that labor budgets grew due to the sheer numbers of staff needed to provide additional security. Although some of the measures are not all together new to the industry, they have become commonplace at nearly every event and every facility. The most common security measures that the public sees include the implementation of bag checks, hand-held metal detector wanding, and the placement of walk-through metal detectors. The common turnstile provides an effective and efficient barrier for crowd control and security. Understandably, these measures can slow the entry into a facility. Typical guest flow pattern analysis shows that patrons arrive and enter an event over an extended period of time. However, at the end of the event a majority of the patrons end up leaving at the same time. These patterns benefit the operator at the start of an event but must be adapted to handle the concentrated volume at the end.
American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, is one of the largest indoor arena venues in North America. Being a newer facility, opened in July 2001, it is considered to be one of the most technologically advanced in the industry. With more than 100 cameras monitoring everything from the exterior perimeter, the parking areas, the concourses, the bowl, and back of house areas, not much slips past this 24-hour operation run by John Hancock, vice president of public safety for the Center Operating Company or his staff. With more than 35 years of experience with the Dallas Police Department, including 10 years with the S.W.A.T. unit, Hancock became vice president of the new Public Safety Department. The department was created as an offshoot from the Guest Services Department immediately after the events of September 11, 2001. “The comments we receive from the public about the security at the arena are not about what (our security staff) did, but rather what we did not do,” explains Hancock. “A common call or e-mail points out that our policies should be more stringent.” Compared to other mid-market facilities in the United States, the American Airlines Center has extremely thorough security policies and systems. From surveillance cameras, bag checks, metal detectors, and credential and ticket monitoring, Hancock and his staff know what is going on throughout the facility. The measures do not stop with the general public; in fact, that is just the beginning. All persons entering the facility are checked as well as carried in items. Operations, food service, vendors, suppliers, patrons, suite holders, media, celebrities, security staff, and even Hancock are checked as they enter and leave the facility. All persons must display proper credentials, whether it’s an employee identification badge or a visitor’s pass. Employees enter through a centralized, dedicated entrance. This reduces the impact on the public access points and establishes manageable authorization for entry. Controlling and monitoring access to the facility are essential. No deliveries are received unless scheduled in advance and unscheduled “hot” deliveries are carefully verified before access is granted. “All of these efforts raise everyone’s comfort level,” assures Hancock. “People feel safer and have come to expect a high level of security and visibility.” According to David Marquez, arena project manager for Bexar County on the SBC Center development and construction in San Antonio, Texas, there is much greater importance placed on issuing, monitoring, and verifying identification badges and credentials. “Efforts have been made so that IDs are not easily duplicated. Picture credentials are required at all times for permanent and temporary staff. Biometric systems are even being explored. If an ID is facing backwards, security stops you to turn it around and deliberately check it. Nobody is letting his or her guard down. These buildings used to hibernate between events. Not anymore. Diligence is 24/7.” The controlled back of house areas beyond the event floor such as management offices, player/performer areas, loading docks, and mechanical/electrical rooms are of great concern. Threat could come not from just the public, but from within. Key card access is often required at office lobbies being monitored by security officers. Players and performers have dedicated and isolated entry into facilities to better ensure their safety as well. Permanent security officers are being stationed at the top of access ramps and the front gates of loading docks due to their access to sensitive and vulnerable points in the facility. Fresh air intakes are being monitored at all times to prevent contamination and tampering. Activity in service and maintenance areas is monitored closer than ever before. Cory Meredith, president and CEO of Staff Pro, Inc., adds, “During a convention volumes of freight are coming and going at different times. Off-site truck inspections are being performed before vehicles are permitted entry to the facility. From sweeps to arrival, procedures are in place to ensure safety at every step of the way.” One thing Hancock noticed has changed since 9/11 has been improved communication between private, local, and federal law enforcement agencies. “Local and private agencies used to be on a ‘need-to-know’ basis when it came to obtaining information and data from the federal agencies. There is more support from the ‘Feds’ now than when I was a commander with the Dallas Police Department,” says Hancock. Recently, there has been a specific federal focus on security measures and issues at public assembly buildings. A special security director of sports and entertainment facilities has been created to fill this need in the United States. IAAM offers opportunities for members to get involved through educational sessions and workshops at the district meetings in the spring, at the Annual Conference in the summer, and through the International Crowd Management Conference (ICMC) in the fall. In October 2001, IAAM created the Safety and Security Task Force (SSTF) comprised of members to review and report on industry practices. This research along with other complementary materials is presented in IAAM publications available through their web site. Regionally, groups like the Dallas Downtown Security Directors Association have frequent gatherings and created an e-mail network to discuss and address the evolving security issues as they pertain to various buildings and facilities. Involvement, communication, and interaction with local law enforcement agencies and private security companies are the first steps of a solid security operation. Hancock and fellow security management personnel at all of the Dallas sports/entertainment/assembly venues have a good rapport and trade notes with each other. Sharing information and constant training keep security alert to the issues. Establishing a secure perimeter around a facility is a full-time effort that supplements the controlled access into and out of the building. The type of event hosted dictates the handling of the surrounding facility perimeter. All four of the major sports entities, the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB, have issued various guidelines to be considered by the facility operators at their venues. These policies are extended down into the minor league ranks as well. The guidelines identify the implementation of a buffer zone around the venue during an event. Some concert and show promoters often request similar efforts be taken at the perimeter. One concept includes establishing a specified distance of vehicular-free zone averaging 100 feet from the building line to the edge of traffic. Temporary no parking zones are created using portable traffic control such as cones, stanchions, and A-Frame barricades to demarcate the extended perimeter. In some instances, streets are barricaded or closed to general traffic. At the MLB All-Star game in Chicago, police vehicles and personnel blocked select streets and patrolled the area in cars, quad-runners, on foot, and on horseback. When the event ended and the crowds left, U.S. Cellular Field security—which is comprised mainly of off-duty police officers patrolling the grounds on foot and bicycles—continued their normal, daily routine of keeping the ballpark secure well into the night.
What is not spotted on patrol is often monitored on camera. Nearly every major venue hosting a top-tier sports franchise in the United States has some sort of video surveillance system. These systems are used to view areas where security cannot be stationed all of the time. Further linking operations and security staffs together are two-way communication devices such as common two-way radios, cell phones, and two-way pagers. Historic Wrigley Field hosts an advanced and modern security command center. With multiple camera locations, some obvious and some concealed, the command center can monitor every inch of the ballpark. In fact, the technology is so effective that with a remote control joystick, an operator can view an individual seat location from across the field via a camera mounted in the scoreboard. There is also the ability to switch between different monitors and pan to trail an overly curious fan trying to breach the perimeter after hours. Some operators may question their capacity to provide all of the high tech security bells and whistles that large facilities such as the American Airlines Center, U.S. Cellular Field, or Wrigley Field are able to provide. Others contend that it is not all about the technology. Terry Savarise, vice president of operations at both the United Center and U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago, believes that the revolution is not in technology, but in personal attitudes. The two facilities are located in one of the largest metropolitan areas of the United States with a draw of 8,272,678 persons (based on 2000 U.S. Census figures) in the surrounding nine-county metropolitan area including Cook County. Having hosted several NBA playoff and championship games in the 1990s in both the old Chicago Stadium and the new United Center, Savarise has been at the crest of the security wave. These facilities hosted the Democratic National Convention held in 1996 as well as the recent 2003 MLB All-Star Game at U.S. Cellular Field. “The biggest change has been in the education and awareness of our personnel,” emphasizes Savarise. “Our people take pride in what they do both at the ballpark and the arena. It’s a team effort. We work closely with local authorities and self-implement many of the policies used. Everyone here pays more attention to their surroundings, the little details, unusual suspects, and things out of place.” Kevin Bruder, general manager of the E Center of West Valley City, Utah, host of the Ice Hockey Championships during the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City and past IAAM District VII vice president, agrees. “Awareness is the biggest change since 9/11. Bag searches and pat downs are still a part of our security operation. However, it is the visual deterrent that these activities create that has been the most effective. We are constantly training to keep our staff aware.” The impacts these security
systems and operational procedures have had on the design of new facilities
and the retrofitting of existing ones have not been severe. Overall, the
physical building structures are being re-evaluated to make the facilities
function while incorporating more security conscience design. Discussions
over exterior cladding materials focus on the minimization of glazing
materials and the use of more solid materials such as masonry, architectural
concrete, or metal panel systems. Circulation patterns, entry, and egress
into the facilities through perimeter gates beyond the building line or
through integral lobby spaces are carefully analyzed to achieve the desired
blend of features that works best for the site, the facility, the operators,
and the general public. “It is important to create comfort zones for these guests,” said Patrick McGarry, president of Shamrock Sports Consultants in Phoenix. “Plazas like those at SBC Center can be utilized to create a needed buffer between the building and parking or vehicular traffic. They offer more pedestrian friendly zones for the public on their approach to, entry in, and egress from, the building. “Architects may not necessarily be faced with drastically changing how they design sports and assembly facilities. The industry does not want to repeat mistakes made in the past like having major infrastructure placed directly under a facility. The focus should be less on the building materials and more in the perimeter design, circulation spaces, and monitoring systems. The idea of getting into a building quickly is gone. Operators also need to consider limiting access to the street and develop a parking plan. The combination of elements results in a better experience for the fans and a safer environment for everyone.” Christopher Lamberth is the business development manager for the Sports & Entertainment Group at HKS Architects, Inc. in Dallas, Texas. With a background in architecture, engineering and construction, Chris has a degree in Architectural Engineering from California State University at Fullerton (1994). His previous experience includes working as a sports development consultant for International Facilities Group in Chicago and in entertainment operations for the Walt Disney Company in California. |
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©
2003
International Association of Assembly Managers |
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