Police ready for season opener
This weekend, city officials and police will prepare to deal with issues before and after the football game.
While police will amp up enforcement efforts around Kinnick on Saturday morning, city officials are reminding residents to keep the noise to a minimum at night.
For the first time, officials are distributing fliers, "Partying in Iowa City," to rental units reminding both party hosts and their neighbors of proper etiquette.
"It is probably something we should have done a long time ago, but we have started it now for some reason," said City Councilor Mike Wright.
One page reminds people to respect their neighbors and outlines the consequences. The second page advises community members to introduce themselves to student neighbors and advises them to call the police if necessary.
Councilor Connie Champion said she believes that it is "healthy" for students to get a warning, rather than doing something wrong and receiving a citation because they did not know better.
The fliers are just one of a few initiatives to prepare the community for the expected rowdy weekend.
University of Iowa officials are using their new "Think Before you Drink" program to make game day safer for Hawkeye fans. Tailgaters must stop drinking on university property one hour after the game and leave the area two hours after the game.
Charles Green, the assistant vice president for the UI police, said the department has hired police officers from areas surrounding Iowa City as well as outside of Johnson County. Green said it is not uncommon for the department to hire officers from other departments, and the UI police do it for every football game.
The UI police will especially crack down on people with open-containers of alcohol, playing drinking games, or acting intoxicated, he said.
But some students aren't impressed with the new regulations.
UI junior Cody Fishwild said he thinks the time limit for tailgaters on UI property will cause more problems.
"People are going to leave after drinking, and OWIs are definitely going to go up," he said. The 21-year-old said he thinks people are will find other locations to drink in after the game.
Brianna Johnson, a recent transfer student, is expecting an increase in police enforcement but is skeptical about how strict they will actually be. Johnson, an Ankeny native, has been a Hawkeye fan ever since she can remember.
"I think there is going to be a lot more police and enforcement, but there are more people tailgating than cops, so it should be interesting," said the 21-year-old, who has attended Hawkeye games in the past. "It's an Iowa football game."
When dealing with an extremely large number of people inside the stadium and out, it is difficult to know what to expect, Green said.
"Whenever you're in charge of an event like this, it would be foolish to not have concerns," Green said.
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