ASHWAUBENON, Wis. (WFRV) – In the shadow of Lambeau Field, preparations for NFL Draft security continue at Ashwaubenon Public Safety, as shifts will need to be lengthened to ensure all areas and shifts are covered by officers.
“We’re starting to look at what our staffing is going to look like as far as what shifts are going to be needed, the hours of those shifts, and starting from when the footprint gets locked down early in the week prior to the draft starting all the way through the end of the draft Saturday night,” Deputy Chief Nick Kozloski said.
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Kozloski says his department’s plans require an increase of officers inside the draft zone, while they also continue providing protection for the rest of the village.
“We’re going to be having extra officers both in the footprint to assist inside with other agencies we’re working with,” he said. “We’re also going to have officers assigned to the entertainment area, Holmgren Way.”
The load requires so much manpower that department leaders are having to put a cap on time off for their staff.
“We’ve actually restricted our time off for our department, just to make sure we have the extra people available, both to staff this event, and we also have the village of Ashwaubenon we need to be able to provide our service to on a daily basis,” Kozloski said.
It will not just be a burden on local departments. Kozloski is grateful for the backup they will be receiving from federal agencies.
“There have been federal agencies involved, the FBI is involved, National Guard, helping to assist us with keeping the venues safe,” he said. “There’s a lot of competing interests, and a lot of things people want to do.”
A myriad of calls is expected to be handled during the week of the draft, from unruly crowd members to traffic issues.
“Possible disturbances, or missing children or things along those lines, things you see at a large venue attended by a lot of people,” Kozloski said. “Traffic is going to be another issue. We’re expecting a lot of traffic and potential for crashes, stalled vehicles, things like that.”
Traffic will be a concern long before the first day of the draft. Oneida Street will close March 29, and Lombardi Avenue will close April 13, if everything goes according to current plans.
“That week of the draft are phase 4 closures, which will incorporate a lot more of the surrounding streets, such as McCarthy, Holmgren Way, Brett Favre Pass,” Kozloski said. “Kind of the ancillary streets around there.”
Taking detours will be crucial in ensuring traffic flow continues at the most efficient level. However, Kozloski is adamant that access to homes and businesses will remain unaffected, other than additional delays.
“There’s going to absolutely be traffic impacts. So if you don’t have a specific purpose, I would try to use some of the marked detours,” he said. “If there’s businesses you need to visit around the time of the draft, we’re still working on maintaining access to those businesses, so if you need to access those businesses, you certainly will be able to get that done.”
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Some traffic plans will be similar to Packers game days, but there are also several changes that will be in place due to the open times of the draft campus and more highway traffic expected.
“We’re expecting similar situations to a game day on departure, but arriving we’re hoping it’s a little bit less. And we’ve got traffic plans designed that are far different on a game day, that we hope alleviate some of the congestion, especially for people arriving on 41, so that we don’t have backups on the interstate.”
