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Sports Facilities and Franchises

Security Experts Continually Trying To Make Venues Safer, Admit More Can Be Done

A panel of security experts discussed how to make arenas and stadiums safer for teams and guests as part of the ’16 AXS Sports Facilities & Franchises Conference. Jeffrey Miller, MSA Security Senior VP and the NFL’s former security chief, said sports venues should put uniformed police officers at every gate entrance as an extra layer of protection. That would provide a strong deterrent to potential shooters who might otherwise search for a weak spot in the first line of defense, Miller said. During his eight years with the NFL, Miller developed the league’s clear bag policy as an additional safeguard for fans entering stadiums on game days. The policy took effect for the '13 season, about five months after the Boston Marathon bombings. Miller said he told Commissioner Roger Goodell "that we need to sell it the owners." Miller: “It wasn’t popular. We formed a committee to study the issue and [we initially proposed] no bags. I went to the owners with that proposal, but they didn’t want to alienate women bringing in handbags. In the end, we decided to drastically reduce the bags and make them transparent.” He added, “You don’t need a bag to go to an NFL game. It’s not a sleepover. All you need is your wallet, cell phone and car keys. You can put those in your pocket.”

GAME DAY SECURITY: Last weekend’s bombing in N.Y. was top of mind for U.S. Bank Stadium officials as they prepared to host the Vikings’ first regular-season game in downtown Minneapolis. After a bomb exploded in a dumpster in N.Y., stadium manager SMG considered whether to remove all trash cans from outside the new facility before it was showcased during NBC’s "SNF." In the end, SMG made the decision to “bunch them together” and search the receptacles with bomb-sniffing dogs. “You’re going to have trash, you just can’t get rid of them,” said U.S. Bank Stadium GM Patrick Talty. As part of its security program, stadium officials test the air “all the time” at the stadium to guard against bio-terrorism. The Vikings’ venue sits in the heart of downtown and next to a public park. “During the week, you can go up and touch the building,” Talty said. “It becomes a challenge on game day for setting up the secured perimeter ... and sweeping it the night before a game.”

BREAKING THE ROUTINE: It is the typical routines for sports facilities on non-game days that concerns MLS Senior VP/Operations & Security Ray Whitworth. In addition to scanning packages and supplies delivered to stadiums during the week, Whitworth said teams should scrutinize the individuals requesting game-day credentials. “Sometimes I feel credentials are handed out lackadaisically,” Whitworth said. “All these people don’t need field access ... where they don’t check into the building. A film crew comes inside four days in advance and we give them [camera] bibs. Being sloppy during the week is an issue. There’s no sense in bringing magnetometers [on the front end] when there’s a hole in the back fence [so to speak]. It’s about reducing [a terrorist’s] opportunity.” Back-of-house operations being a soft target for terrorists remains a big concern. “Loading docks [at sports venues] are one of our greatest weaknesses,” said Guidepost Solutions VP/Security & Technology Dan Donovan.

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