Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Country music show gets more security
Officials in Pottstown are beefing up security for a country music show in the wake of Las Vegas.
POTTSTOWN » Borough police have stepped up security measures for Saturday’s country music concert in Memorial Park in the wake of the massacre at a festival in Las Vegas, according to Police Chief Rick Drumheller.
“We’ve added additional security at the concert based on what happened recently in Las Vegas,” Drumheller told Pottstown Borough Council during its workshop meeting Wednesday night.
“We realistically sat down with the organizers and went step-by-step, item-by-item through our security plan,” he said.
“Obviously I’m not going to outline it here in front of the TV camera because that would be counter productive, but I want you to be assured we’ve taken extra steps to be prepared for Pottstown’s concert,” Drumheller said.
The concert will feature Hunter Hayes, a 26-yearold country singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, Grammy nominee and former CMA New Artist of the Year as well as several local acts, food tents and a SlyFox biergarten.
Dubbed CitadelPalooza, the event is being sponsored by Citadel Bank and all proceeds benefit Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
About 1,800 tickets had been sold as of Wednesday night, said Pottstown Parks and Recreation Director Michael Lenhart. Tickets are $25, can be purchased through www.citadelbanking.com or at the gate.
Hosting a concert of this size will also take extra steps by the borough’s Parks and Recreation Department, said Lenhart.
“We’re really excited about they program they’ve put together,” Lenhart said of ESM Productions, which has managed such large-scale events as the Made in America concert series and the pope’s visit to Philadelphia.
“The lineup of musicians includes some local musicians who have been chosen to participate, including regional favorite Stephanie Grace and Pottstown’s own Kendal Conrad,” Lenhart said.
Pottstown residents should also know that the entire park will have limited access Friday and will be closed to all but ticket holders on Saturday.
Also, the concert is set to finish up around 9:30 p.m. Saturday and the breakdown of the stage and load up will start immediately until about 2 a.m. Sunday morning. The remainder will be completed on Monday.