Preparation is key to safety

entire event.”

Since then, Mr. Hissrich said, preparation has become more consistent between the city’s police, fire and Emergency Medical Service departments. An entity composed of a police commander, an assistant chief or the chief of fire and an assistant chief from EMS make their plan together.

“Before, the planning was done separately by police, fire and EMS, and two weeks before, they’d all come into a room and try to put their plan together,” Mr. Hissrich said. “A lot of times it was cohesive. Many times it wasn’t.”

Mr. Hissrich said one of the first things he noticed when he took over the public safety department was that planning for special events didn’t start as early as it could have. Planning for events now begins the day the permit for the event is issued.

Officials can plan all they want, but it’s still hard to know what’s going to happen the day of an event.

To prepare, officials research trends and gather intelligence to try to predict — and prevent — outbreaks of violence. Mr. Hissrich said authorities will look at what happens in other cities and plan accordingly.

The reaction to some violence has been as simple as checking bags and using metal-detecting wands. Portable lights have been brought in to illuminate dark areas. Extra security cameras from elsewhere in the city have been moved to high-traffic locations during events.

Other responses are more complex. Attempting to thwart an attack such as the one that happened in July in Nice, France, when a terrorist killed dozens as he drove a truck through a crowd, the city started moving public works trucks and Port Authority buses into positions that block vehicles from entering areas where a large number of people might be during events.

Intelligence and presence

Groups of juveniles were running amok, getting into altercations with civilians, police officers and each other. Several minor injuries were reported, and more than a half-dozen arrests were made.

“The night of the Regatta I came across two probably 20-year-old girls who were in tears because they were scared, and I made sure they got to their car,” Mr. Hissrich said. “I don’t blame them.”

Mr. Hissrich said authorities had information that problems might occur on the Saturday night of the Regatta. Extra resources were brought into town that night, and in the end nothing happened.

“But it did occur on Sunday night, and we probably did not bring enough resources into town,” Mr. Hissrich said.

The takeaway: Bring in more resources earlier and continue to bring more as problems persist.

Mr. Hissrich said officials appeared to avert issues at Light Up Night festivities in November doing just that.

When authorities learned through monitoring social media that juveniles were planning to come Downtown to cause problems, plainclothes officers were dispersed throughout the crowd.

“They blend in and they listen to what’s being said,” Mr. Hissrich said. “If there’s any intel which hints that there’s going to be problems, we start moving uniformed police officers and resources to that problem area.”

City officials and Downtown community members agree that police presence is the keystone to public safety, not only at special events but on a daily basis.

Along with putting more officers on the street, the plan is to have a police substation in the Cultural District that will be staffed 12 to 16 hours a day and can function as a command post during events.

“I’ve heard the saying ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,’ ” said John Valentine, executive director of the Pittsburgh Downtown Community Development Corp. “I think having a satellite station, more police presence at these big events just make a world of difference.”

Day to day

Only a small amount of the crime that occurs in Downtown happens during big events. For those who live and work in the Central Business District, public safety is an essential issue.

Drug dealing and abuse in Market Square once again became problematic in the past year. The Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership recently decided to remove tables and chairs from the square after lunchtime to deter troublemakers from loitering there.

Several violent incidents have occurred in the last few years at the Wood Street T station, including a shooting in September that left a 17year-old boy critically injured. Police have increased their presence in the area, particularly around 3 p.m. when teenagers from rival neighborhoods cross paths on their way home from school.

Officials believe police presence can increase public safety day to day, just as it does at big events.

Mr. Hissrich said the police substation will be in operation by the end of the year. He said he was hoping to have it open earlier, but there’s been “some minor hang-ups” on negotiations with the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, which may lease a space to the city.

He said that the regular work for mounted police units — which the city recently announced it would bring back after 14 years — will be in Market Square. Officers on horses would fill the absence of a beat cop in the square, which has been without one for over a year.

“We [support] any action that is being taken because we’re happy to see that there is an action taken,” said Brian Gorder, manager of Diamond Market in Market Square.

“It’s a positive sign that people are working together,” said Jordan Nicholas, owner of Nicholas Coffee. “It may not be the right solution the first time, but I’m confident we’ll get it right eventually.”

Mr. Gorder and Mr. Nicholas said programming, such as outdoor movies, concerts and sports-watch parties are in the works to give the square a more familyfriendly vibe this summer.

But no matter what happens, and even if safety cannot be guaranteed at all times, stakeholders still believe people will flock to Downtown for big events or a night on the town.

“You can talk about highprofile incidents anywhere in the world,” Mr. Valentine said. “I can show you highprofile incidents in the suburbs of Pittsburgh. ... But that can’t stop you from living.”