Santa Cruz County Fair boosts security ahead of busy weekend
Staff at the Santa Cruz County Fair have prepared all summer for the big event, especially as it ramps up for the weekend.
Security being priority number one, with mass shootings like the one just an hour away at the Gilroy Garlic Festival still fresh on the minds of people at the fair.
“It certainly made us take a closer look at every inch of fence line,” says fairgrounds CEO, Dave Kegebein. “We checked the different access points, how the traffic flows and how the people flow.”
You’ll see your usual security wands at all of the five entry points into the fairgrounds. Bag checks will also take place at each entry.
Additional security personnel, including deputies with the Santa Cruz County Sheriff, will be patrolling the fairgrounds.
Boosting security measures at the fairgrounds isn’t something staff are entirely new to, either.
“Way back in the 80s there were plenty of gang problems and issues in the community,” says Kegebein. “We’ve straightened all of that out on our end, tightened it up and we’ve had a long run of providing a safe atmosphere at the fairgrounds. We want to maintain that.”
Kegebein also says he wants to maintain a couple of goals, overall. One, of course, is to keep the fair safe for everyone joining in the fun. The second is simply to prevent anyone with bad intentions from entering the fairgrounds.
