© 2024 NPR Illinois
The Capital's Community & News Service
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Despite Late Venue Change, Officers Confident in Safety Plans for Luke Bryan Concert

Flickr; Morgan Williams
/
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode

Law enforcement in Sangamon County is gearing up for Luke Bryan’s concert on Friday after a late venue change due to rain. The concert was originally scheduled to be held at the Ayers Family Farm in Edinburg, Illinois, a small town in Christian County. It is now moved to the Illinois State Fairgrounds. 

After the deadly shooting at a Route 91 Harvest festival in Las Vegas, law enforcement is ramping up security efforts to ensure the safety of all guests.   

The Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office says they’re not releasing full details of security plans, but they will have a heavy presence, along with reinforcements from the Illinois State Police and the Springfield Police Department.

Chief Deputy Joe Roesch said concertgoers should expect security to be tight. “We’re taking every precaution to try to prevent any kind of violence and protect the people of Sangamon County. That’s what we get paid to do. We train, we work well with all the other agencies and again, we feel the people are safe and encourage them to come on out.”

The country star is expected to bring out a similar-sized crowd as the concert in Las Vegas; roughly 15,000 guests.

The Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office said the change in venue was last minute and while security plans have been made very quickly, they are comprehensive.

“We work with Springfield Police and State Police often so it won’t be a major problem with law enforcement," said Roesch. "State Police already has a great operations plan and we look forward to working with them.”

ILLINOIS STATE POLICE PRESS RELEASE:

Luke Bryan Concert Traffic Information/Parking

Springfield, IL – The Sangamon County Sheriff’s Department and The Illinois State Police are issuing the following advisory for Friday, October 6, 2017, regarding the Luke Bryan concert scheduled to take place at the Illinois State Fairgrounds.

For those attending the concert, the following advisory should be noted:

* All vehicles should enter the fairgrounds through gate 4, 6, or 7.

* Parked vehicles cannot block or obstruct roadway traffic, driveways, roads, or gates.

* Follow all posted traffic signs as well as IDOT electronic signs.

* All concert traffic will follow the instructions of the traffic control officers on site.

All motor vehicle traffic not attending the concert are urged to avoid the Illinois State Fairgrounds, and Peoria Road.

Concert goers can access the Grandstand Infield via the tunnels on the north and southwest corner of the Mile Track on foot only.

Jaclyn has an MA in Journalism from DePaul University and a BS in History form Monmouth College. Prior to reporting, Jaclyn was a social science teacher and department chair at Greenfield High School. Previously, Jaclyn reported for WICS Newschannel 20 where she covered a variety of assignments including courts, politics, and breaking news. She also reported at Siouxland News in Sioux City Iowa, the shared CBS/Fox television newsroom. Her internships included WGN and Comcast SportsNet in Chicago.
Related Stories