Homecoming weekend, like Corn Fest, keeps the local police busy.

The UPs concentrate on traffic through campus, tailgating activites, parking and stadium security, Lt. Ken Kaiser of the administrative services division said.

The DeKalb Police are responsible for barricading Lincoln Highway and detouring traffic along the parade route, which runs from the intersection of Fourth Street and Lincoln Highway to Carroll Street and West Lincoln Highway.

Police personnel are stationed along the parade route 30 to 45 minutes before the parade begins at 10 a.m. The street is closed off to through traffic about five minutes before the parade begins.

Lt. Charles Beierlotzer, operations commander for the DeKalb Police, said the north/south streets that cross the parade route will be reopened as soon as the entire parade passes each street. The entire parade route will be reopened to traffic at about 11 a.m.

Beierlotzer recommends that drivers traveling north or south through the city during the parade should use either Fourth, Seventh or Tenth Street, or Annie Glidden Road. Cars going east or west at parade time should use Taylor Street or Hillcrest Road, Beierlozer said.

The DeKalb Police do not anticipate Homecoming becoming a problem for them. “It takes so much manpower to control the parade route. After that, Homecoming is not much different than a home football game,” Beierlozer said.

Beirlozer said there are “extra activities during the evening hours. More noise complaints and parties,” but the police are looking forward to a weekend where people will enjoy themselves, within reason, without any injuries or problems.

Kaiser did not anticipate many Homecoming related problems either. Monitoring the football-game tailgating will be the UPs main concern. “Over the past year-and-a-half it has been real orderly. More people are going tailgating to watch the game. Before, people went just to tailgate and then left,” Kaiser said. The UPs had more problems, specifically with alcohol, when people left after tailgating.

“We will be monitoring the tailgating for disorderly conduct and to enforce the alcohol laws,” Kaiser said. Underage drinking during tailgating can result in an arrest or a report to the NIU judicial system, Kaiser said.

Overall, “we’re there for the safety of the people. We’re providing a safe environment to watch the game,” Kaiser said.