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Williamsville police plan Thursday foot patrols for Music on Main, cite staffing limits for parade security
Summary
Village officials said police will try to assign two officers on foot patrol for Music on Main Thursday evenings this summer, while acknowledging limited staffing for broader traffic enforcement and parade barricading.
Williamsville police told the Village Board on May 12 they will attempt to assign two officers to foot patrol Music on Main from about 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Thursdays during the summer series, but emphasized that the detail depends on available manpower.
The plan "is to try to have 2 officers there from about 7PM to 10PM every Thursday," a police representative said at a village work session. He added the officers would be on foot patrol with vehicles nearby "in case they have to respond or have to leave in an emergency." The schedule discussed in the meeting covered early June through late August.
The police representative told trustees the patrols are intended primarily for visibility and deterrence: "We want to probably increase our visibility, both for community policing reasons and for deterrence and possibly enforcement on certain low level crimes." Traffic-and-safety concerns raised by board members and residents included jaywalking, illegal parking that impedes traffic flow, and the risk posed by vehicles driving onto sidewalks.
Board members and residents pressed the department on limits to broader traffic enforcement. "Traffic enforcement is a top priority for me in my unit," the police representative said, but added that when the department is responding to in-progress calls, "sometimes we don't have the resources to do constant traffic enforcement." He said the department allocates enforcement where it believes the risk of accidents is higher.
Parade security was discussed separately. Staff said Main Street is typically well blocked, but side streets feeding the route remain vulnerabilities. The police representative described barricade options as expensive and noted a trade-off between tightly blocking streets and preserving pedestrian access: "The limited availability of resources makes it difficult. Purchasing barricades is very expensive, and just having enough people to park cars in the right spots is also difficult."
Board and residents also raised growing vehicle thefts and neighborhood safety; the police representative said the department uses social media and general media outreach and warned against leaving key fobs inside unattended vehicles. "It's a crime of opportunity," he said.
No formal vote or change in policy was taken at the meeting; trustees and staff said the plan would proceed as staffing allows and that the department will continue to prioritize calls and enforcement assignments.
