Sean C. Morgan
When the Oregon Jamboree rolls around, Sweet Home changes from a town of 9,000 to a population of 20,000 or more. That means emergency services are much busier, and for police services, 2013 was about typical.
The Sweet Home Police Department logged 231 calls from 6 a.m. on Aug. 1 to 6 a.m. on Aug. 5. Of those, 55 originated somewhere at a Jamboree facility.
Compared to other summer weekends, the department logged 96 calls from June 27 to July 1 and 100 calls from July 13 to July 17.
In 2012, from Aug. 2 to Aug. 6, the Police Department had 188 calls for service, while the same period in 2011, July 28 to Aug. 1, the department received 258 calls.
Five years ago, from July 31 to Aug. 4, 2008, the department received 200 calls.
The numbers do not reflect citations or arrests, which have yet to be tabulated, based on information from agencies assisting Sweet Home, including the Lebanon and Albany police departments, the Linn County Sheriff’s Office and Oregon State Police.
“I would say it’s consistent,” said Police Chief Jeff Lynn. “It’s consistent with past history. Look at how our city grows basically at a four- or five-day period. It’s not your normal citizens moving in and living here. It’s people coming here to have a good time, to party. Our city is basically doubling in size.”
Of course, it can’t all be generalized in those terms, Lynn said, and the police still respond to the typical weekend calls too.
The increase in call loads does seem to mirror the estimated population increase in Sweet Home, though, roughly doubling, he said.
The Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District sees it too, with 61 calls for service Aug. 2 through Aug. 4.
Normally, the department would see some 6.5 calls to 7 calls per day, ranging upward to 11 or 12 calls per day during the summer weekends, said Fire Chief Mike Beaver. The department answered back-to-back calls during the Jamboree.
“It’s just more people, more calls for service,” Lynn said.
Perhaps not surprisingly, there are a lot more disturbances, traffic issues and thefts.
“It is bumper-to-bumper cars in the downtown area. Those are the things the added population brings to the city,” Lynn said.”
This year, take Friday out of the equation, and everything ran about as smooth as could be expected, he said. Notwithstanding an unusual fatal motorcycle crash, “I don’t think anything was out of the ordinary.”
Some of the newer police officers were surprised at how busy Sweet Home gets, said Lynn, a department veteran who stepped into the chief’s job in June.
It begins Thursday and runs through Monday morning, he said.
Jamboree Festival Director Erin Regrutto said the Jamboree plans for the population boom over the weekend.
“Of course, you’re going to have more problems over the weekend,” she said. “What I think we do extremely well is prepare for that, and we have a very supportive emergency services group to help us prepare for that and execute it over the weekend.
“I think Jeff deserves a lot of credit for this being his first event,” Regrutto said. “He was very good to work with this year. I think they were really prepared.”
Lynn, Beaver and their departments “always do a phenomenal job” supporting the event and the community, Regrutto said. “It’s really impressive, and they do a great job. We always appreciate them.”