COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The Stonewall Columbus Pride March and Festival returns this weekend, welcoming thousands of people downtown to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community.
With police anticipating big crowds, Columbus Police Commander Scott Evers said safety is top of mind.
“We started planning for this event pretty much the day after, you know, it ended last year,” Evers said. “From that, you know, we just kind of figure out what we can improve from last year.”
Evers said when it comes to planning, the main focus is allocating resources. He said the department works with federal and state partners and gathers feedback from other cities.
“Some of the things we change is just a lot of it’s just logistics,” Evers said. “You know, how we can situate personnel so they can, you know, be better able to respond to different areas.”
Officers will be out patrolling the area on foot, horseback, bikes and cruisers. Attendees can also expect to see cameras throughout the Pride festival and parade route.
“If you see something, say something,” Evers said. “Cameras obviously make it easier for people to see more things. It’s a force multiplier.”
Pride Month comes amid rising political protests and tensions, and police are prepared for protests planned at the statehouse.
“We have dialogue officers that are here,” Evers said. “They have existing relationships with all kinds of groups, as many groups as we can, and we focus on it is truly a relationship with a lot of groups, right? If people are protesting, I mean, it’s their First Amendment right, and we are here to accommodate and welcome anybody that comes.”
This year, with warmer temperatures forecast for the weekend, police said there will be more water available and they’ll be communicating with event organizers should they have to make changes due to weather.
“We continuously evaluate every event, like I said, that happens here, nationally, internationally and we adjust plans,” Evers said. “We adjust plans, or we don’t adjust plans, just depending on it.”
According to Columbus police, they have not received any credible threats to the Pride fest or protests this weekend.
The Pride Festival will run from 4-10 p.m. on June 13 and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on June 14 in Goodale Park, 120 W. Goodale St. The march will leave from the corner of Broad and High streets at 10:30 a.m. June 14. Participants will proceed north on High Street to the Buttles Avenue intersection.
