SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Syracuse Chiefs are using “increased” security measures at NBT Bank Stadium this season.
Stadium personnel will use a metal-detecting security wand to scan all persons entering NBT Bank Stadium.
Guests will be required to remove any mobile phones, cameras, wallets, or any objects that could set off these hand-held metal detectors, the team said in a news release.
“We see other stadiums doing it. We want this place to be as safe as possible. Again, it’s affordable family fun. We’ve got families in here, and it’s just something that … unfortunately you have to do,” Jason Smorol, general manager of the Syracuse Chiefs, said in speaking with reporters on April 4 during the team’s media-day event.
In their news release, the Syracuse Chiefs also say fans aren’t permitted to enter NBT Bank Stadium with items that include weapons of any kind, including but not limited to firearms and knives.
The items also include glassware, silverware, cans, coolers, nets, laser pointers, skateboards, roller blades, hover boards, wheeled shoes, beach balls and other inflatables, air horns and artificial noise makers, aerosols, cakes, and gift-wrapped packages.
The team says it won’t store any items at NBT Bank Stadium during events.
In addition, the Chiefs will not permit any item worn or carried in that “can reasonably be deemed as dangerous or could potentially endanger the safety of other guests and ballpark personnel, as judged by team security,” according to the news release.
Fans are allowed to carry in one 20-ounce factory-sealed plastic bottle of water per person and one small juice box per child, as long as these items fit within a 16” x 16” x 12” single-compartment bag.
The team also says that all bags are subject to search “at any time.”
Security inspectors have the right to refuse admittance to anyone who has a bag that is too large to inspect or to anyone who refuses to cooperate with the inspection process.
Fans must store all bags under the seats during the game, the team said.
The Syracuse Chiefs say they won’t allow re-entry in NBT Bank Stadium once a fan has entered the ballpark. This includes anyone who wants to leave the ballpark and the grounds around it to smoke or use tobacco-related products.
Permitted items
The team also listed items that are allowed inside NBT Bank Stadium, but may be inspected at any time.
They include backpacks; baseball gloves; diaper bags; “standard-size” seat cushions with no storage pockets; collapsible strollers that can “easily be stored” at the top of seating sections; and video and photo cameras, with the exception of tripods or drones.
Small radios are permitted, but fans “must” use earpieces for listening, the team said.
Umbrellas are also permitted, though they may only be opened in seating areas during rain delays.
Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com
