EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WEHT) – Recent security concerns at the Civic Center in downtown Evansville are prompting changes that have some employees upset. Several months ago, security staff say a random screening of a building employee with a security bypass badge found a weapon on them. While it was determined to be unintentional, the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Building Authority decided to make changes.
In early September, security passes were removed from anyone who is not a full-time, on-site employee of the Civic Center. Those passes exempt them from passing through security screening areas at the building’s entry points. Dave Rector with the Building Authority says around 2,000 people come into the Civic Center every day. He says weapons are discovered every day, which caused concern over what might be passing through on those with security passes.
“The employees, at some point, will have to start going through screening,” says Rector. “We’re looking at trying to get a separate entrance for them, so it will expedite getting them into the building on time so they aren’t delayed coming into work, so they aren’t delayed with people coming into court, the attorneys coming in. We’ve got a lot of people coming into this building throughout the day.”
Rector says the only people who would be exempt from these updated security measures are the mayor of Evansville and judges. He also added that he understands some employees are upset at these changes, saying they did not take this decision lightly, but did so with safety in mind. Rector did not provide a timeline on when phase two of these changes would be implemented.
