New policies, security measures at the Big Fresno Fair

FRESNO, Calif. -- Preparations for the Big Fresno Fair are underway with opening day right around the corner. In an effort to keep visitors safe, the fair is rolling out new admission guidelines.

The Big Fresno Fair is the largest event in the Central Valley and management also strives to make it the safest, which is why some new policies have been put in place, along with boosted security measures.

As the finishing touches are being put into place, the Big Fresno Fair Grounds looks quiet and empty. But in just a few days, the Central Valley staple will come alive with thousands of people.

The fair is estimated to bring an average of 600-thousand visitors during the twelve-day event and due to the grand amount of people it attracts, the fair management team is making sure to keep safety a top priority, starting at the door.

Because the fair sees the highest number of people on weekends, two new admission policies have been put in place for Fridays and Saturdays. All fair guests will now be required to wear wristbands on the weekends, and minors younger than 18 are required to be accompanied by a parent or guardian over the age of 21 after 7 p.m.

"At our Spring Fair, we had to shut down our Spring Fair on Saturday night because there were large groups of youths running through the fairgrounds and we don't want that to happen. People wait all year long to come to the Big Fresno Fair," said Stacy Rianda, Deputy Manager.

It's no surprise the fairgrounds have been filled with police officers and video surveillance cameras in the past, but now the Fresno Police Department will have on-site access to surveillance, giving them the advantage to respond to calls even quicker.

"We've always had the cameras, but they didn't have the ability to monitor them from the police office. So this will be the first year with the additional cameras that the police will be able to sit in their office and monitor everything that's happening on the grounds," said Rianda.

Fresno Fair management also says they'll have an added police presence outside of the grounds this year for an average total of about 100 police officers each night, plus security.

If you want to make sure you'll be complying with all of the fair's guidelines you can find their full Code of Conduct on their website.