ONEONTA _ Setting the tone for college students at the dawn of a new semester is one of the major goals of the Oneonta Police Department.
"We'll have extra officers on patrol," Lt. Dennis Nayor said Thursday.
The State University College at Oneonta enrolls about 5,800 students, who began classes Wednesday. Most of the 1,480 students of Hartwick College are arriving on campus during the weekend, with classes there starting Tuesday.
The first several weekends of the fall semester in Oneonta are typically marked by students flooding downtown and police making dozens of arrests for infractions such as open alcohol containers, underage drinking, driving while intoxicated and disorderly conduct.
More serious crimes, such as assaults, occasionally occur, and alcohol use is usually a factor, Nayor said.
But a strong police presence downtown, bike patrols and officers going into bars will show students that the police are out there and will be enforcing city and state laws, even for the relatively minor offenses, Nayor said.
"A lot of times, if we take care of the smaller things, we don't have as many issues with the bigger things," he said.
City officials and police recently met with most downtown bar owners, a state Liquor Authority representative and Karen Liddle, Otsego County Stop DWI coordinator.
There were no representatives from The Republic, Red's Filling Station and The Brass Rail at that meeting, Nayor said.
The department will be keeping an eye on occupancy levels at downtown bars, he said.
"Our goal is safety. We want people to enjoy the area," Nayor said.
Mayor John Nader said that with the students coming back, it is an exciting time in Oneonta.
Nader said he has confidence in police Chief Joseph Redmond, whom he says thoroughly prepares for the start of both the fall and spring semesters.
"I don't want to go out and make predictions ... but last year went pretty smoothly," Nader said.
Nader said the majority of students do not cause problems, but there is a small number of students who will create conflicts.
One area where Nader said he would like to see improvement is the relationship between students who live off campus and year-round residents.
"I think we probably need to be communicating with the students who live off campus, in a positive way, more frequently," Nader said.
Students generally keep different hours than year-round residents, he said.
Seventh Ward Alderman Liz Shannon, chairwoman of the city's Board of Public Safety, said that at this time of year, many year-round residents keep their windows open at night.
"They need to be aware that there are people sleeping when they are walking home at night," Shannon said.
Shannon also said students who drive need to obey the speed limits, pay attention and obey parking regulations.
Police will have their eye on traffic flow and parking, Nayor said.
Nayor said it doesn't usually slow down on the weekends in Oneonta until after Thanksgiving.
For emergencies, call: 911
The following numbers are for non-emergencies:
Oneonta Police Department, 432-1113
Oneonta Fire Department, 433-3480
Oneonta State Police, 432-3212
City of Oneonta Code Enforcement Office, 433-3435
Town of Oneonta Code Enforcement Office, 432-8606
A.O. Fox Memorial Hospital, 432-2000.
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