Prince George’s County police say they haven’t finished their plan for covering National Harbor even though more than 1,000 employees are already in training at the $2 billion development’s largest resort and the first convention, with thousands of attendees, is only one month away.
Police Chief Melvin High recently informed County Council members that National Harbor, which county officials have spent years planning with developers, will bring an increase in 911 calls and “the potential for additional crime.” The department, he said, plans to redeploy officers to maintain a presence in the 300-acre mixed-use complex and surrounding neighborhoods — some of the most crime-ridden areas in the county.
But on Tuesday, police spokeswoman Cpl. Diane Richardson said, “We’re still in the process of putting a plan together.”
Policing National Harbor won’t be entirely up to the county police, though, according to a statement by Kent Digby, National Harbor vice president and director of operations.
Harbor officials are setting up a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week command center operated by a security team headed by a former member of the Maryland State Police, and security cameras will be placed throughout the property, Digby said.
During the first week in April, Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center will host the Army Aviation Association of America in its 180,000-square-foot exhibit hall, the first to fill the room to capacity, resort spokesman Nicholas Miller said. The event is likely to draw thousands to National Harbor, he added.
To get there, attendees will travel through Oxon Hill, where there have been more than a dozen homicides since 2005, according to police reports.
Richardson said officials should have the policing plans finalized soon, possibly within the next week. Digby said county police have been supportive in developing plans for National Harbor’s safety.
