The security command center at National Harbor, the $4 billion city-sized development going up on the banks of the Potomac River near Washington, would be the envy of most city police departments, reports the Washington post. Private security officers keep round-the-clock watch on the development. Next door to the command center is an office for Prince George’s County police officers assigned to the sprawling retail, residential, entertainment and office complex. The law enforcement presence was designed to maintain order at the development — the linchpin of efforts to strengthen the county’s economy and its public image — and to protect it from the kinds of crime that have plagued other parts of Prince George’s.
The surveillance system is complemented by security guards on foot, motorized tricycles and all-terrain vehicles and by Prince George’s County police officers in cars and boats. With more than a million visitors a year expected at National Harbor, the safety plan for the 300-acre development has multiple layers and involves nearly a half-dozen law enforcement agencies. An executive there said the planned 100-member private security team will work closely with the Maryland State Police, Maryland Natural Resources Police, Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Police and Forest Heights town police, as well as county police.
Link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/12/AR2008051202553.html