The thousands thinking of attending President Barack Obama’s rally tomorrow will be faced with limited space, and with construction on Library Mall still underway, it will only be tighter, University of Wisconsin officials said Friday.
Gary Brown, director for campus planning and landscape architecture, said utility work on Library Mall entered its second phase, and will not be done before the rally tomorrow.
While construction is still going strong, crews will not be working at all tomorrow, Brown said.
Brown said the Democratic National Committee, the event’s sponsor, knew about the construction prior to choosing Library Mall as the venue.
“They’re allowing [the construction],” he said. “It’s something that the sponsors of the event had organized.”
To help make more room on Library Mall, crews will pull back the chain link fences and remove all construction equipment, Brown said.
The construction site will be secured, Brown said with locks on all fences.
Jason Rae, co-chair of the Democratic Party’s Youth Council, said the open atmosphere of Library Mall appealed to the DNC, as opposed to the confined spaces of the Kohl Center and even Camp Randall Stadium.
“What makes [Library Mall] unique is it’s open,” said Rae, who was a superdelegate at the 2008 Democratic National Convention. “It shows the president is really trying to engage – this is not something that’s going to be inside.”
Not charging for admission is also something the DNC wanted to make students feel welcome at the event.
Rae said he did not know why Library Mall was chosen over other venues at UW, in particular why it was chosen despite utility construction on the mall.
He is, however, anxious to see how everything turns out.
“I think it’s important because it’s a sitting U.S. President wanting to stop and it’s a great opportunity for people to be involved first hand,” Rae said.
Setup for the rally began Sunday. John Hirt, resident in charge for the Secret Service, said access to the mall would not be restricted until Tuesday morning.
Security for the event will be similar to that at an airport, with metal detectors and Secret Service officers checking backpacks and purses, Hirt said.
In addition, Hirt said sticks for signs, bottles containing liquid, weapons and sharp objects are all prohibited at the event.
Two new musical acts were confirmed to play at the event. The National and Madison-based Mama Digdowns will play on Library Mall with Ben Harper, according to a DNC statement.
