Look for brighter lights on city streets. Look for less graffiti. And look for more police officers -- many more police officers -- downtown and along transportation lines as Baltimore and Maryland prepare to inaugurate Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
For many fans, getting to the new ballpark west of the Inner Harbor means parking perhaps as much as a mile away and walking some unfamiliar blocks. Although Memorial Stadium on 33rd Street was close to some high-crime areas, Baltimore police acknowledge that Camden Yards is hard by some tough neighborhoods as well.
"There are some neighborhoods that require particular attention, and we're going to provide that attention," said Baltimore police Col. Joseph P. Newman, who is directing the city's police plan for Opening Day.
"Ideally, we're aiming for a zero-incident event. But the fact is, you put 50,000 people in a church and you'll still have a few incidents."
Officials say they're aware that Monday's opening will shape perceptions of fans not only about the new stadium but about downtown Baltimore. If they are are going to come back, they've got to feel comfortable four blocks west of the Inner Harbor.
There's more to the city's plan than police officers.
Laurie Schwartz, who heads Downtown Partnership, said city officials are replacing dim street lights and are scrubbing graffiti off walls. Merchants have been asked to replace torn awnings and to wash windows.
Last year, the partnership -- the city management organization that oversees the downtown retail district -- studied downtown security. "We found there are a whole host of factors unrelated to crime itself that make people feel unsafe: dark areas, strangers on the street, vacant buildings," Ms. Schwartz said.
"To the extent that we can make downtown look and feel better, we're doing our part," she said.
New banners have been hung along Howard Street -- yellow-and-red ones, featuring baseballs and stars, and turquoise-and-orange ones within the Market Center district.
"I think everyone is aware that for some fans it's going to be their first trip into the city," said Nancy Roberts, a consultant with the Baltimore Convention Bureau. "We'd like it to be a welcoming experience. I think they'll find that because there's so much activity outside the ballpark, they'll be comfortable."
Colonel Newman and other officials say they are aware that the public may be nervous about being in strange territory at night, particularly in the wake of a recent spate of violent crimes downtown. Their response is to try to reassure visitors with an overwhelming police presence in and around the stadium.
The colonel declined to discuss manpower, but police department sources say the number of officers inside the stadium will increase from 40 at Memorial Stadium to 48 in the new ballpark. In addition, 56 more officers and plainclothes men will be assigned to work the area near the stadium -- with many of those officers drawn from a variety of other duties.
FTC Colonel Newman said the Opening Day plan will use the same number of district officers for stadium duties as were assigned at Memorial Stadium. But the number of traffic and tactical officers in the department has declined in recent years.
To fill the gap, detectives from investigative sections and the youth division, as well as officers from planning and research and other administrative bureaus, are being reassigned to stadium duties.
Officials have been careful, however, not to drain additional manpower from district patrol units or from downtown homicide and narcotics units. "Those are the sacred cows," a department official said.
In particular, the department is increasing the number of foot patrolmen in the Central and Southern districts, which surround the new stadium. Mounted officers and patrolmen on foot and motor scooter will patrol the downtown parking garages and lots where many fans are expected to park.
Officers involved in the stadium plan say traffic concerns are paramount. Unlike Memorial Stadium, where years of experience allowed both police and fans to anticipate traffic patterns, the new stadium remains a puzzle.
"After the first homestand of seven games, there will be an assessment," said Colonel Newman, adding that it may be a while before motorists and police begin to pattern their behavior to the new environment. "We know that we're dealing with
something new and that we've got to be prepared for any occurrence."
A further problem for traffic flow Monday will come with the presidential motorcade, which will bring President Bush to the stadium to throw out the first ball. Dozens of city officers are assigned to motorcade duties as well.
"A good rule of thumb for anyone driving is that if you're coming from the south, stay to the south of the stadium," said Colonel Newman. "If you're coming from the north, stay to the north. Don't try to get right up to it."
Police will pay particular attention to several nearby neighborhoods with crime problems. The Westport area south of the stadium lots, Pigtown to the west and the Lexington Terrace projects across Martin Luther King Boulevard to the northwest are all going to receive additional police attention.
In addition, the Howard Street retail corridor -- the route for the new MTA light rail, the site of the nearest Metro station and one of the more ragged sections of downtown after dark -- will be heavily policed by both city patrolmen and transit officers.
City police note that Memorial Stadium had its own trouble spots -- the Tivoli area south of Montebello, Greenmount Avenue and Old York Road -- but after years of experience, officers assigned to the stadium knew most of the trouble spots and troublemakers.
"We knew that if you parked down on Gorsuch Avenue, your car might not be there after the game, and a lot of fans knew that, too," said one officer who worked the stadium detail for years. "With the new stadium, everyone's going to have to learn the terrain and the people all over again."
David W. Chapin of the Maryland Department of Transportation said traffic could be slowed if people feel uncomfortable parking near University Center or Lexington Market and insist on trying to park at the Inner Harbor.
"It could clearly affect the transportation pattern," said Mr. Chapin, who is coordinating traffic planning around the stadium. "Despite the general concern about games [and] security, when people find 40,000 other people are coming and going with them to the game, they'll go and find they feel comfortable."
MTA police plan to be at key points around the stadium. They will staff park-and-ride lots and have asked police in Anne Arundel and Baltimore counties for help with this.
Police will be present at downtown Metro stations and on board every light-rail train. Of a force of 90 officers, two-thirds will be in the security detail Friday and on Opening Day.
The MTA police will be centered on the Howard and Eutaw corridors, with 27 officers committed to the light-rail system alone. In addition, more than 100 MTA employees have volunteered to be "transit ambassadors" who will be situated at key stations to answer questions and direct riders.
Lawrence M. Engleman, acting chief of MTA Police, said that after the game officers will be in the stadium area and that some will help with traffic control.
They have borrowed motorcycles from the Motor Vehicle Administration safety training class to patrol Howard Street and keep the light-rail tracks clear.
Two MTA officers will be in street clothes on pickpocket detail, while at least four or five city officers are detailed as plainclothes men to counter on-site ticket scalping, sources said.
"I don't see this as a big deal," said Mr. Engleman.
This week, Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke met with operators of downtown parking lots and garages, said Honora Freeman, head of the Baltimore Development Corporation. The mayor asked them to keep their parking areas "clean, well-lighted, secure and user-friendly," Ms. Freeman said.
COUNTDOWN TO OPENING DAY
* Fans can check out Oriole Park at Camden Yards today from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission is free, and no tickets are needed. Or tonight at 7, attend the Orioles' welcome-home rally outside the new park, next to the B&O; warehouse.
* Tomorrow's exhibition against the Mets at the new park is sold out, but there are tickets remaining for Saturday's exhibition with the Boston Red Sox at RFK Stadium.
* There are still plenty of tickets left for the second and third games in the Orioles' first homestand. As of yesterday, 35,000 tickets had been sold for Wednesday's game against Cleveland, and 31,000 had been sold for Thursday's game.
* INSIDE: Tomorrow Balimore gets its first taste of downtown ballpark traffic. Page 1E