Some landlords put up extra funding and time to beef up security during Halloween weekend.
For many Athens landlords, the crowds and chaos of the Athens Halloween Block party comes with the potential for intrusion and costly property damage.
As a result, many take extra precaution when the festivities (and thousands of party-goers) hit town.
Margaret Shafer, property manager for Phoenix Apartments, one floor above Ginger Asian Kitchen, said she hires security guards — many of which are law enforcement students at Hocking College — to stay posted at various points throughout the complex, including the front door, the alleyway entrance, the stairway, the hallway and the roof.
That's on top of making her tenants register their guests for the weekend, which she said prevents the complex from overreaching its capacity and ensures that no one can get in that wasn't granted permission.
Because Phoenix Apartments' door is near the entrance for Ginger Asian Kitchen, it's not uncommon for someone to accidentally wander in.
"If they’re going into Ginger and miss the door, you get four (or) five people coming in and you can’t get them turned around back onto Court Street," she said.
Bob Freund, the building manager for River Park and River's Edge Apartments, 36 N. McKinley Ave., said he also hires an additional security guard for Halloween weekend, though he usually has a security staff that monitors the apartments on a regular basis, anyway.
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"We have security all the time here pretty much, so they just have an extra guy coming for Halloween," he said.
Freund said there are usually about three security guards walking the grounds of his complexes during the Athens Halloween Block Party.
Most of the guards are former law enforcement officers that know how to "look for the right noises," Freund said.
He also said the Athens Police Department has requested that landlords pay extra attention to certain areas on their properties that could be prone to catching fire.
Debbie Allen, the administrative assistant at L'Heureux Properties, said her staff doesn't do much to increase security around Halloween.
"I basically send (the residents) an email reminding them of what’s going on," she said.
In the past, Allen said there haven't been any major security concerns on her end.
"I don’t know if our tenants are just more conscientious or if it’s just the luck of the draw," she said.
However, not all property owners want to take their chances with rambunctious tenants and their friends during one of Athens' busiest weekends.
"It’s a worthwhile increase on our behalf because I'd rather deal with the situation before it escalates," Freund said.
Despite all the planning that goes into prevention of such events, though, Freund hasn't had any major Halloween-related mishaps on his properties so far.
"You get the occasional people who forget what apartment they’re in, and you get noise complaints," he said.
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