The Dixon Petunia Festival brings thousands of people to Dixon for the four-day event. When you have that many people, you need to make sure things are safe for everyone.
Dixon Police Chief Ryan Bivins said this year they had the lowest number of calls he had ever seen. The department takes many safety steps. One added this year was the parking of public works trucks at certain intersections. Bivins said it was a joint idea from the police department and the public works department.
Bivins said there might have been some factors that made this Petunia Festival so quiet. He said one might have been the hot weather. The other factor is the number of officers present and the profile they presented. The Lee County Sheriff’s Office as well as a couple of officers from the Sterling Police Department joined Dixon Police. There were three drones in the air during the festival. Officers traveled around the festival by foot, bicycle and by UTV.
