SoWo 2015
INFORMATION RELEASE
SoWo 2015
We would like to welcome our visitors to the 2015 Southern Worthersee (SoWo) for the week of May 11 – May 17. We are looking forward to seeing our friends from last year and look forward to making new ones this year. We will try to update any info on our Facebook page, to include upcoming traffic changes, within the next few days. We have been working since last year to continue to improve our relationship with your event. Our Chief of Police has constantly been in contact with the organizers of the event, to clear up any problems in the past. We are here to help you to have safe and exciting event showcasing great German technology. The population of White County is 26,000+ and the estimates for this year’s event are 23,000+, which makes this event the size of our City’s Oktoberfest in one weekend. As you can plainly see this event will almost double our entire County’s population. As you can imagine, this can put a strain on services, infrastructure and roads. Therefore, we will be enacting traffic changes during the event, in order to maintain traffic flow and response by Emergency Services. The City of Helen is open to all persons and their legally registered and operated vehicles. The organizers of the event have contracted out private property for the show, vendors and parking. We do not control or enforce this parking as it relates to permission to park; this is up to the organizers. We will not discriminate as to what legally operated vehicles travel on public roadways, unless that roadway is closed to traffic. The City Commissioners in an open meeting voted to give the Chief of Police the ability to close any City maintained roads at his discretion. We simply do not care what type of car you drive, as long as you are not violating State Law or Local Ordinances. Our Officers are given full discretion on violation charges, we do not have a quota and violators are given warnings where appropriate. We will not tolerate any violation that is a hazard to bystanders and could cause injuries. We also will not tolerate damage to public or personal property, to include the type of vehicle you drive. If you are caught in the act of vandalizing or destroying this type of property or vehicle, you will go straight to Jail. We can assure you your SoWo experience will be over. We know that some drivers believe they are Formula 1 drivers, but even professional drivers will tell you cars are mechanical marvels that can break at any time. We understand you are proud of your work on your vehicles and love to show those around you the power they possess, but doing “burn outs” in a crowd is dangerous and can result in injury or death. Leave that for a controlled environment, not the streets of our City. The City of Helen has Ordinances against Open Containers on any public spaces. If you are caught with a visible container of alcohol you may be charged with that offense (Fine $387.00). We also have a No Camping within the City Limits, which includes sleeping overnight in a vehicle.
We have received information that our Tubing Companies will be opening early this year and will be in operation for the event weekend. We would like to remind you, it is a violation of a City Ordinance to tube with a cooler and being in possession of alcohol during your trip down the river. Again all these type violations are enforced at the Officers discretion. This info is our attempt to not only welcome you but also give you fair warning in advance so we can stop any rumors that may be out there.
This year all of our Officers will be on duty and we will be aided by Deputy Sheriffs and a large contingent of Georgia State Patrol and which will include their Aviation Unit. All Officers will be working extended hours and will be stressed by this event, please keep in mind they are at work and not able to spend time with their families, so that you can have a safe and great event.
Those that will be using Drones during the event are reminded to use these devices with respect for privacy and for the public’s safety. Please be aware of low flying Law Enforcement aircraft that could come in contact with Drone vehicles.
Our Agency and Officers are not only here for to enforce Laws and Ordinances, but we are also here to assist you in having a great lifetime memory of your SoWo experience. We hope you will enjoy and respect the special beauty that is the Alpine City of Helen.
