Sioux Center, Iowa — Presidential Candidate Donald Trump will appear in Sioux Center Saturday, January 23, at 11 a.m. at the B.J. Haan Auditorium on the campus of Dordt College, and college officials warn that the event will affect traffic and parking around the vicinity. In preparation for the visit, the college is advising those who live nearby and might be traveling to events in the vicinity to be aware of the following details:
Parking is expected to fill up streets and parking lots nearby. The Dordt College Recreation Center and Campus Center will be closed on Saturday morning due to preparations for the event, as will all other campus buildings.
Security preparations have been directed by the United States Secret Service. Security during the event will be provided by the Secret Service and the Sioux Center Police Department. Emergency services will be on standby.
The number of EventBrite responses from people who registered for the event exceeds the amount of space available, so the campaign has asked would-be attendees to keep the following in mind:
- You must have an EventBrite ticket (either printed or on your phone) to get in.
- Tickets do not guarantee entry: attendance is first come, first served until capacity is reached.
- No posters, banners, or signs maybe be brought into the event.
- There is no dress code.
- No professional cameras with detachable lens, tripods, monopods, selfie sticks, or GoPros are allowed.
- ID is not required.
- The Secret Service will secure the auditorium and the Rec Center prior to the event, and will open the doors at 9 a.m.
- For ease of getting in, please minimize the items you bring in. Bags will be searched; metal detectors will be used.
- Dordt will attempt to accommodate overflow for registrants who did not get into the B.J. Haan Auditorium by providing space in the Rec Center to watch a live stream provided by the campaign.
- Attendees are advised that once they are in the auditorium, they will not be able to come and go.
Dordt College buildings will not be open prior to 9 a.m. Saturday. Event registrants who intend to stand in line for hours should keep in mind that temperatures are forecast to be in the low to mid teens, with windchills in the single digits to near zero. There will be portable toilets available.
Dordt College will direct traffic and help ensure that parking goes as smoothly as possible, with help from the City of Sioux Center. Please use care when traveling along 7th Street and 4th Avenue on Saturday morning, and be aware of pedestrians.
A girls’ basketball clinic in the DeWitt Gymnasium is still slated for 9 a.m. However, the Rec Center will not be open to the public at all on Saturday morning. Dordt College buildings are expected to reopen by 1 p.m. Saturday afternoon.
Dordt College welcomes all attendees as well as peaceful protesters to campus; Sioux Center police and campus personnel will be on campus and available to ensure peaceable assembly both outside and inside the buildings.
Dordt College President Erik Hoekstra says the college had received some concerns about Trump being allowed to speak on campus. Hoekstra addressed those concerns in an open letter posted on the college’s website.
