As the community gears up for the city’s annual Park Fete celebration, the Escalon Police Department is also making its own preparations.

Escalon Police Chief Mike Borges said the department will have virtually all available manpower on duty at various times throughout the Fete, which starts on Friday, July 14 and then continues on Saturday, July 15.

“Sgt. (Gustavo) Flores will be overseeing the operation both evenings, Friday and Saturday, and Sgt. (Milt) Medeiros will be handling the operations all day on Saturday,” explained Borges. “If everything continues to work out, Officer Carl Poortinga will be there with our Zero motorcycle, on patrol and he will ride it in the parade on Saturday.”

The electric (zero emission) motorcycle is new for the department and will be on display throughout the weekend, as Officer Poortinga will be able to maneuver into tight spaces and assist with crowd control at the downtown Park Fete festivities.

He is scheduled to be on duty Friday from 2 p.m. to about midnight, then returns for a 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. shift with the motorcycle on Saturday. His role will be to assist but also to do some public relations work, Borges said, regarding the new addition to the department’s motor fleet.

“Our operational plans are complete,” added Borges of scheduling reserves and volunteers to help with the parade, extra patrols, parking and more. “We’ll have everybody out there, our officers, both fulltime and reserves, and our volunteers working with us.”