Along with the truckloads of lumber for the Homecoming bonfire come carloads of College alumni and guests of current students, who create both problems and opportunities for the town of Hanover.
For local business owners, the influx of tourists means an increase in sales. "We get five or six times as many people," Dartmouth Co-Op Marketing Director Fritz Fridlund told The Dartmouth. "It's a big increase in the traffic flow in our store."
Fridlund said Homecoming weekend is the second busiest time of the year for her store, surpassed only by Commencement week.
Executive Director of the Hanover Area Chamber of Commerce Clint Bean also said Dartmouth Night and Homecoming are the second biggest tourist times, meaning area hotels are busier than normal.
Accommodations "are pretty much at a premium most of this week," Bean said. "There are a few openings here and there but for the most part it's pretty tight."
Bean said the College event combines with the fall foliage season to decrease the area's hotel space for tourists.
He said tourists find time to walk down Main St. and enjoy shopping in Hanover while they are in the Upper Valley despite the many attractions of Homecoming.
"I think tourists make their way through the business community. They're curious about what is available," Bean said. "I think the dining folks do well and I think some retailers do quite well. For example, the Dartmouth Bookstore and the Dartmouth Co-Op do extremely well ... I think it's really kind of a fun time."
Fridlund said the Co-Op is continuing its tradition of inviting the Dartmouth College Marching Band to play both outside and inside its store. "We actually move some of the racks away so the whole band can fit."
She said the store will also have sidewalk specials for children visiting Hanover.
Along with the increased number of people in the area comes concern for their safety. Hanover Police Captain Chris O'Connor said the department increases staff throughout the weekend.
"Friday night is Dartmouth Night and that's when we have the most [officers] on," O'Connor said. "The first reason is we need to cover a number of traffic posts for the [alumni] parade itself. After the parade we reassign those officers to the events on the Green for issues from crowd control to pedestrian traffic to issues that we always have to deal with like intoxicated people."
O'Connor said it's difficult to say how eventful the weekend will be for his department, but he said it usually depends on the size of the rivalry with the year's football opponent.
"It really depends on how many alumni come back for the whole weekend and the friends and family being invited up by students now -- that's what plays out the activity level."
All of the students The Dartmouth spoke to said they either had friends coming to stay with them for the weekend or knew of people who had invited their own friends to come to the College.
"A friend of mine is coming up from Wesleyan," Alexander Sapoznikov '00 said.
"Most everyone I know will bring someone up," Jessica Berlage '01 said.
