NATO Assembly: What you need to know to get around downtown

The NATO Village restricted area

A significant portion of downtown Dayton will be closed to vehicles, with pedestrian access limited to people with the proper credentials.

The closed area includes streets from Monument Avenue in the north to Third Street in the South, and from North Wilkinson Street in the west to Riverside Drive in the east.

The restricted area includes Riverscape MetroPark between Main Street and Riverside Drive, and covers the Benjamin & Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center and the Victoria Theatre, which will host NATO events.

According to a guide for the assembly, downtown residents and businesses in the NATO Village area will continue to have access to their properties during the events, though there will be specific parking restrictions, identification requirements and access points.

The restricted zone covers about 68 acres of downtown, though boundaries are subject to change for security reasons.

Greater Dayton RTA adjustments

The Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority announced it is rerouting bus routes to accommodate the security perimeter.

The RTA said that its downtown transit center will stay open for normal business hours.

A full list of downtown routes that were shifted are available on the RTA’s website, but in general bus routes that would normally go through the restricted area were moved to skirt around the outside.

The Flyer

The RTA also announced it will extend Flyer service during the event.

The Flyer is a free bus service that travels between the heart of downtown Dayton and Brown Street near the University of Dayton campus, with stops on its route about every 10 minutes.

During the event, The Flyer will expand its weekend hours to 8 a.m. to midnight to help increase access to local businesses and restaurants downtown.

It will also be rerouted around the security perimeter, traveling through the Wright Stop Plaza from Jefferson Street to Main Street rather than turning left down Third Street. Passengers who normally disembark at the bus stop outside of The Arcade are asked to use the stop at the hub, instead.

First Amendment area

The Dayton Police Department has designated a city-owned parking lot at 2nd and Jefferson streets as an area for protesters to gather and demonstrate during the assembly.

Dayton police said that members of the public can move in and out of the protest zone freely, and officers will not be inside of it unless issues arise.