2024 SCARE-nectady haunted patrol coming Thursday

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (NEWS10) – First responders in Schenectady, and other community partners, are geared up for annual festivities. The Scare-nectady haunted patrol returns this week and NEWS10 has a preview and all the details. 

The 5th Annual Scare-nectady Haunted Patrol hits the streets on Thursday evening. The festivities start at 5:00 P.M. at Fairview Park, on the Fairview Avenue side.

Lieutenant Ryan Macherone with the Schenectady Police Department said it’s an exciting time of year the officers look forward to.

“We started with just a few officers going out and trying to deliver candy at a couple different spots throughout the city. It’s now grown into seven spots throughout the city,” said Macherone. “As we were thinking of different ways to innovate this transfinder came to us last year and said why don’t we use the technology that we are using to help the police officers everyday to help show where the parade is so people can follow it in real time.”

SCARE-NECTADY HAUNTED PATROL STOPS - Thursday, October 24, 2024

• Fairview Park  (Fairview Avenue side) 5:00 - 5:15 P.M.
• Hamilton School (7th Avenue and Webster Street) 5:30 - 5:45 P.M.
• Jerry Burrell Park (Schenectady Street Pavilion) 6:00 - 6:15 P.M.
• Steinmetz Homes (Henry Street and Emmons Street) 6:30 - 6:45 P.M.
• Woodlawn Elementary School (3311 Wells Ave, Schenectady, NY 12304) 7:00 - 7:15 P.M.
• Howe Elementary School (1065 Baker Ave, Schenectady, NY 12309) 7:30 - 7:45 P.M.
• Steinmetz Park (Lenox Road side) 8:00 - 8:15 P.M.

A local company that provides school bus transportation and police software across the country is assisting for the second year in a row.

COO of TransFinder Joe Messia said their technology typically helps the police department evaluate patrol routes and identify areas they need to patrol more, but…

“What we’re doing today is a lot more fun than that. So today we’re actually taking that same type of technology that we use for mission critical apps and we’re deploying that for some fun and we’re just grateful for Schenectady PD to allow us to be a part of this,” said Messia.

TransFinder will assist the public in tracking the halloween-decorated police cars and fire trucks that will parade through the city in the haunted patrol, as they hand out candy and safety tips.

“I think policing, and just like a lot of emergency services, these are businesses where oftentimes we are in peoples’ lives at their worst moments. And so for us to be able to do this and have fun and just kind of relax for a little while and all just enjoy the holiday. It’s really important for us, community engagement has been a big part of Schenectady Police Department for as long as I’ve been here,” said Macherone.

It always takes place on the Thursday before Halloween. And it’s been growing every year.

“If you visit Scarenectady.com you’ll see pumpkin icons that show the location of all the stops and then you’ll see a ghost icon that’s the parade of vehicles in real-time, as the parade moves the ghost moves across the screen,” said Messia.

They’re dubbing it the ‘Treat-finder’ app. Before Thursday you’ll find the full list of stops, so you can find the one closest to your area.

Again, the SCARE-nectady haunted patrol will hand out candy bags to children and adults of all ages. The last stop will be here at Steinmetz Park at 8 o'clock that evening.