APD announces Downtown Quality of Life Enhancement initiative

For immediate release
Aug. 8, 2008

Today the Austin Police Department and City officials announced the Downtown Quality of Life Enhancement Initiative which began Aug. 4, 2008 and will run until Sept. 27, 2008.

The initiative will focus on the consistent enforcement that relates directly to crime issues, quality of life issues and pedestrian safety. In the coming months there will be a higher visibility of officers and district representatives in the area. The primary target areas include Waller Creek from Waterloo Park to Cesar Chavez, the IH-35 West frontage to Congress Avenue and Cesar Chavez to 11th Street and Red River from the 1100 to 1500 blocks.

Earlier this year the Downtown Area Command (DTAC) conducted a survey focusing specifically on the Downtown area. The survey collected 650 responses from Downtown business owners, residents, tourists and other major stakeholders. From the survey, the department was able to identify the top three crime and quality of life issues.

In regards to crime, drugs, theft and alcohol were the key issues. 229 said drugs were a problem, 189 said theft was an issue and 171 said alcohol was an issue.

The top three quality of life issues were identified as traffic, panhandling and litter. 365 saw traffic as an issue, 326 saw panhandling as an issue and 156 saw litter as an issue.

With this survey as a guide, the goal of the initiative is to decrease overall crime and improve the quality of life in the Downtown area.