Alton Public Safety Meeting to Address Downtown Violence, Loitering

Our Daily Show Interview: Alderwoman Allen: Downtown Public Safety meeting on 6-20 at 2pm

ALTON - A meeting on downtown Alton public safety will be held at 2 p.m. on June 20 at Alton City Hall.

Mayor David Goins and Police Chief Jarrett Ford will be in attendance. Downtown business owners and residents are encouraged to share their thoughts on the increased loitering, vandalism and fights in downtown Alton.

“I’m finding how much everyone loves this town,” Betsy Allen, Alderman of the 1st Ward, said. “So I think everybody’s just working to make sure we remain safe and that Alton stays the city we love.”

Allen will also be at the meeting, as much of downtown Alton falls into her ward. She noted that loitering and public drinking increase after 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and these actions are causing public safety concerns.

The downtown Alton area has seven bars with liquor licenses that allow alcohol sales until 3 a.m. Some people have suggested that this contributes to the problem. Allen said most of the issues happen in the streets rather than the bars, and that many of these business owners agree something needs to be done.

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“The bar owners who I spoke to agree that there is a problem. What we’re not sure about is, as they’re saying, ‘These aren’t necessarily our patrons. Yes, they come in to use our bathrooms, but they’re not buying anything from the bars,’” Allen said. “There are no places down there, I don’t think, that are having any problems inside their businesses. The problem is outside.”

Allen added that the police chief has encouraged business owners to “take some more responsibility” by closing earlier. Ford has also suggested increased security and lighting downtown. The Alton Police Department already installed more cameras downtown, but they hope to add more soon.

“The police are very supportive of the downtown businesses and residents,” Allen said. “They want the same thing. We’re all kind of working toward a common goal; just need to coordinate our efforts.”

She encourages downtown residents to call the police when there are disturbances or safety concerns.

The public safety meeting on June 20 will be an open discussion led by Goins and Ford. Allen said she hopes business owners will be in attendance so she can “learn from them” and dive into these conversations about public safety.

“I think that’s something that’s missing from Alton, is just conversation and everybody sort of talking,” Allen said. “We just have to all work together to make things better.”

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