Mayor Jones Announces Public Safety Plans Ahead of Memorial Day Weekend

Today Mayor Tishaura O. Jones outlines her administration’s plans for public safety after hearing numerous calls from residents about the unsafe conditions Downtown last weekend.

Led by Interim Public Safety Director Dan Isom, the City’s approach to public safety this holiday weekend addresses key aspects of the complaints made to the Mayor’s office:

• The Summer Cruising Detail (SCD) will patrol Downtown from 7:00pm - 3:00am to enforce traffic laws, redirect traffic, and block off key streets with a high concentration of visitors and residents.
• The Summer Violence Detail (SVD) will patrol all areas of the city from 8:00pm - 4:00am, with a concentration around Downtown and parts of North and South St. Louis where calls have been most frequent. The SVD will also serve as backup to the SCD as needed.
• Fire, Excise, and Building Commissions will also be on hand to monitor potential violations from businesses and other locations.

In addition, the renewal of an agreement between the City and Sheriff’s Office covering patrols Downtown is currently in process.

Turning her attention to the long term, the Mayor’s Office is working in partnership with the Downtown Neighborhood Association (DNA) to host a virtual meeting with Downtown residents next week. Collecting feedback directly from residents is a priority of Mayor Jones, in order to ensure longer term plans adequately address their ongoing safety concerns.

“The people closest to the problem should be closest to the solution. We know that people of St. Louis want to feel safe, and any plans we set in motion must address their concerns as proactively as possible. Our goal is to prevent any potential illegal activity before it escalates to injury or harm.”
~Mayor Tishaura O. Jones