why it matters
the two main complaints received about the attention paid here in this blog to downtown disorder are bias and over-sensitivity--both delivered with the sentiment that each fault is counter-productive to the goal of a vibrant and vital downtown.
i wonder what the commenters might have to say about the photograph of the ambulance on middle street at 2am last night, and the comment contributed to that post suggesting it was at the scene of a severe beating delivered to a patron leaving one of the downtown bars? (we don't have professional journalism upon which to rely in the absence of rob mills, which is both an expression of sincere appreciation for all rob contributes to this community, as well as an indictment of the local paper that it doesn't bother to fill the void in his absence--we'd all be reading it if someone would be writing it).
bob tugbiyele volunteered a compelling presentation about the "broken windows" theory of neighborhood management and policing at a recent downtown neighborhood association meeting, and you can consider my posts here an homage to the sentiment. no, a glass of unfinished bar booze standing in the street the next morning is not a big deal in and of itself, but it speaks to several troubling possibilities that i find unacceptable: first of all, it's the responsibility of the bars to make sure patrons are not leaving with open containers of alcohol, and they are CLEARLY not doing that. (license commissioners are invited to offer opinions either here or in their meetings on the subject, and to propose sanctions for violations, if they have the balls to actually do their jobs, which, to this point, it is my completely biased and personal opinion that they are not). second of all, it's obvious that the police are doing what they can to respond to direct incidents of violence, like fights in the street and/or in the bars themselves, but unless and until everyone else down here refuses to look the other way while it is happening, the police alone are not going to be capable of being everywhere at all times. it's up to us to have the downtown we want.
a commenter here previously suggested a prior incident indicates gang presence based on the victim of a stab wound refusing to let on about how, where and by whom it was delivered. it's possible that's similar to the case of the beating last night, or it's possible that you or i could just as well have been the victim--who is to say. i say i am not willing to accept that anyone is being beaten or stabbed or even threatened as a result of choosing to patronize any of the establishments in downtown lowell. it's been further suggested that talking about it is why other people might choose not to buy or rent living accommodations down here, but i'm quite convinced that anyone not choosing to live down here as a result of someone being honest enough to talk about it is exactly the kind of person we wouldn't want down here anyway.
it's urban and it's mixed-use down here--which means noisy and dirty and congested at the best of times, and dangerous, dirty and empty at the worst. i'm voting in favor of noisy, clean(er), busy and safe. i think that is something that can work for everyone. now it's up to us.
i wonder what the commenters might have to say about the photograph of the ambulance on middle street at 2am last night, and the comment contributed to that post suggesting it was at the scene of a severe beating delivered to a patron leaving one of the downtown bars? (we don't have professional journalism upon which to rely in the absence of rob mills, which is both an expression of sincere appreciation for all rob contributes to this community, as well as an indictment of the local paper that it doesn't bother to fill the void in his absence--we'd all be reading it if someone would be writing it).
bob tugbiyele volunteered a compelling presentation about the "broken windows" theory of neighborhood management and policing at a recent downtown neighborhood association meeting, and you can consider my posts here an homage to the sentiment. no, a glass of unfinished bar booze standing in the street the next morning is not a big deal in and of itself, but it speaks to several troubling possibilities that i find unacceptable: first of all, it's the responsibility of the bars to make sure patrons are not leaving with open containers of alcohol, and they are CLEARLY not doing that. (license commissioners are invited to offer opinions either here or in their meetings on the subject, and to propose sanctions for violations, if they have the balls to actually do their jobs, which, to this point, it is my completely biased and personal opinion that they are not). second of all, it's obvious that the police are doing what they can to respond to direct incidents of violence, like fights in the street and/or in the bars themselves, but unless and until everyone else down here refuses to look the other way while it is happening, the police alone are not going to be capable of being everywhere at all times. it's up to us to have the downtown we want.
a commenter here previously suggested a prior incident indicates gang presence based on the victim of a stab wound refusing to let on about how, where and by whom it was delivered. it's possible that's similar to the case of the beating last night, or it's possible that you or i could just as well have been the victim--who is to say. i say i am not willing to accept that anyone is being beaten or stabbed or even threatened as a result of choosing to patronize any of the establishments in downtown lowell. it's been further suggested that talking about it is why other people might choose not to buy or rent living accommodations down here, but i'm quite convinced that anyone not choosing to live down here as a result of someone being honest enough to talk about it is exactly the kind of person we wouldn't want down here anyway.
it's urban and it's mixed-use down here--which means noisy and dirty and congested at the best of times, and dangerous, dirty and empty at the worst. i'm voting in favor of noisy, clean(er), busy and safe. i think that is something that can work for everyone. now it's up to us.
posted by kad barma at 3:46 PM
4 Comments:
This one appears to be a "worst nightmare" scenario. Wait until the story comes out. A guys life has probably changed forever in that few minutes after the bars closed this morning.
Initial Sun story here: http://www.lowellsun.com/breakingnews/ci_19894731
It is a shame that criminals know they can find the streets empty of police protection at this hour and feel free to attack people who are going home at night.
The streets are anything but empty of police protection at this hour. In fact, I'd venture to say there are more cops downtown during these hours than at any other time during the day. It's noteworthy that the newspaper story has suggested it was a police detail which found these victims in time to call them urgently-needed medical attention.
The problems here are from no lack of police effort. The superintendant has asked for support from the License Commission to follow up on violations they have documented, and no support has been yet forthcoming, other than to argue about meeting times and whinge alternately that downtown residents either complain too little, or not enough.
I'm choosing to err on the side of never enough, until the unreasonable violence and vandalism is resolved. Nobody expects it or wants it to be like downtown Carlisle on a Saturday night, except for an absence of serious injury and damage to downtown businesses.
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