Beer, Crime, and Urban Design
Student Government leaders lead university and government officials around campus last night during their annual safety walk. They considered lighting, camera coverage, and overgrown shrubbery that could aid criminals (all topics that we explored briefly a couple weeks ago). Officials repeatedly swayed the conversation on crime to one of its root causes - drinking. A brief jaunt through CP’s crime alerts will confirm their arguments in case you have any reservations about them.
Still, we think a more vibrant and dynamic College Park, with new economic and residential diversity, can vastly alleviate the dire crime situation we find ourselves in. More activity, more people, more eyes on the street can, does, and will stop crime. A police officer on every corner is not a feasible nor a desireable goal.
We’ll defer to the Diamondback opinion staff’s brilliant editorial on “Fixing College Park’s afflictions” through development. Here’s our favorite part:
Until the city and developers can get on the same page, College Park will continue to hemorrhage opportunity with each passing day. And as a result, the city will continue to suffer from heightened levels of crime, underappreciated businesses and worrisome housing conditions - all negative effects of a downtown nowhere near its potential.
Click here to view our interactive project map
