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Interviews with news makers and discussion of topics important to Southwest Michigan. Subscribe to the podcast through Apple itunes and Google. Segments of interview are heard in WestSouthwest Brief during Morning Edition and All Things Considered

WSW: Safe and Fun in Downtown Kalamazoo

Kalamazoo Mall - file photo by WMUK
WMUK

If you're looking for the safest place to be in Kalamazoo, you should probably look downtown. 

Southwest Michigan's Second Wave recently reported on the numbers showing a low crime rate in the downtown area. The leader of Downtown Kalamazoo Incorporated's Safety Committee Mary Oudsema, DKI's Planning and Development Director Meg Gernaat and Kalamazoo Public Safety Community Policing Officer Chris Hancox joined WMUK's Gordon Evans to discuss perception and reality of how safe it is to be downtown. 

Oudsema, retired Marketing Director for the Kalamazoo Gazette, says the safety committee was started as a task force in 2002 after some cars had been broken into in city parking garages. She says prevention has been a main focus of the committee. Oudsema says the parking ramps are now well-lit and security cameras have been installed. 

downtown021815-web.mp3
Interview on safety in downtown Kalamazoo - web version

Hancox says the numbers show major crimes have gone down significantly, especially over the last year. He says there are still "nuisance" crimes downtown. Hancox says statistically the central city is one of the safest neighborhoods in Kalamazoo. He says more people living downtown has meant more activity around the clock in the downtown area.  

Gernaat says DKI still hears from a handful of people who don't come downtown because they're concerned about safety. But she says they are usually people who have not been downtown. But even with more events and people living in the central city, Gernaat says marketing downtown Kalamazoo is an ongoing effort. 

Gordon Evans became WMUK's Content Director in 2019 after more than 20 years as an anchor, host and reporter. A 1990 graduate of Michigan State, he began work at WMUK in 1996.
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