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Downtown business owners urge stronger action on safety, cite break-ins and vandalism
Summary
Several downtown property and business owners told the council that recurring vandalism, break-ins and visible homelessness are making downtown feel unsafe for customers and employees. Speakers asked the council for faster, stronger responses and questioned certain nonprofit arrangements.
Multiple downtown property owners and business operators used the Sept. 8 public-comment period at the Salem City Council meeting to urge faster and stronger action on public safety and downtown livability.
Jerry Jones, who manages several downtown properties, said his employees were threatened at knifepoint and that a recent vandalism incident caused “tens of thousands of dollars” in damage to a managed building. “It’s frustrating as a citizen and as somebody who is a taxpayer and employs people … to see this continue to just happen over and over again,” Jones said.
Patrick Carney, who identified himself as a partner in several downtown parcels including the Salem Center Mall and a movie theater, told the council his properties have suffered multiple break-ins and nearly $50,000 in cleanup and repair costs. Carney also criticized the city’s lease to an organization known as Arches, saying the council paid $2.25 million for roughly 0.75 acres in 2020 and that the lease terms he reviewed charge $100 per year for 30 years; he asked councilors to investigate whether a planned sobering center has opened.
Ashley Cunningham, a downtown business owner, described recent incidents in which employees escorted women to their cars and said the downtown environment remains “unsafe and uninviting.” Several speakers praised the police for visible help at the start of the school year: Bill Rickey said a 911 text reply and a timely nonemergency response helped clear a blocked roadway on Aug. 23.
Several councilors acknowledged public concern and said the city is taking steps. Mayor Julie Hoy and Councilor Brown noted that the council’s safety and livability strategic action plan discussed Aug. 11 is underway and that a work session on Sept. 17 will include further discussion. “We are taking action currently,” the mayor said, while adding that some measures take time to implement.
Other public-comment speakers addressed recovery and addiction. Jackie Roche, who identified herself as a Ward 4 resident and recovery advocate, described her personal recovery journey and urged people struggling with substance use to seek help during National Recovery Month.
What the speakers asked: faster, more visible enforcement; investigation of nonprofit leases and facility openings (Arches); relief from unbudgeted security and repair costs for downtown property owners; and continued council attention to the safety and livability action plan.
Council response: Councilors thanked speakers, acknowledged the burden on downtown property owners, and reiterated that the council will continue work on a safety and livability strategy, with a Sept. 17 work session and subsequent actions planned.
