BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Police, city, and fire leaders will walk Union Avenue to identify and improve factors contributing to crime rates.
Rajpal Singh has owned the Shamrock Gas Station on Union Avenue for 20 years. Throughout most of that time, he has dealt with rampant crime in the area, often feeling that law enforcement and government officials were too overwhelmed to address his concerns.
"Problems like drugs, homeless.," Singh said, describing the daily challenges of running a business in a neighborhood plagued by criminal activity. "Like they've broken the buildings, stolen stuff."
However, Singh believes that things are beginning to change.
Recently, city leaders, law enforcement, and fire officials have begun taking action to address both crime and environmental factors contributing to the neighborhood's struggles.
"There's no way that the city can handle this all on our own, we don't have enough money to try and take every property as our own project," said City Manager Christian Clegg. "But really encourage those who own these properties to reinvest into these properties that."
In a recent initiative, police officers, city officials, and fire department personnel walked Union Avenue to assess potential hazards that could be contributing to the high crime rates and safety issues in the area. The goal is to identify environmental and structural factors that may be enabling criminal activity and posing risks to businesses like Singh's.
Bakersfield Police Chief Greg Terry has requested a debrief with officers to develop new strategies aimed at improving conditions on Union Avenue. Meanwhile, Bakersfield Fire Deputy Chief Kevin Albertson emphasized the importance of addressing fire hazards, noting that they are not only concerned with fire risks but also the impact on nearby businesses.
"The city is a great program in the receivership program to where they can help business owners or actually work with that property and get it torn down or in a state to where it can be reoccupied by a business," Albertson said. "And that's what we want."
For Singh, seeing so many officials on the street gives him hope that the issues that have plagued his business for decades may finally begin to improve.
"When I came here to see the dream now I see a lot of things like how my country used to be," Singh said. "But now I appreciate seeing everybody wake up and stand up. It's good."
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