Minneapolis leaders, law enforcement discuss Dinkytown safety following violent weekend
MINNEAPOLIS – In Minneapolis, city leaders and top law enforcement officials tried to calm the nerves of students and their parents after a wild weekend near campus.
Violent groups caused chaos, and squads swarmed Dinkytown early Sunday morning. Now, police are making changes before next weekend's big U of M commencement.
Ava McCormick and her roommates called police three times last weekend as crowds of teenagers wreaked havoc in Dinkytown.
"I have a roommate who bartends at Burrito Loco and every night I'm like, 'Oh my God, please make it home safe,'" McCormick said.
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Student Luca Vereecken said he usually feels safe, but after this past weekend he's feeling uneasy about going out in Dinkytown.
"We saw plenty of people just loitering, gathering in large groups on the sidewalks right in front of Frank & Andrea's, checking car doors, just wreaking havoc," Vereecken said.
At a packed community safety meeting Tuesday night, Minneapolis Police, the U of M's Department of Public Safety, council members and other stakeholders fielded questions from the audience. The meeting was organized by the Marcy-Holmes Neighborhood Organization for neighbors, students and business owners to attend.
"The university is trying to put as many resources as we can into the neighborhood," said Nicholas Juarez with U of M's Department of Safety. "We want to continue our education about being safe, how to be safe."
Moving forward, they're increasing police presence, adding lighting, and implementing a traffic plan to disrupt activity – since most of the teens involved in last weekend's mayhem drove in from the suburbs.
"We will continue to have an enhanced police presence and respond immediately, and continue to cite persons and arrest them when needed," said Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara.
Meeting organizers say it will take more than police to create change, but also the help of the community, too.
"We're not going to solve all our problems tonight, we're just learning what the situation is," said Marcy-Holmes Neighborhood Association President Vic Thorstenson.