Sacramento Shooting Prompts Worries Over Downtown Safety
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) -- Less than a mile from a deadly mass shooting, basketball fans flooded Golden 1 Center.
The investigation stunned downtown Sacramento on Sunday.
Police canvassed a multi-block crime scene for hours. The scene was visible near Golden 1 Center and nearby restaurants.
"It's a sad situation," said Krishnil Kumar, who attended the Sacramento Kings game. "Hopefully, everyone can heal from it."
Tropics Clubhouse tells CBS13 turnout is low for a home game but better than expected.
"I'm actually kind of happy that people didn't get deterred," said manager Joe Barron.
Downtown is trying to bounce back from the pandemic while dealing with homelessness. Following the shootings, the mayor tried to reassure people that the area is open for business.
"Come down for a game. Come down for a concert. Come down to eat," said Mayor Darrell Steinberg.
The Hopper twin sisters believe downtown is still safe, but improvements are needed.
"I think we do need some more patrols down in the downtown area especially in the early morning hours when the bars are getting out," said Cathy Hopper.
Michael Ault, the executive director of Downtown Sacramento Partnership, said the city is in the middle of revamping public safety in the area.
"By the end of this month, you're going to see the implementation of new security that's going to manage the J-L-K corridor but additional lighting in Old Sacramento, law enforcement and security cameras." Ault said. "A lot of this is challenged a little bit by supply chain."
But there's an investment in the public environment and public safety, he said.
Steinberg said the city is dedicating $8.1 million from the federal rescue plan to provide better lighting while maximizing security. Some of the money will go towards having more outreach workers and community ambassadors to reach the youth before tension escalates.
It's all in process, but some of it is already out, the mayor said.
