Community forum hosted in Salinas to tackle safety issues near downtown
SALINAS, Calif. (KION) A community trying to find a solution in Salinas on Friday after two stabbings happened in an area near downtown late last year.
Late December last year, police say a 27-year-old man stabbed a 59-year-old at a parking garage near downtown Salinas. A month before that in the same area, 26-year-old Mariana Jurado - who was pregnant with a child - was also stabbed. Her attacker faces two count of murder.
In a forum hosted by Salinas Councilman Steve McShane, dozens of residents and stakeholders showed up to discuss the issues they see in their city and the solutions that could help.
Nearby downtown Salinas business owners want to see more of an attempt to crackdown.
"We don't have the police presence that I'd like to see and the security guards can only do so much," said Trish Triumpho Sullivan, the owner of Downtown Book & Sound. "I really want to see something solid come out of this. I don't want this to be a meeting where it's just a lot of complaining and a lot of NIMBY."
With shops and businesses open all week in downtown, there are a lot of people who see safety as a priority and want less loitering by the homeless.
But the city says most homeless people are not violent.
"If you look at the data, homeless have a lower propensity than the general population of being violent. And they're much more likely to be victims of violent crime," said Megan Hunter, the Salinas Community Development Director.
In fact, the elderly are accounting for the biggest jump in homelessness, and it is almost now equal between men and women.