New Castle County Council urges action from County Executive on park safety

New Castle County Council President Karen Hartley-Nagle hosted a public safety meeting Monday evening, focusing on solutions to address concerns regarding the safety of the county's parks.

The meeting was attended by community members in the Bear Library, less than five miles away from Glasgow Park, which has been the site of recent public safety concerns. Also in attendance were former Wilmington City Councilman Mike Brown, New Castle County Executive candidate Marcus Henry and District 11 Councilman David Tackett.

Citizens who live in close proximity to county parks like Weiss Park or Glasgow Park also attended to hear what elected officials have in mind to ensure that communities feel safe.

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Here are some of the issues and solutions brought up during the meeting.

Glasgow Park's safety concerns

A series of isolated incidents at Glasgow Park throughout the past few months have caused public concern over the safety of the county's parks.

In May, police arrested and charged a 48-year old man with the sexual solicitation of a 14-year old girl after he was stopped from illegally entering Glasgow Park after it was closed. Days later, a false bomb threat was made to the park which caused it to close overnight while police investigated the situation.

On June 15, a 16-year old girl was shot in the park after police broke up a 'large party.' She was taken to the hospital, but no further updates were provided on the status of her injuries.

Less than three weeks later, a man told NBC10 that he was assaulted and robbed by three teenagers in Glasgow Park, who were later arrested and charged with felony counts of assault and robbery.

Glasgow isn't the only park that has brought up concerns with public safety. Last month, a 27-year old man was kidnapped and carjacked while eating his lunch in Newport's Banning Park. He was not injured, but his car is still missing.

Susan Dubb and Lin Glassco, who both attended Monday evening's meeting, both live near Weiss Park in Newark and recalled an incident in which police searched two cars parked nearby late at night, and found a gun underneath the seat.

"I just want to hear how [government] will work to have communities feel safer in the parks," Glassco said.

What's being done?

In response to the incidents, New Castle County Police held a town hall to improve public safety. County Police Chief Col. Joseph Bloch spoke to a crowd of concerned residents, assuring them that the park was still safe but that measures would still be taken to alleviate worries. Such measures included increasing police presence in the park, rotating the Mounted Patrol Unit to the park and continuing recruitment for the cadet program, which has been struggling with retaining talent.

New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer also stated that the county would be looking into increasing the number of cameras and license plate readers at the park, but that the process would involve hurdles related to cost and timeliness.

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Numbers related to this year's public safety complaints were also shared at the public safety committee meeting, showing that 114 complaints were sent in by officers and 55 incidents were reported by citizens as of July 7.

Councilman Tackett recently proposed a resolution in New Castle County Council urging Meyer's administration to make park safety issues a priority and attach a timeline to the solutions being proposed.

"Safe Communities, Secure Parks" blueprint

New Castle County Council President Karen Hartley-Nagle unveiled a blueprint for safer parks at the public safety meeting Monday evening.

New Castle County Police Department statistics show crimes in the county parks have actually decreased by over 20% in the past two years. However, officials conceded that many incidents are not reported to the police department or county. A New Castle County police officer who attended the meeting emphasized the importance of reporting incidents to the police so that they know where and when to monitor a certain area.

Hartley-Nagle proposed bolstering public works staff at large park events across all county parks, enhancing the permitting process to ensure parks don't become overcrowded and installing improved signs at park entrances with clarified rules and regulations.

Hartley-Nagle and Councilman Tackett urged the Meyer administration to collaborate with community members on a master plan with specific timelines for implementing safety measures including scheduling yearly maintenance and upgrade checks.

Hartley-Nagle echoed sentiments brought up by the police and other officials, supporting increased police presence and mounted patrols in parks, including the encouragement for patrol officers to complete paperwork and spend downtime within the parks.

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Included in the blueprint was increasing the starting salary and hiring bonuses for new officers to address the recent decline in recruiting numbers, something Meyer has proposed, and to accommodate for the increased presence.

Also discussed was the installation of cameras, license plate readers and electronic gates at park entrances that would automatically close after park hours, prioritizing parks with a history of safety concerns like Glasgow Park.

Three more public safety meetings will be held this week throughout New Castle County.

• August 15 at 6:00 p.m. at the Appoquinimink Library

• August 16 at 7:15 p.m. at the Route 9 Library and Innovation Center

• August 17 at 6:00 p.m. at the Claymont Library

Contact Molly McVety at mmcvety@delawareonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @mollymcvety.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: New Castle County public safety meetings address crime in parks