Today's issues in the International District

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As mentioned, the International District faces many concerns today. There is prostitution and drug selling that goes on at night. The International District is also full of transient people and they surround the area where most people like to go. The homeless are always in the park. The seniors have a vegetable garden at the top of the hill on the International District and that is where a lot of drug and prostitution dealing is happening. They like to surround areas that have less people. No one really goes to the park up in the hill right next to the garden. These old people get interrogated by teenagers. That is the reason why the old seniors also never go out at night because they know that is dangerous. It’s sad that the International District doesn’t have enough police roaming the streets to keep it safe for elderly. All they seem to have are just ticket patrols and at the most there are usually only 2 cops that cover the International district and Pioneer Square. They go around in a circle which making it almost impossible to see the inner illegal activity going on.

The International District is building shelters for the seniors but they still don’t see that it is a dangerous environment for seniors to live in. Seniors are supposed to live in a community where they feel safe and comfortable. The seniors only seem to be going to the International District because of the good pan Asian cuisines and groceries.

The International District needs more advanced technology like monitoring screens so that there would be less crime. They also need to take action by putting more police patrols out in the street so that people can feel safe. People like seniors want a safe community and in order to make that happen, the board of the International District is going to have to take action.

There are little kids that like to play at the International District parks and it makes it hard for their parents to play with them there because it they think the environment might be filled with unsafe activities. Public safety is the biggest threat towards the International District today because there is a lot that goes on in the International District that a lot of people don’t know about today. (Doug Chin)

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Sources:

Chin, Doug. Personal interview. .