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F’ville police take back T’townTue, 05/19/2009 - 3:05pm
By: John Munford
Not so ‘cool’ to hang out around movie theater with heat from cops, curfew 
Fayetteville Police seem to have solved the problem of youths “hanging around” outside the Tinseltown movie theater at the Fayette Pavilion. Police are crediting the work of the cinema company as well as the shopping center management group for helping address a variety of safety issues, including the loitering. Until recently it was common to see groups of young people congregating outside the movie theater at night just “hanging out.” That was before “no loitering” signs were erected, said Fayetteville Police Maj. Kevin Gooding. Those signs gave police the authority to write citations for loitering if necessary. Combined with the city’s juvenile curfew law, police have been able to discourage youths from congregating out front unless they are in line to buy a ticket or waiting for a ride to pick them up, Gooding said. “They have to have a legitimate, legal purpose to be at the theater,” Gooding said. Gooding said officers have been able to make sure that anyone congregating outside the theater is going to see a movie or waiting for a ride to pick them up. The ultimate message being transmitted to young people is, “You can’t hang out here,” Gooding said. Fayetteville police officers who are at Tinseltown are hired as private security paid by the movie theater, but they are allowed to issue citations and make arrests, and they are in uniform with their patrol car. The city’s curfew law was aimed at addressing numerous instances of juveniles wandering areas in the city without adult or parental supervision, officials said when it was adopted June 5 last year. The curfew affects juveniles and extends between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays and from midnight to 6 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Police are also working with the private security company that patrols the Pavilion so security officers can help police just by keeping a watchful eye out when certain crimes occur. Previously, the security officers usually were unaware immediately after a crime had occurred, so Fayetteville police have taught the security crews to use a police scanner so they can be alerted immediately when a crime is reported, Gooding said. That way, when a suspect’s vehicle is described, for example, the security staff can keep an eye out for it so they can tell police where the vehicle goes, Gooding said. The security officers are not to intervene in serious incidents, Gooding noted. That initiative has already paid off as a security officer several months ago was able to help police locate a car driven by a shoplifting suspect, Gooding said. Fayetteville officers are also doing more of what Gooding calls “walk and talks” where they park their patrol cars and walk around stores, increasing police visibility, Gooding said. Officers also continue to work additional patrols and undercover operations at the Pavilion during the holiday shopping season, he added. Police are also encouraging stores to put video cameras in use, and officers are making good use of the cameras already in certain stores, Gooding said. The police department has also worked with stores and the management company of the Pavilion to trim back shrubbery in some areas and remove some trees that screened storefront entrances, preventing police officers from having a clear view of the stores, Gooding said. Another improvement made by management at the Pavilion was the addition of a speed bump at Tinseltown to slow down traffic, along with improved marking of a crosswalk, Gooding added. All of these improvements have come about due to police working together with businesses and shopping center management firm Diversified Development, Gooding said. Police refer to the program as the Pavilion Partnership Project, and that has had both sides working together to address various issues both for the businesses and for police, Gooding said. login to post comments
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