St. Louis, MO — Patti Hill walks everywhere with her border collie Claire. It's one of the reasons she chose to live in the Central West End.
"It's just so incredibly beautiful, I love it so much,” she said.
But no love is without its bumps in the road.
"Crime is rising,” she said.
Crime in the Central West End is up 3.6 percent over this time last year.
"I had one of those apps that showed the real time crime. It was too much. I had to get rid of it,” Patti said.
The biggest issue is larceny, but last month, there were 11 aggravated assaults. That’s five times as many as June 2017.
"I just think as neighbors we need to put our foot down and say stop it,” Patti said.
That's why she’s creating a citizens patrol. She's getting her neighbors together to figure out how to make their streets safer by working with police and the neighborhood security initiative.
"Pulling people together and getting back to some of the basics, knowing your neighbors and communication,” the initiative’s Jim Whyte said.
The first citizens patrol meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. July 18 at The McPherson 4715 McPherson Ave. Everyone is welcome to attend.
"I don't walk around afraid, but I don't think others should have to either,” Patti said.
