CINCINNATI — Interim Cincinnati Police Chief Adam Hennie will discuss safety at The Banks this afternoon, ahead of Opening Day — one of the busiest of the year for downtown businesses.
An estimated 100,000 people come downtown for Opening Day festivities, with many ending up at The Banks.
Last summer, The Banks was plagued by shootings, fights and theft in the area; the crime uptick prompted security changes, including curfews and extra patrols.
Tracy Schweggmann with The Banks helps businesses collaborate with Cincinnati police to create a safe environment. She told me that The Banks had to hire private security last summer to enforce 21-and-up curfews, which was a hugely expensive endeavor.
Watch below to learn more about safety plans at The Banks:
Schweggmann said Cincinnati police have added manpower and made changes to security at The Banks. She added that the captains in the district also work collaboratively to meet the needs of the businesses.
While the idea of a curfew is still being considered ahead of the summer, it will not be in place for Opening Day.
"We will not be standing up the 21-and-up initiative on Opening Day,” Schweggmann said. “The reality is, there will be 100,000 people downtown between the parade and the block party and the game and it’s not really the day to restrict access and the flow of humanity through our downtown footprint.”
Schweggmann added that they don’t want to add another hurdle for families navigating downtown, and typically they don’t have issues on Opening Day compared to what they may see on a Friday or Saturday night in the summer.
Reporter Alex Null will be at CPD's press availability today at 2 p.m. You can email him at alex.null@wcpo.com if you have specific questions you'd like answered.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
