The deadly shooting on The Strip in Tuscaloosa over the weekend is just one in a series of incidents in recent years.”This is not going to be tolerated in Tuscaloosa,” city councilman Lee Busby says.Busby wants it to be clear that there will be consequences for those who commit crimes on The Strip or anywhere else for that matter.”That’s the heart of campus,” Busby adds. “That campus is the economic engine driving the city. The development going around there. Go count the 60 and 80 million dollar developments within 4 to 5 blocks of there. That’s just not going to go on.”For business owners on The Strip, some say they often find themselves choosing safety over making money.”If I see any kind of bad element, bad crowd, I close my bar early,” Unique bar owner Chris Coleman says. “Does it cost us revenue? Yes! 6 times that were home game weekends on Saturdays, I closed early because there were some unsavory characters wandering around that were out here.”Unique bar is located just across the street from where the deadly shooting happened around 2 a.m. Sunday. The owner says he fears it won’t be the last one either. “I think that we can all do our best to minimize them,” Coleman believes. Councilman Busby says the University of Alabama Police Department already helps the Tuscaloosa Police Department patrol The Strip. On especially busy weekends, additional agencies step in as well. WVTM 13 asked Busby what else can be done to control crime in the area. “Here in the military, we just put it off limits,” he points out. “I mean, close it down. You can lower the hours. ‘You can enforce more diligently’ is a tough haul with the number of police officers we have.”Busby says the city has appealed to bar owners to play a bigger role in controlling the crowds at night. He says some have been more cooperative than others.
The deadly shooting on The Strip in Tuscaloosa over the weekend is just one in a series of incidents in recent years.
“This is not going to be tolerated in Tuscaloosa,” city councilman Lee Busby says.
Busby wants it to be clear that there will be consequences for those who commit crimes on The Strip or anywhere else for that matter.
“That’s the heart of campus,” Busby adds. “That campus is the economic engine driving the city. The development going around there. Go count the 60 and 80 million dollar developments within 4 to 5 blocks of there. That’s just not going to go on.”
For business owners on The Strip, some say they often find themselves choosing safety over making money.
“If I see any kind of bad element, bad crowd, I close my bar early,” Unique bar owner Chris Coleman says. “Does it cost us revenue? Yes! 6 times that were home game weekends on Saturdays, I closed early because there were some unsavory characters wandering around that were out here.”
Unique bar is located just across the street from where the deadly shooting happened around 2 a.m. Sunday. The owner says he fears it won’t be the last one either.
“I think that we can all do our best to minimize them,” Coleman believes.
Councilman Busby says the University of Alabama Police Department already helps the Tuscaloosa Police Department patrol The Strip. On especially busy weekends, additional agencies step in as well. WVTM 13 asked Busby what else can be done to control crime in the area.
“Here in the military, we just put it off limits,” he points out. “I mean, close it down. You can lower the hours. ‘You can enforce more diligently’ is a tough haul with the number of police officers we have.”
Busby says the city has appealed to bar owners to play a bigger role in controlling the crowds at night. He says some have been more cooperative than others.
