What is the group?
• A collection of state government representatives, law enforcement and members of the Dayton business community organized by Turner. It was intended to create and share recommendations about how to strengthen security and coordination in downtown Dayton.
• Members of the group include Montgomery County Sheriff Rob Streck, Montgomery County Commissioner Mary McDonald, outgoing Dayton Mayor Jeffrey Mims Jr., Dayton City Commissioner Chris Shaw and Commissioner-Elect Darius Beckham. It also includes leaders from the University of Dayton, CareSource, Woodard Development and Stratacache.
Turner said that the group began to form last summer, and announced its recommendations Monday at a news conference in Dayton.
What are the recommendations?
• Increased social services.
• Census of unhoused people downtown, including where they are coming from, what social services they need and where they are downtown.
• Increased police presence and enforcement in downtown Dayton, with partnerships between local law enforcement agencies and security teams of downtown offices.
• Dayton and Montgomery County to adopt a resolution saying they will commit to collaborate.
Efforts underway
Some efforts to increase security in downtown are already underway.
• The Dayton Police Department is opening a temporary substation next to the Greater Dayton RTA bus hub downtown while the city works on a new permanent station
• Montgomery County officials said they would invest $223,000 into security at Courthouse Square
• The county also previously approved $24.9 million for Montgomery County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services and $2.2 million in Human Services Levy dollars for people experiencing homelessness.
• Dayton previously approved $473,000 for a violence interruption program to launch this year.
Downtown crime stats
Crime and safety in downtown Dayton have been a source of community complaints for years.
• A 2024 survey found that 30% of Dayton residents felt unsafe or very unsafe in downtown, compared to 38% who said they felt safe or very safe.
• A Dayton Daily News analysis of 2024 police data found violent gun crime happened more frequently in the city’s west and northwest areas, with only 3% of violent gun crimes with injuries happening downtown.
Reactions from local government
Local government officials were generally positive about collaborating with the work group.
• The Montgomery County Commission said that they appreciate the people working to enhance safety in downtown Dayton, adding that they will “ensure our actions align with the county’s responsibilities” and will “continue to engage as partners to support ongoing safety efforts”
• New Dayton Mayor Shenise Turner-Sloss said she welcomes the collaboration and appreciates the emphasis the working group put on social services, saying, “Safety is prevention.”
• Dayton City Commissioner Darryl Fairchild said that it was time for the city to reimagine public safety, saying the group’s work will be a “key component of reimagining public safety.” He also said he wants to work with Turner-Sloss and others to make a parallel working group for Dayton’s neighborhoods.
Reactions from the public
Members of the public were more skeptical.
• Youssef Elzein said that he felt like downtown was being smeared as a dangerous place, but asked if that were so, “would we see hundreds and thousands of people gathering on the lawns of the Levitt Pavilion during the summer season?”
• Resident Joseph Abrams said any city’s downtown core has crime, but called the idea of a crime epidemic in downtown Dayton “laughable”
• Mary Sue Gmeiner said she doesn’t feel unsafe downtown, though city leaders hearing the recommendations of an ad hoc group “makes sense,” hoping Dayton would offer similar support to other citizen ad hoc groups that reach out.
