City improvement projects may help cut crime rates

A new study has shown that a reduction in crime rates and an improvement in relationships among neighbours may be achieved by giving city squares a makeover.

Washington, July 2 : A new study has shown that a reduction in crime rates and an improvement in relationships among neighbours may be achieved by giving city squares a makeover.

"The majority of Americans live in cities, where the social cement that holds people together is declining," said lead author Dr. Jan Semenza, adding that it leads to a weakening of communal ties and relationships, and a feeling of alienation.

Along with his colleagues at Portland State University, Dr. Semenza compared a community in Portland, Oregon, which participated in a neighbourhood intersection repair project, and two nearby neighbourhoods that did not take part in the project.

The project involved painting street murals, installing information kiosks, planting hanging gardens and building water fountains, and benches.

Upon investigating crime rates two years before and after the project, the researchers observed a 15 per cent reduction in burglaries, assaults, vehicle thefts, and robberies in the improved community, as compared to the two unimproved communities nearby.

The study, published in the journal Health Promotion Practice, also showed that calls for police assistance decreased significantly in the improved neighbourhood, while the two unimproved sites experienced an increase in service calls.

Dr. Semenza admits that city residents might have little control over the demographic composition of their neighbourhood or over transient populations that could be involved in drug trafficking and crime.

But he insists, "once a more-inviting place has been created that is aesthetically pleasing, friendly and safe - such as the public squares described here - social interactions are facilitated, which in turn increases the sense of community and participation in community efforts."

Dr. Ethan Berke, Assistant Professor at Dartmouth Medical School, agrees that improvement projects tend to promote social relationships among community residents.

But the researcher feels that Dr. Semenza's study lacked details about how the authors identified the control groups used to compare crime and graffiti rates, "making it difficult to walk away from these results with some kind of causal statement."

ANI