Cuba Street Focus

5 May-8 June 2014

Wellington City Council and Wellington Metro Policing Team

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Background Early in 2014 we were hearing that things were not feeling right on Cuba Street because of anti-social behaviour, and business owners and their staff not feeling safe. Police noted higher calls for service to the area. Complaints included increased problems in the daytime. There was also increased concern about the sale and use of psychoactive substances (also known as ‘legal highs’) in Cuba Street, and the changed demographics and behaviour of beggars, loitering groups and individuals. Police identified 15-20 people who were creating an environment in which others felt unsafe. Intentions and commitment Police and the City Council planned for a five-week joint focus on Cuba Street. The main focus was Cuba Mall, where police noted a concentration of problems. The timing of this focus was 5 May through 8 June. The focus was on safety along with gathering information and communicating with local retailers and other businesses. The Police and the Council wanted clarity on what was happening and current perceptions of safety. There was a desire for effective communication – listening, responding and sharing information. We especially wanted to share what we were doing to address concerns as they happened. Another aim was to investigate what we could do better. Ultimately we wanted people to be safe and feel safe on Cuba Street.

Actions We organised the following actions:

Regular Police patrols in the morning and early evening to coincide with times of the day when more incidents are reported.

Additional visits by the Council’s Local Host staff to observe and report problems directly to Police.

A ‘pop-up’ police station was opened on Cuba Street twice a week. It was run by from Council Community Services staff, Police and Local Hosts.

Development of a database of business contacts, issues and incidents with 56 businesses.

Regular communication with businesses through site visits and emails.

Safety tips given to businesses (when to call for help, who to call, how to call, ways to prevent theft).

Proactive graffiti removal by the Council from shop fronts and public infrastructure.

Incident reporting - retail stores collected information in ‘incident books’ collated by the Council and used by Police to target efforts.

Police initiated trespass orders against a few individuals involved in repeat incidents.

The focus area was extended to businesses between Manners and Dixon Streets to check on conditions and perceptions of safety in the adjacent mall.

Council staff cleared tall plants, trimmed trees, and re-reviewed the mall environment with crime prevention design strategies.

Commitment that the five-week focus be evaluated on completion.

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What we heard from retailers and restaurants on Cuba Street

Troublesome Anti-social behaviour

Direct harm and crime

Other

disrespect, insults intimidation theft

busking

blocked footpaths and entranceways

fighting and aggression

burglary passive begging

loud yelling and bad language

public drinking and intoxication

property damage including graffiti, broken windows, glass etching, damage to displays and signs, vandalised toilets

safety not as much of a concern in the expanded area between Manners and Dixon streets. This smaller mall area had a slightly different feel and experience.

sleeping on public seats, doorways, alleyways and occasionally inside

public urination

aggressive begging

loitering washing in toilets verbal threats and threatening behaviour

rubbish accumulating

consumption of psychoactive substances directly outside store fronts

alleged selling drugs

distraction tactics food, drinks and cigarettes taken from patrons at cafes

entering private areas such as stock rooms and staff rooms

Figure 1: Complaints about Cuba Street

Observations - what we experienced The presence of uniformed Police changes things noticeably, so we weren’t observing bad behaviour regularly. We spent some time observing without uniforms, and otherwise encountered both positive and negative behaviour. The good:

Cuba Street and Cuba Mall continue to have character. The people and experience on Cuba Street is fun, inviting, and unique. There is colour with shop fronts, public art, and knitting on trees and street lights to keep them warm in winter.

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Figure 2: Colour on Cuba Street Figure 3: Creativity

University students also focused on Cuba Street with their cameras. Several groups from Massey and Victoria universities took photos of the Cuba setting and people for their studies (including images of shoes, birds, us, and buildings).

People shared stories of deliberately walking along Cuba instead of other surrounding streets because they find it an interesting environment.

Cuba Street workers have resilience and enjoy some of the characters that make Cuba unique.

Retailers maintain their space with pride and creativity.

The not-so-great:

Tagging and glass etching regularly appear on shop fronts and windows.

Public consumption of psychoactive substances observed in the first week of the focus.

Left Bank, privately owned, is not maintained to a high standard.

Loitering of large groups raises concerns for some.

Youth were in town from outer suburbs with nothing to do.

Public drunkenness is still a concern for safety (Cuba Street is within the liquor ban area).

There is intimidation between members of the street community.

What we heard from the users of the street Cuba Street is a lively place with shoppers, walkers, playground visitors, people resting and socialising on seats, and patrons at cafes. Given this activity we also wanted to gauge public safety perceptions from people who use the street to inform future initiatives. On 20 June, we ran a community questions event with an outdoor lounge to invite people to share thoughts about Cuba Street: what they liked, what wasn’t so great, and how safe they felt. We thanked those participating by handing out flowers.

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Figure 4: Constable Matt McKenzie with flowers

We received responses from about 180 people. The summary of responses is shown in Figures 5, 6 and 7. Asked about what they like about Cuba Street, 16 answered ‘diversity’ and another 16 said they liked the people. There were also 26

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responses which begin with the letter ‘v’ including vibe, vibrancy, vitality, vivid and variety.

Figure 5: What people like about Cuba Street

While ‘the people’ was a popular ‘like’ on Cuba, 20 respondents also said people were what was not so great about Cuba: ‘weird people’, ‘some people’, ‘undesirables’. Begging (13) and drunks (11) were often repeated as things people didn’t like.

Figure 6: What is not so great about Cuba Street

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Over 150 respondents reported that they felt safe or very safe on Cuba Street, out of a total of 179 responses. Of 19 who felt unsafe, 15 specified that it was unsafe at night. Many people mentioned their answer depended on the time of day.

Figure 7: People’s perception of safety

Results during the focus While it is difficult to announce achievements resulting directly from this five week project of information gathering and communication, the following reports provide some insight:

We gathered intelligence on behaviours and individuals.

Police made six arrests in the first 10 days of the focus.

Police statistics for the month of May show a concentration of offences near and along Left Bank (Figure 8 below). The red dots on Cuba Street itself represent clusters of 10 or more offences during the month; those associated with a building are predominately theft.

Figure 9 shows a high number of offences related to disorder.

There is a perception that the street ‘atmosphere’ is better since the ban on the sale of psychoactive substances in early May.

Youth aid interventions – progress on helping youths and families to follow plans for education, health, curfews, and other help.

New planting scheduled for planters on Cuba Street.

We started, developed and, in some cases, repaired relationships with business and retail staff.

Positivity from retailers appreciating the focus time and advice from the Police.

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How safe do you feel on Cuba Street?

very unsafe unsafe safe very safe

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Figure 8: Police statistics note a concentration of recorded offences near and on Left Bank

Figure 9: Police recorded offences for Cuba Street by type

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Summary and Next Steps The commitment to Cuba Street does not end here. There will be sustained efforts to work together with businesses to foster a safe and enjoyable environment. We want to continue the relationship with an ongoing presence in Cuba Street. Starting this, we need input from businesses on their experience during the five-week focus. Feedback can be sent through to teresa.gianos@wcc.govt.nz. The Council’s Community Services team and NZ Police’s Wellington Metro Policing Team will continue to provide services within current resources and structures. At the present time, the following projects are ongoing:

Installation of an additional (third) CCTV camera at the centre of Cuba Mall near Left Bank is approved for 2014. Police and volunteers will continue to monitor cameras and there is the possibility of daytime monitoring as well, as we develop plans for ongoing volunteer recruitment.

Police continue to seek the authority of Cuba Street businesses to trespass individuals from shops and restaurants with the objective minimising the risks posed to businesses from those who repeatedly offend or cause problems. To date, six of the 56 businesses approached have given police the authority to trespass.

Police and the Council are working in partnership with the car park operator in Left Bank to improve safety and fix problems.

Police and the Council are working to develop partnerships with property owners in Left Bank (the lane and open spaces are privately owned) to implement ‘crime prevention through environmental design’ (CPTED).

The Council plans to install new pedestrian-oriented LED lighting in Cuba Mall. This is planned in the next six to eight months.

The development by the Council, by February 2015, of a local policy on the sale of psychoactive substances. Local businesses and retailers will be consulted on the draft policy as it is developed. As a community of interested and affected stakeholders, the Council would welcome the submission of a formal response to consultation on the draft policy.

Organisations that assist the homeless and other vulnerable individuals provide daily street outreach walks, which cover Cuba Street several times during the week.

Local Hosts continue to regularly patrol Cuba Street, including spending time talking with local businesses.

The Council has embarked on a review of its busking policy. The Future – working together A partnership approach requires the commitment of all stakeholders, and we believe that businesses need to be especially proactive. In addition to the ongoing actions above, there are a number of actions local businesses can take that we believe would make a difference:

Report crime, be proactive and call in incidents if there is a problem/concern (drinking in public, harm or threat of harm, stealing, property damage, breach of trespass order).

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Start an incident book so both the Council and Police can identify trends and plan for peak demand times.

Left Bank owners could work together on solutions to improve maintenance and design including regular landscaping maintenance, clearing the line of sight down the central lane, undertaking general maintenance of repairing windows, gates, etc.

Develop and propose alternative legitimate activities. Some examples of this may be – support the thriving Friday night market, join in a late-night Thursday, start up a weekly flower market to invite people to claim the space of Cuba Mall as an active and safe place.

Report when vulnerable people are in need of help. Members of the public (and businesses) are able to make a call to the Council’s contact centre and request that a referral be made to the Street Outreach Team if there are concerns for an individual’s welfare. Cuba Street retailers have also been given advice on when it is more appropriate to contact Emergency Services.

There are a number of actions that Council and Police can take that can make a difference:

Develop a credible understanding of the demand on resources and the potential positive impact of a more strategic approach to how those resources are applied.

Evaluate and propose other initiatives as a result of feedback from businesses.

Promote community conversations on www.ourCBD.co.nz. This is a resource for businesses to connect with and support each other, share information and resources, and possibly to start an informal association.

Encourage residents to get to know their neighbours to promote resilience, neighbourhood friendliness and help in times of need – and businesses can do the same.

Success in Cuba Street requires input from all of its stakeholders – the Council, Police, residents, retailers and other businesses, as well as those who use the street and its facilities. Cuba Street is a fun and energetic place for everyone to enjoy; it is one of the city’s living rooms, a gathering place for all, a liveable and living street. We need to all do our best to keep the street safe and welcoming for a wide audience of visitors, locals and businesses.