Focus on central city safety: Bus hub crime review ready
Preventing crime at Dunedin's bus hub could hinge on ensuring threats are responded to rapidly, deploying prominent patrols and adjusting the area's design, a report suggests.
Stronger accountability and ensuring collaboration across agencies delivers results also shape as priorities for improving safety in the central city.
A review of safety plans from cities in New Zealand, Australia and the United Kingdom is set to be discussed by the Otago Regional Council on Thursday.
Options were not presented, but the material "will be used to assist with actions going forward", a report said.
The bus hub in Great King St was the scene of a fatal stabbing last year of 16-year-old Enere McLaren-Taana.
A survey of 1300 Dunedin secondary school students subsequently found 45% did not feel safe in the inner city and harassment of girls was rife.
A multi-agency advisory group was established after the stabbing and, this year, the regional council — a leading partner in the group — commissioned the safety review by Collective Strategy.
"Its purpose is to identify effective strategies and practical insights that can be applied to enhance safety in Dunedin's central city, particularly around the Dunedin bus hub, a known hotspot for youth-related safety concerns," its executive summary said.
Victimisation data from last year obtained from police showed the area around the bus hub and parts of the Octagon had a higher concentration of reported crime.
The highest number of offences occurred early on Sunday mornings and after-school hours on weekdays.
Creation of flexible, rapid response safety teams was explored in the review.
"A co-ordinated and well-defined safety response process that is supported by a reliable and monitored CCTV network is required to ensure these services are well utilised and have the maximum positive impact on safety," the report said.
In Dunedin, security services were employed around the bus hub and police had established a beat team to increase foot patrols in the city centre.
The review noted a shift towards a culture of prevention was evident in many community safety plans.
"Cultural inclusion, social connections, and increasing the prominence and visibility of safety measures are effective measures that cities are implementing to prevent and reduce crime and antisocial behaviour.
"By understanding and applying the principles of te Tiriti and building greater awareness of mana whenua connections to the land, we can increase positive interactions in communities and promote shared values of inclusion and respect."
Partnership models were discussed in the review.
"Regular engagement and communication between a wide range of other agencies was seen as critical to every safety team interviewed.
"Having a more focused short-term set of actions is effective when working with a partnership model, as partners have greater clarity about what's required and what they're working towards."
Leadership and strong governance were considered vital.
"Some teams found that without a senior leader owning the work, there wasn't the necessary authority to make decisions and escalate issues if enough progress wasn't made.
"It was common for plans to linger in the realm of 'lots of talking and not much doing' if this leadership wasn't present."
In Dunedin, the central city advisory group meets monthly.
grant.miller@odt.co.nz
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