DAYTON — In part of Dayton, the mayor went door to door talking with residents about problems they have with the city.
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As reported on News Center 7 at 11:00, Mayor Shenise Turner-Sloss held her third “mayor’s walk” in the North Riverdale neighborhood on Tuesday.
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It started in the parking lot of ‘Felons with a Future’ and lasted about a half mile.
The CEO of the organization told News Center 7’s Taylor Robertson that the Cure Violence Global Model is focusing on reducing violence in this neighborhood.
They have had violence interruptors in this neighborhood for 81 days, and since then, they said no one has died from gun violence here.
“This was six times the national average as far as violent crimes and everything, that’s how they picked this spot here,” Greg West, CEO of Felons with a Future, said.
West and many other violence interruptors joined Turner-Sloss Tuesday night. Dayton police officers and other city officials also participated.
They all walked as a group as the mayor stopped by to talk to business owners and residents.
Kameeka Hill was excited to see the group walk by.
“You don’t see a lot of politicians out here trying to help you know, their city and build it back and get it to where it used to be, because it’s a lot of history here,” Hill said.
One home Turner-Sloss walked by was covered in overgrown vegetation. She spoke with other city employees, and they noted where it was and what it looked like.
“We know that poverty is a huge issue in the Dayton community, so the importance of the ‘mayor’s walk’ is to let the residents know that the people in this city, they care and they are committed,” Turner-Sloss said.
She told News Center 7 that she knows gun violence in heavy on the community’s mind after a weekend of several shootings.
“Too many families are hurting, too many people are suffering, too many lives have been lost, and so now its time for us to do something different,” Turner-Sloss said.
The mayor hopes that the Cure Violence Global Model will, at some point, be expanded throughout all areas in the city.
“We have to hold the accountability and responsibility on all of us,” she said.
There are two more “mayor’s walks” in June, and anyone is welcome to join.
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