Apartment complex steps up parking security

By Sabrina Brown
Diversity Institute Fellow

08.14.03

Printer-friendly page

A one-day wave of vandalism and car thefts at a Vanderbilt parking garage has spurred the management company to increase security and surveillance at an off-campus apartment complex.

Wayne Woodside, property manager for Vanderbilt Properties, said surveillance cameras and a tighter security system are being installed at the Wesley Place Parking Garage on Scarritt Place after “four to five cars” were vandalized last month and items taken from vehicles.

Police said they lacked evidence to make any arrests in the crimes, which took place during a single day.

“We investigate to the best of our ability,” said Andrew Atwood, director of crime prevention for the Vanderbilt police department. “It really depends on how much we have to go on,” Atwood said.

To prevent further thefts, a new “state-of-the-art” surveillance camera is being installed in the parking garages of the Wesley Place Apartments and should be in operation before the end of the month, Woodside said.

“The new digital system can zoom in and the picture stays clear,” Woodside added.

Olivia Golichi, a resident whose car was vandalized, said that she is glad to hear that new security measures are being taken. However, since the incident, Golichi said she no longer parks in the garage but uses what she considers to be a more secure facility a block away.

“It seemed as if nothing was being done by way of security in the garage. I don’t understand why they couldn’t provide better surveillance,” she said.

The largest number of criminal incidents reported in the Vanderbilt area involve larceny and vandalism of property, including cars, police records show. Atwood said the number of such incidents decreases during the summer months because fewer students are around.

Overall, vandalism crimes have almost doubled since 1997, according to department statistics, while larceny crimes have remained steady. Atwood said he could not attribute the difference to any one factor.

With the increase in vandalism, campus police have stepped up enforcement in the Scarritt Place area.

Related

Articles, photos by Summer 2003 Diversity Institute Fellows
Collection page for articles  07.29.03