Almost one-third of Oak Lawn business owners say they don't feel safe in the area at night

Almost one-third of Oak Lawn business owners say they don’t feel safe in the area at night. However, only 16 percent of those same business owners regularly attend crime watch meetings.
Three-quarters of Oak Lawn business owners say they’re pleased with the Dallas Police Department’s visibility in the area, and more than 80 percent say DPD has a good relationship with the local business community. However, of those who reported an emergency to police in the last two years, only about half said they felt the response time was good or excellent.
These were among the findings of DPD’s Oak Lawn Business Community Survey, which was conducted July 14-16 in the area bounded by Wycliff, Lemmon, Oak Lawn and Maple avenues.
We’re working on getting additional info about the survey, such as how many businesses responded, but here are the results that were sent over Monday afternoon by Lt. Paul Stokes of DPD’s Northwest Division:
1. Do you attend a Crime Watch Group or Neighborhood Association group in he Oak Lawn Business District?
Yes: 16 percent
No: 84 percent
2. Would you be interested in attending a community Crime Watch meeting held by the Dallas Police Department?
Yes: 72 percent
No: 28 percent
3. On a scale of 1-5, how would you rate the Police Department’s visibility in the Oak Lawn Business District?
Excellent: 34 percent
Good: 39 percent
Average: 20 percent
Poor: 6 percent
Very Poor: 2 percent
4. How would you rate the relationship between the Dallas Police Department and the Oak Lawn Business Community?
Excellent: 35 percent
Good: 46 percent
Average: 16 percent
Poor: 2 percent
Very poor: 2 percent
5. Do you feel safe in the Business District during the A.M.?
Yes: 91 percent
No: 9 percent
6. Do you feel safe in the Business District during the P.M.?
Yes: 71 percent
No: 29 percent
7. In the past two years, have you called the police because of an emergency situation?
Yes: 55 percent
No: 45 percent
8. If you answered “Yes” to No. 7, how would you rate the police response time?
Excellent: 23 percent
Good: 28 percent
Average: 30 percent
Poor: 13 percent
Very Poor: 6 percent