We are about 2 weeks into 2016 and there have already been at least two instances of Clarksvillians being shot.
2015 was a big year for shootings in Clarksville. At least it seemed big to me. I was discussing it with a friend who recently retired from the Army (he asked to remain nameless). He explained to me that the Command on post tracks off-post crime. He shared a web site where you can map shootings. I used it to map the shootings in Clarksville for 2015. Here is a blow up of one area in particular. The area between College and Kraft Streets really stands out with a cluster of four gun deaths in 2015.
This map only shows the actual shootings where somebody gets hit. It doesn’t show your random drive-by or shots fired that don’t result in death or injury. Considering this cluster of gun deaths is so close to our local university, it really made me wonder just what is being done in Clarksville today to prevent a continuation of this trend?
My friend who directed me to the map served one of his tours in Afghanistan as an infantry brigade S-3 or Operations Officer. He said they would identify a hot spot like that one on the map and go build an outpost right in the middle of it, then walk patrols all over it until they knew everybody in the area and rooted out that area’s problems.
First that map, then his comments made me wonder. Should the same strategy apply here? Should the Clarksville Police Department put an outpost at about the corner of 8th Street and Lee Street near the geographic center of this cluster of shooting deaths and start walking patrols? Could that make a difference? Are those shootings and deaths a threat to the growth of APSU, one of the primary economic engines in our community? I can’t see how this could be anything but bad for APSU. We are lucky to have an economic engine like APSU right here in the middle of Clarksville. Dr. White is making moves to grow the university. A growing APSU creates more jobs, brings in more people, and generates more business.
I haven’t seen anything out of the City Mayor even acknowledging this is a problem. I have heard the Police Chief say we have a gang problem and they are directing resources at that. Maybe that will make it all better. But as I look at that map, I think part of the root of the problem is the state of Lincoln Homes and the City’s failure in doing anything positive there.
“Brick City” as it is called is a sorry place for anybody to have to live. It’s obsolete and crumbling housing, poor lighting, poor design and sorry condition seem to be a magnet for trouble. The City is its own worst enemy here and APSU may end up suffering too. Anybody who doubts the condition of Lincoln Homes is an issue just needs to go walk those streets. Until the City does something to solve Lincoln Homes, I bet that shooting map isn’t really an aberration.
Editor’s Note: This article is written strictly from the viewpoint of an outside source and does not reflect the opinions of ClarksvilleNow.com or its parent company, 5 Star Media Group.