LILA MAIOLO

Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz spoke about public safety at a press conference in Studio 100 on Friday. By Lila Maiolo. 389 words, photo. 

Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz discussed what more needs to be done to promote public safety at a press conference in Studio 100 on Friday. 

Girtz discussed both the progress made in reducing crime over the past few years as well as the steps being taken to improve public safety in the county. Among these improvements are youth development programs and neighborhood renovation projects. 

“I recognize that while we are not where we need to be and any one crime is one too many, we need to do what we can every day to reduce the burden on every resident of Athens-Clarke County,” Girtz said. 

On one hand, robberies, burglaries, theft, and larceny in the county have all decreased over the past few years. For instance, according to the ACCPD Transparency Hub-Crime report, burglaries decreased from 624 in 2020 to 423 in 2021. Girtz said that these statistics were impressive compared to other Georgia communities, many of which saw crime numbers remain high. 

Athens-Clarke County, however, still has notable numbers of aggravated assault, which reportedly increased from 2020 to 2021. This issue was exemplified by the recent shooting in Downtown Athens on Aug. 25, which resulted in a teen being shot and hospitalized, according to a recent Athens Banner-Herald article. 

“We really have two things to do simultaneously,” Girtz said. “We need to think about the crisis of this moment and we also need to prevent future crises.”

In an effort to do so, Girtz intends to focus efforts on youth communities in Athens, as he said he believes that crime often begins with people’s “lived experiences.” 

In order to provide local youth with additional resources, Athens-Clarke County contributed $500,000 to youth programming in partnership with nonprofit providers this past summer. This resulted in the Boys and Girls Club of Athens opening new centers and adding new programming to their existing facilities. As a result, Athens-Clarke County saw shooting numbers decline during that same time frame. 

“When you bring resources to people, crime is reduced in those exact communities where resources are provided,” Girtz said. 

Girtz added that reducing crime extends beyond the borders of Athens-Clarke County and that neighboring communities impact Athens as well. He said he would call upon the state of Georgia to work alongside Athens-Clarke County to make improvements in areas beyond his jurisdiction. 

Why I Wrote This Story

I wrote this story as an assignment for my News Reporting and Writing course. Public safety is a relevant issue in my college town and it was an honor to hear from and speak with Mayor Kelly Girtz about what is being done to mitigate this issue. This was also the first news conference I’ve covered and was one of the first major stories I wrote in this class, so it was a formative experience to prepare for this event, attend the conference, and write the story under a tight deadline.