AUSTIN (KXAN) — University of Texas at Austin students will notice more police in West Campus beginning Tuesday.
It’s due to an expanded partnership between UTPD and the Austin Police Department. This expansion was finalized on Aug. 4, ahead of the fall semester, UTPD said.
“UT police officers, in coordination with assigned officers from the Austin Police Department, will increase law enforcement visibility and coverage to improve safety,” UTPD said.
There will be about two dozen UTPD officers who will have the West Campus neighborhood as their designated area for patrols, permanently. Before, fewer officers patrolled all of UT’s campus, according to UTPD.
“They patrol the neighborhood on foot, bicycles and in a variety of motorized vehicles to maximize public accessibility and mobility,” UTPD said. “Their regular patrols will allow them to get to know UT students who live there and to work in partnership with APD to enforce laws and act as a deterrent to those who intend to break them.”
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UTPD increases campus patrols on foot, squad units, four-wheelers, bikes and motorcycles. (KXAN photos/Todd Bailey). -
UTPD increases campus patrols on foot, squad units, four-wheelers, bikes and motorcycles. (KXAN photos/Todd Bailey). -
UTPD increases campus patrols on foot, squad units, four-wheelers, bikes and motorcycles. (KXAN photos/Todd Bailey). -
UTPD increases campus patrols on foot, squad units, four-wheelers, bikes and motorcycles. (KXAN photos/Todd Bailey). -
UTPD increases campus patrols on foot, squad units, four-wheelers, bikes and motorcycles. (KXAN photos/Todd Bailey). -
UTPD increases campus patrols on foot, squad units, four-wheelers, bikes and motorcycles. (KXAN photos/Todd Bailey).
According to UT President Jim Davis, 90% of UT’s students come from outside of Travis County. He said many are in a big city environment for the first time during undergrad.
Some students KXAN spoke to on Tuesday said they feel more patrols could be helpful.
“There was one time I was getting dinner with friends, and we were walking back to my apartment, and there was someone running through the streets, and they actually came up and started chasing us a little bit,” Emily Netemeyer, a UT junior said.
UT sophomore Ben Stapleton said he used to live in West Campus, and too, has had bizarre experiences.
“I got bumped into by a naked homeless man,” Stapleton said.
UTPD has also extended its patrol area in addition to more frequent patrols. Officers will now cover ground outside of UT’s campus to North Lamar Boulevard, according to UTPD. That boundary was previously only six blocks west of campus at Rio Grande Street.
“With the creation of the new district and authorized by a Memorandum of Understanding signed in February, UTPD and APD officers who patrol West Campus will cross-train, allowing officers from both law enforcement agencies to be educated on the nuances of policing in both a University and traditional urban environment,” UTPD said.
Students and community members have been outspoken about safety concerns. This comes as Austin grows, and more people live in West Campus.
“West Campus is one of the most densely populated centers for off-campus student housing in the country,” UTPD Chief Shane Streepy said.
Over the last decade, the City of Austin’s University Neighborhood Overlay (UNO) plan has allowed developers to build taller, and the city could consider changing rules to allow more of that this fall, according to a report from the Austin Free Press. The city said its UNO plan has included 37 developments that have taken advantage of the bonus. And since 2014 there have been 37 developments, resulting in 2,357 units, the city told KXAN.
UT said it’s invested more than $13 million in West Campus safety changes in recent years.
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