Water Street ? once a forgotten riverside alley lined with garbage bins and back doors ? in recent years received a $7.8 million makeover, leading off downtown redevelopment and prompting adjacent merchants to see the area as a ?second front? for their stores.
But with the redevelopment has come problems of graffiti, vandalism and drug use by teens and young adults loitering among the new benches and cobblestone walkways, merchants say.
Appearing en masse before the City Council last week, Water Street business and property owners told of customers afraid to walk to their cars at night because of an undesirable element hanging out there.
?There?s usually a group of 15 or so teenagers or young adults using the area who have absolutely no respect for other people also using the area,? Sandy Von Raesfeld told the council. ?We are concerned and we need your help.?
?We have had several problems with young kids,? added Fabio Flagiello, co-owner of Risibisi. ?The use of marijuana is obvious. There is drinking and cars are being smashed. It doesn?t help business and I don?t think it helps Petaluma.?
Merchants said they want to set up a meeting with city officials to talk about safety on Water Street, as well as concerns about traffic circulation from the street out onto Petaluma Boulevard North, which they said was dangerous.
In response to their concerns, the city is boosting police patrols on Water Street as part of a greater presence downtown during the holiday shopping season, Capt. David Sears said.
?There?s going to be a lot more people in the downtown area and a lot more shoppers and we want to make sure it?s a safe environment to come downtown,? he said.
Police calls have decreased on Water Street since the block between the Golden Concourse and Western Avenue was converted to a pedestrian-only promenade, Sears said.
If merchants notice crimes being committed, such as drug use or vandalism, they should call police, he said. But police can?t chase people off for no reason, he said.
?We are going to be increasing foot patrols, but it?s not against the law to sit on those park benches,? Sears said.
Marie McCusker, the executive director of the Petaluma Downtown Association, said there is no easy solution.
?I do understand that when you move these kids on, they just go somewhere else, with the same issues,? McCusker told the council.
However, a few improvements to the Water Street promenade would help, she said, noting that the city and the downtown association are already working on installing video cameras in several locations in the downtown core.
?They will hopefully be a deterrent and lead to some of the people doing vandalism being caught,? McCusker said.
In addition, extra lighting could be installed to brighten up areas shrouded in darkness, she suggested.
?If we lit that whole place up, it wouldn?t be such a great place to hang out,? she said.
Talk of further improvements to Water Street comes as the city prepares for the final phase of the three-year-old project. Next week, the council is slated to consider a plan to add vendor kiosks and public restrooms to the area.
City leaders who heard the merchants? complaints agreed that a meeting should take place to talk about the safety and future of Water Street.
?The downtown is very near and dear to my heart and it bothers me greatly that we have folks who are afraid to walk to their cars when it?s dark,? Councilmember Samantha Freitas said. ?We want to encourage people to go downtown ? we don?t want to discourage them.?
Mayor Pamela Torliatt said the city has started a process on Water Street that needs to continue.
?We?ve done a lot of improvements down there, we?ve invested millions of dollars in trying to upgrade that area, and we need to go to the next step ? how we are going to create even more vitality in that area,? she said.
When construction began three years ago, city officials said they envisioned Water Street as a gathering space for public events. In August, the Waterfront Jazz Festival took place there, with musical performances, art displays and wine tasting.
Torliatt is pushing for the promenade to host more public events, such as the evening farmers market that took place on Second Street this past summer. She said she?d like to see next year?s evening market held on Water Street.
McCusker said she shares the vision of Water Street as an area for public events. Already, residents are heading there on weekend mornings as they visit downtown, she said.
?We have a wonderful group of people who come down on the weekend,? she told the council. ?I notice at 8 a.m. there?s a huge amount of people down there ? going to Water Street Bistro to have a coffee, have breakfast, or go over to Starbucks. I was surprised at how much physical activity there is.?
But those same people are also encountering blight from the previous night, she said.
?The after-effects in the morning are pretty horrific ? the trash and the garbage, the empty alcohol bottles and the graffiti,? she said. ?I think more activity will help to keep those people at bay.?
(Contact Corey Young at corey.young@arguscourier.com)
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