Downtown Wilmington concerns proposed to city council

You may have seen the crowds that leave the downtown Wilmington bars on the weekends. At times, thousands of people are roaming the streets between 11:00 p.m. and 3:00 a.m.

Wilmington Police Chief Ralph Evangelous said fifty percent of his police force is downtown controlling those crowds on the weekends. He said that means other parts of the city are being neglected.

“About 83% of all our calls are everywhere else, so it really drains on our resources and our ability to properly police. People are waiting on calls because we are stacked up, it does have an impact on the rest of the city, and everyone deserves police service,” said Evangelous.

Chief Evangelous proposed his concerns to city council last week. He said they responded well to his proposal and will look for solutions.