ST. LOUIS – As summer begins to pick up, crime is not far behind.
This past weekend, 11 teens were shot in downtown St. Louis near Washington Avenue and 14th St., killing one. The shooting happened early morning, prompting a quick reaction from the city to extend weekend youth program hours.
“Talk to any mayors across the country; one of the things is that reducing crime is the investment that they are making in their young people,” said St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones. “I don’t know if St. Louis has ever made a robust investment in our young people to give them activities and fun to keep them off the streets.”
Friday and Saturday program hours at the Wohl and Marquette recreation centers are being extended from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. for kids 15 and under and 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. for teens 16 and up. The changes will last through August.
This comes as the city prepares for one of its biggest weekends of the summer with the 2023 Pride Festival.
“No gender needed, no race needed, it all comes back together to everyone coming together to celebrate their pride,” said Darrion Richard on Friday.
Richard is one of the 17 board members to help organize the event.
“I think it’s important to give everyone a safe space to celebrate themselves because it is a great privilege everyone should enjoy,” he said.
The city is expecting 300,000 visitors this weekend for the two-day event, and Richard has full confidence in the security measures in place as well as the city’s police.
“I think our city does a great job as it relates to safety, so I think we got that covered overall,” Richard said.