In a three-part series, WREG Investigators are digging deeper into the problem of crime downtown, looking at the mounting concern, the widespread impact and possible solutions.

Read Part 1 here: Downtown Memphis crime: Guns, lack of fear driving numbers up

This story will air at 6 p.m. Tuesday on News Channel 3. The video will be added online after it airs.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — More and more people say they don’t feel safe going into downtown Memphis after recent crimes in the area.

Daryl Andrews said it is hard to pinpoint, but the mood feels different downtown. It’s a place he has called home for the past seven years, opening his retail store, Walking Pants, in South Main and recently moving it to Beale Street.

“There wasn’t a fear. There was crime and stuff happening, but it wasn’t on the level we are beginning to see in the last six months probably,” Andrews said, referencing the “snatch and grabs taking place as we go into Christmas.”

“I hate to use the word fearful, but we are aware,” he said.

He said many business owners are exhausted of what’s going on in their downtown community, once dubbed the safest zip code.

“What’s changed for us is that we would take our dog out walking and never really have to look over our shoulder. Now, we look over our shoulder everywhere we go,” Andrews said.

There have been car break-ins, vehicles stolen, shootings and nine homicides reported downtown this year.

“I don’t know if the data matters. It’s the perception,” Memphis Councilman Chase Carlisle said.

His family invested in real estate downtown and believes the perception right now isn’t good. He said they’ve been in discussions with stakeholders.

“I made a comment almost a year ago now that, if we don’t get crime under control in the downtown area, that you would start to see businesses lose revenue,” he said.

Carlisle said they will eventually move to what they consider safer areas. He said downtown is a big generator of tax dollars, and when you lose that, the entire city suffers.

“If we don’t start dealing with those problems head-on in the very near term, by the time all these generational concerns and all of these underlying issues, there won’t be a city left. It’s a fact. You are starting to see the beginning of that,” he said.

Tourism remains strong for now

Despite those concerns, Memphis Tourism President and CEO Kevin Kane said the industry remains strong.

“It supports over 50,000 jobs. It’s a $4 billion spend in this community,” he said.

Kane is optimistic about next year. He said there haven’t been any cancellations at the convention center, though the city has “lost some groups at various hotels.”

“There are meeting planners saying, ‘I’m not sure (about Memphis),’ but they are asking the same questions in Chicago, St. Louis, Atlanta,” he said.

Like many cities, COVID left a mark. The downtown area lost a lot of its office occupancy and retail outlets, but stakeholders said it’s rebounding as an entertainment and tourist destination with more hotel and residential space popping up.

Tom Lee Park opened, a future museum is in the works, and there’s other planned development.

Crime goes viral online

What’s not helping is social media.

“The social media chatter is louder than it’s ever been. It makes things worse,” Kane said.

His team has noticed an uptick. They report about five percent of social media posts mention downtown crime. Some involved a key tourism landmark, others were about gun violence, a car break-in or a personal story.

“It’s what a lot of people read when they decide what cities and countries they are going to visit. We monitor that very closely,” Kane said.

Andrews said this is not a time for “people to sit back and be a keyboard warrior.”

He said his patience is wearing thin.

“We don’t have time for Mayor-Elect Young to come in. We don’t have time to wait for the next study for someone to tell us what needs to be done. The hiring of police officers, the mental health needs,” he said. “The fact of the matter is we have a small minority of people in this city terrorizing and causing fear everywhere we go.”

Andrews said it’s time the rest of the city stands up. He believes if more good people come downtown, the mood will change. It will boost business and enhance security with more eyes on the street.

“The only way evil prospers is when good people do nothing,” he said. “This is time for good people to take action. Take back their community.”

At 10 p.m. Tuesday on News Channel 3:

More foot traffic, better lighting, cleaning up the streets — all ideas being proposed to enhance the core of the city. So what is actually being done?

We’ll tell you about dozens of ideas being proposed and other efforts being made. We’ll also ask the mayor-elect what he plans to do in January.