Residents of Rockville Speak Out

As many of you well know by now, late Thursday night in Rockville there was a large fight that resulted in a stabbing. The crime happened directly in front of a Union St. building that houses both business and residential units. 

Most who live in Vernon know of the crime in Rockville. But, few know exactly how bad the crime in the area has become to the people who live there. I spoke with some of the residents here and asked them what life was like for them.

The first resident I spoke with said, "Since I moved in, neither of the shops that have gone in have brought anything good. This past week has been the worst. It's just escalated. First someone's car got hit in the parking lot and the person just left. Then, a neighbor had an attempted break-in. Now this. Where is it going to go from here?" 

"I don't feel safe here", he says. "Especially now, because one of the eyewitnesses said the people last night were trying to get into our building when the cops showed up." 

According to this resident, it's the stores on the first floor that are the direct cause of much of the crime in the area.

"They are attracting the wrong kind of people, and encouraging loitering," the resident said. "It makes an unsafe environment for people who live here."

The second resident I spoke with said she doesn't even feel safe taking her daughter out after dark.

"Its dangerous here", she said. "My child can't go outside and play, because this area has a lot of drugs and crime. I have to drive 15 minutes away to get to a park that's safe and has children playing at it, instead of 50 year old men smoking crack pipes."

I laughed, she didn't. 

"When I first moved in, it wasn't as bad," a resident said. "However, since the barber shop and smoke shop have gone in I smell smoke coming in through my windows, hear constant music blasting, people yelling at all hours of the day and night, and drugs are being dealt in the parking lot." 

So, I asked what she thought could be done to help improve the neighborhood. 

"A stronger police presence, a noise ordinance, enforce a curfew, and parents need to watch their kids more. I watch kids walk down the street late at night, yelling at cars."

She added, "The stores need to go as well." But she doesn't think that will happen. As a resident here, she said her previous attempts to reach out to the landlords or police have fallen on deaf ears. 

All of the tenants I spoke with conveyed a mutual feeling of frustration, and disgust. Especially those trying to raise children here. 

"How can anyone keep their kids safe in a place like this?", one woman complained. "The traffic that comes from these store fronts are putting our kids' safety in jeopardy. And, as a tenant you feel as though you have no rights. Many of us are stuck in leases that we signed before the smoke shop went in, and now can't get out of. Others simply can't afford to live in a house or condo, so are trying to make the best of a terrible situation. Vernon is a nice town, so what is happening to Rockville?"