'This is everybody.' Residents of Seattle's Central District band together to tackle public safety

Seattle’s Central District has started to see small changes in the neighborhood after local government officials started attending monthly, community-led meetings. The goal for the meeting's organizers is to make residents feel more safe.

These meetings, the latest of which took place at Washington Hall, began after a bullet went through the window of A 4 Apple, a day care center on 23rd and Jackson, during a drive-by shooting in October. Appollonia Washington, the owner of the day care center, and her family have been significant players in organizing these gatherings.

“It’s not about what you know, but who you know,” she said.

Since the shooting, Washington has built relationships with the Seattle Police Department and the Mayor's Office, she said, adding that the Central District community works to hold each other, local government, and the development company Vulcan, which owns a parking lot near the day care center, accountable.

RELATED: Seattle day care owner calls for 'action on Jackson' after a bullet struck her business

This month’s meeting centered on young people in Seattle and their insight into what should change.

Community organizer Ryan Croone II joined several youths on a panel moderated by Black Coffee Northwest Grounded, a youth engagement program. Croone, 24, works on preventing crime through environmental design at the Rainier Beach Action Coalition.

“I feel more safe when there's more lighting, and I feel more safe where there are signs and I can read them, to know where to go. I feel safe when there are businesses and organizations that are available for me to access,” he said after the meeting.

On the panel, Croone also called attention to the role of schools in fostering a sense of safety in the community. He said that adults at schools are not engaging or building meaningful relationships with youth before asserting expectations.

Local government officials will now be tasked with addressing the community's concerns — but not before announcing several changes made since the last community meeting.

Those changes include removing benches from the bus stop at 23rd and Jackson, where public drug use was often seen, and increased security patrols at nearby transit stations until the end of this year.

King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay said at the community meeting on Tuesday that he invites people to connect with his office when it comes to working with people who have substance use disorders.

“One thing that my office has been doing is organizing with people who have relationships with people who are going through addiction or on the verge of overdose or mental health issues, so that they can help us shape the resources that come back into our communities,” Zahilay said.

Deaunte Damper organizes these meetings alongside Appollonia Washington, the day care owner, and other community groups throughout South Seattle. He's excited to see local government officials take action after attending previous meetings.

“The turnout was huge and it'll get even bigger, because we want to make sure that this is not a one-sided conversation," Damper said. "This is everybody. This is black, white, male, female, non-binary folks — all of us community members. Public safety is a general conversation. It cannot be ignored.”

Damper added that while he wants to see improved public safety, he worries about the role of police in achieving that goal.

“How are we going to really pour into the community like, in a proper way? I'm scared. I'm excited. I'm hopeful. I was happy with the responses that we got tonight. But I can't act like I'm not afraid of what's going to happen.” he said in an interview after the meeting.

The next meeting is scheduled to take place during the third week of January.