ST. LOUIS — Car break-ins have plagued downtown St. Louis residents and visitors who park on surface lots.
Now, a possible solution is in the works to curb the vandalism and mischief.
A proposal will head to the St. Louis Board of Aldermen on Friday. It will include one detail that would require cameras in all surface parking lots. Those cameras must have eyes on every single car on the lot.
"Seems like a no-brainer to me,” driver Chris Eichorn said.
When drivers had enough, they've had enough, 5 On Your Side's Brent Solomon said.
"I park and I've had my car broken into twice in five years,” he said.
Each time, it happened in downtown St. Louis.
"In both cases, there were no cameras to tell anyone what had happened. I would've loved to have cameras in there,” he said.
"I've walked by and seen busted in windows and things like that, mostly on the streets or actually in parking lots,” downtown resident John Hall said.
Alderman Rasheen Aldridge of the 14th Ward said it's time for the city to take action.
He said he has drafted a plan to make surface parking lot owners do more to keep lots safe by day and night.
To keep their license to operate, they'd have to install cameras, step up lighting and install some form of fencing to enclose the parking lot.
"From hardscaping to fencing to shrubs to bollards," he said. "People are jumping on the lots, they're doing donuts in the lots, they're jumping curbs one to the other."
City leaders have debated similar proposals to curb mischief over the years.
Aldridge said he's collaborating with surface lot owners and drivers to come up with a reasonable plan that can be fairly easily put in place.
"A lot of these surface parking lot owners are making a lot of money but they're not putting measures in place to make sure their customers are protected,” he said.
"It naturally deters crime. You can be proactive about that it's going to stop it,” Hall said.
Next week, the board will debate the proposal. The following week, a vote is expected.
If it passes, the new measures will go into effect a year later.