Has Fort Worth made any progress on entertainment district safety?


More than a month after pressure intensified to increase safety in Fort Worth’s West 7th district, bar owners and city leaders are still trying to figure out when to implement new safety ideas.

Business owners on West 7th Street renewed calls for better safety in the area after TCU student Wes Smith was gunned down nearby in September.

On September 12th, Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker released six safety improvement ideas for the area.

Parker’s office told NBC 5’s Tahera Rahman that one of the elements has been implemented: installing high-intensity streetlights at “key locations” determined by the Fort Worth Police Department.

The rest of the safety improvements, Parker’s office said, are still in the works:

  • Creating a bar safety certification program: Regular safety training for bar owners, managers, and employees. Parker’s office said the program would operate as a joint effort between the city, police, and bar owners and business associations.

    A spokesperson for the mayor, Bethany Warner, said city staff has requested proposals from two firms that specialize in bar and restaurant safety training programs.

  • Increase the number of off-duty police officers on-site at bars during peak hours and screen customers with handwands for guns as they arrive, especially in larger businesses.

    Warner said they’ve discussed this measure with entertainment district business leaders, who have largely agreed to do this voluntarily.

  • Increase the number of scheduled inspections by Fire and Code Compliance Departments of businesses.

    Warner said this is in process with fire and code staff.

  • Create a West Seventh Ambassadors Program similar to how the Downtown Ambassador Program currently functions. The mayor’s office said it would use Crime Control & Prevention District (CCPD) funds for this, and consider using a proposed West Seventh Public Improvement District (PID) to fund the program in future years.

    Warner said city staff is working with West Seventh property owners to create the PID, “which could be established as early as spring of 2024.” In the meantime, she said city staff is creating a plan to get an interim program off the ground. She said staff plans to discuss using CCPD funds to get the program started at the November CCPD meeting.

    Warner added that CCPD will be asked to consider funding three items in November: “a portion of the cost for the entertainment district study, the pilot ambassadors program, and installation of retractable bollards to more effectively block traffic from certain streets rather than using police vehicles and officers, which frees those officers and vehicles to focus on police work.”

  • Consider changes to physical layout and environment: Hire a nationally reputable crime prevention through environmental design consultant to analyze the environment in Fort Worth’s entertainment districts and make recommendations to improve security. The mayor’s office said they hope to align with best practices in other entertainment districts across the country.

    Warner said city staff is working with two firms on this. She said a task force made up of city staff, community representatives, and entertainment district property owners will take these firms on tours of each of the City’s four entertainment districts and conduct interviews with each firm on December 6th and 7th. Warner said then, the selection is expected to be brought to the city council for a vote in January. She said there will then be a roughly 9-month study for action items.

City leaders are set to meet with West 7th Street bar owners on Tuesday. Check back for updates.


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