夜秀直播

A new face walks around Adams Morgan to look out for residents and businesses in need.

D.C. native Stephen Brice joined the Adams Morgan Partnership BID in October as a safety ambassador to ensure the neighborhood鈥檚 safety and build trust with locals.

鈥淚 enjoy just being around and talking to people,鈥� Brice said. 鈥淚鈥檓 starting to introduce myself to the businesses, talking with people. I also recognize that there is a homeless population, so you have to be sensitive about that and maintain a friendship with them.鈥澛�

Brice, who also works in law enforcement at Catholic University, trains through Omar Castillo, who has been full-time with the BID for about a year.聽

On a sunny October afternoon, 夜秀直播 went on patrol with Brice and Castillo. They walked up and down Columbia Road and 18th Street to check for safety hazards, including downed scooters, misplaced trash and people in need.

They stopped to speak with pedestrians, put trash in bins and check if any poles wobbled.聽

The safety ambassadors report any issue, crime or accident to the police or the proper authorities, Castillo and Brice said. The patrol also connects with rehab organizations in the area to offer resources to those experiencing homelessness.聽

鈥淲e know all the homeless in the area,鈥� Castillo said. 鈥淔irst thing when I walk outside, we check on the homeless because we need to make sure that they are okay.鈥�

Public safety in the neighborhood remains a top concern for the Adams Morgan Partnership BID, and the organization hopes to get more money for more ambassadors in the area, said Kristen Barden, executive director of the BID.

鈥淭his fall, we’re going to apply for a grant with the city, the city’s made available just this fiscal year,鈥� Barden said. 鈥淎nd depending on how much money we get, we’ll聽be hiring more ambassadors because we want to ideally have two people working all the time.鈥�

Barden said the ambassadors are her 鈥渆yes and ears on the street.鈥�

The safety ambassadors look out for criminals or suspicious people reported by authorities or residents.

However, Castillo said they try to keep a distance from police issues since 鈥渃rime is very often,鈥� but the neighborhood has constant law enforcement patrol.聽

with 361 incidents as of October 17鈥� 315 of those included thefts and burglaries, according to the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department.聽

The police department reported an increase of 81 property crimes in the neighborhood.聽

That rise in business break-ins, carjackings and theft from vehicles keep Castillo and Brice on the lookout.

鈥淲e go to the MPD crime meeting every month,鈥� Castillo said. 鈥淲e want to make sure we know what鈥檚 going on, we need to keep our eyes open.鈥�

Safety ambassadors especially watch out for businesses after learning of a string of robberies last winter.聽

Currently, Adams Morgan has two part-time and one full-time safety ambassador. The budget sets aside about $150,000 for safety ambassadors each year.聽

Ambassadors roam the streets from noon to 8 p.m. daily and encourage residents to reach out to them.聽