Could Fort Worth's Notorious Skid Row-Like 15th Most Dangerous Neighborhood In America Become A Tourist Attraction?

Days after a notorious Fort Worth Neighborhood was designated the 15th Most Dangerous Neighborhood in America, umbrage is still being expressed, by some, in Fort Worth, regarding this alleged outrage.

Was it not fairly obvious that the list of 25 Most Dangerous Neighborhoods in America was pretty goofy. The list had a Galveston neighborhood as one of the Top 25 Most Dangerous.

Galveston?

Methinks the local politicos have also been goofy with their defensive, methinks thou dost protest too much, over-reaction. Calling press conferences and sending out press releases to deny that the dangerous Fort Worth neighborhood is dangerous.

I don't know why Fort Worth does not just embrace this new distinction. Turn the lemon into lemonade. Put up signs telling visitors "You Are Entering The 15th Most Dangerous Neighborhood In America."

It is not like Fort Worth does not have a history of embracing its criminal element. There used to be a part of downtown Fort Worth known as Hell's Half Acre. Hell's Half Acre is in the area where Fort Worth's Convention Center and Water Gardens is currently located. I'm sure when Hell's Half Acre was in its heyday it was one of the Top 25 Most Dangerous Neighborhoods in America.

You will find the Hell's Half Acre historical marker, that you see in the above picture, near the Convention Center.

And then there is, also in downtown Fort Worth, the collection of parking lots known as Sundance Square. Named after the Sundance Kid, who, with his partner in crime, Butch Cassidy, used to hang out in Fort Worth's Most Dangerous Neighborhood of their day, with their Hole in the Wall Gang.

So, Fort Worth has quite a history of embracing its criminal elements.

When I was a kid, Seattle had a Dangerous Neighborhood, or so my mom led us to believe, known as Skid Row, the notorious, original Skid Row. If I remember right this was in the now touristy Pioneer Square area and First Avenue. Often when mom and dad took us kids to Seattle we'd drive through Skid Row, with mom making sure the car doors were locked.

This is the type tourist attraction Fort Worth might be able to have if it'd just embrace its Most Dangerous Neighborhood. Maybe one day, way in the future, it'd even manage to turn into a tourist zone like Seattle's Skid Row did.

Maybe this process could be accelerated if the Trinity River Vision added Fort Worth's Most Dangerous Neighborhood to their ever growing list of things they are seeing in The Vision.

Statement From Kathleen Hicks Regarding '25 Most Dangerous Neighborhoods'

That is Kathleen Hicks you are looking at. Ms. Hicks is a Fort Worth City Councilwoman. A few days ago something called NeighorhoodScout claimed, by some dubious criteria, that Ms. Hicks' district is the 15th Most Dangerous Neighborhood in America.

Rightfully so, Councilwoman Hicks took righteous umbrage at this slandering of a part of Fort Worth she has worked hard to improve.

I wonder how Galveston is feeling about also being on this dubious list of the 25 Most Dangerous Neighborhoods?

Below is a statement released by Kathleen Hicks regarding NeighborhoodScout's Dangerous Neighborhoods list....

As the City Council Representative for District 8, I am appalled by a blog that asserts East Lancaster Avenue as the 15th Most Dangerous Neighborhood in the country.

NeighborhoodScout® is owned and operated by Location Inc.®, a Rhode Island-based real estate location company. NeighborhoodScout®/Location, Inc.® uses data from 17,000 local law enforcement agencies and the FBI to compile a national database of neighborhood crime statistics. However, we do not know what information was used or how the information contained in the study was collected or analyzed since it is considered to be "exclusive data".

Our Fort Worth Police Department contacted NeighborhoodScout®'s Dr. Schiller who explained that their method for data collection and analysis was "proprietary" and would not disclose any other information. The company did state that the numbers they collected were from 2008. Along with saying this neighborhood is dangerous, the company also reported that the East Lancaster Avenue community was more "walkable" than 76 percent of U.S. neighborhoods and more "hip & trendy" than 67 percent. Furthermore, the 76102 zip code was included, which is our award winning downtown area. The numbers don't add up.

The Fort Worth Police Department reports crime using the National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS), which is above and beyond the national FBI standard, the Uniform Crime Report (UCR). Our crime reporting is scientific, transparent and accurate because we focus on the number of individual victims versus the number of crime incidents. There are only about 15 cities that report crime using the NIBRS method.

The FBI recognizes NIBRS as the most accurate and credible method of reporting crime. We have no way of knowing what standard Dr. Schiller used to collect and/or analyze the crime data, and since it is considered "exclusive" and "proprietary," we are not able to verify its accuracy.

In recent years, Fort Worth has made ending homelessness a top priority. We work hand in hand with other local governmental entities, community based organizations and neighborhoods to address this important issue. Moreover, the council unanimously approved a new police station that will be located at East Lancaster and McCart.

The progress this community has made in a short period of time is to be applauded, not criticized with outdated or misleading facts. Furthermore, regurgitating old stereotypes about this area is both misleading and offensive. The residents, our Police Department and countless other stakeholders are working very hard every day to continue our progress in all areas of our great city.

I want every resident of Fort Worth to have confidence in our police officers whose mission is crime suppression and public safety. Rest assured that neither the people of Fort Worth, nor the city government of Fort Worth, will tolerate inaccurate representations of our city or communities.

For more information, contact Councilmember Kathleen Hicks' office at 817-392-8808 or District8@fortworthgov.org. To see the crime statistics for the area in question, visit the Fort Worth Police website.