Wednesday, March 12, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
Mayor Jan Jones lashed out earlier this week at continuing violence in the Meadows Village, a neighborhood midway between the Strip and downtown known as the Naked City.
Metro Capt. Frank Barker said his department has a lot of calls for service in Meadows Village, and police are doing the best they can to respond to them.
"Given our manpower, I think we're giving Meadows Village a considerable amount of attention," Barker said.
Jones said the area, adjacent to the Stratosphere, is "out of control," with rampant drug dealing and prostitution. She said there have been 14 shootings and five murders in the area since July.
"It's obviously a horrible situation," the mayor said.
"We're amazed that we spend $540 million to build a hotel, create 2,700 jobs, yet police within the community aren't able to police the area," Stratosphere president Richard Schuetz said Tuesday. "We're concerned about the safety of our associates."
Jones said a machine gun was recently fired at a Stratosphere parking garage.
Jones has been dating Schuetz since last fall. The mayor said her relationship with Schuetz has nothing to do with attention being paid to Meadows Village.
Jones said she has long been concerned about the area, noting that she spearheaded the 1992 opening of the Stupak Community Center there.
Jones said the problem is that Meadows Village, long known as the Naked City because of the area's crime and violence, isn't getting the police staffing it needs.
Last February, police pulled a bike patrol squad from the area that had been funded through the federal Weed and Seed program. Jones said the move led to even more crime.
archive
