Residents 0f Rue de Tulipe in Ixelles are frustrated with fights and noise at night in their neighbourhood. Yet despite numerous complaints to the municipality and the police, the problem has dragged on for over two years, reported Bruzz.
"There are a number of people who are part of a very problematic core that is poisoning life in the neighbourhood," said Mayor Christos Doulkeridis.
The area around Rue de Tulipe, particularly Place Fernand Cocq and the Ixelles town hall, has two apartment blocks and a small playground, which are plagued by nuisance and vandalism.
A group of young people are responsible for the disturbances, according to La Capitale. This group has taken over a cafe on the corner of Rue de la Crèche & Rue du Conseil to make it “the headquarters of their drug trade,” a local resident told the newspaper. The situation at the cafe got to the point that it closed permanently six months ago.
In a separate incident, the Facebook page of Sounds jazz club on Rue de Tulipe reported that thieves ran off with video and music equipment worth €40,000. To compensate for the loss, the cafe has started a crowdfunding campaign.
Targeted action needed
Councillor Gautier Calomme (Mouvement Réformateur) has called for urgent action, stressing that the number of police interventions in the neighbourhood illustrates the scale of the problem.
Calomne has echoed the calls of local residents for extra measures, including camera surveillance, extra police controls and a ban on gatherings. In response, Mayor Doulkeridis pointed to certain measures, such as meetings between police and residents, but said that not all have proven effective.
Related News
- 'Boosting effectiveness': Police to add seized cars to their fleet
- Belgium in Brief: The limits of free speech
- Increased anxiety and rise in crime: What extreme heat can do to mental health
Police have marked the neighbourhood as “a priority area for intervention" with additional patrols that are sometimes reinforced by other police zones, the intervention or canine units.
“We try to promote dialogue between all residents. Not only with young people, because there are definitely also young people who are not a problem," said the mayor.
“A small number of young people as well as some who are older make up a very problematic core that is poisoning life in the neighbourhood."
