Salt Lake police announce new substation inside Smith’s Ballpark

SALT LAKE CITY — It’s an area people say is plagued with violence and crime — the Ballpark neighborhood.

On Thursday, police announced they’re taking a first step to be more visible in the community with the opening of a new substation inside Smith’s Ballpark – on the southeast corner of West Temple and 1300 South.

City leaders said it’s the first of several substations they’re planning to open in an effort to combat crime and make people feel safe.

A new @slcpd substation at the Smiths Ballpark. #KSLTV pic.twitter.com/QJ75wFneN3

— Derek Petersen (@Derek_Photog) August 4, 2022

Minutes before the announcement, crews put the finishing touches on the new Salt Lake City Police Department Substation at Smith’s Ballpark.

Police will patrol this area 24 hours a day.

“It’s a public safety hub where officers can work or they can have a closer finger on the pulse of what is happening in this community,” said Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall.

SLCPD Chief Mike Brown said this central location sets officers up for success.

“The substation can certainly help us improve our response times, because if there’s a call that comes out at 1700 S. State, these officers are already right here at 1300 S. West Temple and can respond that much quicker.”

Brown mentioned that last month, the department’s average response time for priority one calls was 11 minutes 27 seconds. That’s one minute and 33 seconds faster than it was in July 2021.

But some people who live and work in the Ballpark neighborhood don’t think it will make much of a difference.

“To the citizens of this community, I think it looks like nothing more than a sign on a door,” said Bob Danielson.

Business owners like Danielson say until the city works closely with the county and state on prosecuting, nothing will change.

“We interact with the officers daily. I’m telling you, they are phenomenal. The problem here is leadership,” he said.

Michelle Goldberg, who owns Diggity Dog Resort, said, “There was a policeman that pretty much saved my business this past weekend when he saw somebody that jumped the fence to my business.”

Police arrested the man after he caused thousands of dollars in damage to her business.

“I think the police have done their best to try and accommodate us, but I think they’re just overwhelmed,” Goldberg said.

While Mendenhall acknowledged crime is down in most areas in the Ballpark neighborhood, there’s more work to do.

“We want to be part of the communities we serve. The women and men of the Salt Lake City Police Department are determined to help keep our cities safe,” Brown said.

City leaders said they plan on announcing future substation locations in the coming weeks.

Today, @ChiefMikeBrown and @slcmayor joined community members to announce a new Ballpark police substation in the Liberty Patrol Division. For more information, please read our press release:https://t.co/amTx5mCPGY#SaltLakeCity #SLC #SLCPD pic.twitter.com/hD1xt7SwA0

— Salt Lake City Police (@slcpd) August 4, 2022