NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)—All the recent shootings come on the heels of a report in the Wall Street Journal calling New Orleans the nation’s new murder capital.
With crime is a real concern in the city. one long-standing business on Canal Street, Rubensteins is doing everything it can to stay strong and secure in spite of the crime.
According to the Metropolitan Crime Commission, homicides in New Orleans are up 44 percent with 209 homicides. There have been 218 carjackings, 343 shootings, and 397 armed robberies.
“It is not about the headline. It is about the reality of the situation,” Kelly Schulz with New Orleans & Company said.
Schulz says they have already received a few calls from customers who are concerned with the crime.
“We do address the calls with honesty and transparency and really focus on the solutions to fight the crime problem,” she said.
Downtown business, Rubensteins is not faltering because of the crime.
“We don’t have an issue with security. Now there is an issue with the homelessness which is a problem,” Kenny Rubenstein said.
Rubensteins is located across from the Canal Street Starbucks, which is closing its doors for good on October 3rd, citing safety concerns.
“In our case, our business is great. We haven’t experienced any issues. People are still coming down,” Rubenstein said.
Though Rubensteins is like a fort of safety with valet parking, security at the door, and more.
“We’ve got the gates that roll down, we’ve got James our valet who is always watching what’s going on, as well as our windows which are coated and are practically unbreakable,” he said.
In addition to all that, they also have security cameras inside and outside of the store that are tied to the New Orleans Police Department.
“It really is just a matter of being aware,” Rubenstein said.
Rubensteins closes at 5:30 p.m. everyday so they don’t deal with all the nighttime issues that police are responding to in that area.
New Orleans and Company says they’ve started a New Orleans Coalition of 400 business owners who are all working on solutions.
