SHAKER HEIGHTS, Ohio – While residents of Shaker Heights say the city is mostly safe, a 70-page survey shows there’s still work to be done.

A third-party company called Strategy Matters conducted a months-long survey of Shaker Heights residents looking for areas the city could improve.

More than 960 residents responded.

Traffic safety, including pedestrians and bicycles, was often a major concern. Thefts and weapons were also listed.

The survey shows that most adults feel safe, but many young people do not.

“What that tells me is that a relationship can be built that can be done,” said Colleen Jackson, Shaker Heights’ chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer.

High school students who participated in the survey noted that they are concerned about violence in and around school. They expressed feelings of disrespect and mistrust from the police and other adults because of being young and/or black.

One of the many questions addressed in the survey results: How has perceived safety improved, gotten worse, or stayed the same, according to residents, over the past 12 months?

Responses were separated between black respondents and white respondents.

Fifty-one percent of black people said overall crime remained the same. Seventy-five percent of white respondents agree.

Twenty-one percent of black people said crime had gotten worse in the past year, while only 11 percent of white respondents said the same.

Nighttime crime received the highest percentage, revealing that crime has worsened. Fourteen percent of white respondents said yes, and 25 percent of black respondents agreed.

“People of color, regardless of neighborhood, are more likely to say the city is less safe than it was a year ago,” the survey said. “The problem is bigger than the police.”

To further discuss the survey results, the city of Shaker Heights held a town hall-style meeting with Strategy Matters.

“They want to have more community involvement and more community involvement and they want to have more traffic enforcement. You don’t find that in many communities. A lot of communities want less law enforcement. In this community, they want more,” Shaker Heights Police Chief Wayne Hudson said.

Chief Hudson explained how Strategy Matters has conducted over 200 surveys of residents across the country and Shaker Heights is one of two areas calling for more police. He said the other is the Navajo Nation.

He told me that an important takeaway from this survey is the large number of people who don’t feel safe walking around the city at night. The survey doesn’t explain why, and those are the answers his department is looking for.

“We have nine neighborhoods in Shaker. We want to make sure we meet with each of those neighborhoods and hopefully start a neighborhood association. Then we can have different types of community services, community outreach and community policing that are individualized for each neighborhood because community policing is not one-size-fits-all,” Chief Hudson added.

In addition, Jackson said a community advisory group made up of residents and business owners has been created. This group is tasked with unpacking the survey and helping city officials create an action plan.

“We’re really going to take our lead from there,” she noted.

The city of Shaker Heights also plans to conduct a community campaign to educate residents about traffic laws.

“It’s something that affects so many people: walkers, cyclists, people who have (children), (and) people who are elderly. I think it’s something that can have an impact on the community at large,” Jackson said.

Another collaborative approach the city plans to take is partnering with the local school district to ensure students feel safe.

“A person who feels discomfort or that they are a target is a problem and deserves investigation,” Jackson said. “I want young people to have a positive interaction with the officers they meet. The rest is everyone’s problem. You have to change what you think (young black men). It’s not their fault how you perceive them if they did nothing. I recognize that we have been taught to fear black youth. There are people in communities who feel like stakeholders and there are people who feel and are treated as suspects. If you’re always a suspect and never treated as an interested party, you start responding like one. I want everyone to be treated like they have value.”

Jackson said community leaders will meet again in two weeks. From there, ideas will turn into action.

Chief Hudson said his department is always looking to connect with the community and evaluate how they can improve. He suggests residents follow the police department’s social media for future community engagement events.