By Kyeland Jackson—
A non-student was robbed early Nov. 29 in the parking structure of The Arch apartments. The incident brings the total of reported incidents at The Arch apartments this year to 36.
The victim, accompanying a female student, was approached by two African-American males who brandished a black handgun and robbed him. Neither victim was harmed.
The Arch’s management were unavailable for comment at press time. Louisville Metro Police are looking into the alleged robbery. At the time of press, Kenny Brown, assistant chief of police for ULPD, said the incident was under investigation.
Previously The Grove, the apartments were renamed The Arch when new management took over this summer. Before the switch, there were 12 incidents reported to the University Of Louisville Police Department. Burglary or theft made up 10 of those. One was for fire and another was for a misdemeanor.
Since the switch to The Arch, there have been 24 crimes reported to ULPD. Theft and burglary has comprised for 16 of those incidents, 66 percent of the reported total since The Arch property management began.
Jahnai Brown, a sophomore and resident of the apartments, said she was shocked. “I used to work third shift at Kroger on Bardstown Road, so it could have been me,” she said. “I’ll probably be on my toes more than usual after dark.”
Daniel Karem was also shocked when hearing of the robbery. “I was a little relieved at the same time,” Karem said, “because I don’t park in the parking garage.” Karem parks in one of less than 50 open lots outside of the garage. Residents can choose to pay an extra $10 to use a spot in the parking lot.
Andy Knight, a senior living at the apartments, said he has confronted staff and management before about security concerns.
“I’ve been to the front desk multiple times. They have said ‘We’re on it.’ But things like this have been here since the building was built,” Knight said.
Knight reaches through the security gate from the entrance and unlocks the door as he talked to The Cardinal. “I’ve told them about this. I spoke to the manager and property manager, who said, ‘They were working on this.’ That was six months ago,” Knight said.
Brown also felt security was insufficient. “I’ve seen people entering the garage by ducking under the fence…the other fence doors can be easily reached over or under to open,” she said. “I feel like our fences, parking garage and surrounding areas won’t keep people out.”
“There were instances where people have gone into unlocked rooms and taken things, and they (The Arch apartment staff) did not report that to the residents.” Knight said. “They said they weren’t reporting those because it wasn’t actually broken into, in the sense that the room was not locked.”
“The upkeep of the apartments by staff is timely and good in my experience,” Brown said. “But the upkeep of the property outside the apartments is questionable.” She cited a broken fence by the garage and easy access to fence doors as explanation.
Elizabeth Kreilein is a junior who has been living at The Arch since the beginning of the semester. “It makes me question signing for renewal here,” she said. “Knowing that they got in through the gates that are supposed to be secure, it makes me wonder if I’m truly safe living here.”
“I think this was very preventable,” Knight said when talking about the robbery. “I think that they knew about security issues and they chose not to act, even when we told them what was going on. I’m getting to the point that if they won’t do anything, and I’m letting them know about it, that I don’t have a whole lot of options….It’s not like someone hopped a fence…they essentially left the door open.”
