Weekend crowds gathering in downtown Lexington parking lots concern some businesses

Lexington is seeing a surge in the number of people going downtown on weekend nights.

But not everyone is there to go to restaurants and bars.

Some are congregating in parking lots and are staying into the early morning hours on Friday and Saturday nights, some downtown business owners and residents said at a Wednesday night forum on public safety at the Pam Miller Downtown Arts Center.

David Doucoumes owns property at the corner of Cheapside and Short Street. The parking lot at the corner of Short and Mill streets often has hundreds of people — some youth but most are adults — hanging out on the weekends into the early morning hours. The parking lot is close to Short Street’s many bars and restaurants.

“None are patrons of those establishments,” Doucoumes said. “LFUCG owes me some relief.”

Police Chief Lawrence Weathers said police are aware of the problem. However, not everyone gathering is doing something wrong.

Weathers, Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton and Devine Carama, the director of One Lexington, the city’s violence prevention program, all spoke at the town hall on Wednesday.

“We can’t arrest our way out of that problem,” Weathers said. But Weathers agreed police will have to keep a close eye on the situation and encouraged Doucoumes to stay after the public forum to talk about possible solutions.

Weathers and others said the coronavirus pandemic has kept people cooped up for more than 15 months. That’s likely what’s creating the large crowds downtown, he said.

“People want to be with other people,” Weathers said.

Lexington and other cities are seeing a spike in gun violence, shootings and homicides. So far this year, Lexington has had 23 homicides and 70 non-fatal shootings.

Downtown Lexington has seen a similar uptick in shootings.

Raymar Alvester Webb was shot and killed June 19 in the parking lot on Short and Mill streets. Police said a large crowd had gathered in that parking lot at the time of Webb’s death. Later in June, two teens were shot and wounded at High and Mill streets.

In July, one person was injured after being shot on Main Street near the downtown Lexington Public Library in the early morning hours.