OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. (WLOX) – Top into Memorial Day weekend, downtown Ocean Springs bars and restaurants are gearing up for busy nights ahead. These firms are performing so with an further concentrate on maintaining their consumers secure, significantly less than a month right after the mass shooting at The Scratch Kitchen.

“I only feel that we can preserve a culture of security if we make a culture of security,” Kenny Williams stated.

Williams owns and operates Mosaic along with 3 other bars and restaurants in downtown Ocean Springs. He stated making a culture of security begins with creating certain everyone is on the exact same web page.

“I feel we want to collaborate much better as organization owners in sharing communication,” stated Williams.

In the final week, Williams gathered with other downtown organization owners, such as Bill Yockey from the Rooftop Taco and Tequila Bar. They met with city leaders and brainstormed tips to avert future violent incidents.

“If we ask somebody to leave our region, we’re going to make certain that our close friends more than at Neon Moon or across the street at Glory Bound are communicated with and they communicate with us,” stated Yockey.

“If we know somebody is not exactly where they’re supposed to be or performing one thing they shouldn’t be performing, we want a way to share that communication in two techniques — not just with every other, but also with nearby police,” Williams stated.

Ideally, the communication would be speedy and quick.

“We’re going to attempt and discover an app we can all go on so we do not have to make 7 or eight telephone calls. You can just go on the app and let everyone know what the dilemma is,” Yockey stated.

Also, plans are in the operates to have an improved police presence downtown with a lot more lighting on the street.

“We’ve asked to light up the parking lights that are surrounding Government Street,” stated Yockey. “We really feel like a lot of the poor issues that had been taking place had been persons that had been partying in the parking lots and then coming into the bars and restaurants a small additional along than they required to be.”

Regardless of the current act of violence at The Scratch Kitchen, Williams is performing anything he can to make certain it will be an isolated incident.

“This is an intensely secure location, if you take the information more than ten to 20 years this is a genuinely secure location to be and we want to encourage persons to come do organization in Ocean Springs,” stated Williams.

Each Williams and Yockey stated they use ID scanners to avert underage persons from coming in. Also, firearms are not permitted inside the firms, safety guards actively appear out for firearms and they take measures to preserve guns out.

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