Parking lot

issues in the spotlight

By KURT NESBITT

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- "Frustration" is a word commonly used by police, businesses and teenagers in New Ulm when talking about the issue of teens hanging out in parking lots around town.

Representatives from the three groups talked about the issue, as they met Friday morning.

The meeting was intended to be a discussion between police, city attorneys and local business owners, but a handful of high school students surprised everyone when they came and gave their side of the story.

Discussion ranged from venting frustration to suggestions on how the city can deal with the problem. Talk of new city ordinances surfaced, as well as ideas for a establishing a place for teenagers to hang out without hurting local businesses.

For police, frustration comes from chasing people from one end of town to another, and then back to the same spot. It's also about diverting NUPD's resources to respond to noise calls. More importantly, it's about doing the same routine for nearly 15 years.

"I'm sick and tired of doing this," said New Ulm Police Chief Howard Zins about chasing teenagers out of parking lots. "We are getting no results."

Likewise, managers and owners of some local businesses like Runnings and the old Pamida building, see the issue as a perennial problem for customers.

"I grew up with hanging out in parking lots," said Jeff Gulden, owner of Runnings, which recently moved from the south end of Broadway to the north end. "It's a problem. Several people won't come into my store because they're intimidated."

Teenagers say they recognize both groups' concerns, but also have frustrations of their own.

"It's frustrating for me because I'm just talking with my friends and suddenly, all these cops come. What did I do?," said Cassie Bandow, a senior at New Ulm Public High School.

Gulden, as well as brothers Phil and John Vorwerk who own the old Pamida building (currently the location of Family Dollar, Sears and Super Stop Liquor) said several times that they don't mind people hanging out in their parking lots, as long as litter, vandalism, noise and violence aren't issues.

"The majority of the kids are great kids," Phil Vorwerk said.

However, there have been times when that hasn't been the case. Officer Jeremy Reed of the NUPD said he remembers times from three years ago when he and other officers would take calls on the north side of town regularly. In those days, it was common for people to carry clubs, baseball bats and lead pipes in their cars, Reed said. NUPD Commander Erv Weinkauf added he once found a machete in the back seat of a car.

"It's not that the owners, the city and the police department don't like kids," Reed told the six high school students who were in the room. "Our concern is that we're losing business."

"Where would you like us to go?," questioned Jennie Beranek, a student at Cathedral High School. "A parking lot? A side street?"

Reed said he's had people ask about hanging out at Vogel Arena.

"That's no problem, as long as there's no noise and no garbage," he replied.

Weinkauf added, "You have to remember you can't be in the park after 11 p.m. The bottom line is that if you're quiet and orderly, it's not a problem."

Phil Vorwerk said the Pamida complex sees fewer problems when it's closed than when it's open.

Zins said he thinks summer is going to be worse because kids will be out of school.

Reed brought up using the New Ulm City Hall parking lot as a gathering place. New Ulm City Attorney Hugh Nierengarten asked if people would reconsider how to make that idea work. He said it had two things going for it: it gives teenagers the visibility along Broadway that would allow them to see friends while cruising the city, and it would also give police a central location to watch at night. The litter issue could be solved with a few new cement trash cans.

"The straw that broke the camel's back was vandalism," he said.

Nierengarten also mentioned using Brown County's teen court program as a way of dealing with errant teenagers, as the court is made up entirely of teenagers and has "fashioned solutions more realistic than what the courts do."

Several people, including Zins and Gulden, brought up the idea of changing some of New Ulm's local ordinances. They cited a Hutchinson ordinance that allows police to act as agents for property owners when dealing with trespassers.

"The seriousness of this is most apparent to merchants, more than the city as a whole," Nierengarten said from his home Friday night. He also said it was possible for the New Ulm City Council to take action on the issue, but strongly added that there is no proposal before the council at this time.

Zins said NUPD plans to approach Nierengarten about the issue sometime in the coming weeks.

"I give those kids credit for coming down," he said. "I can see their concern. Everybody has to be some place."