Burien Police officials, along with City Manager Kamuron Gurol, spoke to a full house at Tuesday night’s (Feb. 23) Community Meeting on crime at Gregory Heights Elementary School – just a few doors away from a recent drug house bust. Concerned residents listened intently during the 90-minute meeting, asked questions and got answers from Police Chief Scott Kimerer and Capt. Bryan Howard. Discussions ranged from what many locals consider to be an increasing, recent crime wave, to statistics showing that crime actually decreased in 2015, to specifics on how to help your neighborhood be safer (think Block Watch), to how to break up teenagers partying on school or park grounds and much more. Two representatives from Alturas at Burien – formerly the Heights at Burien, an apartment complex on Ambaum Blvd. SW near SW 139th – also spoke briefly, assuring attendees that the new owners are doing everything they can to help clean the place up. As many will recall, there have been at least two recent shootings at that location recently. Here’s full, raw audio of the ~90-minute meeting (you can also directly download an MP3 file here), along with photos taken by Scott Schaefer (NOTE: the audio is the best we could record in the large room, and we apologize for not being able to correctly record comments from soft-spoken citizens from across the room): P1180295 P1180471 P1180422 P1180439 P1180489]]>

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6 replies on “Burien Police, City Manager address crime concerns at Community Meeting”

  1. Thank you for publishing the audio, I was unable to attend but am very interested in learning more and becoming part of the solution. Did I read somewhere that another meeting is being scheduled with Burien PD in the near future?

    1. Condo owner – yes there is a plan to hold at least one more possibly two such as the one that was held last night at Gregory Heights. Possibly Hazel Valley or Boulevard Park. I attended last night but don’t live in the Gregory Heights area so will attend another meeting as the surrounding neighborhoods have a varying amount of crime and issues.

  2. Thank you for posting Scott. Would you consider, next time you tape one of these meetings, suggesting to the officials that they briefly summarize the question from the audience. It would be helpful both to the attendees and those of us who listen later.

  3. Just an hour later another Burien Heights resident gets beat up BAD on his trip to the AM PM. North Burien has a lot of crime that the rest of Burien never has. I can’t remember the last shooting near Three Tree.

  4. When there seems to be a big increase in helicopters hovering overhead and more violent crime occurring at the “Heights” location and other areas in Burien it is indeed a concern.
    It’s hoped that there will be more public meetings with more than two days notice so other residents of the City have an opportunity to attend.
    Thanks for this first effort to those who prompted the Police/City to create a forum.

    1. I live near Alturas or the Heights…There seems to always be something going on here and over the years only getting worse. When the residents have too many vehicles, they always end up over on our neighborhoods. Many cars end up being abandoned or stolen, and those that do park here dump their garbage all over the place. They are a nuisance to the area and breeds more vandalism. The AM/PM is just a few blocks away too and we used to walk there all the time…It is a shame that families have stopped doing this because of the violence. I don’t know what the solutions are but am willing to help figure that out.

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