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Chico State

Community Safety Walk to Look for Hazards Around CSU, Chico Neighborhoods

A member of the University Police Department makes marks on a list during a safety walk in 2015. A spring safety walk will take place around the University neighborhoods on Tuesday, March 13.
Yonah Abkowitz / Student Photographer

A member of the University Police Department makes marks on a list during a safety walk in 2015. A spring safety walk will take place around the University neighborhoods on Tuesday, March 13.

The well-traveled areas surrounding the California State University, Chico campus hold hazards both obvious and invisible to pedestrians and cyclists. A community safety walk next week will look at every street around these areas to document these safety concerns in hopes of getting them addressed.

A community spring safety walk is scheduled for Tuesday, March 13 at 7:30 p.m. in front of the UHUB (near Whitney Hall) on the CSU, Chico campus. In the event of rain, the walk will be postponed to a later date.

This safety walk is being organized by the University. CSU, Chico students and the entire Chico community are encouraged to join and to bring their own flashlights or headlamps.

Associated Students Commissioner of Community Affairs Nadine Salas noted that campus safety is a shared responsibility, extending beyond the CSU, Chico campus and into areas where students call home.

After participants register and are assigned to one of four teams, Salas and University Police Chief John Reid will hold a brief pre-walk meeting to highlight the importance of campus safety and the roles participants play during the event.

Each of the four teams will be assigned to an area in walking distance from campus to look for and indicate safety hazards and where they can be improved. Areas of concern include inadequate lighting, traffic signals that don’t work, and hazards on sidewalks and areas around trees, such as protruding roots and low-hanging limbs, as well as risks near infrastructure and hiding places for predators.

“You’re a student when you step onto this campus and you still are when you step off,” said Salas. “Ensuring streets have proper lighting and are rid of hazards caused by poor infrastructure are the small but critical steps our community can take progress toward a safer living environment.”

Event partners include First-Year Experience, which is currently supporting “Keep Chico Lit,” a campaign to increase awareness of the need for proper lighting in student neighborhoods. The Chico Police Department will also join the safety walk and serve as a liaison to communicate any issues within the City of Chico’s jurisdiction.