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Walnut Creek Mayor Claims Victory Over Downtown Nightlife Violence

WALNUT CREEK (CBS SF) - A violence problem that surfaced earlier this year in downtown Walnut Creek seems to have all but disappeared.

Mayor Bob Simmons credits a three-pronged approach that was established after some high-profile incidents with quelling a rash of downtown crimes around the city's nightlife spots.

In the beginning of the year, police were called several times to certain night spots in the downtown area on reports of shootings, fights and robberies. In fact, there are more than 100 establishments within the city with liquor licenses, and the criminal episodes appeared to be concentrated at just 4 or 5 distinct locations.

"The city started opening up some channels of communication with the view of making sure that this problem ended," said Simmons.

A visible police presence was established downtown, especially after midnight. In addition, the City Council is set to hold hearings later this year on a new ordinance that will give them more teeth in dealing with problem bars.

Simmons believes these measures are working, citing a noticeable drop in calls requesting police response on weekends.

"I am quite sure that the extra effort that our police department has been engaged in over the last four or five weeks really has had an impact," declared Simmons.

KCBS' Mark Seelig Reports:

(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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