TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Mixing a drink with kava in it, Whitney Marx, the owner of the Kava Den in downtown Tucson shook the drink and poured it into a cup for a customer.
She reflected on a recent shooting that was not too far away from her business just up the road.
“You could hear it in the bar. Everybody ducked down, took cover,” Marx said.
In the past two years their business has been downtown, Marx said they’ve heard about four shootings.
“To have that kind of chaos, it definitely disturbs the vibe and the peace,” she said.
She said while most of her regulars are comfortable stopping by the bar, some customers have questioned their safety in downtown.
“Overall it might deter people from coming downtown in general, not specifically my business, but all the businesses,” she said.
The Tucson Police Department said they arrested 31-year-old Daniel Moreno for Monday’s shooting at the Cobra Arcade Bar. They said he is facing two charges of aggravated assault, discharging within city limits, and for being a prohibited possessor.
KGUN 9 reporter Andrew Christiansen tried contacting Cobra Arcade but they are closed on Mondays.
Marx feels like there could be a stronger police presence downtown to help curb the number of shootings and protect businesses.
“It would be nice to know that if we call them, they’ll come in a timely manner,” she said.
TPD said they have four units dedicated to the downtown area. Each squad has four to six officers and a sergeant on the weekends. They said they are also joined by motor officers and their community response teams.
“I definitely feel a strong police presence down there in a good way and I feel really safe,” Stacy Haggart said.
Haggart is the owner of Le Macaron, a French pastries shop in downtown. A few months ago she said there was a firearm discharged nearby on Arizona Avenue by someone younger.
“That’s really rare and that wasn’t a serious situation that happened,” Haggart said.
She feels like having the Downtown Tucson Partnership’s safety ambassadors help to deescalate situations.
“They’re very responsive, so I’ve felt very comfortable having our business downtown,” she said.
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Andrew Christiansen is a reporter for KGUN 9. Before joining the team, Andrew reported in Corpus Christi, Texas for KRIS6 News, Action 10 News and guest reported in Spanish for Telemundo Corpus Christi. Share your story ideas with Andrew by emailing andrew.christiansen@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, or Twitter.
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