DAVENPORT, Iowa — Following the shooting at the NorthPark Mall in Davenport on Monday, July 22, one store owner is speaking out about his concerns.
Bradley Riedell has owned The Geeked Gear Toys store in the mall since April. During his time at the mall, he said he hasn’t experienced violence like what the community saw on Monday, but he has seen enough otherwise to know something needs to change.
For example, Riedell claimed that groups of unaccompanied minors hang out in the mall each weekend while not shopping. He believes it is scenarios like this that could escalate to something on the scale of Monday’s shooting if the mall’s safety protocols stay the same. Bradley stressed that the mall isn’t a babysitting service for parents.
“If you want your kids to be at the mall, let’s get community activities going to keep them occupied rather than running around causing chaos," Riedell said.
In a Facebook post, Riedell wrote “We as a community need to rally around the mall if we want to keep it and save it from becoming another block of apartments.”
Bradley said that as an owner, he felt it was his responsibility to open up the conversation to the community and asked them what they want to see.
“A lot of people have security on their minds, so I would say 90% of the replies were 'Let’s see more uniformed officers, better security.' Some people are going as far as age limits.”
Davenport Police said that business owners or the mall itself can hire officers independently and encouraged them to do so if that makes them feel safer. However, it is up to the mall or store in the mall to call on the officers for help.