Wallingford merchants hire private security
- Shop owners in Wallingford are pooling funds to hire private security after repeated thefts and vandalism. - About a dozen businesses joined the effort, contributing money for patrols, cameras, and shared monitoring. - City police say they’re stretched thin, and merchants hope private patrols will deter crime (patch.com).
Wallingford shop owners are pooling money for private security after a run of break-ins pushed some businesses from replacing glass to planning patrols. (king5.com) KING 5 reported April 22 that police data shows burglaries in Wallingford are up 14% this year and 30% over the past two years. Business owners said they are discussing a shared private-security plan for the neighborhood. (king5.com) At Changes Bar and Grill, owner Floyd McIsaac said thieves broke in on April 8, stole about $1,000 from a cash box and left roughly $6,000 in damage. At The Sock Monster, owner Kelly Tremaine said a break-in days later took merchandise, computers and cash worth thousands more. (king5.com) FOX 13 reported surveillance video showed two people breaking into Changes at about 7:15 a.m. on April 8. The station said Sock Monster was hit on April 11, and owners there said the alarm did not go off after the security system appeared to be jammed. (fox13seattle.com) The merchants’ plan is a local answer to a citywide problem that has outlasted a single police response. Seattle’s own storefront repair program reimburses up to $3,000 per incident for damage such as doors, locks and broken windows, but it does not cover stolen goods or graffiti. (seattle.gov) Seattle also offers a separate Storefront Security Fund that can reimburse eligible businesses up to $6,000 for prevention upgrades after a security assessment. That means Wallingford owners are weighing private patrols alongside public grants for cameras, gates and other hardware. (seattle.gov) Police staffing is part of the backdrop. In September 2025, Mayor Bruce Harrell’s proposed 2026 Seattle Police Department budget said the department had a net gain of 93 officers above attrition in 2025 and asked for more hiring money and a 24/7 Real Time Crime Center. (spdblotter.seattle.gov) That hiring rebound has not stopped Wallingford owners from acting on their own. Tremaine told KING 5 the idea is for businesses to “all chip in” so a patrol is around for at least part of the day, while McIsaac said he now checks his cameras before walking into work each morning. (king5.com)
