Leave it to the Milwaukee Journal/Sentinel to bungle a story.
You knew when Mayfair Mall instituted its new policy of restricting the hours teens could shop, the race card would be played. It was, and the newspaper jumped all over the
story about charges of discrimination at the mall.
The obligatory editorial and Eugene Kane column condemning the new Mayfair policy are no doubt in the works.
As usual, the paper didn’t get the whole story, or in this case, the true story.
Today’s Milwaukee Business Journal carries a front-page story with the headline,
“Mayfair’s policy brings shopper satisfaction.”After one month of Mayfair’s new policy, the Business Journal reports the mall has experienced “significant decreases in disorderly conduct and shoplifting, and increases in merchant and shopper satisfaction.”
The new policy is being labeled a success, and for good reason.
Disorderly conduct incidents declined to eight from 24 in the same period of 2006 and retail theft plummeted by more than 50 percent according to Mayfair Mall General manager Steve Smith.
Smith says there’s proof that the policy has resulted, not only in the reduction of incident reports, but a reduction in the amount of “hanging out and cruising” associated with teens.
It stands to reason that as time goes on, more teens learn the policy. Fewer teens are being turned away by security. More teens are being accompanied by a parent.
Retailers claim sales are up on Friday and Saturday evenings and say the atmosphere at Mayfair is more relaxed and family friendly.
Mayfair enacted its new policy March 30. From 2 p.m. to closing on Friday and Saturday, security guards are posted at mall entrances checking ID of anyone who appears to be in the age range of the policy. It requires visitors 17 and younger to be with a parent or adult 21 or older.
Will the Journal/Sentinel report on this positive trend, or will it continue to placate the race-baiters?
The Mayfair policy is working. It needs to be expanded and enforced everyday, not just weekends.
By the way, policies like the one at Mayfair have been successful everywhere they've been implemented. Here's the
story.
