How safe is downtown Dayton?

DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) - Serendipity is not only the name of the city's latest bistro, but some think a good description of downtown Dayton as well.

"We realized that Dayton is a delightful surprise and that's what serendipity means is an unexpected, delightful surprise," says James Harris, Serendipity's owner.

City leaders say the "surprise" of downtown is that the streets aren't as mean as some think they are.

During an update on the state of downtown Dayton Wednesday, city commissioners wanted to know how to get that message across.

"There's still a perception that downtown is not as safe as we all know it," says Commissioner Joey Williams.

The Downtown Dayton Partnership says it has a group working on that perception problem, but from the people 2 NEWS asked about it, the solution starts with letting people see for themselves.

"People who don't come down here have a misconception about the safety issues," says Nancy Farkas, President of the Dayton Board of Realtors.

Says Craig Mesure of downtown, "I think it is perception. A lot of people have written it off and they haven't come back to see what it's doing now."

That's where places like Serendipity come in.

"There's nowhere to go to eat, drink, be merry and have fun," Harris says.

The new bistro with a focus on wine and dessert hopes to fill that void and give downtown a little serendipity of its own.

"I know it's had its troubles over the years but I think it's coming back," Harris says.

The Downtown Dayton Partnership says more jobs have come to downtown in the last year and not as much first floor office space is vacant, signs it points to that things are improving.