Dozens of people gather to further discuss the Citadel Mall and its future

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) – Dozens of people and city leaders took a deeper dive into the discussion about the Citadel Mall on Friday, specifically its safety. The meeting was held at Zeal Church inside the mall. Community members told 11 News they want to change the narrative behind the mall, making it more appealing to the community. City leaders like Police Chief Adrian Vasquez, City Councilmember Nancy Henjum and the mall’s owners echoed that message of change for the future.

“Part of it is criminal, part of it is perception, part of it is a sense of security,” said Chief Adrian Vasquez of the Colorado Springs Police Department.

“It creates a fear that really hurts the mall and the community. I think it’s really incumbent upon all of us to be part of the positive, to be part of the solution and not fuel the problem,” said Kevin Chadrjian of Namdar Realty, the mall’s ownership group.

Dozens of community members and city leaders gathered Friday to discuss the future of the mall.

“We’ve been on the ground together trying to address issues around how people talk about our southeast neighborhood and some of the really big biases that exist in this community,” said community member Jax Unzueta.

Chineta Davis was in attendance. She has lived in the area for decades and told 11 News she thinks the mall is a positive environment for Colorado Springs.

“This mall is a staple of this community. Regardless, it should not be doomed to fail,” said community member Chineta Davis.

Others said some aspects of the mall needed improvement, such as security. Earlier this week, Namdar Realty announced enhanced security measures, including nine new surveillance cameras and increased security patrols.

However, community members like Jennifer Smith said they feel safe in the mall and hope that with more community meetings like this, more people will support the Citadel Mall.

“We’re looking for a success story. When we have something positive to come out of this experience, we can talk about it and see what happened and say it actually worked,” said community member Jennifer Smith.

Councilman Henjum asked reporters to leave midway through the meeting so as “not to interfere with their process.” Henjum told 11 News Friday night that the meeting was an overall positive step for the community.