What makes risky facilities “risky?” A remote systematic social observation of environmental crime predictors at bars in Denver using Google street view imagery

Abstract

Purpose

Bars have an established relationship to crime and are routinely operationalized as an important predictor of crime occurrence. However, despite this reputation, an interesting paradox exists in that most bars are not criminogenic. This study attempts to explain the variation in crime levels at bars by observing their environments over time.

Methods

Environmental features of bars in Denver were recorded using year-over-year Google Street View imagery from 2014 to 2022. Analyses then examined the presence, predictivity, and patterning of the observed environmental features to better explain the relationship between bars, bar environments, and crime over time.

Results

The results indicate that a high number of environmental features are present at bars but only a few features significantly predict crime occurrence. The variation in crime levels at bars may be best explained through specific, situational environmental features and place management tactics. Though, identifying the temporal patterning of environmental features as static or dynamic over time is critical to understanding crime occurrence at bars.

Conclusions

The results suggest that crime at bars may be attributable to unique combinations of environmental features and temporal considerations at individual bars. Explaining the variation in crime levels may require facility-by-facility nuance to better inform situational crime prevention efforts.