The Lost Lake Cafe is open 24 hours a day. But it was in the middle of the afternoon last weekend that a group of unruly customers attacked a waiter.
"One of them guys got up, called one of our employees an [expletive] pushed him in the face," said restaurant owner David Meinert. "That guy had a gun on him. Police were called and it took an extraordinary time to get there which is 3 block away from the precinct."
That's what brought Meinert to the east precinct today, along with other businesses and residents. The vibrant neighborhood, teeming with new restaurants and bars is fighting a big rise in crime.
In 2012 there were 107 aggravated assaults and robberies in the Pike Pine area on Capitol hill. In 2014, that number jumped to 173.
The Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce blame many factors for making this neighborhood prime pickings for a criminal.
"We have lots of people out on the streets," said Michael Wells, the chamber's executive director. "Lots of people who have been drinking. Lots of people who are working late in bars. Lots of people who are walking home with cash in their pockets."
The top brass at SPD decided to try what they call a "short-term enhancement" to increase patrols in this area on weekend nights.
"What we're going to be doing, starting tonight, is assigning a captain, essentially boots on the ground, who is going to be directing resources to this area," said SPD Assistant Chief Nick Metz.
The goal is to make police more visible, more available to respond to crimes as they happen.
Businesses say its a good first step, as long as the neighborhood keeps moving forward.
"I'm hoping with the new mayor and the new chief that seem to really care about this, that it will change the policing habit. but the same police officers have told us the same stuff before," said Meinert.
Seattle Police declined to provide any numbers on where patrols stand now, what the increase will be, or how long it will last.
On Friday night, KING 5 saw three officers patrolling the area on foot, starting at nine p.m. Business owners say it's a start, but isn't nearly enough to address the violent attacks they've been seeing.
On the evening of Sept. 17, the mayor's office will hold another "Find it, Fix it" walk to target problem areas in this area of Capitol Hill.
