Branson struggles with crime from pay-by-the-week hotels

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BRANSON MO NEWS: It was after a tragic death that Branson city leaders realized something had to be done about pay-by-week hotels.For years now, a growing chunk of Branson’s 177 hotels have no longer offered nightly rentals, opting instead for a model that caters to residents struggling to find affordable housing, city officials told the Springfield News-Leader (http://sgfnow.co/2fhVERO ).In the morning, school buses stop by these extended-stay hotels to pick up children. In the evening, police cars stop by in response to thefts, drug use or fights between tenants, said Branson Chief of Police Stan Dobbins.Dobbins recalled once seeing a child ride a Big Wheel around syringes in a hotel parking lot. He said some of the people who run these properties have been calling the police instead of addressing problems proactively.”Managers and owners were basically dumping their problems on everybody else,” he said.Then, on Feb. 21, 2015, the naked body of a 6-year-old girl was found strangled in an extended-stay hotel room.A plan started being developed, Dobbins said, and last year more than a hundred owners and managers attended a meeting held by the city to discuss a new program for policing its hotels and motels. …