A new Block by Block Safety Ambassador program launched Wednesday in downtown Columbia.
The program employs five safety ambassadors who patrol Broadway from 4:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. Wednesday through Saturday, according to the news release.
A full-time outreach ambassador will work to gather data on individuals experiencing homelessness, mental health challenges, substance use disorders or other crises with available community resources and services. Collected data will be compiled to see hot spots downtown.
“We’ll be able to see the major touchpoints of our downtown area,” said Nickie Davis, executive director of The District Community Improvement District.
The program is designed to help businesses downtown, addressing small quality-of-life concerns that might otherwise be overlooked.
“Basically, if a street light is out, they will report that,” Davis said.
While monitoring, nighttime ambassadors will report to the Columbia Police Department depending on the issue.
Separate from law enforcement, ambassadors’ duties include:
- Safe walk and safety assistance
- Welfare checks and outreach engagement
- Hospitality and visitor assistance
- Reporting broken lights, hazards, graffiti and maintenance
- Monitoring public spaces and identifying quality-of-life issues
- Assisting businesses, residents, employees, students and visitors
- Connecting people with social services and community resources
- Identifying concerns early
- De-escalating situations before issues rise to the level of emergency response.
“Downtown is the heart of Columbia, and these ambassadors will play an important role in helping everyone feel safe, welcome and connected while enjoying all that Downtown Columbia has to offer,” Davis said in the release.
The city of Columbia, The District and the University of Missouri have partnered for this program, funding approximately $500,000 and $170,000 for this year.
The program comes after months of conversations concerning crime downtown, following the death of a Stephens College student and UM System President Mun Choi’s overnight walk-through in September 2025.
“Together, we have invested in a program that combines public safety support, hospitality, outreach and problem-solving to enhance the downtown experience for residents, students, employees, businesses and visitors alike,” Mayor Barbara Buffaloe said in the news release.
Block by Block is a national company that specializes in downtown safety across the country, bringing in ambassadors to help fulfill duties.
The program comes with hopes of future initiatives, one being communication between businesses, bars and clubs at night to better help downtown safety.For more information on the program, visit The District website.
