As migrants clash near high-volume shelters, neighbors and businesses grow alarmed: ‘We don’t feel safe’

Over the weekend, a fight broke out near the 1,163-resident migrant shelter at the former Standard Club, 320 S. Plymouth Court, just the latest brawl to be caught on camera outside one of the high-population shelters downtown.

With the city buckling under the growing number of migrants — 12 buses carrying 560 more asylum hopefuls arrived this weekend — and no sign of the influx slowing down, tensions among migrants, residents and business owners are reaching a boiling point. The neighbors say they’ve witnessed frequent fights, loitering and other misconduct.

While most told the Tribune they fully support efforts to aid the migrants, they have grown weary of the city’s solution to cram thousands of people into highly trafficked shelters, and they’re concerned about safety — not only for themselves, but for migrants, too.

“I don’t think any of us care that there is a shelter there. It is the fact that there are zero attempts to control the situation and we don’t feel safe here,” said Brandon Vulpitta, the owner of Brando’s Speakeasy, a popular karaoke bar near the shelter on Plymouth Court. “Our clients don’t feel safe anymore.”