Businesses in downtown Las Cruces reported a recent spike in people shoplifting and people urinating on the outside of their shops.
Business owners told KFOX14 they hoped to get solutions by the end of Thursday night.
"There have been a couple of times when we come back from the store and the outside of our walls there’s stains of various stuff that the homeless have left over," said Shaun Padilla an employee for White’s Music Box.
"Usually we can get them to go but there’s been cases where you actually have to call 911 and say hey this person won’t leave were being harassed," said Mary Wunderlich the owner of Mew and Company.
Mary Wunderlich was a business owner and Shaun Padilla was an employee of a downtown business.
Wunderlich and Padilla said there is an increase in vandalism and acts of violence to their businesses.
Wunderlich said she even faced one violent shoplifter.
"He starts backing away toward the door and I approach him and I said, 'may I have that back please?' and he throws it at me and the store was full of people," said Wunderlich, "You do not want that as a business owner having people afraid in your space."
Police said businesses will be able to make suggestions at a meeting Thursday night on how they would like the city to help them with the increase in vandalism.
Wunderlich said she wanted to go to the meeting to be more informed on what to do in cases where she felt her business and her customers were threatened.
"It’s like a bunch of women in the store so it’s like ok how do we approach this and handle this best and make sure everybody’s safe and our customers are safe," said Wunderlich.
KFOX14 asked both businesses what they would like to see the city do.
Wunderlich said she wanted to see more police activity in the downtown area.
"Where businesses can have a communication line with the police so they’re not calling 911," said Wunderlich
The city even suggested forming a downtown business watch program, which Padilla agreed with.
"I believe the watch would be pretty useful," said Padilla, "Hopefully a little bit more control on the people that walk through here."
The community meeting Las Cruces will be mediating started Thursday night at 5:30.
Downtown Las Cruces businesses could attend and make suggestions on what they would like to see get done.
Sign up to receive the top interesting stories from in and around our community once daily in your inbox.