Violent crime tends to peak between June and August in Cincinnati, due partially to a rise in youth crime rates during summer break. To combat youth summer crime, the city announced Wednesday that it’s expanding its Summer in Cincy program.
“We know that, unfortunately, violence spikes when the weather is warmer and school is out,” said City Manager Sheryl Long in a press release. “We can’t ignore that reality, and we can’t police our way out of that reality. We have to offer something constructive, positive and safe to the kids and young people who might otherwise turn to violence. Summer in Cincy is one of many ways we do that.”
The Summer in Cincy program, now in its third year, will expand its youth violence-reduction programming in 2025. The city announced Wednesday it’s expanding weekly programming activities like Rec at Nite, a Saturday night program with activities like silent discos and open swims, which will be held at two locations in 2025: West End and Avondale at the Hirsch and Lincoln centers.
Both of these centers are located in or close to “summer hot spots,” which are areas where 31% of violent crime, 42% of shooting victims and 19% of the incidents with a firearm reported stolen were located, according to Cincinnati Police Department’s 2025 Summer Safety and Violence Interventions report, released Wednesday.
In addition to Rec at Nite, the city advertises youth sports leagues, teen skate nights, summer camps and public pools on the Summer in Cincy page on the City’s website. While the Rec at Nite and Teen Skate Night events are free, the sports leagues, pool youth memberships and summer camps have fees ranging from approximately $15 to $2,100. Many of these summer camps cap their enrollment age at 13.
The city has increasingly swung its focus to preventing youth-involved crimes in recent years. From 2022 to 2024, there was a general rise in youth-involved calls for service despite a general decrease in overall violent crime rates from 2022 to 2023, as reported by the CPD in their 2024 Annual Statistical Review. From 2023 to 2024, transit centers and schools saw major increases in these types of youth-involved calls.
The Summer in Cincy initiative is just one of the ongoing youth engagement initiatives that have been implemented in Cincinnati. These initiatives include the Children in Trauma Intervention Camp, the Cadet Program, the Collaborative Agreement Community Care Initiative and more. The City of Cincinnati also links family support assistance, such as summer food locations and emergency family shelters on the Summer in Cincy website.
“We are proud to continue doubling down on our violence-reduction strategies,” said Mayor Aftab Pureval, “because we have seen the positive difference they can make.”
This article appears in May 14-27, 2025.