ROANOKE, Va. – City officials are trying everything to prevent crime in one section of Roanoke and all this can happen while getting a haircut or hairstyle.
Now, they're trying a different approach targeting barber shops and salon owners in the northwest area.
Monday saw the first meeting with barbershop and beauty salon owners coming together with city officials to talk about what they need to help the lives of the people they may see on a regular basis.
Inside his barbershop Ground Zero, Antonio Morris says he is changing lives by making people look their best. He not only cuts hair but also takes time to hear concerns from customers.
"Sometimes we get real personal and talk about different things and their family or my family and things like that. But a lot of community talk goes on in here," Morris said.
And community talk is something Mayor Sherman Lea is having with barbers and hair salon owners, especially those in northwest Roanoke.
"We feel that this is important and we feel some good things can generate from this by us communicating," Lea said.
Lea says barbers and beauticians are usually the first to hear about the problems in the community.
"Women in hair salons can tell you a lot about what's going on with domestic violence," Lea said.
The mayor invited various organizations offering resources to children and their parents.
"While the children are waiting for their parents to get their hair done they can be reading some constructive books about life," Lea said.
Lea says partnering with shop owners isn't a way to keep tabs on people, but a way to have a positive impact on others.
"I hope more people will get involved and talk about different issues and become more active and try to prevent things from going on," Morris said.
Roanoke City police say this method of meeting with barber shops and salons is also used and successful in other cities including Raleigh, North Carolina.