Where is the safest place to park a car at Spanish Springs?
 

We do not go to SS much because we have seen some shady characters hanging out in the parking lots and that is where the guy was killed by a group of thugs a few weeks ago.

However, after watching Joey Dee and the Starlights at Brownwood on Saturday, we very much want to see them at SS next week. In your opinion, where is the safest place to park our car?

there isn't! if you don't get mugged you will probably step in a pile of dog poop or if its dark a coyote or florida panther will bite you. plus there are std infections evferywhere!!!:a040:

We have never had a problem parking in SS.

:1rotfl:

Do you get the std from a coyote or panther bite or do you or your dog have to eat the poop???? (I don't make this stuff up, there was another thread on this very subject)...

I think..........
The lot of us are tired waiting for that big blob of rain to hit our area. I think that whole thing on radar is a weather service conspiracy....

seems to hit a wall in the inverness area

SS town Square is as safe as the rest of The Villages. There have been very few incidents there. Certainly the restaurant employee losing his life was a huge tragedy, and there have been one or two golf carts stolen, but it's not exactly downtown Detroit.

It seems that some people here, hear one or two stories and believe that there is a big crime problem. There isn't. There have been two or three isolated incidents over the past 4-1/2 years that I've been here. For a community of 130,000 that's an extremely small amount.

Don't forget the Cougars!

The young man that lost his life is indeed very tragic.
With that being said, had he called the police instead of going after and confronting those guys, this may have not happened.

https://www.talkofthevillages.com/fo...7574-crime.png

Looks to me like you'd be safer in Lady Lake than Wildwood.

We have observed several thug-looking groups hanging out in the parking lots at SS. Over near the veterans monument, we saw a young guy trying to make a serious phone call (drug deal?) while his trashy-looking girlfriend was hanging all over him. Maybe that happens more in the parking lots near to 441.

My guess is it might be better to park behind the Rialto, which is farther from 441.

What do thugs look like? How do I know when they're making a drug deal on the phone? If I think that someone is making a serious phone call, is it a drug deal? Just curious.

https://www.talkofthevillages.com/fo.../7575-thug.jpg

The original thugs, The Bowery Boys

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...cc503bf7f5.jpg

How could you tell it was a serious phone call ? And how could you determine it was a drug deal ?

I don't think the OP is alone in his thinking. Based on what I've read here many people conceal carry. My thinking that's way overboard, this isn't Dodge City 1883 ! Maybe a can of mace but not a freaking weapon [emoji379]...
To each his own in how their world is perceived I guess.

If you take Morse to Rio Grande to Del Mar like I do to get to Spanish Springs, then this is where I park. After you go through the Del Mar gate and cross the 4-way stop at Avenida Central, make an immediate left after the townhomes, if you miss that one, there is another left turn left in about 50' just after the wall. If you pass Villages Insurance, you've gone too far. It's basically the parking lot for MVP, and they aren't that busy at night. If you're in the right lot and look at the large MVP building, you see this entrance shown below. I've parked in that lot many times over the last five years and not had a problem, also it's good for craft shows because they don't close off Del Mar until after that turn off.

http://www.mvpsportsclubs.com/sites/...sh-springs.jpg

It seems everyone seems to have forgotten all the diners who were robbed @ gunpoint, while sitting @ the outside dining area of Gators- a perp walked alongside them & cleaned them out.

The proximity to 441/27 makes it a prime hunting ground--numerous cars have been broken into and very recently 2 yes 2 golf carts have been stolen

And yet Wildwood is still more dangerous (proximity to 44 and Wildwood in general).

The crime rate in TV is very low. One in a while, something may happen but it is safe. IMHO

I am in SS three times a week and have been here for three years and have not had an incident yet!

This is no reason to be alarmed. IMHO

If you feel uneasy park in the square itself assuming you can get a spot.

That's where I park when I drive to SS too. It's a large lot and it's usually easy to find a good parking spot.

You're right about the proximity to 441/27, that's why so many were not happy with the placement of Brownwood so close to Wildwood. However, you have to make the merchants happy, and if you go into Gator's Dockside at Brownwood at lunch time you'll see why. That place gets packed and they aren't villagers, a lot of workers from Wildwood and the surrounding area come in.

The incident you mentioned about being robbed at SS Gator's, I can only find that happening once. It was in 2013 and was a midnight. So it was really an isolated incident and was three hours after the music at the square shuts down. I can't post a link to the online newspaper, so here is the article.

At 11:57 p.m. Dec. 1, 2013 a man walked onto the outdoor bar area, walked past the victims, left the outdoor bar area and then approached the victims through the archway from the sidewalk, according to Lady Lake Police.

The man then brandished a small black semi-auto pistol and demanded the victims give him their money. The suspect then left the area on foot and got into the passenger side of an early 2000s silver Lincoln LS and fled the area.

The suspect is a white male 25-30 years old, approximately 6 feet tall, with a thin build, according to Lady Lake Police. The suspect was wearing blue jeans, a black-and-red basketball jersey and a ball cap.

Detectives have reviewed video surveillance footage. A sketch of the suspect has been released.

Anyone with information should contact Detective Ronald Michaud or Detective Butch Perdue at 751-1542.

What I would more concerned about if I were someone who stayed out that late would be the fights that occur in and around Margarita Republic. Again, it's a place that stays open until 2am. Most villagers this is beyond their bedtime, so they are inviting outsiders with such late hours.

Golf carts stolen, that's a problem that is mainly in the SS area, the last stolen were parked alongside the Rialto Theater on Alonzo Ave. The second cart stolen was on Alverez Ave., which runs past TooJays. My suggestion is don't take your cart there, we drive our car but that's because it's far, especially when driving back home in the dark. If I did drive a cart to SS regularly, I would use something like the club that we use on the car. Especially one that locks the steering wheel and the gas pedal. This one is available on eBay for $16 and free shipping.

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTAwMFgxMD...XOcSi/$_58.JPG

Steering Wheel Lock to Pedal Anti Theft Car Truck Security Auto Universal Red | eBay

Remember the good old days when Spanish Springs had valet parking?

Finally someone with a brain who is answering the original question. I think parking anywhere near this area; in general, is very safe and a short walk.

Speaking of crime;

They had a sting Friday and got an orthopedic doctor and the lady from Duval, but I think it was at some motel in Wildwood. There were several other folks arrested too. The story is in the you know what.

Was not a ring.............was a sting.

Oh. You are right. Sting.

two legged or four legged variety???:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

Do not let all of the alarmists frighten you. The Villages are very safe and the isolated incidents should not keep anyone from enjoying oneself.

:welcome:

So, here?

Google Maps
--
Bob C

Looked at that story. As described, I think the operation borders on entrapment. Beyond that, did you see the pix of the women who wanted to get paid for sex? Enough said, one picture is worth a thousand words:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

Entrapment? No. Unattractive? Yes.

If a guy is on the phone while a good-looking girl is hanging all over him, it must be a very serious phone call.

Well, it didn't look like he was calling his stockbroker.

I don't think CCW is limited to SS, it probably happens as frequently at LSL or Brownwood.
I even read that some residents carry concealed at mail stations! :eek:

Look up Valet Parking in various threads here about a year ago.

See how much respect the naysayers showed for handicapped and elderly people, theater goers who are dressed up and don't want to get rain soaked, and single/widowed women who don't want to risk getting beaten/raped. The naysayers wouldn't pay money for help like that, so it had to be shot down here.

The service was eventually discontinued at SS. The contracted company from Orlando who operated it is not the only way to do valet service.

There were also reasonable suggestions for having extended-seating golf cart shuttles from parking lots to the square and The Sharon, like the hospital has. But again, that wasn't an original idea of those who know everything here, so it, too, was shot down.

I thought Valet Parking was a good idea.
I don't think the failure of Valet Parking had anything to do with the opinions of naysayers on TOTV.
Or perhaps I misunderstood your post. :confused:

As I said, "see how much respect naysayers here showed" for the people who were in favor of it.

Here, you can review, class.
https://www.talkofthevillages.com/fo...=valet+parking

There have been several groups of young adults in that area of Spanish Springs because they are playing that Pokemon Go game on their phones. The game is based on map locations and landmarks.

One guy making a "serious" phone call doesn't make everyone in the area and not over 55 a thug.

I'm much more concerned about folks leaving the square intoxicated than I am packs of teens and young adults staring at their phones.

Better than nothing.
 

I hate to destroy your sense of security, but I can defeat that device in under ten seconds. So can auto thieves who have been doing so for years. Such devices are simply to keep the honest away from temptation.

As we all know, the ignition switch on most golf carts can be defeated very quickly also. A somewhat effective device is to have a hidden switch that prevents a circuit from the ignition switch from being completed. Even that can be found if there is ample time for a search, but it is more likely that the potential thief would just move on to another cart.

But, I will grant you that if your cart, with the device you advocate, is parked beside a cart without one, the unprotected cart is more likely to be taken.

The parking at MVP is for it's members and you may be denied access for some special events as I have seen their staff rope off access.

I agree it is safe, as I have going there for three years.

The OP is going to get a wrong impression TV is filled with a lot of crime, by people posting horror stories.

The crime rate in TV is very low. It is a very safe place.