By james art Rich Gilbert has been at the helm of Café Parfait for 17 years and supports our Reclaim our Parks campaign.
He has previously pushed for action and even put up a banner warning people to avoid parks at night, but said he was asked to take it down by Southampton City Council.
Rich would feel at ease if there was at least one camera in Watts Park and East Park which surround the club.
He said: “I am concerned about the safety of my customers and I want people to be safe.
“Having a camera in the parks is a brilliant idea and I have been saying for years that they are not safe.
“People should not go through them at night – anyone can hide in a bush.
“At the end of the night, me and my team do everything we can to make sure people don’t leave the club alone, especially vulnerable women.
“But men have also been sexually assaulted and raped, and we’re trying to help them all.”
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Ten years ago, Rich put a banner on the fence at Watts Park warning people of potential dangers.
But it angered the council and he said he was told by authorities not to “talk about the parks in a bad way” and to remove the banner.
Rich said: “I would be over the moon if CCTV cameras were installed as I think people would be safer.
“We’re between two parks, so we try to make sure people never leave and enter them alone.
“And we work with the police if there is a crime near us as we have our own CCTV at the front of the club.
“The police often come to us if something has happened to someone in the park.
Responding to the concerns raised, Cllr Christie Lambert, cabinet member for safer cities, said the council was “always looking at ways to improve the safety of our public spaces”.
This includes reviewing the lighting in the park and working with the police, the two universities, the GO! Southampton and Street Pastors.
Reclaim our Parks is calling for CCTV to be installed in all parks.