DENVER (KDVR) -- The Wheat Ridge Police Department says a hotel ordinance passed in 2021 has lowered crime around the area of Interstate 70 and Kipling.

An ordinance to establish a hotel licensing program was passed by the Wheat Ridge City Council in October 2021, at a time in which the WRPD says around 1 in 10 service calls were dedicated to the nine hotels in the city.

Since the ordinance went into effect, the WRPD said in a post on X on Friday it has seen a 28.5% drop in crime within the quarter mile of the I-70 and Kipling area, with calls for service at Wheat Ridge hotels and motels down 53% during the same time frame.

A Holiday Inn Express & Suites, Super 8 Motel, Comfort Inn, Apple Inn and Suites and American Motel are all in the area of I-70 and Kipling.

The ordinance put a cap on the number of days a guest could stay — barring an extended stay addendum — required participation in a crime-free hotel/motel programs and set an acceptable number of calls for service each month, the WRPD said.

The WRPD said hotels or motels that violated the ordinance were at risk of having their business license revoked by the city, which could also push for safety changes.

Since the ordinance, hotel and motel calls for service went from accounting for 10% of all police calls to only 4% last year, according to the WRPD.

"We have been committed to proactive police work over the past two years and will continue to patrol this area to promote public safety. The work continues," the department said.