The Fort Worth City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to hire Kentucky-based Block by Block to run an ambassador program in the West 7th District.

The move comes roughly four months after TCU junior Wes Smith was shot and killed outside a nightclub on the 3000 Block of Bledsoe Street.

The city will pay the company $315,000 to patrol the area roughly bounded by West 7th Street to the north, University Drive to the west, Lancaster Street to the south, and Foch Street to the east. Ambassadors will greet visitors to the entertainment district as well as serve as an extra set of eyes for law enforcement looking to increase safety in the area.

Block by Block is the same company that runs the ambassador program in downtown Fort Worth. The city is opting to use an agreement with the city of Denton to expedite its contracting process.

This will allow the city to ramp up the ambassador program months faster than if it had gone through its normal contracting process, a city spokesperson said in an email to the Star-Telegram.

Ambassadors could be hitting the streets of West 7th as early as late spring or early summer, the spokesperson said.

The program is a pilot one that will be funded by the city’s Crime Control and Prevention District. If it’s successful, the city anticipates the program would be continued through a special taxing district, which could be set up as early as February, the spokesperson said.

Fort Worth also contributed $50,000 to a $150,000 safety study looking at the city’s entertainment districts, which, in addition to West 7th, includes the Stockyards, Near Southside, and downtown.