shape the 61st and Peoria area,” says District 8 City Councilor Phil Lakin. “The residents there don’t just need better living conditions; they need access to better social and medical services, grocery stores, transportation and physical activities (via the park that sits very near that intersection). Taking a holistic approach to improving this community will provide for far better results, compared to the Band-Aid application that has been and is typically applied. “This Council doesn’t seem to be interested in a quick fix; rather, it’s focused on a long-term solution to markedly improving peoples’ lives.” Brooks says there are several more recommendations forthcoming. “The recommendations alone will not lower crime,” he says, “but the commitment and followthrough will be pivotal in aiding in the reduction and prevention of crime. The police alone can only do so much in crime-fighting efforts. It will take a partnership of the police,
the citizens, community leaders, homeowners, business owners and anyone else with a vested interest to have a true and long-lasting effect. “Establishing long-lasting relationships in crime prevention, providing health and educational resources, and social enhancement opportunities will eventually lead to safer neighborhoods,” Brooks says. In addition, he says that “Alert Neighbor programs are growing, and police are working much closer with neighborhood associations to prevent, deter and investigate crimes. TPD has worked with neighborhood associations by assisting in organizing Alert Neighbor programs, Citizen Patrol programs and through Tulsa CrimeStoppers. Police officers are also talking with the residents of their patrol area.” “The Neighborhood Alliance has worked closely with the OCPD for many years,” says Meckling. “Among the tools we offer in partnership with the police are neighborhood-specific crime reports. We publish those reports on our website and also send out a postal mailing each month to the neighborhood contact listed with us. It’s important that neighborhoods keep their information with us up-to-date so that the police or city can contact the neighborhood with information that affects their area. We work hand-in-hand with the police community relations officers in bringing crime-watch skills to neighborhoods, and helping neighborhoods maintain an organization that can combat the undesirable factors in their neighborhood.” The intersection of police, neighbor and city efforts recently played out with notable success in Norman, where a troubled property began to blight an entire neighborhood. 1207 Cruce Street had become a hangout for criminal suspects and drug abusers. Police had
been called to the residence some 70 times and made 25 arrests. Families were afraid to allow their children to play outside, and at one point, someone had even been beaten unconscious outside the residence. Both neighbors and police had had enough. Working with the city council and code enforcement, they called upon a rarely-used ordinance to declare the property a nuisance. Under the ordinance, the water meter was removed and the house was declared unfit for human habitation for at least six months, allowing a window of time for the house to be improved and the undesirable element removed. “The incidents related to 1207 Cruce are perfect examples of how the community, police and other city departments worked together to ensure a high quality of life would not be interrupted,” says City of Norman Police Chief Keith Humphrey. “The first positive thing is that citizens followed the first rule of community-oriented policing and contacted the police regarding concerns. Two of our officers who worked this area recognized that they were answering repeat calls to this location. The officers begin to work with the neighbors in this area, which I truly believe validated [that] we really wanted to partner. The officers then partnered with code enforcement because some of the incidents were not criminal. “As you can see, communication on all levels was vital,” Humphrey continues. “I recently drove this area and personally observed kids playing in front yards and just more positive activity in the immediate area.” Humphrey says that the Norman Police Department is at work on several communityoriented police initiatives, funded by the public safety sales tax passed by the city in 2008, including a Citizens’ Police Academy, teen-outreach programs and partnerships with local apartment complexes to implement the Crime Free Multi-Housing Program. “Norman has become a
“at the neighborhood alliance, we like to say that living in a safe, beautiful and healthy neighborhood is a responsibility, not a right.”
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