Rating the Suburbs - Is It Relevant to the Mayoral Election?

[Jeff Endress]

It's interesting to watch how some respond to not winning.

I can only speak for myself.....When I found out that we hadn't won, it struck me like a ton of bricks. It was almost as bad as LeBron getting Dissed. After I had a walk through of the new library, as I was passing the new Harding Middle school. My depression continued to increase. My workout at the Y followed by a walk by the lakefront didn't give me solace. Even the cheery wave of the refuse worker as he headed up my driveway for trash collection didn't raise my spirits.

I agree with Shawn. The critical issue for any Mayoral candidate is the absolute commitment that Lakewood will at least be in the top 5 of next year's Cleveland Mag. suburbs review. In much the same way as our schools are required to teach to the standardized tests, I think every responsible city administration should use Cleveland Mag's objective, exhaustive and meaningful study as its barometer of success.

The candidate that can deliver that has my vote. Otherwise, I think I'll sell out, buy a Winnebago, and simply follow the survey shifts.

Jeff

[Justine Cooper]

I think this is a subject relevant to the Mayoral Election.

I agree, but only in the sense that I would drastically oppose any candidate that even considered this list to be anything more than a junior high level popularity contest.

Anyone who puts a list like that together obviously does not value ANY of the same characteristics as the predominant number of people who CHOOSE to live in Lakewood.

If you don't like neighbors, if you like to drive to everything, if you only feel comfortable with people of the same geopolitical, social and ethnic background, then any of the communities on that list are perfect for you.

Bret,
I think this is twice, but I agree 100% with your post! All the communities listed in the top twenty are wealthy and without diversity. The biggest question though is who cares what is listed? Thank the Lord that we are all not back in High School in a popularity contest of what OTHERS think about us! The residents that choose to live here are here for the reasons that they know in their heart are what is important to them and their families! The list is endless of what Lakewood offers over those communities. People that want to discuss racism on the Deck, go sit at some parties over in some of those communities. They may not talk about it but the air is thick with a false sense of being better than... I would rather have root canal than attend parties again in some of those communities. And at least Lakewood residents have the courage to discuss it, even if all don't agree!

Shawn,

That being said, I still agree there is much work to be done in this city to keep it clean, safe, and vibrant. I hope people continue to support Lakewood businesses here (and yea to Class Act's full page in PD and Beer Engine's full page in Free Times) and all stay active regardless of elections to keep Lakewood thriving.

[Rick Uldricks]

Help me understand:

Lakewood's not in the top 20 so the magazine that conducted the survey sucks, the way they scored the survey was unethical and besides, all of the other suburbs suck too, so it doesn't even matter?

I hope we've canceled our ad campaign with this unethical fish-wrap.

[Justine Cooper]

Everyone gets what they need out of where they choose to live. Those suburbs don't suck for the people who live there, but they are not what everyone chooses. And don't they all seem to have certain things in common? I say who cares. We need to keep building new enviable schools and find some ways to keep our enviable parks clean and graffiti free. If we focus on that we won't have time to read reports that aren't relevant really.

[Bill Call]

...So why care about what Cleveland Magazine thinks? Their "top suburbs" are all outer-ring, mostly affluent suburbs. And not exactly racially diverse or economically diverse, either. .....

Great post.

The only thing the survey results tell us is that suburbs that have smaller populations with greater household income have lower crime rates and students who are easier to teach. DUUHHH

Some parts of the survey make no sense.

They are saying the housing price appreciation in Lakewood is 8% for the entire 6 year period from 01 to 06. I think that contradicts what was reported last year in the survey and what has been reported by the MLS.

However, some of the issues raised in the survey do have a bearing on the Mayor's race. In no particular order:

Crime - Policing strategies and leadership can make a difference

Affordability - Operating efficiencies and leader can make a difference

Housing - Let's face it, a homeowner feels a lot better about his community if housing prices are beating the average. All the items listed in the survey affect housing prices. Leadership can make a difference.

Environmental infractions - This is another one that doesn't make a lot of sense. Lakewood has 5 and Lorain with all of its heavy industry has 9?

[Kate McCarthy]

Cleveland Magazine has always been a vehicle to sell advertising and it does it quite well. I have to admit I like pouring over their various surveys...sometimes just for pure entertainment value...like the time Buca de Bepo or whatever it's called was rated the number 1 Italian restaurant in the region. Now if that doesn't call into question a survey's methodology, I don't know what does.

Nevertheless, I wonder about the safety ratings. Does anyone know how consistent or inconsistent the methods of recording and reporting crime statistics are from community to community? I'm curious in that among my friends who live in the Heights, those living in Cleveland Heights complain about being victims of crimes to a much greater degree than the people who live in Shaker Heights, and there is a great disparity in the the two communities' safety ratings with Shaker ranked 63 and Cleveland Heights ranked 20. All anecdotal I know, but I wonder because an employee of one of the top 20 communities once told me that the crime statistics from that community do not reflect the reality and much is swept under the rug.

[Dr. Larry Keller]

Ken and All:

How a community ranks depends upon the values upon which it is ranked. Sort of like blighted housing. Quantitative analysis of the quality of life focuses on what is easily measured and readily available. These variables may not be related to actual life in the community and certainly don't capture the diversity of experiences in different parts of the community. They do have relevance as they get publicity and thus create issues whether we like it or not. What counts is how we process the issues not whether they are created or not.

Classification by type of community and its location in a metropolitan area would help attempts at ranking. As others note, Lakewood is one of the few walking cities and if compared to other such cities, such as Cleveland Heights, the result might be of some use. Otherwise, the rankings attempt to equate all which doesn't make sense.

What is useful is to note the strengths of a community and the extent to which these are being maintained and ideally enhanced. This is important for politics not general ratings that don't distinguish basic differences. Such a consideration is also important when examining costs of living as maintaining an older house is usually more costly than maintaining a new one. However, some prefer older homes and thus the issue is how effective one deals with the costs involved rather than compared to a different housing choice. I think the same analysis applies to different types of cities.

The same goes for universities, hospitals, etc. The more I experience locations and institutions, the more useful I find insightful evaluations such as those from novelists and travelers than quanitative analyses. That the latter are spreading in health care causes lots of concern!

[Kate McCarthy]

Larry,

I agree that quantitative comparisons between such disparate communities are not very meaningful...and what you said is certainly demonstrated in the surveyed response to the question "if money were no object, where would you choose to live?" where Lakewood and all the other westside lakefront communities placed into the top 10 while very few of the top 20 communities were present. Basically, a house in Solon is not very many people's "if I had a million dollars" fantasy. Lake Erie is our region's number 1 amenity and Westlake might put it in its name, but it just doesn't have it.

So since Larry brings up Cleveland Heights as a comparable community, how does our comparative safety rating sit with people? Do you think the Cleveland Magazine's rating for safety seems at all meaningful to anyone? As I asked before, does anyone know how consistent or inconsistent the methods of recording and reporting crime statistics are from community to community? The Cleveland Magazine survey dropped East Cleveland because of the lack of crime statistics. And is Cleveland Heights really that much safer than Lakewood? As I said, it is all anecdotal, but when I talk to friends from the Heights my experiences in Lakewood are much more in line with my friends who live in Shaker and friends in Cleveland Heights complain to a much greater degree about crime.

Any ideas?

[Kenneth Warren]

Kate:

Look at the number of cops in Cleveland Heights.

Times and demos in Lakewood have changed. Police manpower has not kept up with the load, criminal and psychiatric. The proactive force of old time Lakewood PD has waned under the contemporary burden. Talk to any street cop.

Nobody wants to hear it: Lakewood needs 20 to 30 more street cops in order to enact proactive strategies required here and now.

Do any Mayoral candidates have the guts to tell it like it is, even the comers who like to talk police strategy?

When Ryan Demro said there is no lack of money only a lack of leadership at his campaign kick-off, he clearly was not thinking very comprehensively about police strategy.

Perhaps we must wait for the data, heads in the sand, trusting in the Youth Master Plan?

It's time to face the music on safety, demand elected officials and police play it straight and involve citizens in planning and accountability and field intelligence strategies and that we pay the piper for the quality of protection once associated with Lakewood.

The Youth Master Plan might provide some connectivity amongst organizations. Will the plan include the level of informational disclosure and transparency concerning hotspots, emerging problems with a certain commitment to a citizen/neighborhood interface? What are the abatement programs for kids on the cusp of thugdom, if not outright gang subculture? What are the school/police/regional hooks to crime prevention/narcotics work?

People need to know these things, and the LO stands at the ready to disseminate the news.

That said I don’t believe a Youth Master Plan will provide the answer to the critical safety needs of Lakewood in the 21 century. I believe that given the street crimes and defiant thug behavior we are all seeing on the rise in our neighborhoods (not to mention the far more disturbing action in Cleveland neighborhoods, say, around Madison in the 80s and 90s) the Mayor and Council and the Police Chief and rank and file and the Schools with its Lakewood Charter Academy needs to conduct a Crime and Safety forum.

Elements would include: Current Assessment of Neighborhood Concerns, Comparative Benchmarks, Current Practices, Criminal Mapping, Gang Prevention, Gathering Intelligence from the Neighborhood Field State-of-the-Art Concepts and Deployments, Community Enlistment, Thug Abatement.

Our city needs the Mayor and Council and the Police Chief and rank and file street cops leading the way in a plan that identifies the financial resources and safety strategies that will respond the times.

Until we see that level of leadership, intent on disclosing safety and crime mapping methods, enlisting citizens for field intelligence, and seeing police and citizens going door-to-door to ensure effective neighborhood norms, there will be little progress on the safety front.

Kenneth Warren

[Kevin Butler]

Ken, this is a great post, and a personal challenge.

What do you mean by "enlisting citizens for field intelligence," and how do you think that can be made more salable to our current police force?

You're a man armed with studies. Have other communities done this successfully?

Kevin Butler
(City Council, Ward 1)

[Bill Call]

Nobody wants to hear it: Lakewood needs 20 to 30 more street cops in order to enact proactive strategies required here and now.

Do any Mayoral candidates have the guts to tell it like it is, even the comers who like to talk police strategy?

I don't think manpower is the problem.

20 or 30 new officers would cost $3 million dollars per year with a good possibility that the increase in manpower would have no affect on crime rates or safety.

If the City decides to spend $30 million dollars over a ten year period the money could better be spent on a dedicated housing program. Use the money to eliminate obsolete housing and apartments, financial assistance for new office or retail, beautification projects or other fixed asset improvements.

Effective enforcement and proper manpower levels are important factors in community safety but not THE most important. The most important factor is fewer thugs. And you get few thugs by attracting more non thugs and you attract more non thugs with desireable housing.

A revitalization program that depends upon more police manpower equates building more jails with revitalization.

If the City does decide that the solution to its problems are building more jails then don't add on to the damage by paying for it with a tax increase. The money for more police is available in the fire department overtime budget.

[Jeff Endress]

Bill

Is housing a problem? Of course it is. But, attracting the type of tennant that you would like to see in Lakewood will not be done if there is the perception and/or reality of decline. With a greater law enforcement presence, even a neighborhood in need of repair can be safe and clean. That invites private investment.

It's really a chicken/egg problem. But, deterioration can happen in a blink. Regrowth takes years. You have to first halt the deterioration with increased law enforcement, enforce the building codes and then the capital improvements will follow. But, without the former, you'll never achieve the latter, no matter how money you throw at it.

Jeff

[Kate McCarthy]

Police manpower has not kept up with the load, criminal and psychiatric. The proactive force of old time Lakewood PD has waned under the contemporary burden. Talk to any street cop.

Ken,

I did look at the numbers and Lakewood has a much lower number of officers per 100 in population than either Cleveland Heights or Shaker. And I would have to say that I have seen a decline in the proactive activities of the Lakewood police force since I first moved to Lakewood in the early 80s. Friends used to complain about getting tickets for speeding on Warren or being stopped for a broken headlight or loud muffler. Not any more.

Though I still wonder how uniform crime reporting is. Is the police officer in a more homogeneous upper middle class community more likely to hand out an unrecorded warning than a officer in a more diverse community? I still worry about head to head comparisons.

But I'm not dismissing Lakewood's need to deal with the safety numbers at hand. And I am anxious to see the mayoral candidates' respective strategies in this area.

[Kenneth Warren]

Kate:

I share your concern about the quality controls and methods for reporting crime data. That's why I look at manpower, population, demographics, strategies and technology as key elements for us to raise into the consciousness of political leaders and taxpayers.

Regina Brett captures the essence of Cleveland Heights in terms of police and diversity:

"Two things that strike you when you become a Cleveland Heights resident: The city's police force and the city's diversity.

The town boasts a true mix of black and white, gay and straight, rich and poor and everything in between.

And then there are the police.

They are everywhere, and sometimes in places where you don't want to find them, like lighting up your rearview mirror or tucking a ticket under your wipers.

But the longer you live here, you're glad that they are everywhere."

Source:
http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindeal ... xml&coll=2

Can we say the same for Lakewood?

I don't exactly know how Cleveland Magazine factors raw ratio of police manpower to population. Do you?

Councilman Butler:

Thank you for the inquiry.

I am not armed as heavily as you assume. I am a librarian.

Three strands of broad conceptual grounding inform my thinking about police and community work: 1) Wesley G. Skogan (Police and community in Chicago: a tale of three cities); 2) David Harris (Preventive Policing) and 3) George Kelling and Catherine Coles (Fixing Broken Windows: Restoring Order and Reducing Crime in Our Communities). Each brings a different method, sometimes critical of the assumptions driving their differences, to the table. Getting a critical sense of each author’s approach is important, I believe, for anyone scanning the issues and, more importantly, the tripwires of contemporary policing practices.

Here are several links for background:

http://usmayors.org/uscm/best_practices ... P_2006.pdf

http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/files/ric/Pub ... 060064.pdf

http://www.northwestern.edu/ipr/publica ... icing.html

http://www.northwestern.edu/ipr/publica ... PSeval.pdf

http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov2004/everymot ... es_ws.html

Bill:

Sure we have too much housing, with the drop in interest rates and no money down mortgages allowing the young couples who set up shop in Lakewood doubles in the old days to buy a house in Medina or some other burb out of the box. A housing solution is a long term, and unlikely to relieve here and now conditions on the ground which are critical right now, at least in my estimation.

Consider the action over the last year or so. Gun and knife wielding thugs are attempting to get a toehold in Lakewood at the same time the denizens of the psychiatric ghetto demand by their disordering behavior the service of police officers as care-giving wardens. Something has to give or neighborhoods will be lost.

The chaos-makers and criminals from the urban core population are preying on Lakewood, which lacks the manpower and the political will to enact the systematic organization of an effective community policing strategy, perhaps along the lines of Chicago.

Again, we need the Mayor and Council, the police and the citizens to study carefully, dialog deeply and then take bold, courageous and thoughtful action in recognition of the criminal and chaotic behavior setting up shop in Lakewood and drifting in from the points east.

I understand the Lakewood Police will be putting some extra time into the keeping thugs at bay in the parks this summer. But these are only band-aids.

I know you prefer libertarian solutions and if you can supply a conceal carry posse equivalent in effectiveness to 30 more cops on the street, I am willing to listen to your vision.

Kenneth Warren

[Joe Ott]

Again, we need the Mayor and Council, the police and the citizens to study carefully, dialog deeply and then take bold, courageous and thoughtful action in recognition of the criminal and chaotic behavior setting up shop in Lakewood and drifting in from the points east.

The city better act quickly.