The Observation Deck

When we first moved here from West Park we had been considering block watches and had heard some of the obstacles mentioned that LPD and the city had put in place. If I remember one was that 51% of the houses needed to participate which makes it tough to grow involvement. Beyond those though the one that really stopped our effort was that we weren't sure if we really wanted to know some of our neighbors so intimately. Don't get me wrong there are some great families that we've met. But as it turned out two of the neighbors that we didn't want to hand the responsibility of watching over our house while we were away, either abandoned their house or were hauled away in handcuffs for dealing drugs.
I think that the image of Block Watches are neighbors pulling together to be on the lookout for the buglar in the black and white striped sweater and the bandit mask. The reality is that the bad guy may be the neighbor that you just asked to watch your house or worse your kids. If there is going to be a block watch, a background check should be a requirement.

Shawn makes a good point that I think is relevant to Lakewood. Some of the neighbors themselves are the problem. The criminal element is literally moving into some neighborhoods.

The problem is not the opportunistic criminal from elsewhere who shows up one day to ransack someone's house while they are on vacation and quickly exits on I90 to Chicago.

Doug

Doug

"Block Watch" is a trademarked group that is about presenting safe houses for children to run to if there is trouble. This could be a molester, bully, lost anything. these homes are recognized by the sign in the window.

However, why one earth would anyone need any permission to walk their streets?

While the base of our views differ, Mark and I had spoken about "neighbors" walking the streets with cell phones, note pads and digital camera, probably in the phones. Mark felt it would be nice to have a "base station" for people to call that understood the legal system.

It was nothing more than eyes on the street. Just the stories about such a group would help combat some crime. Others that were caught by the police after being notified by "walkers" would certainly tell their friends in the next cell and word travels.

As I have mentioned before even with funding in place, we only got one volunteer. These groups have got to be in place before the trouble starts as highlighted in last years paper.

How much sense is it to allow the police with a rate of about 75% not living here telling us we cannot walk the streets and take notes?

FWIW


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What happened to little old ladies and nosy neighbors? Have they gone out of style?

They are the best method to prevent crime. They know who should or shouldn't be around and they call the police when they need to.

Knowing who your neighbors are is the best way to keep your street safe. If you know your neighbor is on vacation and you see a door ajar, you call the police. If you see kids talking to a person you've never seen before, you call. If you hear fighting or screaming, you call the police.

If I saw people walking down my street with notebooks and cameras, I'd call the police.

Grace O'Malley wrote: If I saw people walking down my street with notebooks and cameras, I'd call the police.

Grace

You have not called on me or Ken yet!

But you are right, as Jane Jacobs teach us, cities with nice old homes with big porches are some of the safest places to live. If the porch is used.

If I remember you have a pretty big porch.

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I seem to remember that same recommendation to call the police in reference to door to door salesmen that walk the streets taking notes. I think that the ax grinding about 75% not being residents and the requirements of national organizations misses the point of how to weed out neighbors that should participate and what happened to the nosy neighbors and old ladies on porches. My gut tells me that those would laugh at our need to rally people up or use technology or structured frameworks to accomplish what they did without much thinking at all.

Shawn Juris wrote:I seem to remember that same recommendation to call the police in reference to door to door salesmen that walk the streets taking notes. I think that the ax grinding about 75% not being residents and the requirements of national organizations misses the point of how to weed out neighbors that should participate and what happened to the nosy neighbors and old ladies on porches. My gut tells me that those would laugh at our need to rally people up or use technology or structured frameworks to accomplish what they did without much thinking at all.

Shawn

Huge difference.

One is a neighbor. In other words, Grace has no reason to call on people she knows.

Like the door to door salesperson thread. There is no permits for door to door selling. so when a person tells you they have one they are not being forthcoming.

I know my friends and neighbors laugh all the time when we walk the neighborhood. Usualy over jokes.

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Addressed to no one in particular, so please, no need for anyone to take anything I'm saying personal:

If you see a kid being beaten by a few bullies, or you see 2 kids with ball bats beating on some little old lady's car at a stop light, I'd say those might be a reasonable reason to call the police. Better yet, if you had the plate number, color and make of car to give to the dispatcher.

I doubt you'll see much of anything from your front window.
Taking a drive, or a stroll around our city, cell phone and pad/pen handy even for a half hour once in awhile, no particular time, would be doing something positive.

I do know, it's our society's tendency to not "want to get involved".
The problem with that, is sort of like the Observer vs the Buzz. Here your putting your name on what you say. There, you can be Fizzys Forever or whatever.

Back to the example of a kid being beaten to the ground by several bullies.
You could make the call, and go about your business, as I found that usually many people call the police when something in a busy area happens. But how can we be sure ?

If it would mean being a witness for the police, to identify the bullies or to describe what they were wearing so the police could track them down, then that is the difference between someone who is willing to do something to keep our city peaceful, or someone that wants others to do it for them.

I understand many would rather not get that much involved. That's ok.

As I've said many times before, try this. Take a drive through several inner ring suburbs on a week-end evening, especially when the weather isn't so bad. Take a drive around Cleveland's west side, down Madison or Detroit.
The problems are, by natural evolution moving and expanding west.
We don't have a wall on Highland / W.117th so what you see there, is heading our way.

Do we sit and wait until the postings begin to say " WHERE ARE OUR POLICE....WE NEED MORE POLICE....WHY ARE THEY NOT DOING ANYTHING" ...or do we take a more sensible approach, and
first, give our police every possible help we can,
financially if possible, for better and upgraded equipment, more officers, supporting them, and by our own eyes and ears.

One the dam has broken, we'll never be able to repair it. We need to develop the systems, help our guys and gals in blue NOW. Not after the fact.

I'll jump off my soapbox now. Time for lunch.

I do not need to walk around my neighborhood with a cell phone and note pad. I LIVE here, I know who belongs here, and I care about my neighbors. I get involved when need be and I know when to mind my own business as well.


As for a kid being attacked or attacking with a bat, do you have statistics on how often that happens in Lakewood? I suspect not much, if at all.

Do kids get into fights on the street? Yes and I've pulled my car over to yell at kids I see picking on a kid. They stopped immediately, surprised someone said something. But I have no doubt that someone else would have yelled out a door or stopped their car just as I did..

Grace O'Malley wrote:I get involved when need be and I know when to mind my own business as well.

SWAT goes after man shooting at their pigeon.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsbu ... 35847.html

Grace,

Which block do you live on so I can avoid it. (not being negative of course)

My cameras stuck around my neck, it's a terrible situation.
As for notebooks, I always have a pen handy but never something to write on. Maybe my hands and arms will do...

I have one notebook that's lasted me the whole school year so far.

but ask Jim. When it comes to names and captions, I'm not the guy to ask.

that's why I'm starting to get into bird photography more.

and mark,

I do know, it's our society's tendency to not "want to get involved".

I learned about this in my human rights and conflict class last semester. You hit the nail directly on the head. The scary thing is, if you witness a crime and don't report it, you will be charged as an accessory.

I would imagine for a large number of people it's not even so much about not wanting to "get involved" but more about the time they'd have to dedicate.

People's lives are already very hectic. Two parents working, 2 or 3 kids each with 5000 after school activities, etc, etc, etc.

In my case, I work full time, go to school almost full time, lead the high school youth group and am on the leadership council at my church, sing in the West Shore Chorale, and am involved in a few other activities. I would get involved but I just don't have the time.

I wouldn't be so quick to assume apathy is the main reason people don't want to participate in block watches, etc.

Bryan Schwegler wrote:I would imagine for a large number of people it's not even so much about not wanting to "get involved" but more about the time they'd have to dedicate.

People's lives are already very hectic. Two parents working, 2 or 3 kids each with 5000 after school activities, etc, etc, etc.

Bryan

I think you are correct. The entire Observer project moves ahead because of the respect of time banks. People can jump in when they can, if they care to. No required meetings. Even the advisory board rarely if ever meets. We have a section online, so we can meet on our own schedules.

This is a format we are now bringing to other groups, with great success with our Virtual Meeting Rooms. Meetings that go on 24/7/365. As I once mentioned, to go to even the simplest of meetings, you have to plan, shower, dress, travel, travel home, etc. With aVMR you can get the same impact with 5 minutes at lunch or home in your robe.

No one has time for anything anymore.

It should be noted that Heidi Hilty and DL Meckes both have given a ton of their time bank to this project. It is on their time bank this while thing works for others.

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As Grace mentions, much may be seen from our front porches or our front windows.

On our street, several crimes have been heard or witnessed in progress from inside homes by neighbors and reported to police, who responded immediately.

We walk dogs regularly and have yet to see anything amiss during those walks, but we have cell phones with us, just in case.

So anecdotally, this would refute the idea that being vigilant without leaving home is not effective.

Certainly, if we see something happening when we are out and about, it's worth a call to police.

I feel no personal need to "patrol" neighborhoods other than our own, particularly because we are tuned in to what is and is not "normal" in our neighborhod.

My disinterest in joining a block watch group has nothing to do with a lack of engagement. Our neighbors make an effort to look out for each other and in my opinion, that's the best group of all.