Did you know that there are over 100 Neighborhood Watch groups in Altadena? Neither did I. Unfortunately, many of us are unaware of our Neighborhood Watch groups in our neighborhoods due to lack of communication. Neighborhood Watch groups help facilitate communication among neighbors and increase safety and awareness. I would like to link all of Altadena’s Neighborhood Watch groups together into a Neighborhood Watch Organization of Altadena. This way, everyone would be linked together, and areas that do not have Neighborhood Watch groups would be able to create one under the guidance of this organization. Most importantly, our community would be a safer place in which to live.
Proposal
Imagine an emergency situation in which we need to communicate with one another (the recent fires are a perfect example). I believe that linking neighborhoods together is not only effective in increasing safety but also creates a way to communicate information during a time of emergency, such as regarding evacuation orders. How else are we going to get information back and forth to one another? What other communication system do we have in place? What is our current method of handling emergency situations? During the recent fires, the police drove down the street and announced evacuations through a loudspeaker, and knocked door to door. This is one solution, but it is time-consuming, only effective for people who are at home at the time, and was not effective for when the evacuation order was lifted. The fires showed us that conflicting information is easily spread, and it was difficult for residents to know when it was okay to return home. The last thing we need to do is wait for another emergency to figure out what to do. The Neighborhood Watch Organization of Altadena would unify our community against crime and better prepare us for emergency situations.
A Neighborhood Watch Organization of Altadena would create a safer community in many ways. If you are a Neighborhood Watch captain for your neighborhood, or know who is, please send me your contact information and the area you represent to herbert.h.simmons@gmail.com