Santa Monica Police Department: Set Up a Neighborhood Watch

Summer is almost upon us and chances are that in the next few weeks you will be either heading out on a summer vacation or leaving windows and doors open for the fresh evening breeze. Don’t let being the victim of a crime ruin your summer. Just because you are on vacation doesn’t mean that criminals are as well. During the summer months, home security quickly becomes a concern for residents as criminal activity has a tendency to increase. This summer, let Santa Monica Police Department’s Crime Prevention Unit help you with closing the door on crime and opening it up to a Neighborhood Watch group in your area.

Neighborhood Watch groups are usually formed around a geographical unit, such as a city block. They can also be formed within an apartment building, townhouse/condo complex, or around adjacent businesses. A SMPD Crime Prevention Coordinator (CPC) who is familiar with your neighborhood will provide you with guidance and instructions on how you can organize a Neighborhood Watch program for your neighborhood.

The basic steps to get started are as follows:

1. Enlist neighbors with whom you have occasional contact with to form a planning committee.
2. Discuss and prioritize your neighborhood needs, concerns and problems.
3. Inform the rest of your neighbors that you are starting a Neighborhood Watch.
4. Introduce yourself and the other committee members by going door-to-door.
5. Select a convenient meeting site on the block: home, backyard, community room, etc.
6. Set a specific time and date for the Neighborhood Watch meeting.

At your first meeting, a Santa Monica Police Department Crime Prevention Coordinator will be present to train neighbors in home security, on how to observe and report suspicious activity, the proper use of 9-1-1, establishing a Neighborhood Watch phone tree, along with other crime prevention techniques and strategies.

It’s a proven fact – Neighborhood Watch groups working together with the Santa Monica Police Department make one of the best crime prevention and crime fighting teams around!

For more information, please contact the Santa Monica Police Department’s Crime Prevention Unit directly at 310-458-8474.