News

Witter Ranch Community Alliance and the Sacramento Police Department are partering to invite Gateway West and Park View residents to a free Neighborhood Watch kickoff meeting on Thursday, March 12 from 6 PM to 8 PM at Round Table Pizza in the Market West Shopping Center, 3290 Arena Blvd., Suite 600.

Officer Kurt McCray, Crime Prevention Specialist with the Sacramento Police Department for all of Natomas, will be leading this important meeting to educate residents about the benefits of an effective Neighborhood Watch program for Gateway West and Park View. This is a special and unique opportunity to have as many of our neighbors as possible attend so that we can all get to know and learn from one another.

One of Witter Ranch Community Alliance’s goals is to “assist in development and facilitation of neighborhood watch groups.” We have already begun an active outreach and Neighborhood Watch group around San Juan Reservoir Park, especially in the southern area nearest Sump 17 that has been prone to numerous crime problems. Those problems have, at least for the time being, been largely eliminated, primarily due to the watchful eyes and proactive actions of the residents in the area, so we know it works.

Please join us, and be sure to spread the word to your neighbors as well — we encourage you to print copies of this flyer and distribute them to the people you know on your street.

Today Natomas community leaders, Sacramento Police Department, the City of Sacramento’s Neighborhood Services Department, and others participated in an exciting grand opening celebration of the new Natomas Police & Community Resource at 2701 Del Paso Road, Suite 140, inside the Safeway shopping center [Map].

Creation of the NPCRC goes back to February of this year, when Creekside Neighborhood Association and Regency Park Neighborhood Association co-hosted a crime and safety forum for North Natomas community leaders to discuss police & fire issues. Attendees discussed top community concerns and strategized on methods for addressing them. One of the outcomes was the Natomas Crime & Safety Leadership Team and a concept to pursue: opening a resource center where the community can volunteer and help organize events and activities for and with the police department and other City departments.

While by no means a long-term substitute for the community center and police substations long included in the North Natomas Community Plan, the resource center creates an interface with the city and an opportunity to increase police presence in North Natomas, along with a place where neighbors can go to file an online police report — a service that is expected to be appreciated by the community, given the closure of police substation service counters due to budget cuts.

Even though the city is grappling with a $58 million in budget cuts this year and many more millions expected in future years, the costs to the city in opening the center are minimal. “It is really not much of a drain since the space and furnishings, including computers, were donated,” said Angelique Ashby, President of Creekside Neighborhood Association and co-founder of the Natomas Crime & Safety Leadership Team, adding “the only costs are lights, phones & Internet.”

“The community has really spoken out about wanting to get involved – over 50 neighbors have come out and asked to volunteer in the center,” said Ashby. “This is something community members fought for, found the location for, and volunteered to staff because they felt it was needed in their community.”

Attending the ceremony and festivities were numerous Natomas residents, community association members and leaders, and representatives from city government, including Neighborhood Services, Code Enforcement, Police, Fire, City Council, Youth Services. Mayor Kevin Johnson also attended to offer his congratulations to everyone who participated.