The Mansfield Police Department is hosting a free block party Saturday, Aug. 9, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the North Lake Park Pavilion. Chief Ken Coontz stated that the block party is an initial step to help blend the North Lake area with Community Policing concepts.
“We want to make officers more accessible to the residents that live within that neighborhood and build positive relationships with the youth,” Coontz stated.
Through the Mansfield Police Department’s involvement in the Northern Ohio Violent Crime Consortium (NOVCC), the department received grant monies to positively impact areas throughout the city. Capt. Shari Robertson explained that after researching crime statistics, the department chose to focus their efforts on the North Lake area.
“The department noticed spikes in crimes and assaults [in the North Lake area] and decided to impact that area by using the NOVCC grant to promote a new beginning there,” Robertson said.
She said the department wants to kick off this “new beginning” by holding the block party, which will provide an opportunity to meet with local residents and educate them on the community policing initiative.
Attendees will be given t-shirts, which have a cement block printed on them. Robertson explained the reasoning behind the design, saying, “Our whole point is we want to build a foundation, and it starts with the city, neighborhood watch, and residents in that area.”
Local organizations, such as Richland Public Health, will be attending the event with information to promote health/crime awareness education. Emergency safety vehicles, food, kids’ games, health information, free T-shirts, and a children’s bounce house will also be available during the event.
Anyone is welcome to stop by, Roberston said.
Looking ahead to future goals tied to the initiative, Robertson said that the department intends to board up some of the vacant houses in the North Lake area. She added, “We’re trying to put back together our bike patrol units to get out of the cruisers and back on the streets to have more face to face with people.”
Assistant Chief Keith Porch stated, “We want officers out walking on foot and riding on bikes so that they can meet with residents and hear about neighborhood concerns.”
Robertson said the department recently met with the local neighborhood watch program to inform them of the initiative. “We received very positive feedback,” she said.
The department is also partnering with Executive Director Deanna West-Torrence of the North End Community Improvement Collaborative (NECIC) to share common ideas for the initiative.
“Whenever you have a community, it’s not just one agency that can make a difference,” Robertson said. “You must have collaboration within that community to be successful; history has proven that over and over to us, especially in law enforcement, and that’s part of the community policing philosophy.”
“Whenever you have a community, it’s not just one agency that can make a difference,” Capt. Shari Robertson said. “You must have collaboration within that community to be successful.”
