THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 29, 1995 TAG: 9509280150
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY SUSAN W. SMITH, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 166 lines
THELMA LEE TODD TAYLOR remembers when South Norfolk had it all.
``It was a quiet little town,'' said Taylor, a lifelong South Norfolk resident and former business owner. ``People worked hard and relaxed on their front porch swings in the evening. We took care of each other and no doors were ever locked.''
When she was 7 years old, she walked to the corner of Bainbridge Boulevard and Poindexter Street to watch President Franklin D. Roosevelt wave from an open car in a parade to Lakeside Park. Roosevelt had come to visit the park, one of the first Work Projects Administration programs.
``We were all so proud of ourselves and our town,'' Taylor said.
Over the years, she witnessed the growth and signs of prosperity of South Norfolk.
``.. . . and then I watched it go,'' she said.
Early evening walks gave way to open-air drug markets and drug-related crimes. Many large Victorian homes were divided into apartments. People moved away, and boarded homes became crack houses. Overgrown lots and dilapidated buildings, owned by absentee landlords, contributed to the feeling of despair.
Now the city Police Department has pledged to bring back hope.
This month the Second Precinct, which covers South Norfolk, got a new, improved home. And police officials chose South Norfolk as the pilot site for a new program called Community Policing.
Sheriff J.R. Newhart promised the city's full support to the Second Precinct in its effort to stop crime and make South Norfolk's streets safe again.
``We can bring it back together,'' Newhart said.
Newhart, Chesapeake Police Chief Ian M. Shipley Jr. and police Capt. Lloyd M. Goodbread Jr., the commanding officer of the Second Precinct, were on hand for the grand opening of the precinct's new police station Sept. 14.
``It's about time you came back here,'' Taylor chided.
The newly remodeled building is across the street from the old office, once the busy police headquarters for the city of South Norfolk. Almost 30 years ago, Shipley was a young officer and Newhart was one of the the first motorcycle police officers and they worked out of the the Second Precinct.
They came back to offer their services and support.
The new facility, formerly a juvenile and domestic court, has interview rooms, booking facilities and holding cells, which were not available across the street. For the past several years, officers had to go to headquarters on Albemarle Drive in Great Bridge to complete arrest procedures.
Taylor and other South Norfolk residents celebrated with Shipley, Newhart, Goodbread and Mayor William E. Ward the return of an active, local police station.
Residents consider it a big step in the revitalization of their community.
The opening of the Second Precinct coincides with the new community policing program in South Norfolk and the decentralization of the Chesapeake Police Department. The goal is to move some operations from headquarters back into neighborhoods.
The Second Precinct's new headquarters will house the officers and staff, the bicycle patrol officers, the crime prevention unit and a new staff of seven community police officers. Another seven community police officers will join the precinct later this fall.
Lt. Kelvin Wright and Sgt. Gary McClenney described community policing as a philosophy, not a program.
Community police officers are surveying residents, attending civic league meetings and reviewing crime reports. They plan to help citizens identify the neighborhood's problems and then work together toward solutions.
The approach will be applied first to South Norfolk and will later be expanded to Deep Creek, Crestwood and Western Branch.
According to Wright, South Norfolk has only 13 percent of Chesapeake's population but 41 percent of the city's reported crimes.
``Community policing is going to be the lifeline for South Norfolk,'' Taylor said.
``South Norfolk is the right place to start,'' Wright said, ``because the people are ready to take back their neighborhoods.''
The program was funded by a $500,000 federal grant called Cops Ahead. The grant will pay for uniforms, training and salaries for the additional personnel for three years. After that, City Council will have to decide whether to pay to keep the program.
Under the supervision of McClenney, officers J. Maresco, T.M. Foster, D.D. Thom, R.J. Goyette, L.A. Hernandez, T.J. Myers and M.S. Burns attended a 40-hour training program, which covered communication skills, problem-solving techniques, community resources and citizen involvement.
As part of their training, they talked to representatives from the city's Inspections, Zoning and Social Services departments and local crisis centers.
The officers were ready for the streets of the Second Precinct in June. They divided South Norfolk into zones, then conducted house-to-house and business-to-business surveys to learn the community's needs and problems.
``Overwhelmingly, the use and sale of drugs was the biggest problem,'' Wright said.
But the officers also identified non-police problems that they could help solve.
Some residents on Grady Street complained about poor lighting, and several residents on another street requested a stop sign on their corner. Neighbors complained of vacant houses and discarded appliances on a vacant lot.
The community police officers asked the city's Traffic Engineering Department to check on the lights and street signs; officers notified the Inspections Department about empty houses. The officers also suggested that the residents work together to haul the debris to the curb, and they called the Public Works Department to pick up the trash.
McClenney said the officers work the same blocks for weeks, learning names, helping out and listening to concerns. They make a point of reporting back to the residents to let them know the status of a complaint or the answer to a question.
The officers learn to recognize residents and watch for troublemakers.
``We won't leave one area for another until we think we have made a change,'' McClenney said.
Even when they leave one neighborhood to concentrate on another section of South Norfolk, the community police officers leave residents a specific officer's name and pager number so they can contact him if they need help or have questions.
``Part of our commitment to the program is getting to know people so that we become a safe part of their lives,'' Maresco said. ``They see us all the time, and a comfort level develops where they point out suspicious activity, speeding cars, drug deals, even the house with the loud music - and sometimes just stop to talk.''
``It's a partnership program and a pro-active way to clean up and maintain a neighborhood,'' Goyette said.
``The Community Policing Program is definitely going to help us better our streets,'' said Charles Hackworth, owner of Hackworth Reprographics in South Norfolk. ``Everywhere you look now you see the bike patrol officers cutting through alleys, patrol cars circling the streets and police officers visiting local businesses. It's just great.''
Hackworth is vice president of the South Norfolk Consortium, a group of 73 South Norfolk, Portlock and Berkley business people who want to rebuild the area and encourage new business and growth.
A routine evening shift with Goyette shows the many ways community police officers are making their presence known.
He circled the streets and parked conspicuously in an area known for its drug deals. He popped into New Beginnings Hairstyling Salon to ask the manager if they had any more trouble with burglaries, and later responded to a domestic dispute. He chatted with kids on the street corner and helped break up a street fight.
Sometimes he cruised down Grady, Seaboard, Decatur and Holly streets. Other times he walked down Poindexter, Liberty and Freeman streets.
``It's a matter of being seen and getting to know people,'' Goyette said. ``Not only do we want to learn their names, but we want them to learn ours.''
``Twenty-eight years ago when I came on the force, I said I wanted to be a police officer because I wanted to make a difference,'' Goodbread said. ``I look forward to working with the Second Precinct and with the people of South Norfolk as we work together to make a difference.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Cover]
"BRINGING IT BACK TOGETHER"
[Color Photo]
Staff photo by MORT FRYMAN
Officers R.W. Finn Jr. and Paul Verry, assigned to the bicycle
patrol, check in with local business owners to get acquainted and
ask about potential problems.
Staff photo by MORT FRYMAN
ABOVE: Police officers meet at night before beginning their patrols
in South Norfolk. The officers circulate through the community in
patrol cars and bicycles.
LEFT: Police officers, city officials and guests attended the grand
opening on Sept 14 of the precinct's new police station, which is
across the street from the old office.
Staff photo by STEVE EARLEY
by CNB