By Amabelle Ocampo and Elizabeth Orozco
It’s 5:39 p.m. a line of 2nd and 3rd graders skip behind their Boys and Girls Club leader. The shuffle of little feet haul cartoon backpacks and a yellow netting of toys to the playground across from the San Francisco library walking through Jones and Eddy Street, a block marked with a yellow brick road as a safety zone for children.
The children rush by the police station where Supervisor Jane Kim, Captain Joseph Garrity and their staff prepare to hear grievances on public safety and crime displacement. Sixty community activists, local leaders, and residents chime in on the packed community meeting on Monday night.
Supervisor Jane Kim and Captain Joseph Garrity listen to a levy of concerns from residents on public safety and crime displacement in the Tenderloin Community Meeting held Monday.
Dominated with concerns on how to stop the drug dealers and prostitutes from overwhelming the streets with illegal activity, the conversation turns into a frenzied debate. Mandatory installation of bright floodlights in alleyways, the removal of broken parking meters on Turk, the expansion of Sergeant Macaulay Park into the alley and improvement of local quality of life for seniors dotted the wish list.
Alan Cohen shares with police his opinion on the Anti-violence working group.
Last year with budget cuts, the Board of Supervisors limited funding to one police academy class for the City of San Francisco. In July of 2010, there were 91 San Francisco police officers assigned to patrol throughout the city. On March 2013, the number declines to 69 and seven police recruits. These numbers create an imbalance in areas with high crime rate. Crime in the Tenderloin dwarfs the number of officers who can respond to triage calls. Priority is given to shootings or neighborhood disturbance. Drug deals, a daily staple for the displaced people who live in the streets become less of a priority.
As the economy recovers, the Board approved funding for police academy by three. However more officers on the street doesn’t guarantee that the Tenderloin will benefit. Supervisor Kim urged concerned District 6 residents to come to Board meetings at City Hall to convince the 10 district constituents of this need.
Nine-year Tenderloin veteran, Steven Tennis voiced another alternative.
“If you are familiar with O’Farrell Street and Larkin. Any given day or night there will be six dealers dealing crack on that corner. Two months ago there was a black and white parked. There was only one dealer all night. I didn’t stay there all night but there was also not a uniform there. I could see just the presence of the vehicle curved the activity. I don’t think it cost a lot to park a black and white on Turk Street. It works. The dealers took two or three hours until they figured out an officer is not coming. You can have all the dealers but if there are no buyers, there aren’t going to be dealers,” Tennis said.
Apparently, the police tried the tactic on Ellis Street but the cop car’s window was smashed. “Maybe, we can park an old car,” Captain Joseph Garrity said to which the crowd laughed. The problem is not about patrols but the frustration after a full sweep. There is no way to stop the dealers in conducting their business activity.
“The drug dealers will find a way to operate, even if it’s a block over,” Captain Joseph Garrity said.
The key is to manage the blocks so drugs can be distanced from the kids. The kids deserve a safe zone in their neighborhood. It will take not only the cops but for everyone involved to care enough to stop.
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