Newspaper Clipping - Newspaper Clipping Scan - Police receive Crime Prevention Grant - (2) Eagan police launch increased
crime prevention through grant
The Eagan Police Department has been awarded a grant un-
der the 1997 Omnibus Crime Bill for $40,000, enabling the de-
partment to increase efforts to reduce crime.
The grant is similar to one received last year directed at re-
ducing juvenile crime through increased enforcement. This
year the grant will be used to compensate the city for the time
spent by officers to go out into the community and make con-
tact with business owners to help provide them with input on
how to reduce crime in their area.
The new effort ties in directly with the department's goals
under Community Oriented Policing. Officer Mike Schrader
will organize materials for the officers and, along with ser-
geants, coordinate efforts to see that those businesses most af-
fected by crimes such as theft, internal theft, burglary and
vandalism are particularly targeted. The effort will be the most
widespread undertaking of this nature ever implemented by the
department.
The program will also be an opportunity to strengthen and
Develop ties between officers and business owners they serve.
the city is divided into grids with officers assigned to grids
,with various businesses in them. In addition to providing some
)asic information, the Eagan Police Department hopes to bet-
er identify and follow-up on businesses' needs.
Sgt. Greg Johnson said he hopes to get the program started by
'larch 15 and complete most of the contracts and surveys for
'uture follow-up by mid-May.
"It will be a nice change of pace for officers as well. They
vill have an opportunity to get out and meet the people they
erve and try to prevent some of the types of crimes that we
ow face trying to deal with after the fact, which is much more
ifficult for police and more costly for business owners," said
Anson.
Johnson said Eagan police will increase patrol and surveil-
ince efforts as well.
"We typically find that this is the time of year when we start
-'eing juvenile-related crimes such as underage consumption,
-1ro tolerance violations and curfew increase as well as van-
alism and car prowls," said Johnson.
The Eagan Police Department recently made several crime-
-evention commercials in gooperatign with Meredith Cable
1 what to do to prevent cars and valuables from being stolen.
he commercials will be aired on local channel 15.
"Unlike other grants that deal with enforcement efforts, we 1
)pe that some of the efforts and programs we do and we begin 1
ider this grant will have long-term effects on preventing I
ime in the future," said Johnson.
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