Thread: Irving's code, police enforcement merge to help reduce crime

Irving's code, police enforcement merge to help reduce crime
11:39 AM CDT on Sunday, October 28, 2007
By BRANDON FORMBY / The Dallas Morning News
bformby@dallasnews.com

Irving officials this month realigned the city's code enforcement department within the Police Department in a move that's rare for larger North Texas suburbs.

But their main hope is that the collaboration of police and code enforcement employees will reduce crime. The move centers on the "broken windows" theory that minor violations, such as high weeds, run-down buildings and graffiti, are more inviting to criminals.

"They want to go into areas where people aren't paying attention," said code enforcement director Teresa Adrian, who reports directly to Police Chief Larry Boyd. "When you have a nice, neat, compliant neighborhood, that conveys a message that we're out there, and we're keeping our eyes on it."

The realignment comes on the heels of other highly publicized city and police initiatives aimed at cleaning up aging properties and keeping criminals off the streets.

"We want to help code enforcement deal with root causes," Chief Boyd said. "It's no secret that what we're beginning to focus on is crime in apartment complexes."

More than 60 percent of Irving's housing is renter-occupied, the highest percentage among Texas' largest cities and in the top 15 nationally among cities with populations of 100,000 or more, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

City officials have said aging apartments mean code enforcement staffers have to tackle substandard living conditions, police officers have to address crime concerns, and firefighters have to fight harder to squelch fires.

In the past several months, Irving has intensified its efforts to address apartment life. That includes the Police Department's Crime Free Multi-Housing Program, which trains apartment officials to identify criminal behavior and recommends safety improvements. The city also began assigning risk-level ratings for multifamily housing units earlier this year.

The city also has closed some of the worst apartment complexes, citing concerns about the welfare of people who live in substandard buildings. That has led some apartment complexes to sue the city, claiming that the actions are abuses of power and aimed at low-income Hispanic tenants. Those suits are pending.

But Irving officials said that merging police and code enforcement is unrelated to illegal immigration, a hot topic since the city began attracting national attention for the large number of immigration holds placed on people in its jail whose legal status is in question.

Ms. Adrian said inspectors don't have access in the field to property records that tell them who lives at which properties.

"They have no clue who they're leaving notices to," she said. "The only thing they see is code violations – high grass and weeds, paint falling off, busted windows, dilapidated fences."

It's common for code enforcement inspectors and police officers to work together, as they have been in Irving. But few code enforcement directors report to the Police Department.

Garland and Lewisville, for instance, pair their code enforcement and health departments. Richardson's code enforcement is part of neighborhood services, and Dallas' is a stand-alone department that reports directly to an assistant city manager.

Chief Boyd said one reason Irving is realigning its organization is to make it easier for the two departments to work cohesively. Ms. Adrian and Chief Boyd said they are developing new policies and procedures.

"I know the Police Department and how our department works, and I want to spend time with Teresa and see how their department functions and get those things aligned," Chief Boyd said Violations, including high weeds, are an invitation for crime. Criminals want to go where people aren't paying attention, code enforcement director Teresa Adrian said. A few years ago, Lubbock officials placed their code enforcement department under the Police Department after residents begged for quicker code enforcement results.

Lubbock Assistant Police Chief Tom Mann said response has been largely positive.

"By and large, people that take care of their property are certainly glad we're enforcing the codes like we are," he said.

One of the major changes there calls for notifying property owners of violations in person. Code enforcement manager Stuart Walker said people understand what the problem is and how to fix it much better when someone explains it to them in person. Code enforcement officers there used to send letters as an initial notification of a violation.

"Not only do we see more compliance, we see quicker compliance," Mr. Walker said.

Some hope Irving will have similar results.

"What we're going to see is Chief Boyd setting plans in place and coordinating all resources to resolve code enforcement and criminal issues," City Council member Joe Philipp said. "It's a nice combination."

The realignment is good news to Jimmy Gaona. As chairman of Irving's Arts District Neighborhood Association board, he has been surveying residents in his neighborhood about their biggest concerns.

"Crime is at the top of the list, and code enforcement always comes in second," he said. "According to people in our neighborhood, they seem to think the houses that have overgrown lawns and aren't kept up and aren't painted seem to attract more crime."
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... 4f70e.html

I just sent this article off to my mayor and police chief, and the code enforcement office. If they are not doing it -maybe we can.

It makes perfect sense. I never knew that in allmost all cities, code enforcement was so divorced from the police department. This kind nof thing, the "broken windows quality of life" approach to crime fighting sure worked in New York City. If it can work there, it can work anywhere.