Boy! I guess the abandoned cars note I sent a few days ago really hit a nerve. I received more than a dozen responses back from various neighbors venting their frustration and giving me info. about the cars and their observations about who is abandoning them.
Additionally, thanks to all of you who called 311. I understand that several cars were towed today as a result of your calls. Way to get things done!
I will be calling 911 and talking to the officers at next week's CAPS meeting with some leads about who's dropping off the cars in the area.
I also spoke to several neighbors who did observe some suspicious individuals out in the alleys around 1:30 a.m. last night. 911 was called. However, apparently the police did not arrive before these guys were able to leave their mark.
On a walk through the neighborhood today I noticed lots of gang graffiti and other tags on various garbage cans, and I've had reports this week about cans being tagged more than once on different nights. Some of the tags I saw today were MLD (Maniac Latin Disciples), the same group that hit us in the summer & fall. So, let's really be on the lookout for the hoodlums who are doing this. I'm thinking they must live in the neighborhood or very nearby.
If you see anyone out and about in the alleys late at night, please call 911 and ask for a patrol car to come over right away. If the operator gives you a hard time, ask to speak to their supervisor or hang up and call back to speak to a different operator. Let's catch these guys in the act so we can press charges for all of the damage they've done in the past 6 months.
Also, take pictures of any graffiti you see and send it to me or to CAPS. We do have a picture of one of the guys in the act of graffiti-ing a neighbors' garage last summer. The more pictures, the more evidence we have to hold these guys accountable for.
Finally, a couple of reminders that neighbors have requested everyone to be considerate of:
- please don't litter
- please clean up after your dogs
- please keep your dogs on leashes
- please watch out for small children near the streets
- please no speeding in the neighborhood; there are so many little kids on bikes and on foot
- please position your outside lights so they don't shine into your neighbors' windows
- please contain your garbage in the alleys. overflowing cans attract rats and rodents and flies in the summer.
- Please have your pets spayed and neutered.
Oh, and a reminder that the Maple Syrup Festival, a free, fun, family-friendly event is going on at the Nature Center this weekend, both Saturday and Sunday.
