Neighborhood Policing Coming to Southwest Brooklyn
WEST BROOKLYN – Councilmember Justin Brannan (D-43) announced yesterday that New York’s neighborhood policing would start this year in West Brooklyn communities, covering the 62nd and 68th precincts.
The 68th Precinct covers Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights, while the 62nd Precinct covers Bath Beach and Bensonhurst. Additional officers will be assigned to the precincts for neighborhood policing starting in April and July, respectively.
“I am happy to see more resources and officers for the 68 and 62, but it’s not about simply hiring or dispatching more officers, it’s about using them in a smart way and producing positive results,” said Brannan in a statement. “Our neighborhoods will benefit from neighborhood policing and the return of the ‘cop on the corner.’ People will become familiar with the officers serving their community every day, which goes a long way in building trust.
Community policing breaks precincts into sector and assigns pairs of Neighborhood Coordination Officers (NCOs) to each area. These officers are tasked with getting to know the area and its residents, serving as an on-the-ground liaison between the community and the NYPD. The same officers work in the same neighborhoods on the same shifts, increasing their familiarity with local residents and local problems, according to the NYPD.
Many Brooklyn residents may be familiar with seeing NCOs at Community Board and Community Council meetings, where they will give out their contact information—department issued email addresses and cell phone number—in order to be more readily available for a wider range of community concerns.
Another part of the neighborhood policing paradigm is neighborhood safety meetings, often referred to as Build the Block meetings. These give residents an additional opportunity to discuss their neighborhood’s safety with NCOs. Find your local meeting with the NYPD’s interactive map.
“This move to replace broken windows policing with neighborhood policing will simultaneously make our neighborhoods safer and build respect and trust between police and the communities they serve,” said Brannan.
According to the NYPD, neighborhood policing efforts will be active in every precinct citywide by 2019.
