Notes From April’s 70th Precinct Community Council Meeting

Last night was the monthly 70th Precinct Community Council meeting, held every last Wednesday at the UCP building (175 Lawrence Ave. between Ocean Pkwy and E 2nd St.) at 7:30pm. The next meeting is scheduled for May 29. Until then, here’s what you should know:

• Inspector Eric Rodriguez says crimes overall have dropped 13% this year so far, but that burglary has seen a 15% spike. There has also been a 28-day spike in commercial vehicle burglaries (i.e. carpentry companies’ tools being stolen from their vans, etc.)

• As we’ve seen, residential burglaries are also rising as it gets warmer. Inspector Rodriguez reminds residents to avoid leaving windows open, and to keep doors and windows locked at all times.

• In the same vein, purses and other property left alone have been stolen at the Parade Ground on a more frequent basis due to the weather and increased activity in the area. (The Parade Ground cameras have the potential to be helpful with this–or do they?)

• Fire escape burglaries are also increasing. “There are very few times when someone should be on a fire escape,” Inspector Rodriguez says, encouraging anyone who sees unusual activity on a fire escape to call the precinct.

• Something more surprising is an apparent phone scam in the area. Inspector Rodriguez says Ditmas Park residents have gotten calls from people using officers’ names, demanding that they wire money or else will be arrested. If this happens to you, call the precinct immediately.

• The Inspector also says a new initiative means officers will be writing up bicyclists riding on the sidewalk–so keep it in the road.

• Lastly, the June meeting is set to be held at Brooklyn College instead of the UCP. We will keep you posted about exactly where.

Thoughts? We’ve definitely heard of some frightening incidents on the site recently, but neighbors have had vastly different experiences with the 70th’s response. And considering the strong feelings about bike safety in the community, how do you think the initiative to keep riders off the sidewalk will go over?