Neighborhood Watch

Do you like feeling secure in your home? Want a safe neighborhood? The National Sheriff's Association says that the Neighborhood Watch program is the single most effective deterrent against residential crime. Neighborhood Watch is a simple program about neighbors helping each other and keeping a protective eye on each other's property. In Corvallis, Neighborhood Watch is a partnership between neighbors, and between neighbors collectively, as a neighborhood, and the Corvallis Police Department. The program is free.

What Constitutes a Neighborhood?

Corvallis currently has 162 neighborhoods signed up in the program. However, there is no specific definition or criterion for what defines a neighborhood. Rather, the program offers a guideline for defining a neighborhood by what makes good sense to the families involved. In Corvallis, Neighborhood Watch groups range in size from four families in a cul-d-sac to over one hundred in an apartment complex. A lot of Corvallis neighborhood groups are made up of the families along both sides of the street in one city block.

The most important factor to consider in defining a neighborhood is the social interaction among neighbors. At its heart, Neighborhood Watch is a social program whose success depends on mutual commitments among neighbors to look out for each other. For this reason, small is usually better. The program has a saying that the more neighbors get to know each other the more they will look out for each other's property. And the fact that Neighborhood Watch groups with a lot of social activities have the strongest commitments and are the most active in crime prevention bears out this saying.

This does not mean that neighbors need to become best friends and go on weekly outings together. However, it does mean that neighbors need to be cordial and have a good system for communication. An e-mail tree works well. But, of course, it is always best to get together in person as a neighborhood to build friendly relationships and to talk about neighborhood concerns. The more often this occurs the better. At bare minimum, neighborhoods should meet annually. One convenient date to do so is the first Tuesday of each August in celebration of the program's National Night Out.

Lines of sight between neighboring properties are also important considerations in deciding watch-group boundaries, as are geographic features of the area. Every family in a watch group should have at least one neighbor who can see their property, the more the better. Sometimes street configurations such as cul-de-sacs or longer dead ends suggest natural boundaries. Or, it may be a land feature such as a small dale or a hilltop that sets apart a group of homes. But the overriding consideration in defining a neighborhood is the sense of community among neighbors and their willingness to commit to each other.

Commitments

So what, exactly, is it that neighbors commit to and do to have a strong Neighborhood Watch group? The commitment is that first, each family will care for its own property to make it secure and not inviting to vandals and burglars and, second, that each family will look out for their neighbors and their neighbors' property. This means being aware of what is usual for a given neighbor's property and for the neighborhood as a whole. And it means being alert to the unusual. And if the unusual is suspicious, it means calling the police.

For its part, the Corvallis Police Department sends, by e-mail, to each group leader, crime alerts (as needed), monthly reports of all residential burglaries that occurred in Corvallis the previous month, quarterly electronic newsletters with information about home and personal security, and periodic notices about crime or other police-related issues.

How to Start a Neighborhood Watch Group?

If you want to start a group in your neighborhood, just send an e-mail to the Corvallis Police Department at neighborhood watch@ci.corvallis.or.us. Be sure to include your name, address, and phone number along with a count of families that you think will be interested.

In return you will receive by US mail an information packet that includes program brochures and invitations to a start-up meeting that you can give to your neighbors. Once you and your neighbors decide on a time and place to meet, a Department representative will join you and facilitate the meeting. Meeting topics include how the program works, basic home security, vacation security, auto security, identity theft prevention, and how to report a crime. Start-up meetings generally run 45 minutes to an hour depending on the level of discussion.

At meeting's end, everyone will receive Neighborhood Watch window decals and your group will be eligible to have the City install two Neighborhood Watch street signs. These decals and street signs will notify everyone who comes into your neighborhood that you care about living in a safe neighborhood and that you are active in reporting to the police all suspicious behavior that occurs there.

The Corvallis Police Department urges all Corvallis residents, homeowners and renters alike, to take an active part in crime prevention by forming or revitalizing a working Neighborhood Watch group.

There is no cost to you or your neighbors for any part of the program. You can learn more at the Corvallis Police Department website.

Let's keep our neighborhoods safe from speeders, vandalism, violence, and burglars.