BEAT 1431 + 1432 CAPS
Meeting Minutes
January 21, 2016
The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 17th, 2016, 7:00pm at Haas Park Field House, 2402 N. Washtenaw.
Officers Present: 1431: PO Regnier, PO Cruz, PO Radulescu, PO Loleng, Liz Rios – 14th District CAPS organizer and CAPS Facilitator Vicky Schmidt
Number of Beat 1431 + 1432 residents present: 14
General Announcements
14th District Chicago Police Department Recruitment Exam – The City is accepting applications to join the Chicago Police Department for the first time since
2013. The application deadline has been changed to January 31st.
Strategies to Address
Liz Rios encouraged residents to call 911 whenever they see any suspicious activity and be prepared to provide as descriptive details as possible of the offenders starting from head to toe. PO Regnier shared that better police service is possible with better descriptions, such as describing an offender with a "black hoodie and red sneakers."
Additional safety reminders include:
- Don’t walk or run alone with headphones
- Do not leave your car running with keys in the ignition to warm it up, this is an invitation for for theft
- Get to know your neighbors and add them to your phone tree to increase calls for service (more calls for service generates more attention)
- Make a police report if a criminal incident has occurred
Arrest Report
Theft continues to be a problem in Beat 1431 and 1432, especially from cars. Officers are strongly urging residents to not keep belongings of any value in parked vehicles (this includes gym bags with dirty laundry) and to keep parked vehicles locked at all times, even when parked inside locked garages.
In 1431, there were a number of auto related thefts near St John Berchman’s Church at Altgeld and Campbell. Residents are asked to keep doors and windows closed and locked at all times and without any belongings left within.
Number of arrests since the last CAPS meeting:
- Beat 1431: 10 arrests and 38 Contact Cards/Investigatory Stops
- Impact Arrests
- Aggravated assault with a knife – 2000 block of N. California, "Offender banged on victim's door and threatened to cut him with a knife while holding such"
- Criminal Trespass to Land – 2000 block of N. California, "Offender was observed by the victim in his basement. Victim did not know offender and called police."
- Criminal Trespass to Vehicle – 2600 block of W. Logan Blvd, "Offender was sleeping in a vehicle that had been reported stolen."
- Misc. Arrests
- 2 DUIs
- Beat 1432: 37 arrests and 27 Contact Cards/Investigatory Stops
- Impact Arrests
- Burglary to Auto – 2300 block of N. Hoyne, "Offender entered victim's vehicle and removed several items with the intent of depriving the victim of future use."
- Attempt Criminal Trespass to Vehicle – 1600 block of W. Webster, "Offender attempted to enter a marked police vehicle. Offender was instructed to not do so, however, continued to proceed by opening the car door."
- Misc. Arrests
- 5 DUIs
- 20 Retail Thefts
- 2 Warrants
Court Advocacy Reports
There were no reports shared at this time. The 14th District needs more Court Advocates, please call the 14th District CAPS office, 312-744-1261 for more information.
Section Reports
SECTION 1 (Borders: California, Milwaukee, Armitage)
1) A resident shared that an individual arrested during a search warrant at a property on 2700 Francis Pl a couple of months ago, will likely be incarcerated for 2 years. The family that was involved and living at this residence has also moved away.
2) A resident who works at the Art Institute of Chicago shared that the museum is free to any resident of Chicago through the end of January, no membership is required just a city ID.
action: Residents are urged to continue calling 911 to report any gang and criminal activity.
SECTION 2 (Borders: Rockwell, Lyndale, Western, Milwaukee)
1) Congress Pizza – No representatives from Congress Pizza were present at this CAPS meeting. This is the 6th consecutive meeting they have not attended.
2) A representative from Concord Music Hall was in attendance and shared that the venue has just resumed shows after being on a short 2 week hiatus over the holidays. Events are now starting to be increasingly scheduled getting closer to Spring. Concord Music Hall along with additional participating businesses and Alderman Moreno were able to provide approximately 715 turkeys for needy families and senior citizens on Nov 20th, 2015.
action: Residents are strongly urged to call 911 to report any illegal patron or employee behavior at businesses along Milwaukee Ave.
SECTION 3 (Borders: Rockwell, Fullerton, Western, Lyndale)
There were no issues reported in this section.
action: Residents are strongly urged to call 911 to report gang activity and 311 for graffiti.
SECTION 4 (Borders: California, Fullerton, Rockwell, Milwaukee)
1) Goethe school parking continues to be a problem during drop off and pickup times. Both streets and garages are being blocked while parents drop off students. Lyndale Ave/Alley between Washtenaw and Talman is particularly congested and prone to illegal parking (e.g. parents leaving their cars double parked or blocking garages to walk their children to school). SGT Reyes (not at the meeting) has mentioned in the past that he plans to ticket more aggressively to help mitigate the ongoing traffic issues. It was not known whether SGT Reyes has met with the principal of Goethe last Fall to discuss these matters. PO Regnier mentioned he would followup on the matter.
action: Residents are strongly urged to call 911 to report illegal parking and other criminal activity and 311 for graffiti.
SECTION 5 (Borders: California, Logan Boulevard, Rockwell, Fullerton)
1) PO Chavez (not at the meeting due to vacation) will be following up with a Haas Park representative on the request last CAPS meeting for more police presence. Liz Rios mentioned that police officers have been regularly visiting Haas Park despite not having a dedicated car to the park. PO Regnier mentioned that safer parks are the ones being used by citizens. This public activity helps decrease the likelihood for crime and PO Regnier believes that Haas Park is being well-used by the community which helps decrease the threat of gang activity.
action: Residents are strongly urged to call 911 to report gang activity and 311 for graffiti.
SECTION 6 (Borders: Rockwell, Logan Boulevard, Western, Fullerton)
1) Some residents have reported that homeless individuals have been setting up tarps and other structures under and around the Kennedy Expressway overpass. PO Regnier mentioned that it is legal for homeless people to seek shelter under overpasses, however, setting up their own shelters is not allowed. The Human Services City department does periodically check on these situations and provides advanced notice to homeless individuals that their shelters will be removed. Also, no belongings are allowed to be permanently chained and locked to bicycle racks and other fixed city structures.
2) In response to an accident last Fall involving a neighbor struck in the crosswalk by a car at Western and Logan Blvd, Alderman Moreno acted upon a community request for a formal traffic report to be created by CDOT at this intersection. This report was released January 19th and indicated 4 pedestrian related crashes at this intersection over the course of 3 years (2012 thru 2014). After reviewing the crash history and viewing the site, CDOT recommended several updates to this intersection including new "Turning Vehicles: Yield To Pedestrians" and "No Turn on Red" signs. CDOT also suggests adding better lighting to improve visibility. This new lighting would require additional funding, estimated at $32,000, from an "Aldermanic Menu" budget that would need to be approved by current First Ward Alderman Moreno. Lastly, CDOT also noted in this report that the span of Logan Boulevard between Kedzie and Western is scheduled to be resurfaced in 2016 which should help improve the visibility for both drivers and pedestrians with better lane and crosswalk markings.
3) The illegally parked construction trailer with no license plate still remains in front of 2418-22 N. Artesian. This was reported at the last Beat meeting in November. PO Regnier said that he would followup with SGT Reyes tomorrow to learn more about this situation.
action: Residents are strongly urged to call 911 to report gang activity and 311 for graffiti.
Neighboring BEAT 1432 Key Reports
1) A representative from Rio Chicago (formerly Dolphin Street night club) was in attendance and reported that the club is still within the rebuilding process. As of Dec. 25th 2015, the club is planning to offer live music starting March 2nd, pending approval from the City Business Affairs Office. The venue has been "calm" since May 2015, and over the last 8 months, they have made six 911 calls.action: Residents are strongly urged to call 911 to report any illegal patron or employee behavior at this business.
Recurring Problem Areas for BEAT 1431 and 1432
1) Graffiti
3) Gang and drug activity
4) Goethe Elementary School illegal driving and parking practices, late night basketball playing
4) Illegal activities at late night nightclubs
DISCLAIMER
Beat 1431 CAPS volunteers prepared these meeting minutes to the best of their ability.
