Crime Free Multi-Housing – Does It Work?
Read what one manager has experienced since qualifying her properties for Crime Free Multi-Housing status.
The Things About SPD and Crime Free Multi-Housing That I Find Invaluable
By Amber Boice, J.D., Property Management Coordinator, SNAP – Housing Opportunities Program
- Neighborhood Resourse Officer (NRO) program. My relationships with Officers Draper, Strassenberg and Thomas are KEY to SNAP being able to effectively manage our buildings. Each of them provide a quick response in a crisis or when we just have questions,we’d like to have answered. They probably get sick of hearing from me, but I certainly never hesitate to ask them for help when I need it, and they always follow through.
- Letters to the Landlord: I think there is some room for improvement here, but again – if I know there was some police response to one of my properties, a quick email to an NRO will clear it up for me and they’ll quickly send a letter to the landlord when appropriate. It’s those situations where we don’t know something happened where I would like to see the Letter to the Landlord happen on a more automatic basis rather than having to request them.
- Willingness to problem solve: We’ve had several situations at different buildings requiring a “group” response from SNAP staff, other social service agencies and the police department. In those circumstances, I really appreciate the Spokane Police Department’s (SPD) willingness to find time to meet with residents or with me and my staff to start trying to find ways to resolve our issues.
- The Spokane C.O.P.S. program: Being a part of the Crime Free Multi-Housing program keeps us on our toes. The property inspections (CPTED) help us find those areas of improvement that make our buildings and residents safer and the resource of information the training provided is something I refer to often when sending out newsletters to our residents. The COPS offices themselves are a great place for us to send our residents when they have neighborhood concerns or questions that we just can’t answer for them.
- Training: Corporal Keller was kind enough to train me and three other members of SNAP’s staff to use pepper spray. We appreciate the accommodations made for us to attend this class and those of us who attended will never forget what it feels like to be pepper sprayed in the face! Beyond that, the NRO taught de-escalation training, the Crime Free Multi-Housing training, drug trainings, elder abuse trainings etc. that I have been fortunate to be a part of have been an incredible learning source for me as well as all SNAP staff.
Unfortunately, it seems we interact a lot with the entire SPD program – it just seems to be the nature of the business and the population we serve. In the many interactions my staff and I have had with the SPD, I’ve seen officers do everything from help a mentally ill man zip up his pants to reassuring residents that they aren’t members of the Miami Vice squad to coaching people about common courtesy and being a good neighbor. Every interaction I’ve witnessed has been positive and professional – even when the situation has been less than favorable.