R2008-10 AUTHORIZING PURCHASE OF SURVEILLANCE VIDEO SYSTEMS

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. ` 2 Decatur's steering committee is comprised of neighborhood leaders, law enforcement agencies, human services agencies,faith-based organizations and churches, schools, and business leaders. The steering committee recently selected and hired Thomas Taylor to serve as Weed &Seed site coordinator. In concert with the steering committee,the Decatur Community Partnership,a coalition of health and human service leaders operating with Richland Community College,provides management oversight of the project. The Macon County Mental Health Board serves as fiscal agent. The program is administered by the Community Capacity Development Office (CCDO,}a component of the OfFice of Justice Programs. The targeted area was selected by the st�ering committee because it has the highest rate of violent crime within the city. Fewer than 15 percent of the city's population resides there; however the area experiences approximately 25 percent of Decatur's serious and violent crirne. Although troubled by gangs, drugs and crime,the area has a stmng sense of community reflected in three active neighborhood associations-GM Square, Old King's Orchard and the Neighborhood United Association-and two community cemers. The application proposal required the committee to propose development of programs to address the four elements of the Weed and Seed strategy: law enforcement; community policing;prevention, intervention and treatment for residents; and neighborhood restoration. During development of the strategy,through a series of focus group meetings,residents identified four priorities: 1)reducing murders,shootings and gang-related crime; 2)preventing a new generation of violent criminals; 3)property crimes,prostitution and drug sales; and, 4}economic and environmental issues. During the initial phase,under the law enforcement strategy,the Decatur Police Deparnnent has deployed Anti-Crime Teams that target violent offenders and violent areas within the community. The teams also work closely with federal law enforcement and the U.S. Attomey's Office and state prosecutors in the Macon County State's Attorney's 4ffice to determine the appropriate venue for prosecution of violent offenders under Project Safe Neighborhoods. In the area of community policing,the police deparhnent is working to increase foot and bike patrols and to meet regularly with residents. Under the seed strategy,an innovative"wrap-around"intervention program for youth and young adults is planned to train community leaders to work with those at-risk;to develop a Community Restorative Board ta link victims and offenders to repair damage to the community; and to implement a truancy court. Planned neighborhood restoration strategies for the initial phase include home ownership counseling;job training and placement; intensified code enforcement and clean-ups. Building on initial weeding activities,proposed seeding strategies over the life of the project include offender re-errtry to the community upon release from prison and promotion of environmental supports and housing to foster and strengthen the community's intolerance of criminal activities. ####