We're Hosting Our Third Clean Up

Save the date: This Saturday: 04/01/2017 from 8am to 12pm. We're providing everyone in the Midtown Area a dumpster to rid themselves of any large trash that will not fit in the trash cans. Look for it at 15th and Gundry. See the attached flyer for more details. We'll be cleaning up Gundry. And a little later that day, Litter Free Long Beach will stop by to pick up any e-waste. That's tires and those things with a cord you have no idea what to do with. This service is provided free by the Neighborhood Service Center. If you'd like to host future clean ups please PM me. The more hosts with have in the Midtown area [PCH to Anaheim/ Cherry to Alamitos] the more often we can do this. We will be providing generous refreshments to all the volunteers.

 

Sunday Safety Update: 03/20/2016 - 03/27/2016

Disclaimer: So, first I apologize for how long it's taken to get this up, The Crime Reports Website was down for much of January. I did talk to the director of Media Relations at a public safety meeting and tell our neighborhood resource officer, they weren't aware it wasn't updating. Just a reminder these are trends, and the presence of crime in one area in the past doesn't guarantee it will reappear in that area in the future.

Here are this week's trends in the MacArthur Park Neighborhood. 
 
The biggest story is the one the map doesn't tell.

There is a marked increase in thefts and auto thefts within the neighborhood. Just South of MacArthur Park there is a cluster that induces drugs, assault, breaking and entering and kidnapping. This would be east of Orange and West of Alamitos, south of Anaheim. If you are close to that area keep am eye out. There is no neighborhood association in the area. The closest is AOC7 and Craftsman Historic District which operates east of Orange. The kidnapping was on Thursday at about 3pm.

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We support the LBPD but are very concerned how much violence is not making the news

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Within our neighborhood auto thefts begin around MacArthur Park and trend North East towards 15th Street. There are also thefts that begin at Cherry and 17th and then trend South West to 15th and Rose. You'll want to keep eyes on Gardenia, Rose, Gaviota and 15th, which is where both trends converge.

The big story the map doesn't tell is actually three stories combined

This closure was the day after the shooting, no word on why it happens

There are three major things that are not making this map. 

#1: Last Monday there was a shooting at Walnut and 15th. Here is the article confirming it. 

Police are investigating a non-injury drive-by shooting that happened near Long Beach's Lincoln neighborhood Monday afternoon, authorities said. Officers responded to a shooting call at 2:40PM on Monday, March 21 on the 1400 block of East 14th Street,

Long Beach Police Department (LBPD) spokesman Brad Johnson said."Officers arrived on scene and found that 2 male adults in a vehicle drove up to a parked car with 3 to 4 subjects inside," said Johnson. "The parties exchanged words, and then there was an exchange of gunfire and both parties fled the scene."

 A few notes, this article incorrectly identifies the neighborhood. The 14 block of East 14th Street is actually the MacArthur Park Neighborhood. But that's just the beginning of some sloppy journalism all around. 

#2: The second example comes the next day when several streets in the same area were shut down as another shooting had occurred around  10 in the morning the next day. Alleys, streets and major arteries were shut down. It was almost impossible to get from 17th Street to Anahiem if you were between Cherry and Orange. Somehow, what caused the shut down never made the news. The only way you know about this was if you saw it.  If it was connected to the earlier shooting, it's really odd this closure would have occurred an entire day later.

#3: Wednesday it gets worse, a lot worse: Thursday, 03/25/16, this story broke: 

Long Beach police are investigating a possible gang-related shooting near the Signal Hill border Wednesday night that involved at least two suspects exchanging gunfire, according to authorities. Officers were dispatched to Walnut Avenue and East Pacific Coast Highway at 8:06pm on Wednesday, March 23 regarding a shots heard call, Long Beach Police Department (LBPD) spokesman Brad Johnson said. 

What was left out of this story:

• There were at least thirty shots fired. It could have been as many as fifty.
• There were a lot of calls on this shooting so information wasn't sketchy.
• There were also shots fired around Falcon and 11th.
• This was at least the second shooting in the area that week.
• There were likely crime scenes at MLK Park and the LBCC West Campus
• MLK Park has a reputation as a very dangerous gang hang out
• We did three community walks that week, so we were keeping an eye on things

The fact that nearly thirty shots may have been fired should have been the lead. There were enough details, I am sure the police knew this. There was also no warning for residents even though the two suspects continued to drive through the neighborhood after the shooting took place. What's even odder is the article on this shooting is almost entirely impossible to find when searching recent news on Long Beach area shootings. Usually, when you do a keyword search cross referencing Long Beach with shooting, the most recent appears.. When I do the same here, this shooting isn't on the first few pages of the search. If I add the date or location, I still have trouble finding it. 

We're about to do a Go Long Beach Run and get the dumping and tagging for this week taken care of. I can tell you it's down. But based on that information please keep all eyes open. Keep an eye on your neighborhood and watch out for your neighbors.

Sunday Safety Update: 03/06/16 - 03/13/16

Here are the crime trends for this week in the MacArthur Park Neighborhood. The map is almost empty this week. There was property crime that trends towards some auto thefts, that trend North East towards 17th and Orange. Be careful at the south end of Orange and Anaheim, the property crime is in the same place as an encampment that was just removed. In Cambodia Town East, there were also some property crime along St Louis and 11th that trend up towards St Louis and Anaheim where some assaults took place. The car thefts around Rotary Centennial Park appear to be heading away from the neighborhood this week.

There is a ton of tagging and dumping in an alley that spans Gaviota to Rose. The alley is just behind Anaheim. As part of our Neighborhood Expansion program this week we clean half of that alley and reported all the tagging for clean up. We also did a Go Long Beach Run through our own neighborhood and the AOC7. The AOC7 has a clean up next week. 

The map now shows where the dumped items are, so if the city doesn't pick it up before the clean up, AOC7 can just hand that map to Public Works. 

There have not been shootings since the last round. However, the one that took place in North Long Beach at Artesia and Butler, now has identified the victim. Authorities Tuesday identified a man killed in a possible gang-related shooting in Long Beach that also left another man wounded. The shooting occurred about 3 p.m. Thursday near Butler Avenue and Artesia Boulevard, said Long Beach police Sgt. Brad Johnson. Tyrone Douglas, 19, of Long Beach died at a hospital, said coroner’s Assistant Chief Ed Winter. We are trying to identify victims, to prevent any shootings in Central Long Beach from being statistics as opposed to names/ real people.

WE Labs: Pitch a Solution for Homelessness

On Tuesday. Josephine Villaseñor and I attended WE Lab's event Pitch A Solution for Homelessness. What stood out about the meeting, was it wasn't a group of residents complaining about the problem, it was concerned citizens actually attempting to pitch solutions to it. 

Homelessness is a growing problem in Long Beach. The Police Department has two Quality of Life Officers that work in tandem with Health and Human Services and are dedicated to helping the homeless get back on their feet and find shelter. However, for the growing homeless population a better solution is needed. 

Here were some of the pitches that were made. 

The ideas pitched included the need for a central tree of information, that would branch out from a single number such as 211. 211 LA County, a 501(c)3 organization, is one of the largest and most effective resource lines in the nation providing access to comprehensive social services and disaster support for L.A. County residents.

A second idea was the use of port containers in the creation of housing campuses for the homeless. Shipping container homes were okayed for the Wrigley area in 2011. You can also find one at the intersection of Ocean and Temple. Each shelter would be called a campus. Each campus would serve a specific need. For instance, one campus may be devoted to drug recovery. One campus might be reserved for families getting back on their feet. 

The containers are strong enough to resist weathering. They could also be easily stacked. Each campus could be built for around $30 a square foot, before factoring in landscaping, health services and security. There would be some challenges in finding suitable land that was hooked up to the sewer system. There are currently a lot of these crates at the port going to waste. In many cases  they are just given away.

Additional ideas included an app that would allow residents to donate their recycle goods as a source of funding for homeless related issues. The idea pitched through the organization Ashla and Monday Night Mission would create a map of those residents who agreed to donate their recyclables which would then be picked up by the homeless as a $15 an hour minimum wage job. The obvious issue is thatvtaking those recycle goods, if the idea were to take money out of the city's budget, which will already experience a deficit next year.

The final idea was the creation of a database of shelters that would remove those shelters temporarily from the listing when beds are not available. The website would also allow homeless users to make reservations through the website and screen out those shelters that could not meet their needs. The link above would require shelter buy in before it could be of anyuse. There was an issue with making too much of the shelter's information public, but in the end most in attendance agreed the app would be very beneficial to social workers, police and community service workers trying to find a path off the street

What a prefabricated container house looks like, from the Mojave Desert.

West Division Leadership Forum: 02/24/2016: 6pm

Please join Commander Robert Smith and his staff for this informative meeting on Wednesday February 24, 2016 at 6:00pm. at 1129 Alamitos. We will be having an Auto Theft Detective give a presentation as well as Administrator Karen Owens will be giving a presentation on the Community Engagement Division. 

First Clean Up of 2015: Gundry and PCH to Gundry and Anaheim: 10/23/2016: 8am

Sunday Safety Update: 11/22/2015 to 11/28/2015

Disclaimer: Please note these maps are meant to show which direction crime is trending, areas to keep an extra eye on and places to remain vigilant in order for Central Long Beach residents to remain safe. That said, previous trends don't guarantee future trends will repeat in the same direction and patterns. Also, an absence of crime in one area, does not guarantee an absence in the future.

The darker the arrow, the stronger the trend.

So this week, in the MacArthur Park Neighborhood, there was a steep drop off in crime. There is more tagging, both reported and unreported. There is an attempt by the taggers to try and claim Fire Station 10 and the alley behind the U-Haul Station. Because of this, both will be monitored every single day until it stops.

There is a trend of property crime leading into some thefts from cars along the east side of Junipero. I will remind everyone again to keep your cars locked and read this article. While on the phone with a friend who works on Anaheim; she had to shut down the business for theft from a car to get investigated. The car was unlocked. You may think you have nothing of value, but these crooks left with sunglasses. Once they're inside, they don't want to leave empty handed.

Whenever I do clean ups, I find lots of cars with windows open. There were at least 10 on 14th Street last week. Please be very careful with your cars anywhere near Rotary Centennial Park or Orizaba Park, as car thefts and thefts from vehicles tend to cluster there.

There is a much stronger trend of assaults just south west of our neighborhood. If this map is extended a little west, they start to get bad. So please keep safe in the south end of the Poly Neighborhood. Additionally the trend of assaults identified did move east as predicted, and that does make the tagging in the alley behind the U-Haul much less surprising. 

Because of this, an eye will be kept on PCH between Alamitos and Cherry for the next two weeks, whenever possible.

Other Shootings

There has been an officer involvded shooting since the last reported shooing. The suspect is currently in the hospital in stable condition.

Long Beach police officers responding to a call of an assault late Thursday shot a man holding a meat cleaver who turned out to be the person who reported the attack, authorities said Friday.

An officer arrived at a residence in the 300 block of East Sunset Street about 11:20 p.m. after receiving a 911 call, according to a police statement. As the officer approached the front door, “a male exited the residence holding a meat cleaver in a threatening manner and confronted the officer.” - Full Story

The next Community Watch Meeting:

Linden-Roosevelt Neighborhood
Monday, December 7th
7 – 9 pm
Roosevelt Elementary Room A101
1574 Linden Ave   
  
The Central Long Beach Neighborhood Alliance
Community Watch Meeting
12/13/2015
4pm - 7pm
Events Page
Fox Coffee House
425 W Willow St, 
Long Beach, CA 90806

There is also a meeting some people will be attending regarding Long Beach PD wearing body cams. I would have liked to go, but I have three separate meetings on that day. I will still let you know what comes of it.

Wednesday Safety Watch: Neighborhood Expansion

What the map shows is a steep drop in crime this week within the MacArthur Park Neighborhood. There were some assaults just outside of the AOC7 to the west heading North East into the Poly/ Central neighborhood. Be real cautious in this area as there was a homicide there not long ago. The two for one were car thefts at 11th and Molino, this trends towards a robbery just outside our neighborhood towards vandalism at 14th and Dawson.

There is increased crime in the Franklin/ Altimois Beach area. Be aware of thefts begining at 7th and Almond that trend South West towards Altimois Blvd and the beach. Also the property damage in and around Franklin occured on Monday, which is incidentally the first day the students were on break.

There is increased crime in Central Wrigley, specifically along Cedar. These are mostly car thefts that begin at 9pm or later. If you're in the area pleas join Wrigley Community Neighborhood Group to stay in the loop on Wrigley crime trends.

Off the map there are also a high volume of assaults taking place west of Alamitos Blvd. Please be cautious around Myrtle Avenue and 7th Street, especially when you are on 7th between Long Beach Blvd and Atlantic Ave.

Sunday Safety Update: 11/15/2015 to 11/21/2015

Disclaimer: Please note these maps are meant to show which direction crime is trending, areas to keep an extra eye on and places to remain vigilant in order for Central Long Beach residents to remain safe. That said, previous trends don't guarantee future trends will repeat in the same direction and patterns. Also, an absence of crime in one area, does not guarantee an

Within the borders of the MacArthur Park Neighborhood not much is happening. It's been very quiet around the park itself. And thanks to our neighborhood resource officers, the park itself and the alleys are spotless. When I passed by for today's clean up, the other side of 14th was worse than the park itself.

There is a weak trend of assaults at PCH and Alamitos heading northwest towards fifteen, where a slightly stronger trend of unrelated crimes dips south back into the neighborhood. Be vigilant around PCH and Alamitos by the college and by Alamitos and 15th. Also be very careful if you're in the north end of the neighborhood just to the east of us.

There is a weak trend of car thefts heading from the AOC7 around Hoffman and 11th heading North East towards Gaviota an Anaheim. In that same neighborhood last night at around 10th and Vina, the streets were blocked off and a police helicopter was in the area.  I know due to neighborhood contacts, I have not yet learned the reason. I will share as soon as I do.

Within pour neighborhood there is a lot of activity around Junipero that starts with strong trends heading East or West and weaker trends heading South East or North West. If you're in the area around Anaheim and Junipero, please keep your items locked. There have been increased breaking and enterings, which will get worse as we approach the holidays. Also, there is a strong trend of different kinds of crime around Spaulding Street. Anywhere on Spaulding west of Junipero keep an eye out for your friends and neighbors.

Because I have a few off days, there will be extra neighborhood walks, Go Long Beach Requests, and Josephine A Villaseñor and I are going to work on a more structured version of a Community Watch that would allow better communication between neighborhoods and better training on conflict deescalation, disaster preparedness and and self defense.

Holiday Safety Meeting - Mark Twain Library 10/20/2015: 5pm

Long Beach residents are invited to the MacArthur Park/Whittier School Neighborhood monthly meeting on Tuesday, October 20, 2015, from 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Mark Twain Neighborhood Library located at 1401 E. Anaheim St. in the Community Room.  Free parking is available at the library parking lot.

Sunday Safety Update: 10/04/2015 to 10/202015

That map for this week in the MacArthur Park Neighborhood looks worse than it is. The biggest issue is the tagging has picked up. Keep an eye on 14th and Walnut, the south end of Rose and Anaheim and the north end of PCH and Gardenia. Notice that car thefts are trending towards Junipero and Anaheim. However, know that this is a much weaker pattern than last week. They seem to be trending that way, but if you look at a larger picture you can argue there is no real pattern.

You may still want to keep your cars locked up around 15th street and the east end of the neighborhood, near Junipero and Rotary Centennial Park. Do the same on Anaheim Street, Peterson and around MacArthur Park itself.

The multiple incident at the south end of the park was a fight. Since it was four fights on the same day at the same time, I assume they all refer to different people in the same fight. Near Junipero and 17th, the multiple incidents are two auto burglaries. Just south of that area, where the car thefts are trending towards us, we submitted about 15 Go Long Beach Requests for tagging and dumping to draw attention to the area as part of a Neighborhood Expansion effort. We will be getting the West Side of the 710 in response to the most recent shootings.

Lastly, notice the theft and assault on Alamitos. Stay safe in that area, especially as the construction continues. Also a large dumping area on Warner south of 14th has moved to Werner. This is actually one of the largest collections of dumped items I have ever seen.

District Six rep Dee Andrews has suggested Long Beach adopt the Dog Walker's program to the city's existing community watch program. 

The Long Beach City Council on Tuesday will hear a proposal from Councilman Dee Andrew to implement a Dog Walker Watch program as part of the city’s existing Community Watch Program. 

The idea, according to Andrew’s office, is that while residents are out walking their dogs, they can also be trained to watch for suspicious activity that police have called on citizens to report. With more than 63,000 dog-owning households in Long Beach, that is a lot of eyes and ears, officials say. - Full Story.

I have a cat, but I will still be watching anyway.

 

July to August: MacArthur Park Crime Totals

July Stats (MacArthur Park Neighborhood Only):

1. Theft from Vehicles (13 Total): No obvious pattern.
2. Theft of Vehicles (7 Total): Mostly clustering around Rotary Centennial Park. 
3. Property Crime (6 Total): They usually happen south of 15th Street, much like the assaults
4. Quality of Life (5 Total): Two at each park which are possession. The other is disorder.
5. Breaking & Entering (5 Total): Mostly clustering around Rotary Centennial Park.
6. Assaults (5 Total): They seem to follow 14th Street. Also around Rotary Centennial Park.
7. Robbery (4 total): Mostly clustering around Anaheim towards the park.
8. Theft (4 total): Depends greatly on how you define the neighborhood. No real pattern.
9. Homicide (1 Total): The 4th of July Homicide. Suspect in custody One unsolved outside the neighborhood.
10. Sexual Offense, Fire, Emergency, Proactive Policing Other (0 Total)

50 Total incidents

 August Stats (MacArthur Park Neighborhood Only):

1. Property Crime (9 Total): All west of Gardenia. Otherwise, no pattern/ up 30%.
2. Theft from Vehicles (8 Total): No obvious pattern. On other side of Old Zaferia Way this more than doubles. Down about 30%.
3. Assaults (6 Total): No pattern; even spread. Up 16%.
4. Theft (6 total): No real pattern. Up 33%.
5. Theft of Vehicles (4 Total): No obvious pattern. On other side of Old Zaferia Way this more than doubles. Down 42%.
6. Robbery (3 total): Be careful in the alley between Walnut and Gaviota. Down 25%.
7. Vehicle Recovery (2 Total): Anaheim and Walnut/ Stanton and 15th. Not recorded last month, but up 50%. 
8. Quality of Life (1 Total): Meth/ PCP at Cherry and PCH. Down 80%.
9. Breaking & Entering (0 Total): 100% improvement
10. Homicide (0 Total):Down 100%. There was an attempted shooting at Gaviota and 14th. Drive by/ suspected as gang related.
11. Sexual Offense, Fire, Emergency, Proactive Policing Other (0 Total): No Chage

39 Total Incidents (22% Decrease in crime)

Summary: In August there were 39 total Incidents ( a 22% Decrease in crime). Theft from Vehicles, theft of vehicles, robbery, breaking and entering, homicide, quality of life, are all trending down. Assaults, robbery and property crime are trending up.

Hellman District Named One of Long Beach's Top Five Neighborhoods

The Hellman Street Craftsman Historic District was recently named by Moveto as one of Long Beach's Top Five Neighborhoods. The Hellman neighborhood is just south of the MacArthur Park Neighborhood within the south west end of the AOC7. The Hellman Neighborhood has always been known for it's Craftsman Style Bungalows. But this is one of the first times it has been named an excellent place to move to while citing low crime and great schools. The same list also includes Naples, Bellmont Heights and Bixby Knolls as three of great neighborhoods side-by-side with the Hellman District and East Village.

11th Street Clean Up: Walnut to Mahanna

There was an unannounced clean up of 11th Street from Walnut to Mahanna to support our partners in the AOC7. While this clean up was originally intended to go to Alamitos, we ran out of room in the trash bag, and it was getting a little hot. The rest of 11th, from Mahanna to Alamitos will be tackled tomorrow.

The clean up also touched some areas of Hoffman relatively close to 11th Street.

This is part of this week's Neighborhood Expansion which so far has resulted in 19 additional Go Long Beach Requests and several Community Walks through the areas that have seen an increase in reported crime  The MacArthur Park Neighborhood will be doing this often when something serious happens in a neighborhood outside its boundaries.

Update 08/27/2015: So our goal was to get to Alamitos today. Unfortunately, by the time we got to Cerritos we had another 32 gallons of trash, so we didn't quite make it there today. However, being the stubborn people that we are we will try again tomorrow at 9am to get that last little stretch of the neighborhood bordering AOC7 a little cleaner by noon. This was our 41st clean up this year.

By the way,whoever issued the heat warning for today, understated how hot it would be. At least Arizona was a dry heat.

This Makes Six Months of Cleaning up MacArthur Park

Today makes six months that we have been working to make the MacArthur Park Neighborhood a better place; the very first clean up was six months ago from this Saturday om 15th Street. We intend to spend it where this began, helping our neighbors in the AOC7.

Tomorrow: Join Our Neighborhood Partners In The AOC7

Thanks Again To The AOC7 for the Joint Clean Up

Cambodia Town Re-Visioning Meeting: This Saturday

The next re-visioning meeting for the Anaheim Corridor is this Saturday.  This meeting is a little later than the last two. In all likelihood this will focus on what design guidelines should be implemented.

These are the meetings that resulted in the creation of the Sunday Night Market in Cambodia Town set to debut in less than two week.s

Second Town Hall Community Meeting/ Actually The Third Meeting
 
This Saturday, July 25, 2:30 – 5:00 pm, Mark Twain Library Auditorium, 1401 E. Anaheim St.

What Is Next Door And Why Sign Up

What is Nextdoor:

Nextdoor is free for residents and for the City. Each neighborhood creates its own private Nextdoor website, accessible only to residents of that neighborhood.  Long Beach residents can use Nextdoor to get to share information about neighborhood watch issues, local events, and other related activities. We believe a healthier and more engaged city creates stronger communities and Nextdoor can help to do just that.

How Does Nextdoor Work:

Nextdoor was specifically designed to make neighbors feel comfortable sharing information with one another in order to help build stronger communities.  Neighborhoods establish and self-manage their own Nextdoor website.  Information shared on each Nextdoor site is only visible to members who live in the neighborhood and who have verified their address. We are in the process of mapping the neighborhoods which will range in size from 50 to 250 households.

Privacy:

Information shared on Nextdoor is password protected and cannot be accessed by those outside the neighborhood or found on Google or other search engines. You can post notices that some neighboring communities will see. For instance, if you post a crime update about the MacArthur Park Neighborhood you can chose to make it visible to all the immediate surrounding neighborhoods.

In addition, Nextdoor never shares personal information with any third parties. Unlike an email listserv or other online group, neighbor posts are organized and archived for future reference.

How Do I Sign Up:

Those interested in joining their neighborhood’s Nextdoor website can visit www.nextdoor.com and enter their home address. If Nextdoor is already launched in your area you can immediately sign up. For the MacArthur Park area and all surrounding areas, it has already been established.

Joint AOC7/ MacArthur Park Clean Up 07/18/15 8:30am - Noon