Securing Police Equipment and Safety Resources for the Third District

Press Coverage: Nash, Weaver Secure Funding for Police Trailer and ATVs to Help Fight Crime; City Councilman Unveils Plan to Combat Crime in the Third District

Crime in the Third District was not an abstract policy issue. It was personal. Residents I knew, people whose homes I visited, families whose children attended the same schools — they were the victims. And the police resources available to protect them were inadequate.

Working with Councilwoman Weaver, I secured funding for police trailers and ATVs for the Third District. These were not luxury purchases. They were essential tools that allowed police officers to establish visible presence in areas that patrol cars could not effectively reach.

The police trailer served as a mobile command center that could be positioned in high-crime areas, giving officers a visible base of operations and giving residents a physical location where they could interact with police without going to a station. The ATVs allowed officers to patrol alleys, vacant lots, and other areas that squad cars could not access.

The equipment funding was part of a comprehensive approach to public safety that I unveiled publicly and pursued through legislation and budget advocacy. The plan combined enforcement tools, community engagement, and environmental improvements.

Enforcement meant getting officers the equipment they needed and establishing visible police presence in areas where residents felt unsafe. Community engagement meant holding forums where residents could tell police what was happening in their neighborhoods. Environmental improvements meant tearing down abandoned buildings, clearing vacant lots, improving street lighting, and eliminating the physical conditions that harbor criminal activity.

Public safety and affordable housing are inseparable. You can build the most beautiful affordable housing development in the city, but if residents do not feel safe walking from their car to their front door, the project has failed.

We believe every development should include a safety analysis. We evaluate crime data, lighting conditions, sight lines, and access patterns. We design our projects to maximize natural surveillance. This approach comes directly from my council experience fighting to make Third District neighborhoods safer.