Two South Side beats rack up most cop calls in '14

March 8, 2015 at 12:10a.m.

YOUNGSTOWN

Whoever works Car 204 in the city police department knows their shift should go pretty fast.

According to the department, the beat, which includes the South Side neighborhoods of Brownlee Woods and Buckeye Plat, had the most calls for service in 2014 at 11,681 calls.

That’s an average of more than 32 calls per day, or a little more than 10 calls per eight-hour shift.

Not far behind is the South Side beat patrolled by Car 206, which runs west from South Avenue past Southern Boulevard and is roughly bound on the north and south by Williamson Avenue and Bancroft Park, respectively. That beat — which is smaller geographically than Car 204’s — had 9,371 calls last year, or more than 251/2 calls per day.

Overall, the department answered 90,286 calls in 2014, or more than 247 calls per day.

Police Chief Robin Lees said one of the reasons the two beats are so busy is that they are heavily populated.

Historically, the South Side beats typically have been the busiest for the department, although in recent years, Car 204 has grown busier.

Lees also said there are a lot of transient people who move around in those areas as well, who typically need police services more.

In 2014, crime in the city was down for the third- straight year. But of the department’s 10 patrol beats for which statistics are kept, all saw an increase in calls except for two: Car 104 on the East Side saw a decrease of 5.87 percent in calls from 2013, as the beat recorded 6,493 calls; and Car 209, one of two West Side cars, saw a decrease of 4.84 percent, as that beat registered 9,237 calls.

Even so, Car 209 was the third-busiest beat in the city last year.

The beat that had the biggest increase in calls was Car 205 on the South Side, with an increase of 10.8 percent, or 6,646 calls.

Of the 12 beats in the city, four are on the South Side and one is downtown, although the downtown car often is dispatched to back up other cars because of its central location. The East Side has three beats, and the North and West sides each have two.

Lees said the majority of calls police answer are not for crimes.

He said often, people see police as the first representative of government because of their presence in the community and the fact that they are on duty round-the-clock, so if they need something, they will call.

He said that is where his community policing initiative, which is expected to take effect later this year, will make a difference.

Under the initiative, an officer will be assigned to each of the city’s wards. That officer will be in that ward every day, and will be able to directly address some problems, such as housing or zoning issues.

“The officer can make helpful referrals when it’s not a police matter,” Lees said.

Lees said the department relies heavily on crime mapping to determine where it should station its beat cars and extra patrols.

The two beats with the least amount of calls are both on the far East Side: Car 108, which had 3,035 calls in 2014; and Car 106, which had 4,255 calls.

Asked if he ever thought of consolidating the two beats, Lees said no because the areas are so large geographically that response times would be longer for someone needing an officer if they were merged into one beat.

Two block-watch presidents on Car 204’s beat say there are not many major problems in their neighborhoods.

Nancy Martin, head of the Brownlee Woods Neighborhood Association, which covers the area from Midlothian Boulevard south to the north side of Country Club Road and Youngstown-Poland Road to Interstate 680, said she has been telling her members to call the police when they see something.

Her message seems to be working.

“I’m glad we’re calling because that’s what we’ve been preaching for the last six years,” Martin said.

Other than speeding cars on Leymone Avenue and Sheridan Road, Martin said police do a good job and the best thing is they are visible often.

“They’re in the neighborhood a lot, even the side streets,” Martin said. “We see them four or five times a week.”

William Watson of the Buckeye Eyes & Ears Block Watch, which is bounded by Midlothian Boulevard and Poland Avenue and Loveland and Walton avenues, said the issues in his neighborhood are unruly kids or prostitutes on DeSoto Avenue. But other than that, he said things are pretty good in his neighborhood.

“There are no major issues here,” Watson said.

Watson also said police are very visible.

He said he likes the community-police proposal because one officer will be around regularly and allow residents to get to know them.

“You know they’re there, and that’s pretty important for our block watch,” Watson said.

“It’s somebody you can contact if you do have a problem that’s not being addressed.”