Murrayhill Neighborhood Watch & Safety Meeting Notes (June 28, 2022)

NW Kick-Off & Safety Meeting Notes

June 28, 2022

Neighborhood Watch Organizers 

Carey Hughes         Nicole Baker

503-516-7919 503-621-7789

Carey@CareyHughesHomes.com Nicole@BakerCreativeLab.com

Emergency / Crime in Progress - 911

BPD Non-Emergency Dispatch - 503-629-0111 (save # in your phone)

General Beaverton Police Department - 503-526-2260

Crime Statistics - https://www.beavertonpolice.org/210/Crime-Information-by-Neighborhood

BPD Call Logs - https://www.beavertonpolice.org/386/Police-Call-Logs

Neighborhood Watch Facebook Page (Scan QR code or click here)

PROGRAM OVERVIEW
What is a Neighborhood Watch?

Neighborhood Watch has been around since the 1960s and is a crime prevention program that:

• Is designed to bring neighbors together so they can watch out for each other and any unusual activity in the community.
• Teaches residents techniques to reduce the risk of being victimized at home and in public.
• Trains residents about the importance of recognizing suspicious activities and how to report them.
• Teaches participants how to make their homes more secure and properly identify their belongings.
• Allows neighbors to get to know each other and their routines so that any out-of-place activity can be reported and investigated.
• We are not here to solve crimes or apprehend people! Do not confront people alone. Report suspicious activity to the police and provide as much detail as possible. 
• This is not a vigilante program. 

Goals of the Neighborhood Watch program:

• Get neighbors to connect in order to:
• Watch out for each other.
• Discuss safety issues or concerns on your street and in the community.
• Alert neighbors to:
• Mailbox issues 
• Package thefts
• Car break-ins
• Vacation home security checks
• School bus stop safety
• Park & trail safety
• Graffiti 
• Homeless activity in public spaces

BEAVERTON POLICE DEPARTMENT PRESENTATION 
Overview

• Murrayhill/South Beaverton is one of the safest areas in the city.
• Many of our streets were designed with safety in mind. There is one main way in and one way out.
• The police department operates 4 shifts for 24 hr. coverage. There are a minimum of 6 officers on the Beaverton streets at any given time. A minimum of 1 person per shift is assigned to South Beaverton. If you don’t see them, they are assisting with a call in another area and will return to South Beaverton when they are no longer needed on the other call.
• BPD is currently down 10 positions. Officers-in-Training have filled some of the spots, but it takes time to get through training and the academy. They are looking for educated, smart, young people to join the force. If interested, contact BPD for more information. There is also a Cadet program available for youth (16-21 yrs old).
• If you see a patrol car and you are wondering if they are looking for something/someone, you can call the records department and ask if they are responding to a call.

Safety Tips from the Beaverton Police

• To prevent crime from occurring on or near   your property:
• Install motion lighting. 
• Keep the outside of the house in good order and make repairs in a timely manner, so your house looks lived in. 
• Limit dark spaces in landscaping, and eliminate spaces that are easy to hide in. Trim bushes around the front of your home. 
• Keep bushes below 2ft high and trim the bottom of trees to 6 ft.
• If you have an alarm, get in the habit of using it.
• Do not leave garage door remotes in cars that are parked in your driveway or on the street. 
• Always lock interior doors in the garage going into the house.
• Do not post on social media when you go on vacation. You don’t know whose social media friends are seeing their comments on your posts, and now they know you are out-of-town.
• Know your neighbors, their cars, and family members so if you see something unusual you can contact them or the police.
• Tell your neighbors when you are going out of town. Let them know if there will be a house sitter or if the home will be empty while gone.
• When you are out of town, you can contact the Beaverton Police Department to do a perimeter check of your home. For more information on how to arrange a visit, please visit our BPD Resources and Programs list. (Must be a member of the Murrayhill Neighborhood Watch Facebook Group to access the file.)

Please call the police if you see unusual activity!

• Their Motto - No call is too small. Even if your cat is stuck in a tree, call them. All calls to the BPD will receive a phone or in-person follow-up.
• When you call, don’t be afraid to say what your ask is. (e.g. “I’d like someone to investigate a suspicious person checking neighborhood patios.”)
• Calls are beneficial to create a paper trail even if a police report is not filed.
• If a situation raises the hairs on your neck, call 911. If they internally determine it not to be an emergency, they will move it to non-emergency.
• Ring doorbell cameras have an additional app called “Neighbors”. When police are looking for video footage to assist with criminal investigations, they will post a request on the Neighbors app. You can also register your camera with BPD so they know they can contact you if they are investigating a possible crime in your area.
• Reporting homeless people or camps- BPD does not get a lot of homeless calls from South Beaverton. But if it concerns you, call BPD, as petty crime usually follows transient populations. They find that the homeless people moving out here are looking for peace and quiet, but that does not mean we shouldn’t call. All calls are logged so it creates a record and the police can look for area trends. We are not on the Max line, so that is a plus.
• The police do see people coming to this area from North and Central Beaverton at night to check cars and home locks because this is where the "nice stuff " is. Do not leave anything in your car. Make sure all doors are locked.
• If you see a dog in the car, and you can articulate that a dog is in distress (lethargic, not producing saliva, etc.), you can generally break a window to save the dog but know that you may have some responsibility if it is not a true emergency. It will be 20 degrees hotter inside the car within 20 min. Dogs stop regulating their temperature at 95 degrees. Before you break a window, ask yourself what means do you have to help the dog once it’s out of the car (water, leash, etc.) Keep in mind, that the dog may be angry and the owner may also be angry, so only intervene when necessary. Call the police and document the timeline of events. Also, electric cars can be on with the AC blowing but the car will sound like it is off. Always call 911 first and wait to see if the police can arrive before the dog is in dire distress. Let the police take the liability instead of you. (Children in cars do not share the same guidelines.)

Resident Concerns Mentioned to the Beaverton Police Representatives at the Meeting

• 152nd is becoming a parking lot and residents see people checking car door handles, and slashing tires. Call 911 to report.
• Catalytic Converters are still incredibly popular. It takes criminals 30 seconds to remove it. Motion lights, cameras, and dogs are all good deterrents.
• Parking lot safety behind Murrayhill professional buildings, and how emergency information is shared with the professional offices in the complex. 

HOW DOES THE NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH WORK?

This is a work in progress and we want input from neighbors on what they would like to see from the Neighborhood Watch. Please share your thoughts & help spread the word in the community.

• Street Captains- We envision each street or section of a street having a “Street Captain” who will be responsible for gathering the residents’ information for their area. (We have templates for this.) They will then disseminate the information to the neighbors in their assigned area. Once the information is gathered, we recommend the Street Captain create a group text so neighbors can easily & quickly share relevant information.

Please note, this is not a mandatory program and residents may not want to share their information or participate in the program.

• Facebook Group- A Facebook group has been set up to keep participants up-to-date on safety information in Murrayhill. There are also resources for documenting your possessions, improving personal and home safety, discussing programs available through the Beaverton Police Department, and more.

Visit https://www.facebook.com/groups/murrayhillneighborhoodwatch/about or scan the QR Code.

WHAT’S NEXT?

• Street Captains
• If you’re willing to be a Street Captain, please contact Carey Hughes at Carey@CareyHughesHomes.com & Nicole Baker at Nicole@BakerCreativeLab.com.
• Survey
• In the next couple of weeks, we’ll be sharing a survey so we can get feedback and suggestions from neighbors in order to build the most beneficial program for the community.
• Signs  
• We will be ordering Neighborhood Watch signs and window stickers for the front of your home. 
• Murrayhill Owners Association
• We will consult with the Murrayhill Owners Association about putting up a few Neighborhood Watch signs at key locations on streets within Murrayhill. 
• Get the word out
• Share this info and encourage your neighbors to join the Facebook group and email us, so their names can be added to our email list of Neighborhood Watch participants.

• Please reach out to Carey or Nicole with any questions or ideas you may have. 
• Carey Hughes, Carey@CareyHughesHomes.com 
• Nicole Baker, Nicole@BakerCreativeLab.com