Arrests up, complaints down

By Brittany Benjamin

The next time you leave a party and carelessly toss aside a red cup, remember that it could be littering somebody else's lawn.

Late-night noise, public urination and litter resulting from off-campus parties are some of the main concerns non-affiliated neighbors expressed during a Neighborhood University Relations Committee meeting Monday. Meanwhile, students voiced concerns over the escalating renting rates, an increasing number of non-affiliates who party at Santa Clara and a lack of available information pertaining to the regulations for off-campus parties.

Both non-affiliated neighbors as well as Santa Clara students who live off-campus came together to address how students can be good neighbors to single-family residents who also live in the area. Mayor of Santa Clara Patricia Mahan, City Manager Jennifer Sparacino, Director of Planning and Inspection Kevin Riley and several members of Associated Students also attended.

During the meeting, Chief of Police Stephen B. Lodge explained that police arrests have increased since 2008 in the zone immediately surrounding the campus. He said the number of arrests increased from 77 in 2008 to 101 in 2009. The number of petty thefts also increased. Yet, he said that all crimes committed in the zone were reflected in his numbers, even those not committed by students.

Crime rates still increased after students returned to school in September.

"We've had more incidents where cans or bottles were thrown at officers," said Chief Lodge. "We've had foot pursuits for people who don't want to stop for the officers."

"On the other hand, a lot of public urination and litter and sofas on front porches -- those types of complaints are down this year," he said. Assaults and residence burglaries were also down, according to Lodge.

Complaints from neighbors have decreased this year, according to Riley. Riley believes that a proactive approach -- where police respond to parties before receiving calls from neighbors -- has limited the number of neighbor complaints. However, houses reported for noise violations are only documented after a neighbor's complaint.

Still some homeowners in the area want to see the crime rates drop to zero in the area because they view the parties as illegal activity.

Other neighbors like Claudia Daw came to the meeting in support of better living conditions for students living off-campus. Daw, president of the university neighborhood group, proposed a landlord tracking system to the university in order to make sure that students have reputable housing, which she believes includes running water, heat and doors/windows that shut and lock. She thinks these living conditions would improve the relations between students and neighbors.

"Some of the rentals around here are just dumps," said Daw, who lives south of campus. "I've found that if the landlord takes care of the property, the tenants are more willing to be considerate of their neighbors. But when the places are just horrible, they don't care."

"Our idea with the university is to work with the university to students get better product off-campus -- dwelling wise," she said. "This impacts us because our lives would be better because students are happier and living in better quarters. It benefits both parties."

While this proposal has not yet been adopted by the university, programs geared towards improving relations between students and neighbors have been implemented by the university and the Santa Clara Police Department.

One such program includes a "walk about" that occurs regularly at the beginning of the school year. During the walk, which is sponsored both by SCPD and AS, university members and SCPD go to houses in the area, distributing bags outlining how to be a good neighbor as well as common problems found in student houses.

"We're trying to establish that relationship early on," said Chief Lodge.

The next NURC meeting will be held February or March at the Santa Clara City Hall. The date is yet to be determined.

Contact Brittany Benjamin at (408) 554-4546 or BRBenjamin@scu.edu.