Activists to flood area streets with lights, vigilance

The Clifton Heights Community Urban Redevelopment Corporation secured a grant from the University of Cincinnati for enough money to install 75 security floodlights in an area plagued by criminal activity, according to officials. This $13,000 grant matches the funds from another grant that the Clifton Heights Improvement Association recently secured.

Jim Wilson, the man who wrote the grant for CHCURC, said that this lighting project should help lower crime in the Clifton Heights area.

"Specifically we hope to reduce two types of crime: Crimes committed against pedestrians, for example assault and robbery, and theft from autos," said Wilson. He would also like to see a reduction in the amount of vandalism, graffiti and littering that occurs.

Students that live in the area also are concerned about crime.

"I really like living in the area, so anything that could make it safer would make me like it better," said Amanda Setlik, a fourth-year piano performance student. "That's the only issue I have about living there, and it's an important issue, so anything that would lower it would be a good thing."

Lt. Karen Patterson, a police officer with UC Public Safety, helped secure the grant money. "We often talk about a triangle of crime. The three sides are the victim, the suspect and the environment. This project deals with the environment. If you knock one side out, the triangle collapses," she said.

"We are trying to hit all three areas by arresting suspects and trying to educate the possible victims about how to protect themselves," said Patterson.

Clifton has given rise to what crime experts call the "broken window effect," Wilson said.

"Vandalism, graffiti and excessive littering are a problem in and of themselves," said Wilson, "but these types of crimes can also create an environment that increases the occurrence of violent crimes, such as assault and robbery.

By making near-campus streets more visible, residents may keep them more clean, thus diminishing the effect.

"We want to make the neighborhood safer and more inviting with the additional lighting. We want the neighborhood, at the street level, to be safer for students, residents, employees and visitors, alike."

Wilson said the original idea to install lighting in the area came from local homeowners and business owners in the area.

"Emilie Johnson, Laura Kleckner and Tracy Schwetschenau felt their street would be safer if they could get everyone to turn on their porch lights," said Wilson.

However, the prochlight intiative had some shortcomings and inhertant pitfalls.

"They made several attempts to get everyone to buy in, but they had limited success," said Wilson. "First of all, porch lights tend to produce good light right at the entry point but not so much light beyond that."

In addition, residents often forget to turn their porch lights on if there is no reason, he said.

"At the same time, Ray Ritchie, a landlord in the area who owns several properties, was putting floodlights up on his properties on the 2200 block of Wheeler Street," Wilson said.

Then Wilson attended a Clifton Heights Improvement Association meeting. Johnson, Kleckner and Schwetschenau mentioned the work Ritchie did on Wheeler Street and said they would like to do something like it on Emming Street.

The idea expanded to include the whole neighborhood, so Wilson volunteered to write and submit the grant to the City of Cincinnati Safe and Clean Program.

Wilson found out that increasing lighting in an area typically reduced crime by at least 20 percent. Often, criminal activity is decreased by up to 45 percent.

These statistics convinced the Safe and Clean Program to award the initial $13,000 grant. Wilson enlisted Patterson's help at a Clifton Heights, University Heights, Fairview Heights neighborhood council meeting to get a matching grant from CHCURC with UC's help.

"With the addition of the matching funds, we can install approximately 75 lights in the neighborhood," Wilson said.

The grant provides funds for commercial-grade exterior lighting to be installed on buildings in the Clifton Heights area. This lighting must illuminate a public sidewalk, alley or street.

If the property owners agree to install the lighting, they are eligible to receive the fixture free-of-charge and a $185 credit for additional installation, material and labor.

They can use a contractor of their choice for installation.

Any property owner in the Clifton Heights, Fairview Heights and University Heights area can apply.