It’s been all about “thug control” in the taking back of a residential area near Crestwood Avenue and Cottonwood Drive just south of Lathrop Road over the last three years.
A canine “neighborhood watchdog” group has made a difference in one Manteca park in that northern part of the city that had been plagued by gang members and pot smoking teens Police Chief Dave Bricker learned during his informal breakfast chat Saturday morning at Johnny’s Restaurant.
Retired Lawrence Livermore Lab electronics engineer Craig Ollis is one of two city park volunteers who have taken on the upkeep of St. Francis Park for the duration of the current economic turn down. The beginning of his day’s chores involves the cleaning up any graffiti early in the morning before neighbors get to notice. Also walking his dog for a couple hours through the park has become a matter of habit.
People had been long hesitant to walk out of their houses, because of the people the park was attracting during the daytime hours and after dark as well, Ollis said.
“Take a 20-minute dog walk and you’d be surprised how fast it clears out a park,” he said.
In forming his neighborhood group he has found other residents who want to keep the park open for young families and have joined his cause. He noted that young mothers with children had been intimidated by gang members would loiter and even gather on the play equipment. They would even sit on the turret children wanted to use while openly smoking pot.
When he sees elements in the park that he recognizes shouldn’t be there and who he feels are putting fear into the neighborhood, he calls half a dozen neighbors with dogs. Within minutes they all meet to take a walk in the park. Heading up the pack is a Doberman Pincher and a pit bull-looking companion followed by four others and their owners, “just on their morning walk.”
He stressed that he doesn’t want to put anyone in jeopardy in dealing with the gang members who he refers to as “thugs” saying they can’t be approached – but on the other hand they won’t argue with a dog – especially one that is barking.
“I don’t allow thugs to chase families away from the playground equipment,” he said. “I believe the non-confrontational way is the most important.”
Ollis has a close working relationship with Manteca officers saying there is nothing that goes pn during the day he doesn’t know about. Night is different when neighbors work more closely together. He has the telephone number of the police dispatcher on his phone, only using it in a time of real emergency, he said.
The retiree said his professional life had always been structured and he needed his retirement to be the same. He is in the process of joining the police Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) used locally as well as across the nation in tragedies such as Katrina.
While cleaning up morning graffiti, he has received gang slurs and signs from teens driving by and throwing beer bottles at him. Over the last three years he has had a car stolen and another car vandalized and video surveillance cameras ripped off of his house, he said, noting that he lives in a “nice safe” neighborhood today in contrast to what it was three years ago.
“I’ve had them get out of their cars and take pictures of me with their cell phones,” he said. He doesn’t respond.
Ollis is known as the “chief neighborhood watch guy” who has seriously taken on the leadership of his group in introducing neighbors to each other and sending out regular email updates on any criminal activities occurring near their homes. Everyone is kept aware, he stressed.
“I have all their phone numbers and they have mine. A trust has been built,” he said.
He recalls seeing a car parked near his home that was unknown to him recently – parked there for three hours possibly casing the homes. A few days later one of the neighbor’s homes was burglarized which led back to the driver of the vehicle. Neighborhood Watch had all the information on the car that he had collected for Manteca officers to use in following up in their investigation.
Ollis recently had a neighbor tell him that this was the first year he didn’t have any trouble created by loitering youths by his home.
Next to the park is a bus stop for students from Calla High School where he said he found teens during his morning walk smoking marijuana. When he approached them they threw beer bottles at him, he said. The high school principal drove out and witnessed her students for herself and met the bus when it arrived at her school to discuss the matter with them more specifically, he added.
In addition to marijuana he has also found two brindles of crystal meth in the park, he recalled. “Every summer it has gotten better now,” he said. “There had been gang fights out in the street where they would break windows out of each others’ cars. To keeps drugs out of the park is to use it,” he told the chief. “Now people feel safe!”
Bricker pointed out that several of his officers have also been church ministers coming into the department with an ingrained “desire to serve.” With that in mind he noted that there are only two things that get people out of gangs: “family and faith.”
Other community members at the chief’s breakfast told the city’s top cop of illegal parking in front of their homes that was actually bringing down the values of the neighborhood.
Among the list of violators were motor homes and work trucks that are seen as eyesores bringing a more commercial look to the street parking habits taking away from their landscaping. Chief Bricker noted that motor homes and trailers are given a pass on weekends but they are not allowed during the week. A telephone call to the police dispatcher promises to make a difference in the future, he noted.
Longtime educator Earl Pimentel was having breakfast at Johnny’s sitting at the counter. He voiced concern over traffic and congestion especially near the post office, seeing no immediate solution except to walk.
A resident from Jade Place, off of Sapphire Way, witnessed a man recently gathering everything he could get into his truck including a new Craftsman lawnmower from a neighbor’s yard. She said officers were not able to respond in time to catch the thief after she had called them.
A former Tracy mayor and past police sergeant from that city, Aymon Hall, talked with the chief about a proposal other communities have used in paying for officers on a certain police beat with state redevelopment (RDA) funds as a way to increase officers on the street.
Hall said he had to come to Manteca on Saturdays to have breakfast with his brother Bob who recently moved to the Del Webb community.
The former Tracy officer served also as the director of security at the Tracy Defense Depot after retiring from the force.
Chief Bricker also learned about the location of a suspected “drug house” during his visit with the Johnny’s breakfast bunch. Not only is there a lot of foot and car traffic, he was told, but hand-to-hand sales out in front of the residence. Out came the chief’s small black note book and it was all jotted down for action come Monday morning.
Clint Boersma asked for the chief’s help in slowing traffic on Crestwood Avenue where it exits onto Lathrop Road. He said he is hoping for a three-way stop at that corner. Yet others on Cottage Avenue near Southland and also on Austin Road between Yosemite Avenue and Highway 99 were complaining about “race track” level driving in those areas.
Bricker noted that one problem is that cutbacks have reduced the number of traffic officers available from six down to two available to combat those problems.
A canine “neighborhood watchdog” group has made a difference in one Manteca park in that northern part of the city that had been plagued by gang members and pot smoking teens Police Chief Dave Bricker learned during his informal breakfast chat Saturday morning at Johnny’s Restaurant.
Retired Lawrence Livermore Lab electronics engineer Craig Ollis is one of two city park volunteers who have taken on the upkeep of St. Francis Park for the duration of the current economic turn down. The beginning of his day’s chores involves the cleaning up any graffiti early in the morning before neighbors get to notice. Also walking his dog for a couple hours through the park has become a matter of habit.
People had been long hesitant to walk out of their houses, because of the people the park was attracting during the daytime hours and after dark as well, Ollis said.
“Take a 20-minute dog walk and you’d be surprised how fast it clears out a park,” he said.
In forming his neighborhood group he has found other residents who want to keep the park open for young families and have joined his cause. He noted that young mothers with children had been intimidated by gang members would loiter and even gather on the play equipment. They would even sit on the turret children wanted to use while openly smoking pot.
When he sees elements in the park that he recognizes shouldn’t be there and who he feels are putting fear into the neighborhood, he calls half a dozen neighbors with dogs. Within minutes they all meet to take a walk in the park. Heading up the pack is a Doberman Pincher and a pit bull-looking companion followed by four others and their owners, “just on their morning walk.”
He stressed that he doesn’t want to put anyone in jeopardy in dealing with the gang members who he refers to as “thugs” saying they can’t be approached – but on the other hand they won’t argue with a dog – especially one that is barking.
“I don’t allow thugs to chase families away from the playground equipment,” he said. “I believe the non-confrontational way is the most important.”
Ollis has a close working relationship with Manteca officers saying there is nothing that goes pn during the day he doesn’t know about. Night is different when neighbors work more closely together. He has the telephone number of the police dispatcher on his phone, only using it in a time of real emergency, he said.
The retiree said his professional life had always been structured and he needed his retirement to be the same. He is in the process of joining the police Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) used locally as well as across the nation in tragedies such as Katrina.
While cleaning up morning graffiti, he has received gang slurs and signs from teens driving by and throwing beer bottles at him. Over the last three years he has had a car stolen and another car vandalized and video surveillance cameras ripped off of his house, he said, noting that he lives in a “nice safe” neighborhood today in contrast to what it was three years ago.
“I’ve had them get out of their cars and take pictures of me with their cell phones,” he said. He doesn’t respond.
Ollis is known as the “chief neighborhood watch guy” who has seriously taken on the leadership of his group in introducing neighbors to each other and sending out regular email updates on any criminal activities occurring near their homes. Everyone is kept aware, he stressed.
“I have all their phone numbers and they have mine. A trust has been built,” he said.
He recalls seeing a car parked near his home that was unknown to him recently – parked there for three hours possibly casing the homes. A few days later one of the neighbor’s homes was burglarized which led back to the driver of the vehicle. Neighborhood Watch had all the information on the car that he had collected for Manteca officers to use in following up in their investigation.
Ollis recently had a neighbor tell him that this was the first year he didn’t have any trouble created by loitering youths by his home.
Next to the park is a bus stop for students from Calla High School where he said he found teens during his morning walk smoking marijuana. When he approached them they threw beer bottles at him, he said. The high school principal drove out and witnessed her students for herself and met the bus when it arrived at her school to discuss the matter with them more specifically, he added.
In addition to marijuana he has also found two brindles of crystal meth in the park, he recalled. “Every summer it has gotten better now,” he said. “There had been gang fights out in the street where they would break windows out of each others’ cars. To keeps drugs out of the park is to use it,” he told the chief. “Now people feel safe!”
Illegal parking concern of some residents
Bricker pointed out that several of his officers have also been church ministers coming into the department with an ingrained “desire to serve.” With that in mind he noted that there are only two things that get people out of gangs: “family and faith.”
Other community members at the chief’s breakfast told the city’s top cop of illegal parking in front of their homes that was actually bringing down the values of the neighborhood.
Among the list of violators were motor homes and work trucks that are seen as eyesores bringing a more commercial look to the street parking habits taking away from their landscaping. Chief Bricker noted that motor homes and trailers are given a pass on weekends but they are not allowed during the week. A telephone call to the police dispatcher promises to make a difference in the future, he noted.
Longtime educator Earl Pimentel was having breakfast at Johnny’s sitting at the counter. He voiced concern over traffic and congestion especially near the post office, seeing no immediate solution except to walk.
A resident from Jade Place, off of Sapphire Way, witnessed a man recently gathering everything he could get into his truck including a new Craftsman lawnmower from a neighbor’s yard. She said officers were not able to respond in time to catch the thief after she had called them.
A former Tracy mayor and past police sergeant from that city, Aymon Hall, talked with the chief about a proposal other communities have used in paying for officers on a certain police beat with state redevelopment (RDA) funds as a way to increase officers on the street.
Hall said he had to come to Manteca on Saturdays to have breakfast with his brother Bob who recently moved to the Del Webb community.
The former Tracy officer served also as the director of security at the Tracy Defense Depot after retiring from the force.
Chief Bricker also learned about the location of a suspected “drug house” during his visit with the Johnny’s breakfast bunch. Not only is there a lot of foot and car traffic, he was told, but hand-to-hand sales out in front of the residence. Out came the chief’s small black note book and it was all jotted down for action come Monday morning.
Clint Boersma asked for the chief’s help in slowing traffic on Crestwood Avenue where it exits onto Lathrop Road. He said he is hoping for a three-way stop at that corner. Yet others on Cottage Avenue near Southland and also on Austin Road between Yosemite Avenue and Highway 99 were complaining about “race track” level driving in those areas.
Bricker noted that one problem is that cutbacks have reduced the number of traffic officers available from six down to two available to combat those problems.
