graffiti in Pastita

[Barbara]

Hi Colleen,
I agree with pianoheat about the cameras. We are waiting to hear from the city to see if we will be included in the 2015 budget to help us put cameras in our callejones, from Calle Pastita up to the Panoramica. The city might help us financially, as a previous administration did with the cameras on the Calzada de Guadalupe, but you need to get organized, write letters, and be persistent to get help from the city. If we don't get the funding for the whole callejon, those of us who are interested will buy our own.
I also live in Pastita. I started a neighborhood group a year ago, and since then, we now have about 60 neighbors who are part of the "Vecino Vigilante" program (displaying the posters on their homes and part of the phone directory to get attention from the police quickly). This is in addition to the V.V. group which Pedro started on Pastita Street, near the Doal paint store. Last summer, the city offered a free one-day workshop for kids, which was successful. Muggings and robberies on this callejon have definitely gone down; in fact none have been reported to us since the program started. There is still some graffiti, but not as much as before. In addition, we now have 4 "panic buttons" installed in the area. I think Pedro has 2 or 3 in his neighborhood.
The V.V. posters and panic buttons are free, and I suggest that you, and anybody else who is interested, contact the city to see if you can start a neighborhood group in your neighborhood. Graffiti can turn into a sign that people don't care about their neighborhood and lead to worse problems, and a show of neighborhood solidarity can stop it. Here are the contact names and phone numbers:
Lic. Karla Mendez, Seguridad Ciudadano, Area de Prevencion, tel 102-4354 (programa de Vecino Vigilante)
Sra. Soledad Martinez, Oficina de Lic. Macias, 732-2717 (Boton de Enlace Ciudadano)
Good luck, and don't give up!
Barbara