Neighborhood hood gets a new look

Due to an escalation of criminal and suspicious activity in Clairemont, there has been renewed interest in Neighborhood Watch, a nationwide program introduced by the National Sheriff’s Association in 1972.

A press conference was held Thursday, July 2, in Clairemont with councilman Chris Cates and several police officers, including Holly Tafoya, the community liason officer for the Clairemont and Bay Ho areas.

Signup sheets were available for those wanting to participate in the program as captain of their block. Less than ten people signed up.

Officer Tafoya said that each neighborhood with an active program gets two of the available 96 signs. The signs, which have an updated graphic in blue and white — as compared with the orange signs from the 1970s — are poly-coated for anti-graffiti protection. Tafoya agreed that neighborhoods with apartments and condominiums might require a co-captain for each complex.

People who signed up to be block captains were told they’d be contacted by someone from the city. The next step is to coordinate a kick-off meeting with neighbors, Officer Tafoya, and a Neighborhood Watch coordinator. Following the meeting and approval, the signs will then be awarded to participating blocks.

However, it is the responsibility of each neighborhood to pool resources for the purchase of the signs as well as to do the actual posting of them. This may be up to $350.

Tafoya said that each neighborhood gets to choose where they install the signs. Street light poles and street signs with perforated metal poles are permitted with some restrictions in regards to placement.

To get started in Clairemont or Bay Ho, contact officer Holly Tafoya at the SDPD Northern Division (858-552-1703; htafoya@pd.sandiego.gov) or contact the Neighborhood Watch coordinator through your town council (Clairemont's Town Council: publicsafety@clairemontonline.com). For those in other areas, you can also contact the SDPD area stations nearest you: sandiego.gov/police/services/divisions