15th St Neighbors Take a Stand Against Crime

15th Street neighbors finally took a strong public stand against their street being used as a battleground by gangs.  A petition is circulating asking that the residents of 915 S. 15th Street move out of their house.  It is hard to get more specific than that!  A block watch has been organized with the support of Sunnyside Police and City officials.  I would like to praise these efforts by all involved.  This is a step in the right direction.

This is a battle being joined.  Much work needs to be done.  This will not be solved overnight.  Citizens should not expect a quick fix to a single incident.  A longer view needs to be taken, capturing the vision of a neighborhood free of violence, and continuing to pursue it.  What has recently taken place could be categorized as “baby steps”.  The significant thing to take from this is that the journey has begun.  As the saying goes, a journey of 1,000 miles begins with one step.  We are now on the journey.  Most of the hard work still lies ahead.

Sunnyside Mayor Paul Garcia, Council Members Bruce Epps and Carol Stone, as well as City Manager Eric Swansen should be encouraged to continue their support of citizens in the community taking this stand.  While this is a positive move, it should be recognized the problem is not localized to just one street or block.  The entire city is being effected by gang crime.

In a two steps forward, one step back type of move, the City has cut two police officer positions.  Due to the City Council’s financial mismanagement, these cuts have been made at a critical point in time, where the officers are needed. 

Council Member Hancock should be ashamed for pushing for retaining code enforcement officers given this situation.  Worse yet, Council Members Restucci and Epps are supporting raising taxes without considering budget cuts.  Their failure to look for ways to reduce waste shows contempt for the citizens of Sunnyside, and their sacrifices in a tough economy.  Thankfully, the rest of the Council does not show this complete lack of understanding, and is making tough budget cuts before taking more from citizens in taxes.

We need the City Council to continue to take a stand against crime.  We need them to back it up by making it a priority in the City Budget.  We also need to review all City expenses to find ways to save money.  If Mr. Restucci and Mr. Epps are unwilling to do this, they should resign from the Council.

For reference see: South 15th Street neighbors say good riddance to gangs and Pink Slips Issued Today to Sunnyside Employees from the Daily Sun News.