The Southend has suffered an 81 percent increase in narcotic violations and a doubling of auto thefts from 2012 to 2014.

Dearborn is home to one of the finest police forces in the country, no doubt about it. The Dearborn Police Department (DPD) has been recognized both nationally and by the state. 

However, a recent spike in neighborhood crime has many residents locking their doors and hoping for improvement.

Dearborn Police city crime statistics provided to me through a Freedom of Information Act request show many crimes down city-wide since 2012.

But the reductions are largely due to the efforts in cleaning up heavy crime commercial districts, including Fairlane Mall and the Ford Road and Mercury Drive area. In the blue collar border neighborhoods like mine and in the Southend, crime has alarmingly increased as of late.

Here’s what we know. In my neighborhood, (police) beat 7, a working class residential district which encompasses the Southwest Outer Drive and Crowley Park areas, personal property crimes are on the rise. 

Statistics show larceny from a vehicle has doubled since 2011, and a 30 percent rise in home invasions from 2013 to 2014. The trend in 2015 seems to be worsening.

Things aren’t much better in beat 4, which encompasses the Southend.  From 2012 to 2014, there has been a 148 percent increase in larcenies from a vehicle. This area has also suffered an 81 percent increase in narcotic violations and a doubling of auto thefts during this time period.

To make matters worse in these areas, the number of rental homes have doubled, ordinance violations are on the rise, beat 7 lost the Whitmore-Bolles swimming pool and beat 4 lost nearby Hemlock pool.

Our city’s recently launched “lock it or lose it” campaign is a good start, but must be part a broader strategy if it wants to make an impact on real crime. Teaching victims is good, but teaching the thieves to stay out of Dearborn is even better.

To help law enforcement, concerned residents of the Southwest Outer Drive Neighborhood Association (beat 7), organized a “watch program”  this year. We joined the Wayne County Sherriff’s S.C.O.U.T. program, which was later abolished by Wayne County Executive Warren Evans thanks to budget cuts. 

You might ask, “why did we partner with the Sheriff instead of joining Dearborn’s neighborhood watch program?”

Two reasons: First, Dearborn’s watch program consists of a goody bag with a few stickers, a whistle and a brochure about their “lock it or lose it” campaign. Our dedicated officers do a tremendous job of speaking at neighborhood meetings, but these meetings largely involve providing reasonable explanations for the rising crime statistics, glossing over the severity and reassurance that everything is O.K.

Secondly, the city liaison explained that a watch program may draw unnecessary attention to the crime problems, presenting a poor image for prospective home buyers. I can see the reasoning, but I strongly disagree with it. 

What’s the logic in pretending crime doesn’t exist, only to watch it worsen? I say let’s work together to reclaim our neighborhoods and run the thieves out of the area, so we don’t have to pretend it’s safe and nice. 

For any chance at success, a neighborhood watch must develop a working relationship with the DPD. As of this writing, however, the DPD has shown little interest in working with residents.

The bottom line is Dearborn is a great city, but we the taxpayers who care about our city and our neighborhoods are going to have to stand up and be heard. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, as they say. Besides it’s our tax dollars that keep the salaries paid and the lights turned on down at the new Dearborn Administration Center. 

It just so happens that beats 7 and 4 are also notorious for low voter turnout in the city elections. We don’t see the pools getting ripped out of the ground over by the city golf courses.

We are truly blessed to live here and thankful for our brave men and women in blue. Yet, at the end of the day I believe there is room for improvement within our community policing efforts. I believe we can do better. Quite frankly, we must do better.  

-Regan J. Ford is the founder and president of Dearborn-based VIVID Maintenance.  He serves his community as the president-elect of the Rotary Club of Dearborn and president of the Southwestern Outer Drive Neighborhood Association.