As part of a new, holistic approach aimed at combatting the culture of gun violence, concentrated in a few specific blocks of the Fordham Manor section of the Bronx, the NYPD’s 52^nd precinct has launched a multi-agency, community collaboration to tackle the issue.

 

Announced by Deputy Inspector Thomas J. Alps during the Bronx Community Board 7 executive meeting on March 18, part of the initiative involves giving the area a type of physical make-over, while also partnering with City agencies and community-based organizations to address unemployment and quality of life issues that plague the neighborhood.

 

As a first step, officers from the 52^nd precinct joined local community group, Guerinos Against Graffiti (GAG), Bronx Community Board 7 residents, members of the Department of Sanitation, the NYPD Auxiliary team and the 52nd Precinct Explorers for a day-long clean-up along Briggs Avenue on Thursday, March 25, focusing on the area between East Kingsbridge Road and East 194th Street.

Volunteers spent the whole day sweeping the streets, spray-removing graffiti from buildings, clearing trash and painting walls, while CBS New York arrived on site to film the efforts.

 

Ahead of the event, at the Bronx CB7 March 18 meeting, Alps said that while six out of the seven index crimes for the precinct were down as of that date, compared to the same period last year, the command was still struggling with gun violence. “Year to date, we have six shootings versus three last year,” he said, adding that they had experienced a “horrific one” the previous night [March 17] at 3339 Hull Avenue, as reported by Norwood News.

 

Alps said the victim had been “still alive and breathing” when officers responded to the shooting incident at around 10 o’clock. “We had her [the victim] transported quickly to Jacobi Medical Center where she was pronounced deceased at 23.49 hours [11.49 p.m.],” he said, adding that the officers involved were to receive counseling due to the psychological trauma they experienced as a result of witnessing the incident.

 

He said the investigation was going well and he anticipated the case being closed quickly. He stressed that he wanted residents to know that the precinct was increasing its presence in the area, and had already been doing so but had been getting pulled to other areas of the command as well. “Along the 194 corridor and down by Father Zeiser Place as well, they’ve been experiencing gun violence,” he said, adding that it was gang-related, and that he was concerned there was potential for further shootings.

 

He then outlined the new tactic the precinct had decided to adopt to address ongoing gun violence in the area. “It’s my belief and it’s the department’s belief that quality-of-life issues exacerbate the issues of gun violence and sometimes breed the issues of gun violence, or violence in general and crime,” Alps said.

 

He said that after analyzing crime within the 52 command, he selected four of the worst blocks that have experienced the most gun violence in the past three years since he’s been at the precinct. These are between Kingsbridge and 194^th Street, the Valentine Avenue block between 194th and 196^th Streets, Morris Avenue between Kingsbridge Road and 196^th Street, and Father Zeiser Place between Webb Avenue and University Avenue.

“There’s been other blocks in the command that had significant issues but those are the blocks with the highest gun violence combined with community complaints, quality of life issues recorded on 311 – double parked cars, smoking marijuana, loud music, selling drugs, homelessness, trespassing, noise, noise, noise, illegal parking,” Alps said.

 

He then said he was looking for volunteers in the community to assist with the forming of a coalition, together with city agencies, elected officials and clergy, to organize days of action to carry out mass clean-ups in each of the target areas.

 

He said he aimed to liaise with the City’s Department of Buildings to make sure residential buildings were in compliance and were clean, safe, and habitable, and to improve security measures, lighting and cameras. “We’ll bring in Parks to trim trees, fix streetlights with DOT,” he said, adding that he wanted residents to know that the police were invested in helping them. He added that it was also preferable for other City agencies to get to know the community and resolve such issues directly instead of always involving the police.

 

Another angle is to work with violence interrupters like BRAG [Bronx Rises Against Gun Violence] who run programs where they work with young people to promote safer streets and new community norms where violence is not accepted.

 

“We’ll come back later and bring the BIDs and businesses in Fordham Road and have a resource fair and job fair,” Alps continued. “The target is to hire locally, connect businesses with this specific block.” He said he hoped this approach would be a game changer, rather than simply trying to suppress crime when it occurs.

 

Alps assured residents that the new approach was aimed at building trust within the community but was not going to replace traditional methods of law enforcement; it would merely compliment it.

“We are police officers, and we have to enforce laws,” he said. “I’ll bring in other divisions, narcotics, undercover, gangs, enforcement of those individuals that are not allowing the community to evolve,” he said. “We are police officers. That is our duty.” Of the new approach, he added, “I’m excited about it; I’m going to need some help.”

 

On the evening of the first clean-up event on March 25, Alps tweeted that six derelict vehicles had been towed away from the targeted area, and two stolen motorcycles were also recovered that day.

 

Later, on the same evening, during the monthly, virtual, 52nd Precinct Community Council meeting, in reference to the day’s events, Alps told participants, “It was just amazing how it transformed the look of the block.” He added, “That’s what I want to do, transform the look and hopefully transform the attitude of the lives of the residents of the block.”

 

Ahead of the day of action, the precinct had tweeted a warning to residents living on Briggs Avenue between East 194th Street and East Kingsbridge Road that there would be no parking in the area from midday to midnight, and that vehicles would be towed due to the clean-up event taking place that day.

 

Despite the pre-advice, not all car owners complied on the impacted block. Alternate side parking (ASP) rules were also in effect the same morning. To make way for the clean-up, local car owners had to find other spaces to legally double-park while ASP was in effect, and later move to new parking spaces, once ASP was suspended.

 

Many drivers north of East 194th Street double-parked on the next block on Briggs Avenue between East 194th and East 196th Streets. However, not all cars on that block moved to the alternate side, creating a bottle neck.

 

Only one entrance to Briggs Avenue had been cordoned off. At one point, an 18-wheeler Goya Foods truck made the unfortunate mistake of turning onto the open end of Briggs Avenue, causing tempers to flare as it seemed to touch one of the properly, double-parked cars. However, the forgiving car driver quickly jumped into his vehicle and moved it closer to the curb, avoiding any damage to either vehicle.

A Department of Sanitation inspector was observed a distance away on the block at the same time, likely giving tickets to some of the estimated ten other vehicle owners who had not moved to the other side of the street. He appeared to be unaware of the close encounter between the Goya truck and the double-parked car, later getting back into his vehicle and driving away.

 

After about ten minutes of slowly driving through the obstacle course of double-parked cars, and finally reaching East 196th Street, the Goya Foods driver told the Norwood News, “It’s no good.”

 

Meanwhile, Sirio Guerino of GAG who donated his services and graffiti-cleaning equipment on the day for the first of what could become monthly clean-ups in the area, said of Alps and the clean-up event, “This is something new he’s trying. The four blocks he’s designated are based on multiple gunshots and reports of shootings, and those with the most 311 complaints.”

 

In a series of tweets dated March 25, Alps wrote that the block residents were overwhelmed with emotion and thankful for the collective efforts of the volunteers, and slowly came outside to witness and take in the improvements. “Like the spring season, we hope this day of action brings, hope, transformation and change to a block suffering from neglect and violence,” Alps wrote. “The 52nd Precinct is invested in this community and are proud to serve you.”