The 52nd Precinct officially rolled out the Neighborhood Coordination Officer program (NCO), part of the NYPD’s overall Neighborhood Policing Program.

Eight patrol officers and one sergeant, referred to as neighborhood coordinating officers (NCOs), make up the precinct’s NCO program. They’re offered the chance to create their own schedules while also provided with a smartphone for residents to stay connected to them at all times.

“I guarantee that if you have a persistent problem, these cops will take care of it,” said Assistant Chief Larry Nikunen, referring to the roundtable of NCOs at the front of Mintz Auditorium in Monroe College on June 20.

The new program goes beyond just introducing a new crop of officers, but changing the precinct’s overall approach to fighting crime. Previously, the precinct was divided into 15 different sectors, areas where officers are assigned to patrol during their shift. Under the program, the precinct was rezoned into four sectors categorized as 52A, 52B, 52C and 52D. The 52nd Precinct covers Bedford Park, Fordham, Kingsbridge, Norwood and University Heights.

Within the month, the program will commence in two more precincts, the 48th and the 42nd, and the NYPD is working to see all of their precincts establish this program by the end of the year.

Two patrol officers will exclusively tour an assigned sector where they will answer 911 calls specifically in that sector. A part of their shift will involve immersing themselves in the community, in a kind of meet-and-greet format, forming so-called “work groups” comprised of residents and business owners to determine issues NCOs need to address.

This is a departure from standard policing in which wherever the call comes from dictates where the police officers will be dispatched, instead the officers will only receive calls from their assigned sectors.

“Familiarity breeds trust,” Nikunen said.

Before being assigned to the new beat, each NCO officer underwent new training. They spent two weeks in a criminal investigative course, four days in an NCO training course and another four days in a mediation course. Assistant Police Chief Terence Monahan, attending the presentation, said that the training and structure of this program will “allow cops to think out of the box.”

“Set up meetings on your block, establish that voice, get that silent voice heard,” advised Monahan, stressing the importance of community involvement in this program.

The model for this program can be paralleled to the “park, walk, and talk” initiative, that was put into practice in the early ‘90s as one of the first forms of community policing adopted by the NYPD. Officers would have an hour scheduled into their day to listen to people’s complaints and travel around a certain community by foot as opposed to in their patrol cars.

In the timeframe that the program stuck around, the endeavor seemed to be an overall success. But when the crime rate ticked up, the program took a backseat and driving down crime took center stage.

The crime rate across the city is comparatively lower than two decades before, offering the NYPD the chance to change its public perception through the program. The 52nd Precinct, typically referred to as a busy precinct, has so far seen a .66 percent increase in crime, compared to the same time last year.

Crimes in the category of rape have seen the biggest increase from last year going up by 27.3 percent.  However the report also brings to light that murders have seen the biggest decrease in number, dropping by 66.7 percent from this time last year. But what coincided with the crime drop was an increase in the public’s distrust of officers in light of high-profile police shootings across the country. The NYPD, an institution where a portion of its history involves brutality towards the public, is banking on the NCO program to work more than a stopgap.

Robert Gibbons, a professor of criminal justice at the Monroe College School of Criminal Justice professor and retired NYPD lieutenant said “the time to extend the handshakes” should’ve begun two to three years ago when the community first saw crime plummet. With a more fraught relationship between communities and the NYPD, it’s forced the Police Department’s hand in introducing the program under this climate.

“Because of the tensions, they’re forced to do this,” said Gibbons.

Those tensions have created pockets of weariness in some communities.

“I think it’s strained, definitely it’s strained. I think on both sides–they want that relationship,” said a Norwood resident who went by Rudolph. For now she believes that there’s a long way to go before the police establish that positive connection.

Other residents offered a more optimistic outlook on what this program could do and look forward to seeing consistent officers in their area to listen to their concerns.

“You don’t see anyone around here no more,” said Augie Santana, local business owner, referring to the police presence in the area. He looks forward to the start of the program “just to know that you have someone always around your neighborhood.”

Pranav Gaglani, an Oval Pharmacy employee, thinks that becoming familiar with a set of officers “should be good.” “They should stop by the store if they ever need any information or want to put things up,” he said.

“That would be a miracle if they do something like that,” Grisell Roman, a Norwood resident, happily replied after hearing about the program. “Especially in the summer,” commented Roman, happy with the timing of the program launch, “because in the winter nothing happens, but in the summer you always see crowds out here.”

admin

Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.