By LORRAINE SWANSON
Editor
Problems on the 4600 block of North Clifton Street and its deleterious impact on the Uptown neighborhood will be the subject of a virtual town hall meeting Thursday, July 9, from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
The Chicago Police Department is introducing a new feature on its CLEARPath web site called CLEARMeeting, enabling Chicagoans to chat online with their district commanders and beat officers in addressing crime and public safety issues in their neighborhoods.
“CLEARMeeting will have a town hall look and feel to it,” said Mike Theis of CPD’s information services division.
Theis envisioned CLEARMeeting being a useful tool to hold CAPS beat meetings online during the winter months, when residents are less inclined to go out during cold or inclement weather, and for breakout sessions to address specific problems that arise during CAPS meetings.
Commander Kathy Boehmer will host the 23rd Police District’s first online meeting to specifically address public safety issues on Clifton, such as loitering, open drinking and drugging, and public urination, which dominated much of Tuesday’s CAPS meeting at Truman College.
Twenty-Third District police officers said that disturbances on Clifton had diminished since cops since they began running daily missions last month. Officer Dan Miller, the beat foot patrolman for Wilson and Broadway, told residents that police have been busting open drinking in the cobblestone brick alley and helping idle adults find other places to go.
Residents said disturbances along Clifton haven’t stopped, but have only gotten worse.
“Anytime you drive by Clifton, it’s obvious,” a man said. “It starts at 7 a.m. and continues to late at night.”
Some residents confronted Sandra Ramsey, executive director of the Cornerstone shelter at 4628 B. Clifton St., which is operated by Jesus People USA, as a source of the ongoing problems.
“I didn’t know this meeting was about us,” Cornerstone Executive Director Sandra Ramsey said. “Most of those guys aren’t mine.”
Ramsey said the shelter has worked on addressing community concerns by removing a Dumpster and increasing private security in the alley. Many of the adults hanging out in the alley are waiting for services from the shelter.
“It they’re with us in the alley, isn’t that slightly better than having them roaming around the neighborhood?” Ramsey asked.
Cornerstone serves three meals a day from its kitchen to clients from its shelters. It also operates a drop-in center during the day where homeless persons can come and grab a meal, and come in off the street. In addition to the shelters on Clifton, Cornerstone also manages a men’s overnight shelter at Epworth United Methodist Church in Edgewater.
Men who use the Epworth shelter come to Uptown during the day for breakfast and lunch, and other services before heading back to Edgewater shelter for the night. She acknowledged that the same “10 to 15 usual suspects” hang out in the Clifton alley during the day, but they are usually waiting for services from the shelter.
“They’re human beings,” Ramsey said. “I love the people we’re trying to work with.”
Miller said that residents who call to report fighting, public drinking and loitering need to sign complaints to enable police to disperse the loiterers and identify problematic people.
“As long as people aren’t breaking the law, they’re allowed to be out on the street,” Miller said.
Last summer, Cornerstone logged 31,000 volunteer hours, mainly from college youth groups that come to work in the shelter’s kitchen.
“They came for the urban experience,” Ramsey said, adding that most volunteers ended spending money at neighborhood businesses.
“I understand all the good things you do, but volunteers get to leave the urban experience behind,” a resident said. “We have to live with it.”
To participate in the online meeting about Clifton Street Thursday evening, residents need to become register users of CLEARPath at www.chicagopolice.org. Users must provide a user login name, password and e-mail address. Comments will be moderated before they are posted. Transcripts of meetings will remain on the site up to two months.
Community chats in the 23rd District will focus on single issues that arise during CAPS meetings. After residents become registered users, they can access CLEARMeeting in the left menu sidebar and peruse a calendar for scheduled chats in their own police districts and throughout the city.
“I hope you will sign up to participate,” Boehmer told residents. “And I hope that Cornerstone will be there, too.”
“We will,” Ramsey said.
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They didn’t voluntarily remove that huge dumpster, which was illegally stored on the street and blocked police views down the alley. They had to move it after a dumpster violation complaint was filed against them with the city.
Officer Miller is using those familiar police excuses: “I can’t do a thing unless I have a complaining witness.” “I don’t have to respond to anonymous 311 calls because there is nothing I can do without the name of the 311 caller to make a complaint.”
Balony!!!
The only time the police need a complaining witness is when the police can not witness the wrongful or illegal activity themselves. Sure, there are times when the illegal act is over by the time they arrive, but usually it isn’t and our local cops can see.
Our 23rd District cops make up this fake rule because they don’t want to go to court on what they perceive as nuisance cases. Or they blatantly refuse to write up the violation unless they can make the local resident sign as complaining witness and take a day off of work to go to court so they don’t have to.
And, this way they and their political Commanders and Lietenants don’t have to take any heat from the Alderperson for enforcing the law in the north end of the 46th Ward.
Ramsey said. “I love the people we’re trying to work with.”
Tina Turner said, “What’s love got to do with it?”