The Shorthorn - Arlington police to receive Weed and Seed grant money

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Arlington police to receive Weed and Seed grant money

Written by John Harden, The Shorthorn senior staff

Tuesday, 26 January 2010 06:52 PM

Community leaders and Arlington police will use a new multimillion dollar grant to help lower crime and spread resources to one of the city’s poorest areas.

The Arlington Police Department will receive the grant as a part of Weed and Seed, a national program sponsored by the Department of Justice. The Weed and Seed program includes law enforcement weeding out criminals and drug abusers and public agencies seeding depressed areas with community resources.

The target area for the program lies south of the university, within the 76010 zip code. The areas closest to the university are located at the intersections of Cooper Street and West Park Row Drive, and Center Street and East Park Row Drive.

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The APD will receive the grant this year, which will be used to help lower crime and develop community resources in east Arlington. Thornton Elementary School off East Park Row Drive lies within the target area that will benefit from the federal funding.

“It’s great that this area is being targeted for development,” Principal David Gutierrez said. “It’s not just wonderful for the students but also for the community and the people living in the area.”

Arlington will receive $150,000 this year but will have to reapply every year to receive another portion of the grant. The police department will use the money to step up patrol in the area and increase the number of crime watch programs, Arlington police spokeswoman Tiara Ellis-Richard said.

“It’s just going to give us a chance to expand community resources to an area that lacks the support,” she said.

The city will designate the grant to support community, county and state efforts, Ellis-Richard said.

“We already work with a lot of community-based organizations, from churches to schools and many others,” she said. “The grant will make sure we can continue to support the community.”

Arlington is one of about 300 U.S. cities with Weed and Seed program funding, and it’s also one of eight north Texas sites. Other north Texas sites include southeast Fort Worth, east, west and south Dallas and Dalworth in Grand Prairie.

Kerry Goodwin has been a coordinator for Weed and Seed for five years for Two-Points Ferguson Road in Dallas.

“We’ve seen a huge decrease in crime,” he said. “We’ve had a 25 percent decrease in petty crime and another 75 percent decrease in violent crimes.”

The money is used to help fund police efforts and community watch programs, Goodwin said.

“The departments can then provide coverage in more areas that typically don’t receive as much attention throughout the day,” he said.

The Arlington Police Department adopted the Weed and Seed program under its Rejuvenating Arlington,and Creating Hope initiative, also known as R.E.A.C.H.

The initiative connects some of Arlington’s most depressed areas with community resources, Ellis-Richard said.

In 2007, the initiative’s volunteers helped create associations that improved communications between neighborhood schools and local social services.

“Just knowing the city’s willingness to make a difference in the area is really impressive,” Gutierrez said. “The funding allows for a greater impact for something the city has already been doing.”
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