How to Keep Your Neighborhood Safe During the Holidays
The holidays represent an important time to place a greater focus on neighborhood safety. From porch pirates to burglars taking advantage of empty homes, there is often an uptick in crimes during this season. The good news is that you can keep your neighborhood safe by implementing some simple strategies that deter criminal activity.
Install a Guard Shack
Establishing a clearly defined entrance to your neighborhood helps to deter traffic that can’t be tracked. Installing a guard shack gives your neighborhood a way to place a professional security person at the main entrance. Checking to ensure that only the residents and necessary service workers enter the community can dramatically decrease crime rates. In fact, just seeing a guard shack at the entrance is enough to send criminals to other places where there isn’t a 24-hour watch guard on site.
Start a Neighborhood Watch
As a general rule, getting as many eyes and ears paying attention to your neighborhood as possible reduces crime rates. Criminals avoid neighborhoods where they know people are watching each other’s homes and common areas. To start a neighborhood watch, you might want to check in with your local police department. Many communities have strategies in place that help HOAs and other leadership committees establish strong neighborhood watch programs that emphasize safety.
Maintain the Landscaping In Wooded Areas
Criminals often use natural hiding places to lurk or step outside of camera views. If your neighborhood is surrounded by open space with lots of trees, bushes, and other tall plants, then you may need to scale the branches back. Eliminating brush and debris can create clearer spaces where criminals are less likely to hide. You can also encourage the residents in your community to do the same on their property. Even trimming a branch back from a porch can open up the view to eliminate the temptation for thieves to steal packages.
Offer Educational Safety Meetings
Reducing crimes of opportunity is easier when everyone is on board. Many people are unaware of safety strategies that they can use to prevent burglaries and theft. For instance, you might recommend that residents park their cars inside garages to stop auto theft. Additionally, sharing with the residents how they can request a community watch member to check on their house while they travel reinforces the neighborhood’s commitment to helping each other maintain a safer living environment.
Increase Lighting in Dark Spaces
Enhancing community safety during the holidays can also be fun. Since dark areas give criminals places to hide, lighting things up can help stop crime. Consider adding traditional street lights to dark corners and common areas. You can also add festive string lights in bright colors to increase lighting during the months when you need them the most. Motion-activated lights are also beneficial for reducing light pollution and increasing attention to people as they move through your community.
When you plan to increase security in your neighborhood, remember that it is best to look for long-term options. Many of the issues your community faces during the holidays also occur at lower amounts during the rest of the months of the year. Being proactive and helping everyone get involved in the planning can transform your neighborhood into one of the safest places to live in your area.
