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Chimborazo Park was very safe yesterday
Forty new Richmond police cruisers were lined up in Chimborazo Park to help the Richmond Police Department announce its expanded take-home car program, which matches qualified uniformed officers who live in the city with a police car to take home. UPDATED WITH PHOTO [via]
From the article:
Police Chief Rodney Monroe said officers are being rewarded for making the commitment to live in the city. In return, the neighborhoods in which the officers reside get the added protection, peace of mind and visible presence of law enforcement next door. He said 145 of the 750 sworn officers reside in the city.
The 40 cars will be distributed among the city’s four precincts, and they join the existing take-home fleet of 20 cars. Only 15 cars were available for take-home use when Monroe arrived on the job in February 2005.
…and there may be some officers who will move into the city in order to be eligible for the program. Having more of our police live in the city can only be to our benefit.
Geeeesh! I wish one, a policeman, lived over here on E. Franklin where the traffic in the morning is like the Indie 500. (Not being a racing fan I probably spelled that wrong) Cars race down the street at speeds of 50 to 60 miles per hour and yet the police tell us they can do nothing, nada, niente.
The biggest fear is that a child will be hit one day while crossing from Libby Hill Park.
Lu Motley
Not only will they move to the city but the cars will be maintained better and that will save money for the city.
Police units that run 24/7 take a beating and human nature being what it is, problems are left for “the other guy” to take care of and the cars end up getting trashed pretty quickly.
Lu, I agree completely. E. Franklin should be closed at the base of Sugar Bottom. Not only is it a dangerous redirection (a cut through) of commuter traffic off of Main, but the exit onto Main from what is actually 32nd (E Franklin becomes 32nd)is blind due to the old CSX industrial building on the East side of the street –very dangerous. With Rockets Landing and all of the other development coming online, this problem will only get worse. I, for one, do not believe that enforcement can solve the problem. The solution must be to engineer the traffic flow out of the residential neighborhood. That’s why I believe closing the street would solve the problem. The city knows about it, but I expect they are taking some time to study it. If anyone agrees, give them a call and voice your support.
I agree with Lu and GRRRRRR. Something really needs to be done about that run from 29th and Franklin down to 25th and Franklin. The mornings are particularly bad with non-stop traffic racing at excessive speeds down to 25th St. This traffic not only disrupts the peacefulness of the street but it is really dangerous – for pets, people and drivers. The police sometimes watch Broad for stop sign runners – why can’t they put the occasional radar on Franklin? Redirection may also be a good idea, but that wouldn’t stop the flow from 28th and 29th onto Franklin and I presume that is contributing to the problem. Maybe stop signs or speed humps are needed.
I think that’s great. Kudos for the police dept!
I do watch the stop signs on E Broad St only because I am not certified to run radar. The sign at N 24th St goes ignored. Thanks to all of you, I will make myself visible on E Franklin St and I will pass this on to Jack King.
That is a great idea. 29th Street is a raceway from Franklin to north of Broad Street. Because of the traffic signal at 29th and Broad, cars even speed up on 29th to “make the light”. There are many instances throughout the day where cars are moving far in excess of the speed limit through that intersection. It’s an accident waiting to happen. Having the lower portion of E. Franklin open only invites more truck and general thru-traffic to move through a residential neighborhood.
Wish they had stuck around last night. After the basketball game, I was treated to a neked gator fan streaking through the park wearing only orange body paint and a gator pool swim ring (thank god for the strategically placed swim ring).
Cut the Gator some slack. They did go back to back in b ball and National Champs in football. That is quite an accomplishment!
Hey everyone. Although I don’t do radar either, I’ll gladly hang out on Franklin and watch traffic for you. I work the opposite schedule than Mac the cop. Between us we should be able to put a dent in the problem. PLEASE make sure you guys understand that our radar units and most of us for that matter can’t tell resident’s cars from any other. If you mess up, you’re likely to be caught also. Thanks ya’ll.
To Mac and Kenny both – I used to live on Franklin, and I agree with the speeding problem – but now I live on East Marshall and the problem is even worse over here. I’ve got BUSES running at over 40 mph, as well as cars. Plus, those stop signs on Broad aren’t envorced so they’re basically ignored. I went to a Mayor’s Roundtable Meeting in November and talked about trying to slow down traffic, and Ted Cox backed me up and said we need enforcement all over this area. I wish he was still around to reinforce my comments, but since he’s not – I’m saying it again. PLEASE. Main Street, Dock Street – people are rushing in and out – it’s not just Franklin. We are in serious need of traffic SLOWING DOWN in all areas of the East End. Thanks.
If people want me to enforce the stop signs, I will. I know most of the problem is thru-traffic. The majority will prevail. As I said before, I can’t run radar but I can enforce the stop signs. Thanks for saying that, Kenny. He’s right, I don’t know who lives in the area but we’ll do what we can to slow EVERYONE down.