Fwd: thanks

[Brad Smith]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Brad Smith <bradsmi...@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, May 25, 2011 at 10:14 AM
Subject: Re: thanks
To: Jean Lusson <je...@lusson.com>

> You live in this neighborhood, correct?

Yes.  I have lived in the neighborhood near the corner of Francisco and Curtis for nearly 30 years.  I participated in discussions twenty years ago when the City of Berkeley obtained a 99-year lease on BUSD property along Francisco for low income housing and five years ago when the BUSD announced the move of the Adult School from University Avenue to its present location in our neighborhood.  In both cases, there were many neighbors who argued that life as we knew it would be forever altered for the worse by the changes.  It's been my sense that there has been little, if any, negative impact of these changes on the neighborhood over the years and the move of the Adult School has overall been a positive development.  If it were not for the ham-handed actions of the ACOE and BUSD to locate the Community School at the Berkeley Adult School without public notification and discussion, I would publicly support this action.  By ham-handed, I refer to the attempt of the BUSD and ACOE to place during this school year the Community School within the Adult School with no notification to the community, let alone a public meeting, and, again without public notification, pick members of the community to meet to discuss this issue.  I find this little more than a fig leaf to cover a choice of action already made.

I should add my support of the Community School at the Adult School is contingent upon certain written understandings and agreements with the neighborhood.  I know such understandings and agreements are possible because the BUSD was and continues to be an exemplary partner in the development and maintenance of Schoolhouse Creek Common based upon a written agreement.

> What's your opinion on whether this will do us any good?

I believe the actions of those in opposition to the Community School being located at the Adult School have been and will continue to have an impact on the outcome.  I am impressed by the quality of argument and evidence provided (and requested) in order to make an informed decision.  My support for the Community School being located at the Adult School derives from attempting to balance neighborhood safety against wanting to do what can be done to give young people whatever chance is possible to succeed in the world.  As a member of the community I feel a responsibility to take a what I have concluded is a small risk in lowering neighborhood safety to increase the probability of productive membership in society for those who are currently in trouble with the school system.  Let me add that I'm a retired sociologist who has spent part of his career researching criminal and juvenile justice issues.  I don't know that this gives me a leg up on predicting the impact of the Community School on the neighborhood, but I certainly draw on this experience to form my judgements.

I attended a meeting last night of neighbors in the 1100 block of Francisco (between San Pablo and Curtis) that, along with other issue (e.g., speeding cars) had gathered to discuss drug houses and activity on the street.  I have no problem in joining with neighbors to do whatever is necessary to get rid of the drug houses in the neighborhood.  Twenty years ago the neighborhood worked hard with the help of City staff to rid the neighborhood of several drug houses.  There is no doubt in my mind that the neighborhood felt (and was) safer after the drug houses were removed.  I'll do whatever I can to help get rid of the drug houses in the neighborhood.  By the way, Jim Hynes from the City Manager’s office and Officer Byron White from the BPD, who attended the meeting, were extraordinarily helpful in providing information and taking action to remove the drug houses and activity from the neighborhood.

  -- Brad

On Tue, May 24, 2011 at 3:52 PM, Jean Lusson <je...@lusson.com> wrote:

thanks Brad, I sent my email again to the acoe addresses.

What's your opinion on whether this will do us any good?  You live in this neighborhood, correct?

I'm really depressed about what it means for our neighborhood. I'm sympathetic to those public servants whose job it is to tirelessly attempt to come up with ways to rectify inequities in our society, but this looks to me like bureaucrats attempting a random quick fix to make it look like someone is doing something about the bad scene at Berkeley High.
  The  drug dealer/gang thing coming here is no joke- I moved to Berkeley to raise my child away from the Nortenos gang that used to convene on my front stoop on Capp St. in the Mission. By the time they're in high school there's not a lot of miraculous intervention that can be done, and nothing will stop the CDS students' associates from hanging out and doing business around the Adult School.

Thanks for your work, ---Jean

[LauraM]

Brad and all,

If the drug activity is in public housing contact BHA, the process of
abatement is defined under federal law. BHA has recovered from its
"troubled agency" HUD status and is in compliance with the mandated
hearing requirements including following due process for recipient
rights. So if there is illegal activity in public housing neighborhood
group can take a complaint to all three agencies, BHA, BPD, and CoB.

Secondly, the question of providing alternative education in this case
for juvenile offenders, is not only an ethical issue it is legal
mandated. The issue remains to determine how to get the best model
implemented in this community and how to ensure that includes systems
for accountability.

One of the tactics used by well intended politicians is to manipulate
opinion based on ethical questions, rather than focus on best practice
for service delivery systems. And in that regard both the city and
unified have plenty of room for improvement. BUSD would gain community
trust if they considered citizens' concerns seriously and responded
accordingly.

Laura
continuation high school grad

On May 25, 10:25 am, Brad Smith <bradsmith94...@gmail.com> wrote:
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: Brad Smith <bradsmith94...@gmail.com>
> Date: Wed, May 25, 2011 at 10:14 AM
> Subject: Re: thanks
> To: Jean Lusson <j...@lusson.com>
>
> > You live in this neighborhood, correct?
>
> Yes.  I have lived in the neighborhood near the corner of Francisco and
> Curtis for nearly 30 years.  I participated in discussions twenty years ago
> when the City of Berkeley obtained a 99-year lease on BUSD property along
> Francisco for low income housing and five years ago when the BUSD announced
> the move of the Adult School from University Avenue to its present location
> in our neighborhood.  In both cases, there were many neighbors who argued
> that life as we knew it would be forever altered for the worse by the
> changes.  It's been my sense that there has been little, if any, negative
> impact of these changes on the neighborhood over the years and the move of
> the Adult School has overall been a positive development.  If it were not
> for the ham-handed actions of the ACOE and BUSD to locate the Community
> School at the Berkeley Adult School without public notification and
> discussion, I would publicly support this action.  By ham-handed, I refer to

> the attempt of the BUSD and ACOE to place* during this school year* the

[Heather Wood]

In short response, Laura has an excellent point in ethics becoming the argument, thus obfuscating the real issue which is how to do it correctly and with all parties in consideration.

I would like to comment to Brad that although you have not had problems there are those who have had significant problems from BAS and who have solid reasons to object. Not in my backyard isn't the issue for these neighbors; it already IS in theirs to the detriment of quality of life and their entitlement to peace and quiet enjoyment. Many would not like further problems in spite of your speculation that BAS hasn't created problems --it already has.

Heather

[Charis Kaskiris]

I took a quick look at crime data within 3 blocks centered BAS for the first 4 years after the BAS was located in our neighborhood (data available is 2005 through 2008). This is reported crime to the Berkeley Police which is the source of the data. The BAS was located on San Pablo at the end of 2004. The expectation that GED students started trickling in 2006 as 2005 the school has limited classes. A first view at the data:

·         Disturbances: in 2005 we barely had any disturbances; by 2008 we almost averaged 1 per day!!!!

·         Alcohol violations: doubled between 2005 and 2008

·         Aggravated assaults: in the last 180 days we had 15!!! The same as 2006 and 2007 combined!

 

Category	2005	2006	2007	2008
Disturbances	37	227	242	302
Theft	165	145	139	152
Auto Burglary	115	134	138	179
Stolen Auto	80	80	84	83
Burglary	56	61	70	64
Vandalism	63	43	75	77
Alcohol violations	33	61	49	59
Robbery	0	30	31	29
Narcotics violations	0	34	32	30
Accident	83	0	0	0
No category	38	0	0	0
Aggravated Assault	0	14	1	0
Arson	0	0	0	8

 

Between 2005 and 2006 the total number of crimes went up by 9% (exclude accidents), between 2008 and 2007 went up by4%. Within 3 years of locating the school here total number of crimes went up by 15%. To my knowledge after 6 years of running BAS the BUSD has done ZERO assessment on whether the program is serving the community it is supposed to, what is the cost transferred to the neighbors from having the school here (I estimate the financial damage that the BUSD has imposed on our neighborhood is easily in the millions). In the experience (not perception) of many neighbors, especially the ones next to BAS, their life has forever changed; there are even neighbors already contemplating MOVING out of the neighborhood.

 

Regarding Brad Smith’s Assessment of Crime over the years….

With regards to Brad Smith’s assessment I have to admit I am puzzled: “It's been my sense that there has been little, if any, negative impact of these changes on the neighborhood over the years and the move of the Adult School has overall been a positive development”. I hope the following data will be helpful towards shedding some light on what has really being going on in an 1 block radius centered on Brad’s intersection:

 

Category	2005	2006	2007	2008
Disturbances	0	9	32	35
Theft	8	6	11	8
Auto Burglary	7	8	5	11
Stolen Auto	3	5	5	7
Burglary	4	5	11	7
Vandalism	5	4	2	5
Alcohol violations	0	2	2	1
Robbery	3	2	2	1
Narcotics violations	0	0	1	1
Accident	4	0	0	0
No category	2	0	0	0
Aggravated Assault	1	0	1	1
Dead body found	2	0	0	0
Arson	0	0	0	0
	39	41	72	77

 

The increase in total crimes committed in a year between 2005 and 2008 within Brad Smith’s block is 100%. Perception is not fact.

 

Charis

 

[Brad Smith]

> "The increase in total crimes committed in a year between 2005 and 2008 within Brad Smith's block is 100%. Perception is not fact".

Unfortunately, it's difficult to read the tables (probably because of
the way the Google software places the numbers in a single column). I
don't have much time now, but let me take a stab at rebutting your
conclusion above. I believe you come to this conclusion from looking
at data on this site:

http://berkeleyca.crimelog.org/

I apologize if I don't have this right, but I don't see the source of
your data in your message.

I believe the 100% increase in total crimes committed within my block
you cite is the increase from 39 in 2005 to 77 in 2008. Assuming this
is correct, most of the increase could be attributed solely to an
increase in "Disturbances". (I couldn't find a definition of
"Disturbances" on the site.) There were no "Disturbances" in 2005 and
35 "Disturbances" in 2008. I note a similar pattern of increase
Citywide. There were 695 "Disturbances" in 2005; 5,156 in 2006; 4,743
in 2007; and 5,116 in 2008. I suspect the increase in "Disturbances"
from 2005 to 2008 has more to do with data collection methodology than
an actual change in the number of "Disturbances".

I don't believe we can conclude there was a 100% increase in total
crimes committed in a year within my block between 2005 and 2008.

-- Brad

On May 26, 12:22 am, "Charis Kaskiris" <cha...@kaskiris.com> wrote:
> I took a quick look at crime data within 3 blocks centered BAS for the first
> 4 years after the BAS was located in our neighborhood (data available is
> 2005 through 2008). This is reported crime to the Berkeley Police which is
> the source of the data. The BAS was located on San Pablo at the end of 2004.
> The expectation that GED students started trickling in 2006 as 2005 the
> school has limited classes. A first view at the data:
>

> .         Disturbances: in 2005 we barely had any disturbances; by 2008 we

> almost averaged 1 per day!!!!
>

> .         Alcohol violations: doubled between 2005 and 2008
>
> .         Aggravated assaults: in the last 180 days we had 15!!! The same as

> Regarding Brad Smith's Assessment of Crime over the years..

[Charis Kaskiris]

The source is Berkeley Police data that crimelog had. Let's split hair. Take
out Disturbances and look strictly at property crimes (Theft, Auto Burglary,
Stolen Auto, Burglary, Vandalism and Robbery) within your block:

2005 -> 30
2009 -> 39

Change: 30%. This is just within 1 block and reflect crimes that had
financial impact on your neighbors. You still think there was zero impact?

Charis

[LauraM]

When crime goes down it is because of good police work, when crime
goes up, if is because of data collection methodology. Gee isn't that
logic typical of lazy government officials.

Thanks Charis for the excellent stab at data analysis, I am sure that
among Berkeley citizens we have plenty of skilled analyst familiar
with crime data and social theory who could do an excellent job
drilling down into the data to answer various queries.

My husband worked on the data collection and analysis of Oakland
2008-09 Measure Y evaluation of youth violence programs and community
policing outcomes by beat.

[Charis Kaskiris]

In the last 30 days 1/2 mile block between Acton and San Pablo circumscribed
between Delaware and Virginia streets (basically one crime every other day):

2 assaults
1 auto burglary
4 residential burglaries
1 narcotics violation
1 robbery
1 vandalism
2 thefts from auto
1 vehicle stolen
1 theft felony

The alarming part is the residential burglaries on Francisco street - 3
burglaries within a week:
1100 block of Francisco - that is the low-income housing next to the BUSD --
9:00 AM on May 4, 2011
1300 block of Francisco - 7:15 AM on April 27, 2011
1300 block of Francisco - 9:00 AM on May 2, 2011

This follows a pattern and it is highly likely the work of the same
person/group of people or.....

Perhaps they are related to the following:

The Berkeley Police department suspects the following (whom they have not
arrested yet):
Juvenile Burglary Series
* Two separate series involving groups of juveniles committing daytime
residential burglaries.
* Over 21 burglaries related to one group of 5 juveniles.
* Over 17 burglaries related to a second group of 5 juveniles.
http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/uploadedFiles/Police/Level_3_-_General/BPD%20Cr
ime%20Report%20to%20City%20Council%2004%202011.pdf

I will inquire with Berkeley Police. Obviously had I know about the public
safety neighborhood meeting earlier this week I would have asked the
questions directly.

Charis

-----Original Message-----
From: bas-acc...@googlegroups.com
[mailto:bas-acc...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of LauraM
Sent: Thursday, May 26, 2011 2:54 PM
To: BAS Accountable
Subject: Re: Year over Year crime data around BAS