Letter to the Editor, Dennis Perkins

Wired Neighborhood Watch: Using 21st Century Tools To Improve Our Neighborhoods.

Call them Town Watch, Block Watch, Crime Watch or Neighborhood Watch. Such programs have been around in the U.S. since the 1960s when a young woman named Kitty Genovese was raped and killed in Queens, New York. Even though many neighbors heard her cries for help, no one intervened or called the police. Neighborhood Watch programs were organized are a response. Groups of neighborhood citizens monitoring their area for crime and call the police if crime is suspected.

We have all seen the Neighborhood Watch signs. But have you ever wondered how the groups communicate? Who to contact to get involved in a watch program? How to get the word out about a neighborhood concern?

As a City Council Candidate running for Danbury’s First Ward, a theme of my campaign has been improving the communication between the city and residents. After walking door to door throughout my ward and listening to the concerns of my neighbors, I earned the nickname the “Councilman Who Listens.”

My last opinion piece discussed the trouble of potholes in our city. If I am elected, I will work to provide a way for residents to look up whether or not a pot hole has been reported for repair. To fix such local problems, we also have to have a way for citizens in neighborhoods to easily communicate with each other.

If I am elected to the City Council, I will work with neighborhood groups to introduce different Smart Phone applications that work as private social networks for neighborhoods. There are free and are very easy to set up on a wireless “Smart” telephone that can access the internet. By using these 21st century tools, residents may communicate about everything from crime to pot hole hazards to safety concerns like a nearby house fire.

Yet, my campaign has been as much about listening to keep us safe as it has been about understanding ways to improve the quality of life in Danbury. Like my suggestions for increasing the public use of Tarrywile Park for residents young and old. In this spirit, such Smart Phone applications are appealing to me because these allow us communicate about both the good and the bad in our neighborhoods. We could share information about a skillful local dentist, a reliable babysitter, or use it to advertise a spring-cleaning tag sale to our neighbors.

There are so many new ways to stay connected, reduce isolation and create vibrant, safe, engaged neighborhoods. I am seeking your vote on November 5th to help create a stronger, safer, more connected Danbury. Together, we can make it happen.

Dennis Perkins, Jr.

Running for the Danbury City Council, First Ward.

Vote on November 5, 2013 – Polls Open at 6am – Please Vote!