CCHOA Townhall, Friday, November 19, 2021

To address Vehicle Burglaries & Theft in Canyon Creek

In attendance:
·        Mackenzie Kelly, Austin City Councilperson
·        APD Commander Chris Vallejo
·        Police representatives brought by the commander
·        Approximately 50 Canyon Creek Residents plus 10 residents via Zoom
·        CCHOA board members and Traffic and Safety Committee members

Recording and Charts are attached at the bottom of this posting.

Key Takeaways:

According to Cmdr. Vallejo, crime rates generally remain fairly steady over time. Property crimes are by far, the most prevalent types of crime but goes unreported most of the time.

APD uses a data-driven approach to directing police resources where they are most needed. For this reason, it is imperative that each incident get reported so that hotspots can be recognized and addressed

APD is currently below full strength by around 200 officers. Only about 90 of those vacancies are on the street patrol officers. A new class of APD officers is about to graduate. Each class takes 32 weeks of training to get these officers ready to patrol Austin streets. Emergency calls take priority. Call 911 if you have an immediate safety concern or see a crime in progress where there is a likelihood of catching a crime in progress. Call 311 for all other concerns.

Citizens own the primary responsibility to avoid becoming a victim. Park in your garage if possible. If that is not possible, park in your driveway. Keep your cars locked and remove valuables. There are many incidents on camera where perpetrators simply walk car to car testing door handles before quickly moving on. Only one reported incident involved the breaking of glass to enter a vehicle. APD also tells us that over 50% of the time, cars are left unlocked. Please lock your car so you don’t provide any opportunity to be a target of theft.

APDs biggest concern with vehicle burglaries is the theft of weapons and handguns. Try not to store these items in your car.

For your own safety, APD does not recommend confronting individuals observed committing these crimes but would prefer that you be a good witness instead - get a description of the individual, their vehicle and/or license plate. A license plate number will be the single most effective way to catch these individuals.

Mackenzie Kelly is working with the CCHOA and City Code Enforcement Officers to make repairs and improvements to the street lighting in our neighborhood.

APD will be sending patrol cars more frequently through the neighborhood at all hours, occasionally with lights on, as a deterrent.

The attorney for CCHOA has advised the board that the Association’s duties under the governing documents are limited to the owning and operation of the common areas and the enforcement of the deed restrictions. Costs related to private security patrols would not be an authorized expenditure of Association funds.

Neighborhood Watch or anything that involves putting additional eyes on the street can be an effective deterrent but must be done when the crimes are occurring in the 12 am - 4 am time frame.

Any effort to institute volunteer neighborhood patrols or Neighborhood Watch will need to be volunteer-led. The HOA cannot take the lead on any such measures for liability reasons. However, the HOA supports and encourages this effort. What is needed are volunteers to step up and organize a neighborhood watch.

The HOA will continue to work with APD, CM Kelly and other city departments to collect and share data and information that may positively impact security or reduce crime.

In summary:

Stop being an easy target. Lock your car and remove valuables.
Report everything to APD so the city has a good record of criminal activity in our neighborhood. This will help them develop realistic plans to combat this activity.
Start a neighborhood or block watch with volunteers from our community. The HOA wholeheartedly supports this effort.

The charts that Ryan Sullivan and Cmdr. Vallejo showed are here: Canyon Creek Safety Survey Summary

Zoom Meeting Recording: CCTownHallPresentation.mp4

Zoom Question and Answer: CCTownHallQuestions.mp4