The
Weed & Seed grant was the first to take an area of the city
smaller than a division and give a lieutenant sole responsibility
for the territory, creating the position of Officer-in-Charge. In
what turned out to be a critical component, the Weed & Seed
unit was housed in a separate facility from the Field Operations
Division. While initially the facility served as an office area
for the officers assigned to the unit, it eventually housed meetings
of the citizens advisory committee and became the headquarters for
the jobs bank. The latter usage proved to be an advantage to building
ties to the community as jobs bank applicants came to the headquarters
to fill out applications and for job interviews.
When
the planning team was developing the Comprehensive Communities Program
grant application, it was determined that rather than create a new,
competing, concept of community policing, it would be more advantageous
to replicate a successful project, Weed & Seed. Three additional
Weed & Seed type areas were designed, utilizing areas that had
been considered for the original Weed & Seed site.
While
awaiting the award of the Comprehensive Communities Program grant
the two year plan for the Crime Control and Prevention district
was being assembled, and under the category of "Neighborhood
Crime," three additional Weed & Seed type areas were included.
To avoid confusion and provide some standardization, these areas
were dubbed Neighborhood Policing Districts (NPDs). The initial
plan called for the implementation of 8 NPDs by October 1, 1995,
but due to the land area covered, and the small territory remaining
for "regular" patrol services, the decision was made to
take neighborhood policing citywide. This entailed creating 4 additional
NPDs, for a total of 12.
Another
area of concern while creating the NPD concept was the subject of
Steering and Advisory committees. Both the Weed & Seed and Comprehensive
Communities Program grants called for both entities, but in a slightly
different form. It was decided by local authorities, with approval
by the grant agencies involved, to create one Steering Committee
which would then ratify the Community Advisory Committee for each
NPD. The NPD Steering Committee is co-chaired by the Mayor and the
U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas. Other members
include an Assistant City Manager, Chief of Police, Tarrant County
District Attorney, President of the Fort Worth Crime Control and
Prevention District, the Chairs of the Minority Leaders Council
and United Hispanic Council, and the Executive Director of the Citizens
Crime Commission of Tarrant County. The Community Advisory Committee
consists of a Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, a citizen representative
from each beat in the NPD, the NPO for each beat, and business,
social service, and at-large representatives. The Steering Committee
meets quarterly, alternating between City Hall and the U.S. Attorney's
office, and the Community Advisory Committees meet monthly, either
at the NPD headquarters or a nearby facility.
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