By Attiyya Anthony Sun Sentinel Minority Groups
September 9, 2015
• Martin Luther King Jr.
Boynton city officials want more police presence on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Community policing program to come to Boynton's Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Boynton Beach city officials say that crime is a problem along the city's Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, and now they have a plan to clean up the area.
"We need more of a police presence there," said Vivian Brooks, the executive director of Boynton Beach's Community Redevelopment Agency.
On Tuesday, at a redevelopment agency meeting, the agency's board agreed to rent a 800-square-foot police substation at 404 E. Martin Luther King Blvd. to help deter crime. Police officers may be in the building as soon as next month.
"We hope to cut back on loitering," Brooks said. "We have 'No Trespassing' signs on our properties, but we are not an enforcement arm."
Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. is a street in the Heart of Boynton, a mostly African-American community in the city's downtown. The street is vital to the city's history and redevelopment, but criminal activity is stopping the area's progress, city officials say.
That's where the Boynton Beach Police Department comes in, Brooks said.
Jaclyn Smith, spokesperson for the police department, said that the police chief hasn't worked out the specifics of the program, but the goal is to boost safety.
Brooks said the redevelopment agency and the police department will work closely to monitor the effectiveness of the community policing program.
In August, the redevelopment agency set aside $200,000 to fund the program. Renting the building will cost the redevelopment agency $9,600 for a three-year lease, according to agency documents.
Board member David Merker said Tuesday that he liked the plan.
"It's a wonderful idea," he said. "The people will realize that the city wants to take care of them when they see more police walking the streets."
Mack McCray, commissioner for the Heart of Boynton district and redevelopment agency board member, said a police substation in the Heart of Boynton won't deter crime unless the officers carry out patrols.
"Putting a substation on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd is not going to do anything unless the police officers walk the beat," McCray said Wednesday.