At the last council meeting, we stopped crime in Madison. Well, not really. We passed two ordinances, one that would stop new bars from opening in the downtown area and one that would hold landlords accountable for building inspection problems (5 in one year) or tenant arrests on the property (3 in 90 days). They were called the Alcohol License Density Plan and the Chronic Nuisance Ordinance. These two ordinances, plus the promise of $100,000 in extra overtime for the Police Department, the somewhat racist crackdown on “people from Chicago” or “suppression” efforts on the westside and 30 new police officers were all designed to give the public comfort that we were getting tough on crime. It was all a very orchestrated attempt, including blowing off committees, to show that we were catering to those in this community that are uncomfortable with their changing neighborhoods. Press releases were issued and we made a big deal out of our efforts, but what is going to change?
In 6 months, will the City be safer? Will people feel safer? How will we know? Will we be told in a press release that we are safer so some can declare victory? (Mission Accomplished!) Will there be more arrests for “quality of life” crimes committed with the new “zero tolerance” policy of the police department? Or, will things just feel different because it is the dead of winter and people aren’t hanging out on the streets? Will tenants get evicted because landlords are concerned about getting charged money for police calls? Will all of this hoopla make people feel safer, or will the frenzy continue? And how much of this is more of a cultural clash that could be handled through education and neighbors getting to know each other? What happened to that great Madison philosophy of “educate first”?
Are these two new ordinances and extra money for overtime enough to address the concerns of people who feel unsafe? Will the 10 new officers that will start in 2008 help to address these problems? Or do we really need the 30 new officers in 2009? How are we supposed to know? And how will we know when we are successful?
Equally problematic is the question of whether the entire City budget is going to be held hostage to the costs of 30 new police officers. Will city services be curtailed because some alders and the Mayor decide that they are “auxillary” functions? Will social service programs be cut because its “the County’s problem”? And, in the long run, will all of these cuts in services just further erode the public’s faith in the ability of the City to provide basic services? And will these cuts result in future increases in crime because we don’t invest in our community and the people who are struggling to live here?
We won’t see the Mayor’s operating budget until next week, but even with TIF money falling from the sky, there are going to be some major issues coming up that will determine the future of this City and how to sustain this level of funding for the police department. Are we going to be a City that is living in fear and puts all of our money into public safety, or will we have a longer term vision of what this City can be, for everyone that lives here, and invests in that future?
[Note: After I wrote this, I read Alder Solomon’s blog, he said it even better.]
