Ideal Beach neighbors unite to ensure safe community

Volunteers enlist in neighborhood watch program

BY ANDREW DAVISON
Staff Writer

 Greta Siwiec (l), coordinator of the Ideal Beach Neighborhood Watch and a member of the neighborhood group, attend the announcement of the program at the Tanya Keller Community Center on July 6.  ANDREW DAVISON Greta Siwiec (l), coordinator of the Ideal Beach Neighborhood Watch and a member of the neighborhood group, attend the announcement of the program at the Tanya Keller Community Center on July 6. ANDREW DAVISON MIDDLETOWN — The Ideal Beach Community Association recently launched a neighborhood watch program aimed at preventing crime and uniting neighbors.

“We’re just so pleased and fortunate that we have these wonderful amenities right here in the neighborhood, and we want to protect them,” said Greta Siwiec, neighborhood watch coordinator, at the launch event on July 6.

“You can literally come home from work, put down your lunch pail or your briefcase and go put your feet in the sand or your fishing pole in the water.”

The amenities that residents cherish also attract many unfamiliar people from outside the community, Siwiec said, and resident awareness could help prevent any potential problems.

Siwiec said that the watch coordinators divided the neighborhood into 14 grids to be patrolled by pairs of watchers.

The watch currently has 19 fully engaged members in addition to the organization’s trustees and officers.

“This is new blood in the system, so to speak,” Siwiec said .

Watch members are instructed to call the police and report any suspicious activity they observe, she said.

“We are the eyes and the ears [of the police],” Siwiec said.

In addition to the safety aspect, Siwiec said she hopes the program fosters bonds between community watch members as they meet and walk their grid together.

“Anything that brings neighbors together is a good thing,” she said.

Siwiec said that an effort was made to keep the neighborhood watch duties simple and enjoyable to encourage participation.

“If the work isn’t fun, people would drop out,” she said, which would weaken the program.

The Neighborhood Watch signs posted are meaningless without a program backing it up, she added.

Amy Sarrinikolaou, Middletown’s assistant director of community development, said that the neighborhood watch program emerged during the Neighborhood Preservation Program grant process.

“The number one goal the residents identified in how to improve their neighborhood was increasing safety and security and creating a safe and crime-free environment in their neighborhood,” Sarrinikolaou said.

“It’s an exciting day to see this get off the ground and to see the residents team up and work together to improve their neighborhood.”

The Neighborhood Preservation Program grant provided funds for the 20 neighborhood watch signs, and Middletown’s Department of Public Works employees installed them, Sarrinikolaou said .

The grant also funded a video surveillance system throughout the town which is 90 percent complete, she said.

MayorAnthony Fiore complimented the community organization at the launch event.

“We’ve seen the Ideal Beach Community Association really do some great things for this neighborhood here in North Middletown,” he said.

“Having this watch program is essential for us, not only in Middletown but also specifically for this community because it really will help bring the community that much closer together.”

Fiore also said at the launch that the program would make a statement to residents and visitors.

“It’s going to show the residents and everyone that comes into the area that this is a part of our community that takes great pride in itself, that’s out there, that’s vigilant and really is helping to beautify this part of the town,” he said.

Siwiec said that there were no specific instances that prompted the creation of the watch, just a desire to maintain their community.

“Often, in a busy society there are things going on right underneath our noses that we don’t know about,” she said.

“It’s being vigilant, it’s being out there and showing that we care about our neighborhood.”

For more information, visit www.myidealbeach.org.

Siwiec said that anyone interested in joining the neighborhood watch should email the community association at [email protected].