The first meeting of the Cabernet Neighborhood Watch Committee was held on November 8, 2022 at 6:00 p.m. in the Raleys meeting room. Altogether, there were 15 people in attendance from our community in Cabernet Highlands.
Officer Andelin from Reno Police Department was on hand to offer assistance and advice on how best to proceed with forming and maintaining a neighborhood watch committee. He spoke with the attendees, querying their concerns. Many of the issues centered around car burglary and speeders.
Also present was Reno City Councilperson Bonnie Weber. Ms. Weber Hosted a meeting at Alice Smith School several weeks ago to promote Neighborhood Watch groups throughout Ward 4. She is committed to community outreach programs and has been instrumental in several improvements in the North Valleys.
Overall, the crime rate in our neighborhood has been typically very low. However, as the North Valleys continue to grow, the goal of the Neighborhood Watch group is to ensure the security of all our neighbors. Neighborhood Watch programs through, “Neighbors helping Neighbors” ensures the peaceful enjoyment of our homes and families.
The outcome of the first meeting was to establish a series of ongoing meetings to assist with teaching our neighbors better ways to ensure safety for their families and property; to encourage greater participation from more people; to provide communication resources through web page, email, and phone trees that inform people in our community; and to request from local agencies solutions to reduce traffic problems and crime going far into the future.
Officer Andelin spoke on the importance of reporting issues to our community leaders through local agencies.
For Emergencies call 911
For Non Emergencies call 775 334-2121
All others call Reno Direct 775 334-4636
Other sources of neighborhood information were discussed. Some suggestions were to attend the Neighborhood Advisory Board meetings held on the third Thursday of each month. Information is available via Reno City Neighborhood Advisory Board page at: https://www.reno.gov/community/your-neighborhood/ward-4
The next meeting of the Cabernet Neighborhood Watch group is tentatively scheduled for December 5, 2022 at 6:00 p.m. in the Raleys community room.
For information or to get involved, please contact Pat Shea or sign up on the website providing contact information.
Pat Shea 775 721 6742 pat100shea@gmail.com
Minutes Archive
News Archive
March Newsletter
During the meeting in March the question arose about Watch meeting proximity to HOA meeting.
Revised 2024 Meeting Schedule
Revised 2024 Meeting Schedule
During the meeting in March the question arose about Watch meeting proximity to HOA meeting. The feeling in the group was we held Watch meeting and HOA meeting the same week every time. This caused members schedule to jam up. A motion was made and seconded to re-schedule the Watch meetings on months when the HOA was not meeting.
The discussion indicated that getting together one month for HOA and the next moth for Watch was far more considerate of the members of both organizations. The motion past unanimously.
I consulted with Raley’s Event Center Calendar and reserved the following days for the remainder of the year:
June 12, 2024 6:00 pm
August 14, 2024 6:00 pm
October 9, 2024 6:00 pm
December 11, 2024 6:00 pm
speeding
We have all been complaining about the speed some cars travel in our community. So, I think we all agree speeding is a problem in our community. However, this seems like a problem too large for any one individual to fix.
Let’s look at the problem and break it down into what cannot be done, what can be done and what can you do to help.
My name is Pat Shea. I started Cabernet Neighborhood Watch group almost 2 years ago with the intention of promoting safety in our community. www.cabernetwatch.org
I have studied this problem for the past year with the help of Reno PD and City of Reno Traffic Engineering. They responded to our request for speed/traffic calming controls by completing a series of traffic studies during Winter and Spring 2022/23. I then met with the City of Reno Traffic Engineer. He pointed out things we may not do to calm traffic.
Our streets belong to the City of Reno. The 3 major streets have been designated as emergency routes for fire, medical and disaster evacuation. Therefore, no devices that create an obstruction may be used to calm traffic. The following are restricted by City policy.
· Speed Bumps
· Speed Humps
· Speed Table
· Speed Cushions
· Rumble strips
This leaves us one option open to our neighborhood, Speed Warning Signs. These signs are a proven way to slow traffic. The Radar speed Sign manufacturer website has this to say about how the signs work
How Feedback Signs Work
“Radar speed signs operate on the principle of Feedback Loops, a concept that has proven effective in influencing behavioral changes. This approach involves providing individuals with real-time information about their actions and giving them an opportunity to modify those actions, thereby encouraging improved behaviors.”
You can read the entire article here
Speed Feedback signs work on two levels to address two types of speeding drivers.
First the signs address the distracted driver that is running late, thinking of something other than their primary task of driving or non-resident driver just passing through our community by helping to complete the feedback loop. This is 99.5 of all drivers.
Second, some drivers just don’t care about others in the community. Feedback doesn’t work on them. They are 0.5% of the drivers.
The signage we are proposing records traffic data All day, Every day. This data about speeder is collected and uploaded to Reno PD Traffic division. The patterns recorded and analyzed assists Reno PD in their assignment of traffic enforcement. Reno Traffic Officers use these pattern to determine the time violators are most likely to be in the neighborhood. This results in more efficient traffic enforcement.
Now, here is what you and I can do.
1. Become a role model Cost = $0.00
a. Begin driving to the Speed Limit. This tends to slow all traffic
2. Report violators Cost =$0.00
a. Fill out a report on Reno Direct/Speeding
b. Include the following items
i. The street (with cross streets) where the speeding is taking place.
ii. Include the approximate times of day it is at its worst.
iii. Note any chronic offenders, specific speeding issues or other helpful information.
c. These reports add to the data collected by the Feedback signs.
3. Help Purchase Speed Feedback signs.
The City of Reno will install and maintain these signs. Your donation of $40.00 would be a one-time cost to purchase these signs. Three signs placed throughout the neighborhood total cost of $13,000.
The first 2 cost nothing and can help immediately to reduce speeding.
The 3rd item I will ask you to please respond to the following question.
Would you be willing to donate to a community fund under the Cabernet Watch to purchase Radar Speed feedback signs?
Yes/No
If your answer is yes, You can help by recording you donation : GoFundMe/Purchase Radar Speed Warning Signs
Join us for our semimonthly meeting for Cabernet Watch Neighborhood Watch to learn more about this and other issues with in our community. And don’t forget to check our website and related posts.
Again, I am Pat Shea,
Coordinator, Cabernet Watch
January Newsletter
Our calendar has been set for 2024
CABERNET HIGHLANDS NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH
NEWSLETTER DATED January 16, 2024
Our calendar has been set for 2024. The dates and locations are as follow:
January 16, 2024
March 13, 2024
May 8, 2024
July 10, 2024
September 11, 2024
November 13, 2024
Meetings are held at Raley’s Community Room at 6:00 p.m. We look forward to seeing all of you at our bi-monthly meetings in the New Year.
Present were: Pat Shea, Billie Shea, Jo Ellen Curtis, Michael Sproehnle, Bonnie Weber, and Linda Curry
Many thanks to the people who donated money to assist with the purchase of Neighborhood Watch signs, Squarespace, and other supplies to assist with the Watch mission. Donations in 2023 exceeded $675 dollars. Many of our members also paid to join the National Neighborhood Watch Program, but as of yet, we still need 4 more members to join in order to make the application.
Pat Shea pointed out that Reno is one of the highest crime cities in the country. The 2020 crime rate in Reno, NV is 314 (City-Data.com crime index), which is 1.2 times greater than the U.S. average. It was higher than in 89.0% U.S. cities. And even though we feel safer in our neighborhood, he suggested we always be mindful of possible threats to our safety and property. Read more: https://www.city-data.com/crime/crime-Reno-Nevada.html
Pat suggested a safer way to protect your belongings is to tag them with your personal info or other identifiable marks. Insurance companies use to offer engraving tools to clients. Photographing your belongings is another way of easy identification should they be stolen.
Currently, the Reno Police Department and the City of Reno do not have an active program for Neighborhood Watch. Our goal is to reach out to Reno Police and the City Council to encourage these agencies to join the National Sheriff’s Association in order to sponsor more Neighborhood Watch programs in our community. Washoe County Sheriff Darin Balaam is very supportive of the community Neighborhood Watch and employs a full time manager to support the over 90 Neighborhood Watch programs in Washoe County.
Membership would mean training resources would be available to Neighborhoods who participate by providing classes and other materials. We would ask our neighbors to encourage their City Councilperson and Mayor to be more proactive in supporting these programs within the city. You can go online to send them an email or call Mayor Hilary Schieve at 775 334 2001 or Councilperson Meghan Ebert 775 334 2015 to request funding the Reno Police Department to provide support to our citizens.
A discussion was held on how to increase interest in Neighborhood Watch in Cabernet Highlands. Michael Sproehnle suggested that we should really promote social media opportunities. He will be working with Pat Shea to build a stronger social media presence that could be expanded to other neighborhoods to support building Neighborhood Watch programs throughout Reno.
Goals for 2024 are to continue to support and educate Cabernet Highland Neighbors in ways to develop their own support structure in the neighbors close to them. The goal is to have groups of 4 or 5 homes. If your neighbors are watching out for each other the risk of crime is greatly reduced.
Look for updates on our project to build a Social Media Community.
Stay safe everyone
Pat Shea
Pat100shea@gmail.com
775 721 6742
Since the March meeting of Cabernet Neighborhood Watch. I worked to get several issues moved forward on the To Do List.