November 30, 2006
Crime prevention officers move to Kane Hall
Attention: The UW Police are coming to Kane Hall. Room 225C, to be exact — right next to the Walker-Ames Room.
In fact, they’re already there, moving their two-officer Crime Prevention Unit up from the main police station on Boat Street, where they don’t get a lot of visitors.
“The main reason we wanted to come up onto campus was to be more centrally located — simply for accessibility for students, faculty and staff,” said April Lesho, crime prevention officer. “When we’re down on Boat Street, we don’t have any pedestrian traffic.”
Indeed, as her fellow crime prevention officer Garnell Stewart noted, the department’s Boat Street location isn’t even identified on the campus map as a police station except on the map’s back side. The map itself simply shows it as the Bryant Building. Little wonder there are few passers-by.
The idea for the new location came not from the police but from Linda Kemnitzer, Kane’s building coordinator, who is also assistant director of Classroom Support Services, located in Kane. “I knew they were looking for an upper-campus spot, so I called them and said there’s a possibility we could try this for a quarter and see how we are doing,” Kemnitzer said, adding that the space formally belongs to the UW Board of Regents, who have given permission for its use by the police.
She also said that given the many nighttime events held in Kane, “I just thought to have a police presence is great. It’s a good building for students to reach out for crime prevention, if they want. I’m happy they’re here.”
Lesho and Stewart, too, agreed the new location is being opened only on a trial basis, for a quarter or so, while UW Police evaluate it to see if it’s worth keeping open permanently. And their availability in the office is conditional on other work they have to do campuswide. But Lesho said she hopes to have a more full-time presence in the new office — from about 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. — come Winter Quarter.
She said there will be an open house to advertise the new location Jan. 9-11.
Lesho said of the Crime Prevention Unit, “We can pretty much handle everything here that a normal police station can.” That includes smaller matters such as bicycle registration as well as the more substantial matter of dealing with actual crimes.
Stewart said people stopping by the new unit location can pick up brochures with crime prevention tips as well as whistles and highlighters. They also give out a click-top novelty pen that offers a different crime prevention tip with every click, such as “Follow well-lit paths,” “Protect your drink” and “Secure your bike.”
Given the trial nature of the project, Lesho said UW Police are interested in hearing any and all comments from students, faculty and staff about the new office. “Public opinion is very important in this matter,” Lesho said. “If people feel it’s a great location for us, it’s good for them to voice their opinions.” Stewart added, “The goal is to give this a shot.”
One staff member who strongly supports the new unit is Shannon Bailie, sexual assault and relationship violence resource specialist for Student Affairs, to whom students come with such private and crucial concerns. “Any time these services can be out and accessible, I think it goes a long way toward being more proactive and educating the campus community about what resources are available.”
Overall, Lesho said, the new office enables the officers to interact with the campus community more easily and,in the bargain, creates extra office space back at the Boat Street station.
“It just makes a lot of sense for us to be centrally located,” Lesho said.
To comment on the new location of the Crime Prevention Unit, call the police at 206-543-0507, e-mail uwpolice@u.washington.edu. To learn more about the UW Police services and resources, visit online at http://www.washington.edu/admin/police.
