Endorsement by Long Beach Police Dept. - Anthony W Batts - Chief of Police
Long Beach Police Department
IDA Awards Committee
Dear IDA Awards Committee:
The Downtown Long Beach Associates' (DLBA) Downtown Guides program improves the lives of everyone who visits our Downtown, from office workers on a daily basis to out-of-town visitors. In particular, the Downtown Guides' Personal Data Assistant (PDA) program is especially worthy of praise.
The most visible part of an officer's job is out on the street, but just as important is the collection and analysis of data. The PDA program has vastly increased the amount and quality of data that we have about Downtown Long Beach. Guides are able to track on their PDAs trends in graffiti, illegal dumping, abandoned shopping carts, and quality of life issues such as panhandling and outreach to the homeless community. For instance, the Long Beach Police Department is responsible for enforcing curfew in a Downtown park where many homeless individuals tend to congregate. The Guides are able to note the number of individuals in the park after curfew in their PDAs and send the data to us.
The Guides also assist us in working with businesses to promote safety in the Downtown. Businesses that encounter issues such as vagrancy, property damage, graffiti, or other hindrances to running a successful operation can easily contact the Guides, who then log the encounters in their PDAs and send the information to us.
We work together with the Guides to monitor the safety of our city and to create an environment that everyone can enjoy. In addition to the data that the PDAs allow the Guides to collect, we appreciate the ability to feel confident in referring visitors with questions about any aspect of the Downtown to the Guides. The PDAs make it easy for Guides to provide on-the-spot information to anyone who asks.
I cannot say enough positive things about the Guides and the PDA program. Our working relationship has only improved because of the higher functionality of the Guides, thanks to the PDAs. I am proud to recommend that the PDA program receive your highest honor.
Sincerely,
Anthony W. Batts
May 18, 2007
400 West Broadway
Long Beach, CA 90802
1250 H Street, NW, 10th Floor
Washington, DC 20005
Chief of Police
