2007 MetLife Awards - Over the Rhine Revitalization Corporation, Keep Cincinnati Beautiful & Cincinnati Police Department
Date Published: 03/31/2008
Author: Karin Anderson
Publisher: LISC
In recent years, Cincinnati's Over-the-Rhine (OTR), a poor neighborhood located in the heart of the city, has been plagued with heavy drug use and trafficking, homicides, poverty and a loss of businesses and economic resources. Working with community organizations including Keep Cincinnati Beautiful and the Over-the-Rhine Revitalization Corporation, the Cincinnati Police Department initiated a high visibility police problem-solving effort that drew on partnerships between city and community agencies, neighborhood groups and private businesses to bring resources to identified “hot spot” areas in the neighborhood. The collaborative approach allowed the Police Department to utilize crime analysis to identify high crime areas and work with citizens to strategically direct police resources, while a CDC and other community organizations rehabilitated abandoned and underutilized properties and beautified streetscapes and greenspaces. The impact of strategic police enforcement, coupled with targeted economic development efforts produced a significant reduction in drug activity and related violent crime and substantially increased economic viability in this community.
Topics: Economic Development & Safety, --Community Safety
Type: Case study / model practice