First up, I want to thank so many people for coming out to last night's community meeting. It was great to have you and I hope we'll see you at future meetings! For those unable to attend, two officers from Zone 5 provided an update on the neighborhood crime statistics since the last meeting in November and spent nearly an hour answering questions about crime and security in the neighborhood. Despite the buzz on social media, there has not been an increase in crime *reported to the police*: in two months, there were 4 car thefts (three of which the keys had been left in the vehicles and one was loaned to someone who did not return it), 6 burglaries (I think! Of those, one was a bike from a detached garage, one was someone getting the house keys out of an unlocked car to access a house, and one did not actually appear to be a burglary but was called in as such), and no robberies (i.e., "muggings") and no overdoses. While any crime is unwelcome and upsetting, we are still one of the safest neighborhoods. The officers reminded residents that some of the best steps we can take to protect ourselves are to keep our homes, garages, and vehicles locked; to install motion sensitive lights; and to report suspicious behavior and actual crime. To see more patrols in the neighborhood, Zone 5 would need to see an uptick in calls - for suspicious behavior and crime, but also calls from residents who are concerned generally. To that end, one of the officers in attendance called me first thing this morning to let me know that in response to the feedback they heard at last night's meeting, they will be increasing patrols in the neighborhood for the next couple of weeks and referred concerns about drugs and prostitution to Narcotics and Vice. We have a great group of officers in Zone 5. Our police officers work hard and would put their lives on the line for us. Everyone at last night's meeting was very respectful and I hope that people continue to show our officers respect and appreciation for all that they do: they too are part of our community. Finally, if this is a topic that you are interested in being more engaged in, Zone 5 can provide information about Block Watches and HPCC would love to have you on our Public Safety Committee. Warm regards, Stephanie Walsh HPCC President -- *Highland Park Community Council* Visit our website by clicking here. <https://hpccpgh.org/>