McCloud being an unincorporated town, they have to rely on the Siskiyou County Sheriff Department for any problems occurring in town. Members of the community are getting fed up with continued crimes going on in their community from druggies and homeless people causing vandalism, theft, and other illegal activities, and are taking it upon themselves to police the streets at night and making themselves visible to help make their town safer.
Tom Sarti, founder and president of the newly formed McCloud Neighborhood Watch Program who has been working with law enforcement, held the first meeting drawing over 50 of the town’s 871 full time residents to help volunteer and create a program to be visible at night combing the streets and alleys to terminate illicit criminal activities. With his first post on Facebook, immediately 37 people commented “I’m in.” In no time, 136 people have joined to volunteer as members.
“We have some bad people in town. And our town is dark at night with no streetlights,” says Sarti. “The Neighborhood Watch Program is more than people just driving around. We need to make our presence known. To make McCloud a safer community, we will be collecting information, recording suspicious vehicle’s license plates, document suspected people roaming the streets at night, taking videos and pictures then contacting the police. We will not confront anyone.”
McCloud Neighborhood Watch is planning on having the night-watch vehicles marked with signs on the doors so they will be visible and known around town. They are encouraging residents to get motion sensitive lights around their houses and doorbell cameras. Partnering with the McCloud Resource Center which is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization, McCloud Neighborhood Watch is planning on getting signs and banners to post around town and is looking at being security to cover the town’s festivals. “We want to be known,” says Sarti. ” We are planning town cleanups, barbecues, and other types of town get-togethers for community involvement so people can get to know each other better.”
One volunteer at the meeting, Becky Mock who is a paralegal, reminded the people of the Siskiyou County Ordinance 3-17.01, of Chapter 17, of Title 3, that as of 2017 it is unlawful to camp outside of designated campgrounds which includes private property without the consent of the owners due to trash and waste or fires from transients or squatters to ensure the health and safety of residents which has also been a concern of McCloud people that have dealt with this in the recent past.
Dan and Julie Ponzini donated their lobby at the McCloud River Inn to hold the monthly meetings. The many tables were filled with people that wanted to get involved. Many volunteered for nightly patrol with 2 people per vehicle, and many more made donations to help fund this program to purchase banners, signs, and strong flashlights among the needed items to help make this program work.
For information about the McCloud Neighborhood Watch Program, or to donate, or volunteer, contact Tom Sarti at (916) 201-4301.
