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For a growing downtown, Tampa announces bike patrol, business watch

 
Tampa police Sgt. Colin McCoy rides down the stairs Wednesday at the TECO Building in downtown Tampa. McCoy is a part of the new bike squad and Downtown Business Watch.
Tampa police Sgt. Colin McCoy rides down the stairs Wednesday at the TECO Building in downtown Tampa. McCoy is a part of the new bike squad and Downtown Business Watch.
Published March 12, 2015

TAMPA — To foster a more personal relationship between urban core police officers and the people they protect, Tampa officials announced a downtown bike patrol unit Wednesday.

And a new Downtown Business Watch program to boot.

"There are particular challenges in the urban core — challenges we didn't face 10 years ago," Mayor Bob Buckhorn said at the launch event. "This is an exciting time, and it requires a different skill set and a different mentality."

Both the mayor and police Chief Jane Castor said crime rates are low in downtown Tampa compared with other parts of the city. The intention is to use the 17 officers on the bike unit to create a safe atmosphere for business to boom, a key tenet of the mayor's long-term plan.

Officers on bikes are more approachable and accessible, officials said, increasing the opportunity for more face-to-face interaction with community members. The mind-set behind the initiative is similar to the one driving St. Petersburg's "Park, Walk and Talk" mandate, which requires all officers to ditch their cars for a certain amount of time each week and hit the streets, Tampa police Officer Sean Mahabir said.

"I beat the street all the time," Mahabir said. "I think that's so important."

He will oversee the two new downtown initiatives as the Tampa Police Department's community liaison and coordinator of the Downtown Business Watch program.

That program, mirrored after an Ybor City model in place since 2011, allows business owners to register their information into a database. A window sticker will contain a registration number linked to that database, accessible to officers for quicker communication during an emergency.

"This is definitely another tool in our collective toolbox," said Vince Pardo, manager of the Ybor City Development Corporation.

The Ybor watch program has gained 200 participating businesses, and crime statistics have dropped nearly 70 percent, Pardo told a roomful of business owners and officers Wednesday.

By late morning, 25 downtown Tampa businesses had registered.

"I want to meet every single one of you, and I will in time," Mahabir told them.

The program enables officers to be more efficient when working, for example, a late-night break-in. It will also foster open dialogue between business owners, customers and law enforcement, he said.

The police chief and the mayor both emphasized the importance of being proactive when it comes to crime in the urban core as the area continues to expand.

"We are willing to create that environment that splits us apart from other urban cities in America," Buckhorn said.

Contact Katie Mettler at kmettler@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3446. Follow @kemettler.