Frankford isn’t the only neighborhood that will benefit from the recent assignment of 30 new police officers to the 15th Police District.
Speaking at the monthly meeting of the Wissinoming Civic Association, Capt. John McCloskey and Lt. Mark Overwise reported that officers will be assigned to the central and upper portions of the district, too. The goal is to have five additional officers on duty around the clock in Police Service Areas 2 and 3, Overwise said.
Like other districts in the Northeast, the 15th is divided into three subterritories for deployment purposes. Traditionally, PSA-1 in the southern end of the district has had the most crime and the most police officers and resources assigned to it.
Meanwhile, community groups in the central and northern sections, including Wissinoming, have complained about a relative lack of police coverage. City Councilman Bobby Henon, who grew up in Wissinoming, lobbied heavily for more officers in those areas. The neighborhood is part of PSA-2.
In response to those public appeals, the police department reassigned 30 cops to the 15th last month. While some community groups and Henon called for the 15th to be split into two districts, there are no plans to do that, according to Overwise. It makes more financial sense to keep the district unified so that the city won’t have to open a new police station and pay salaries to additional commanders.
McCloskey and Overwise further reported that the additional officers have enabled the 15th to respond quickly to more 911 calls. Before the reinforcements arrived, low-priority calls routinely fell onto a waiting list for police response because all available officers were already responding to higher-priority calls. Generally, problems like loud noise and barking dogs are considered low priority, while shootings, robberies and other violent crimes are considered high priority.
Henon invited residents to visit his district office at 6730 Torresdale Ave. for assistance with city services. ••
