Nuisance Properties Posed Real Problems for Group of Sherman Park Residents
Too many blocks in Milwaukee are plagued by just one or two criminal nuisance properties. Sometimes the houses are being rented out by a landlord, sometimes people “squat” or stay in the house after a foreclosure, and in other instances boarded properties are broken in to and people use it as a location for selling drugs, prostitution or gang activity. It can make life almost unbearable for other law abiding citizens who are just trying to live in peace.
The only thing worse than living next to a house plagued by criminal nuisance activity is living next to two of them! Diane with Safe & Sound worked consistently this summer with a resident who had just this sort of dilemma, trying to make something happen and bring some relief, but the problems continued. She encouraged residents to call in criminal activity to the police department, worked with the Community Prosecution Unit, and conducted regular neighborhood outreach with residents.
When Diane spoke with residents they expressed that over the last year the problem had only gotten worse and they felt that nothing was being done to help them. The list of complaints was very long and very serious:
- Excessive loitering, public drinking and drug use
- Excessive traffic
- Loud parties and music
- Gun shots
- Fighting
- Unsupervised children
- Trash, broken glass and garbage in yards and alleys
- Begging for food, supplies, money
- Forced entry into other homes
- And many other activities which bring the police on a regular basis
A break occurred while talking with a Department of Neighborhood Services Inspector about the problematic houses. The neighbors were going around asking for candles so they could have some light at night. This comment set the ball rolling and soon the property was boarded up for being unfit for habitation. Not having utilities is a serious safety hazard making it illegal to live in the property.
Unfortunately, the nuisance activity continued. Someone tried to break into the property in the middle of the afternoon and the police were called. A few days later one of the residents noticed that there was activity in the garage behind the now boarded house. Teenage boys were luring young girls into the garage and “hanging out” during the day. Inside the garage were children’s clothes, a mattress on the ground and signs of the young people. The residents let the parents of the girls, who were only 8 or 10 years old, know about what was going on in the garage. Surprisingly, the girls’ mother didn’t seem concerned just stating that “kids will be kids.” Officer Trunkel at District 7 was contacted and officers came out to inspect the garage and board it up as well. In the process they found that people were trying to enter the boarded house as well and re-secured the building. Ultimately both properties were boarded because of unfit conditions.
The process of working with residents and city resources took real persistence. To date, only one of the board ups is empty and quiet. The other house was in the process of being rehabbed and a nice family recently moved in. While conducting outreach Diane found that the residents on the block all sleep better at night and are extremely happy with their newfound peace and quiet. Diane will continue to work with the developing neighborhood group to build upon these huge wins for the block and Safe & Sound.
