Denver City Councilwoman Kendra Black noticed last winter she was getting a lot of calls from some elderly southeast Denver constituents who were getting fined not shoveling their walkways.
Black decided she wanted to take action so her office is now getting ready to start a good neighbor program she hopes will unite the area and open communications among residents.
“Getting to know your neighbors and talking about ways to help each other is an effective way to make your neighborhood a safe, vibrant place to live,” Black said.
The good neighbor program will officially launch next month as Black and her aides encourage District 4 residents to get to know their neighbors, help out elderly folks who may need assistance and reporting suspicious activities.
The program is not meant to replicate the neighborhood watch program for the area, but the two will be affiliated.
“This is a way for us to say ‘here’s a way you can actively help a neighborhood, make it feel safe and here are the steps you can take,’” said Liz Zukowski, an aide to Councilwoman Black.
Another goal is to have more outlets to get news out to the community from the councilwoman’s office. People interested in the program can contact Black and become a neighborhood liaison to collect contact information, organize block parties and send out news when needed.
“If that info is coming from neighbor, maybe people will pay more attention or care more,” Zukowski said.
Bruce Baskette has lived in the District 4 since 1979 and said his neighborhood organization has been very good about communicating with residents. He said he’s glad to see this spread to the rest of the community.
“I think itap a real good deal to talk about this stuff and promote it for new people moving in and younger people,” he said.
Baskette is part of the Hutchinson Hills-Willow Point Homeowners group and said he will shovel other people’s walkways regularly and noted the communication is great in his neighborhood.
“Every fall we have at least a mention in our newsletter talking about that. Help your neighbor, look for seniors, know when people are away, take advantage of the sunshine so what is left behind will melt. (Black) picked some of that up and added on it.”