CITY HOPES LAW DRIVES DRUGS AWAY

Drug trafficking in Camden's Whitman Park may hit a speed bump, thanks
to a partnership among Camden officials, residents and the Camden
County Prosecutor's Office.

Louis Street, in the heart of crime-ridden Whitman Park, will be
converted into a one-way, southbound thoroughfare, to allow police to
monitor drug dealers' activities more effectively and reduce traffic
accidents. A date for converting the street has not been determined.

City Council adopted an ordinance to make the change on Dec. 11, but
the measure grew from a year-long effort by police, Whitman Park
residents and the prosecutor's office to address crime and safety
concerns in the neighborhood.

Steven Carmichael, a city resident and acting president of United
Neighbors of Whitman Park, said the organization spent a year seeking
the one-way designation.

Area residents were concerned both about drugs and traffic-safety
issues on Louis Street, which lacks speed-limit signs, Carmichael said.

"There were accidents on Chase Street and Louis, Everett (Street) and
Louis, Atlantic (Avenue) and Louis," said Carmichael, who lives at
Chase and Louis streets. "Children can't walk across the street safely."

Enter the District Council Collaborative Boards, panels that unite
residents of Camden's four municipal wards with police,
representatives from the prosecutor's office and officials from City
Hall.

Creation of the collaborative boards was among the recommendations in
a 2006 blue-ribbon report on improving public safety and policing in
Camden.

DCCB-4, which Carmichael joined, made it easier to address residents'
concerns, he said.

"Instead of United Neighbors doing it by ourselves, we had a whole
collaborative effort," Carmichael said.

Police had their reasons for wanting to restrict the flow of vehicles
on Louis Street.

"When we're targeting drug activity, it's a little easier for us to
police the traffic coming through there if the traffic is only coming
in one direction," Camden police Capt. Al Handy said in a prepared
statement.

City Councilman Bill Spearman called police and the prosecutor's
office the "driving force" behind the boards, but credited residents
and staff from Code Enforcement, Public Works, Planning and
Development and other city departments for participating.

"This is just the beginning," Spearman said, adding the city will be
posting stop signs and, eventually, a traffic light at the
intersection of Louis and Kaighn Avenue.

The city will need to come up with funds and state approval for the
traffic light, Spearman said.

Still, officials and residents alike are pleased with the results of
their new collaborative effort.

"The Louis Street project is one of the best examples of how the
community, the police department and the city can work together and
creatively find solutions to public safety concerns," Angel Osorio,
lead community liaison for the prosecutor's office, said in a prepared
statement.