WEST AUGUSTINE GETS FUNDS TO FIGHT CRIME

Program Also Would Support Positive Change In Neighborhood

WEST AUGUSTINE -- On a visit to Calvin Peete Park last year, U.S. Rep.
John Mica, R-Winter Park, found an empty cocaine bag on a playground,
and later watched as two men completed a crack sale on Pearl Street.

On Monday, Mica recalled those two vivid images while announcing that
West Augustine had been named a Weed and Seed Community, the only
Florida neighborhood so designated this year among 22 nationwide.

"I was shocked when I saw the conditions here," Mica said Monday at
Murray Middle School. "We had to do something, so we made a commitment
to make changes. No young people should grow up in a neighborhood
where they find drug bags on their playground."

A Weed and Seed designation means West Augustine could receive up to
$250,000 a year for five years to pay for aggressive law enforcement,
community policing, crime prevention and neighborhood
restoration.

Law enforcement hopes weeding can remove West Augustine's bad
elements, but Richard H. Schneider, professor of urban and regional
planning at the University of Florida in Gainesville, said this type
of program does not guarantee success.

Schneider, who specializes in crime prevention, said, "(Weed and Seed)
does work in some areas, but not everywhere. It certainly increases
community awareness and spirit, but crimes have been diminishing
everywhere."

He said the success depends on the extent of community
involvement.

Derek Hankerson, project coordinator for St. Johns County Housing and
Community Services, said West Augustine has a long cycle of poverty
and crime that needs to be broken.

Hankerson served on the committee that pushed for the Weed and Seed
designation.

"This isn't a federal grant program, it's a strategy," he said. "We'll
weed out negative influences -- code violations, prostitution, drug
dealing, open air drinking -- and seed in a positive environment using
social service organizations and West Augustine churches."

The committee meets in two weeks to discuss how it will apply for
funds. The application is due in October.

Joel Bolante, chief of staff for the Sheriff's Office, said Weed money
would pay overtime for new and already existing law enforcement
efforts in West Augustine.

"We want to create a climate that will encourage the private sector,"
Bolante said. "Weed and Seed requires a collaborative effort. But
previously, whenever we would do our sweeps, no one would come behind
us with economic development."

Sweeping out the criminals wouldn't necessarily mean they would go
somewhere else, officials said.

Bolante said, "That's always an unintended consequence when you focus
on one area. But the U.S. Attorney office will prosecute those cases.
Criminals know that if they're prosecuted under federal law, they'll
do at least 85 percent of their (prison) sentence."

Also, he added, some criminals will seek jobs in an improved economic
climate instead of committing crimes.

Schneider said proving the effectiveness of Weed and Seed is difficult
because crime is dropping nationally.

Some factors include the ending of the crack epidemic, more unwanted
children not being born, keeping more criminals in jail for longer
sentences, the police working smarter, better enforcement of domestic
violence laws and more people staying at home during the day, he said.

"There are a lot of reasons, but the general fact is that crime is
decreasing," Schneider said.

Weed and Seed can work, depending upon how it's administered and "if
community groups and local citizens" are involved, he said.

The Rev. Richard Madison of Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church, 280
Duval St., said his church will lend support to the Weed and Seed idea.

"Quite a few informational meetings were convened at West Augustine
community churches," Madison said.

Tabernacle Baptist hosted the very first meeting a year
ago.

William Daniels, law enforcement coordinator for the U.S. Attorney's
Office, said the program's first priority is identifying the area's
bad elements and dealing with them.

"West Augustine is not asking for a handout, it's asking for the
tools," Daniels said. "Keep the end goal in mind. That will help give
people hope. Give them hope and you change their lives."

Weed and Seed

What: Weed and Seed is a combined effort by local, state and federal
agencies founded in 1991 to weed out violent crime and gang activity
while seeding the community with social services and economic
revitalization.

How it is funded: Federal grants from $30,000 to $300,000 pay for
aggressive law enforcement, community policing, crime prevention and
treatment, and neighborhood restoration.

Who runs it: The program is administered through the U.S. Department
of Justice.

How many: There are 350 Weed and Feed communities nationwide. West St.
Augustine is the only new Weed and Feed community in Florida this year.