Community Corner
Crime Stats Favor Common Ground
Residents have said the nonprofit's clients were responsible for crimes in their neighborhood, but a report prepared by a police officer shows otherwise, according to the LookOut News.
Contrary to what neighbors have claimed, , a nonprofit that provides testing and educational resources to people who have contracted or have a high risk of contracting HIV, did not boost crime rates at its former home at Lincoln Boulevard and Bay Street, the LookOut News reports.
The organization , prompting protests from residents and businesses that said it would increase crime close to three area preschools and a continuation high school.
According to the LookOut, a Santa Monica officer compiled data on crime reports for the 600 and 700 blocks of Bay Street during the decade which Common Ground was operating there and found only three reports of 133 referencing Common Ground.
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“It is significant to me to see essentially flat numbers for crime throughout the 20 years," Jeff Goodman, Common Ground's interim executive director, told the news source. "This seems to indicate that we had a neutral effect on the neighborhood.”
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