City Council in a Formal Meeting last week unanimously approved the expansion of the Gated Alley Program (GAP).
GAP will add more locked gates to alleys in residential areas as an attempt to stop illegal dumping, graffiti and other criminal activities.
GAP was initially approved in 2017 for the Royal Palm and Sunnyslope neighborhoods. With plans of expansion being approved by the council, GAP looks to help benefit more communities.
Vice Mayor of Phoenix Betty Guardado, District 5, helped push for the addition of more gates around the city. During the formal meeting she spoke on her hopes for the expansion.
“In the city, this [GAP] is going to be a huge help to everyone in the district. I’m very excited to start moving this forward and making sure that we create safer streets safer alleys” Guardado said.
City residents joined council members in voicing approval for the measure. Although the public was not in attendance because of COVID-19 measures, the comments they sent regarding the program were read to the council members.
“I ask that you support this program. Those of us who live along the light rail know only too well the problems that the light rail has forced upon us,” said Pam Fitzgerald, a neighborhood leader from the Washington Park neighborhood. “I ask that you extend the gated alley program and that the neighborhoods along the light rail be given priority since the crime rate is so high.”
While many city residents say GAP has helped to stop crime in alleys, the program will still be depended on the consent of the residents before placing locked gates and continues to do so in the future.
Sandra Hoffman, the Assistant Director for the City of Phoenix Planning and Development department, mentioned that the city does not have statistics on whether the gates have been successful.
Hoffman said that police officers and committee action officers believe that GAP has impacted crime.
“We haven’t had statistical, you know, data that can support that, so we are in the process of trying to collect that data,” Hoffman said.
With the data the city will gather, Hoffman explained that the city also looks to gather data on if non-gated alleys nearby will be impacted.
“The request must include signatures from at least 51% of the property owners that would be Hillary impacted by each alley closure” the City Council report for the program extension stated.
Property owners of the residencies impacted by the gates are responsible for the cost of the gates. The finances of GAP range between $5,000-$2,800 per gate, according to the programs 2018 FAQ page.
In the previous gated alleys, licensed contractors were responsible for the gate design, yet for the expansion, there will be a standard rod iron design, Hoffman explained. Residents have the option for a more elaborate design at their own cost.
Along with the citywide GAP expansion, a $400,000 grant program was approved. The grant is provided by Neighborhood Block Watch Grant Program, NBWGP, and is set to install gated alleys to low-income census tracked areas.
The funding and spending of the GAP extension brought up some concerns. Bramley Paulin, who was represented as natural on the program stated his concern of non-detailed information on the soft costs of each gate along with the costs of inspections and permits.
“I am in support of gating the alleys but stop the money grab by creating an alley closure policy that is fiscally and appropriately administered” Paulin said.
Along with the funds, residents in areas of GAP will have to look to the City of Phoenix for relocating their trash pickup from their alley’s to curbside.
Despite trash pickup and the funding, the Royal Palm and Sunnyslope neighborhoods, some residents of the two neighborhoods currently utilizing GAP have noticed a positive impact on their communities and keep hopeful for the future of the program.
Hillary Rusk, the president of Royal Palm neighborhoods, districts 3 and 5, voiced her
support for the GAP expansion at the formal meeting.
“Our neighborhood (Royal Palm) was the first in Phoenix to participate in the program and it had been extremely effective in illegal dumping, trespassing, and property crime out of alleys” Rusk said. “We are eager to see the program expand and to have neighborhoods who need help with funding provided the help from the Block Watch Grant money.”
Contact the reporter at mbestrad@asu.edu.
