When a nightclub opened just down the street, fighting and the sound of gunshots regularly rang out in the night air. Rattled by the sudden uptick in crime, our Jubilee neighbors teamed up with Jubilee's DPD substation officers and Jubilee staff to strategize how to respond. It would prove to be a difficult task, but our Jubilee residents had succeeded in reducing their neighborhood’s crime rate by 74% since 1997 and refused to surrender the peace they had fought so hard for.
The first person they turned to was Dale Rettman, Jubilee Park’s own Facilities Manager. Dale has worked with our residents for years to keep the community safe and was ready to fight alongside his neighbors to reclaim their neighborhood.
What happened next was a shining example of Jubilee's exemplary partnership with the Dallas Police Department. Community members and local business owners attended Crime Watch meetings to collaborate with DPD and Jubilee on a multi-pronged effort to find a resolution. They brought code violations to the city, but the nightclub evaded justice time and again and violent crime continued. Finally, the community met with Councilman Adam Bazaldua who told the Jubilee residents that they could try and shut down the nightclub by collecting signatures from local businesses and residents. But there was a catch-- the next City Council meeting was only three days away.
In the next 72 hours, residents and Jubilee staff sprang into action to canvas the 62-block neighborhood in a coordinated awareness campaign to gather signatures in support of a crackdown. By the third day, they had collected 137 signatures from residents, businesses, and employees in the area. After weeks of organizing, the nightclub finally closed its doors for good. The neighborhood had won!
A true community policing model, Jubilee officers are tasked primarily with building trust between DPD and marginalized communities. Several officers live in the community, help reach immobile seniors, and even lead Jubilee Park's Boy Scouts troops!