Security district for Upper East Side

Real Estate Weekly, Sept 7, 1994 by Lois Weiss

Concerned by quality of life and security issues, Douglas Elliman's Howard Milstein is mobilizing an effort to blanket the Upper East Side with 100 round-the--clock security guards as part of a proposed special assessment district which would raise as much as $20 million a year to pay for the private policing.

The boundaries of the district would be coterminous with those of the 19th Police Precinct, running from 59th Street to 96th Street and the East River to Central Park.

According to those working on the formation of the district, including former city Transportation Commissioner Lucius Riccio, money would be raised primarily by mandatory real estate taxes on residential units and commercial property owners.

Rent-stabilized properties and those under a certain assessment level would probably pay $1 a year, say the organizers, while not-for-profits such as the approximately 140 local schools and other tax-exempt properties would be asked for contributions.

Most buildings would pay on some sort of formula that could be calculated on frontage, square footage, assessment or market value. Most households would be paying between $8 and $16 per month.

"It's still early in the process," said Georgette Bennett, a criminologist with a Ph.d. in sociology who is working with Riccio on the plan.

If enough businesses join, Riccio said, the fledgling group can use the Business Improvement District legislation as their umbrella. The formation of a Special Assessing District (SAD) would require separate State legislation, but might be necessary if it becomes impossible to fulfill the contiguous building requirements of the BID legislation and obtain the coverage of the district that they desire.

Bennett, managing director of government relations and public affairs for Douglas Elliman, said "We want to create a continuous blanket of security for the Upper East Side. We want to provide more security for children going to school, and we want to create a better business environment, although our focus is more residential."

While security is on everyone's minds, says Riccio, statistics provided by the New York City Police Department show crime actually dropped 6.5 percent overall for the 19 Precinct from 1992 to 1993. Burglaries, however, including those at businesses and residences, rose 8.7 percent, with 3,822 being committed in the Precinct in 1993 versus 3,517 in 1992.

Nevertheless, Bennett says they hope to have a further effect on reducing the crime rates. "We want to help deal with some of the quality of life issues that add to the threat on the street in terms of graffiti, and nuisance kinds of things like aggressive panhandlers."

Mark J. Lerner, Ph.D., and president of Epic Security Corp., says guards cannot force people to leave the neighborhood, They can only ask them to do so or call in the police.

The Community Affairs Officer for the Precinct, Det. Louis Uliano, said the police can offer the homeless social services and a shelter. "If it's a cold weather emergency and they don't have a means of keeping warm, that is the only time we can forcefully remove them," he noted.

Another citizen worried that the police will not be able to respond to additional calls being made by an increase in security guards.

But Det. Uliano said, "What we ask of private citizens is to act as the eyes and ears. If we can have more eyes and ears giving us information, then that is the kind of cooperation we would like."

Riccio noted "Everyone knows the number one issue on people's minds in the whole country is security. Although we are very pleased with the work of the New York City Police Department, even they will admit they are not the end-all, be-all. They need help from the public."

There are currently 286 officers assigned to the Precinct, with 26 different "beats" or foot patrols, each covered by two officers, who may overlap in approximately 12-hour shifts.

The proposal would add three shifts each of approximately 100 unarmed security guards to those beats, for which organizers say they need 400 to 500 guards. Bennett is hoping to create 52 beats with five officers walking each.

"There are 26 patrol beats that the police staff," noted Riccio. "We would in essence double that, 'round-the-clock seven days a week. If we could add a third, we could have a tremendous saturation patrol. From talking to people in other communities, this is a dream, this is what you try to achieve." When there is a large increase in security guard forces, Riccio said, "you know you are providing a tremendous amount of deterrence."

Riccio has been hired by Douglas Elliman to act as a consultant on the project. He is a co-op owner and board member on the Upper East Side, and brings a background not only in gridlock but in lockup.

He was a former Assistant Director of Research for the police foundation and a member of the criminal justice coordinating council in New York City, and has been in involved in the writing of large number of books on crime control. "I've had a professional interest in it for many years," he said. "This [plan] will benefit me."