Business Alliance Program

"Preventing Crime in the City of Santa Clarita is EVERYONE’S business"

City and Sheriffs - Business Crime Prevention Class - Wednesday - November 19, 2008

City and Sheriffs - Retail Theft and Fraud Prevention Class - Thursday - November 20, 2008

BACKGROUND

The City of Santa Clarita and the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Station have extended the efforts of the successful Neighborhood Watch Program to include involvement and participation by the Business Community.

The new City of Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Business Alliance is designed to enhance networking and communications between the local community and business organizations, local businesses, the City of Santa Clarita, and the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Station.

The purpose for our Sheriff’s Business Alliance is to support the efforts in protecting the greater business community in the City of Santa Clarita. The Alliance will assist the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s station in identifying specific problems within our business community and assist employers and employees by providing valuable safety and crime prevention information.

PROGRAM INFORMATION

Coordinated through the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Station and its new Business Relations Unit, the Sheriff’s Business Alliance will utilize both City and Sheriff’s resources, complimented by Sheriff Station volunteers to assist in proactive outreach to our business community, sending out frequent communications, and facilitate the various business training programs. If you would like to find out more information on becoming a volunteer to the SBA, please contact Sgt. A.J. Rotella.

To ensure that we can successfully identify and reach the thousands of businesses in the Santa Clarita area, both large and small, we have partnered with the City’s Economic Development Department and the new Business Enterprise Zone program to jointly establish a “Business Registry” for the first time in the City.

Business Alliance brochures are available both online and at the front counter of City Hall and the Sheriff’s Station that gives an overview of this program and invite our business community to join, without charge. By joining, we will create and maintain an updated emergency contact list which will be a huge resource to our patrol efforts and the Fire Department, especially after business hours. When a business joins our program, they will be provided with a window sticker of the Sheriff’s badge and the City Seal to prominently display in their business window. This will not only alert the public that the location is connected to the crime prevention program, but will advise the deputy and fire personnel that the emergency contact information for the business location is on file, should that be needed.

As the internet and email is commonplace in today’s business world, we are now able to utilize the email database to send out the frequent correspondence such as Alerts, Missing Persons flyers, Training Program Invitations, Crime Prevention information, and a quarterly newsletter.

Each year, the business owners and managers will be asked to renew their membership in the Business Registry by providing updated contact information. This will ensure that our database is current and better assist in the delivery of services for both the program, the City and the Sheriff’s Station. When the business renews, they will be provided with a new window sticker that is specially designed to include the highlight the partnership between the City of Santa Clarita and the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Station.

Each business partner will receive an annual sticker (dated by year) that will show that they are current with their contact information. The window stickers also provide information such as the telephone number to the sheriff’s station (661-255-1121) and the LASD’s crime tip line (877-TIP LASD).

LASD WEBSITE INTEGRATION

The new Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Department website and the City of Santa Clarita’s website both provide information on the Sheriff’s Business Alliance, as well as contact information and the forms to join and update membership. Those accessing our website will also be able obtain and share business crime prevention information through a link in our station’s webpage.

One of the features of our website is our "Business E-Watch." Via the Internet, the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Department will inform the Business Community by e-mail about such topics as crime prevention information, business/Sheriff’s related issues, special events happening in the Sheriff’s department, safety-related issues, and community crime alerts. Our subscribers receive e-mails anywhere from one to three times a month about such information as identity theft, check fraud, workplace violence, safety tips in the workplace, dispute resolution programs, burglary prevention tips, crime alerts, Santa Clarita Chamber of Commerce Business Expo, etc. This form of communication is a great way to help keep our business community informed without taking their valuable time away from running their businesses. The member will also be able to e-mail the program and have a personal answer to any business-related questions. It's fast, easy, convenient, and FREE.

TRAINING PROGRAMS

Members of the business community, through our Sheriff’s Business Alliance will be invited to attend various training classes which will be offered in cooperation with the City of Santa Clarita and community/business organizations. These training programs could include:

Auto Theft Prevention: In program, auto dealerships and related businesses are educated about the auto theft problem in the United States and what they can do to help prevent it. Various anti-theft measures discussed include steering wheel locks, car alarms, electronic kill switches, and electronic retrieval systems. Another component will deal with fraud and identity theft crimes involving automobile purchases.
Personal Safety Awareness: Because one's personal safety is paramount to most people, the Crime Prevention Bureau offers this class designed to heighten the individual's awareness of violent crime and how to possibly avoid it. Personal safety awareness while at home, in the car, at work, or out walking is discussed.
Drugs in the Workplace: The goal of this one hour program is to educate adults on the dangers and legal ramifications regarding the use and abuse of controlled substances in the workplace.
Violence in the Workplace: Due to increased occurrences of violence in the workplace, it is important to provide information to our community through this comprehensive training program. Some of the topics covered during this 3 - 4 hour seminar include domestic violence, physical safety and security measures, pre-employment screening, recognizing inappropriate behaviors, crisis management, and legal obligations of the employer.
Robbery Prevention: This program is designed to educate citizens and businesses how to react before, during, and after an armed robbery, as well as measures to take to prevent robberies from occurring.
Bank Robbery Training: This program, designed specifically for financial institutions, includes the same information as the Robbery Prevention Program but actually goes a step further. This program could include a very realistic "mock bank robbery" using volunteer tellers from the bank.
Cons and Frauds Prevention: Most cons and frauds are successfully perpetrated because victims are not familiar with the con artist's "modus operandi". By the end of this program, the participants are able to identify several types of scams to include home repair fraud, bank examiner scheme, the "Pigeon Drop," land frauds, phony investment scams, and fraudulent lotteries. Loss Prevention (Shoplifting & Credit Card/Check Fraud): Retail business losses from shoplifting and fraud can total billions of dollars a year. These prevention programs are offered to the business community to raise their awareness of these types of crimes as well as minimize their risk of becoming a victim.
Commercial Security Surveys: Members of the Sheriff's Station are available to respond to businesses to conduct on-site security inspections. There is no fee for this community service.

BUSINESS EDUCATION

A component of this program will include providing additional education and outreach to our businesses on a variety of topics that are identified as issues of concern in our community. Each month, we will identify one new issue and highlight this issue through our newsletter and outreach.

Issues that have already been identified include outreach and education to our retail businesses regarding the sales of alcohol and cigarettes to minors. We will be looking at producing an information brochure to our retail businesses which will be distributed, followed up by a class presented in cooperation with the State of California, Alcohol Beverage Control.

Another community problem involved graffiti vandalism. This has a positive effect when our local business work together in properly securing their spray paint and ensure that they only sell to adults. Another information campaign, with the assistance of Sheriff’s volunteers, will reach out to our local businesses which sell paint, and check to see if the paint is secure and provide the informational brochure.

FALSE ALARM REDUCTION PROGRAM

The Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Station is working closely with the City of Santa Clarita in reducing the number of false burglary and robbery alarms. Last year, Santa Clarita station handled 7,882 calls for service involving both residential (approximately 15% of calls) and commercial burglary, robbery, or panic alarms (approximately 85% of calls), finding over 99% of these alarm calls to be false.

False alarms cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars each year and take Deputy Sheriffs away from other crime prevention efforts. We are working with the City, local business owners and residents in an effort to dramatically reduce these false alarms.

Under the new system, the City’s Treasurers Office is given a weekly electronic record of all false alarms. The Sheriff’s Department will begin mailing each resident or business a false alarm notification advising of the City’s ordinance which imposes escalating civil penalties for repeated activations of false alarms.

Additionally, we have produced a “False Alarm Prevention” brochure which will be mailed with each notice by the City which will assist the owner is being a responsible alarm customer.

Prior to this new program, the City received approximately twenty (20) “False Alarm Warning Notices” or FAWNS from Sheriff’s Station each month. Currently, we electronically share close to 400 alarm call incidents on a monthly basis. In the first month of the new program, the Treasurer’s Office sent out 496 warning notices and billed $10,014.00 in fines to local businesses and residents.

Together, we believe that we can reduce the numbers of false alarm calls in the City of Santa Clarita by 25% the first year, and an additional 25% in the second year of operation.

NEWSLETTER AND NEW “BizAlert” PLAN

In January, we will begin with our monthly newsletter which will be driven through the online registrations of new members and emailed to our community members as well as posted on the internet sites. In addition, we will begin our monthly business-related crime prevention impact piece (sales of alcohol/cigarettes to minors, spray paint sales, etc.).

Members of our business community can now register online to receive a “BizAlert” of any important crime issue, Missing Person flyer, or Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Wanted Persons bulleting which will be emailed directly to your computer. By sharing vital information immediately, we will protect our business community from becoming victims and have thousands of area businesses and citizens keeping an eye out for our “persons of interest.”

KNOX BOX SYSTEMS

Working closely with the Los Angeles County Fire Department and the City, the SBA has an aggressive plan to improve the safety and response of our Deputies to emergencies in the Santa Clarita Valley. Through a simple device known as a “Knox Box,” business owners can safely secure keys which provide access to their business locations or perimeter fences. Electric gates that have key access can be easily modified to provide keyed access for emergency personnel. This will allow our Deputies and Fire personnel to quickly enter a location in the case of an emergency to protect the lives and property of our citizens and business community.

Through volunteer resources, we will be contacting local businesses, schools, churches and apartment/condominium communities to place more of these Knox systems throughout our area. For more information on the Knox system, please click here. (Will bring person to a PDF brochure of the Knox box system).

MARKETING

The success of this program is dependent upon the constant and never-ending attention given to its importance. Publicity has started through a local press campaign and featured article in the City’s monthly newsletter. Following that, several marketing plans have been developed with the assistance of the Chamber of Commerce and the City of Santa Clarita. By working with the City’s Economic Development Department, we will be able to reach every current and future business in our service area.

Each month, we will highlight our programs which will clearly show how serious the City of Santa Clarita is with maintaining a safe community, and a very business-friendly community.

The Sheriff’s Business Alliance is a component of the overall crime prevention plan for the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Station. Through local publicity, the program will strengthen and expand. The tag line to this new program is one coined by Sheriff Baca and captures the efforts to partner with our communities in our efforts to make our County safer.