Park and Trail Safety thru Bike Patrols In Aksarben/Elmwood Park

We have all seen the police officers on their bikes at the College World Series, in the Old Market and even around Lake Zorinsky. However, we don’t often see bike patrols in Aksarben/Stinson Park, Elmwood Park and Memorial Park. There are no patrols on the trails we walk, run, and bike daily. But what if we could have occassional bike patrols in our parks and on our trails? Isn’t it worth a few dollars to potentially have that extra police presence?

Through attendance at monthly Southwest Police Precinct Advisory Council Meetings (for Neighborhood Watch groups and OCCP patrollers), we have learned that these areas have the potential to be patrolled via requested bike patrol in the future.  However, there are not enough bikes in the Omaha Police Department for all 4 precincts to use regularly. They currently share bikes.

We would like to change this by collaborating with our fellow neighbors (and neighborhood associations) to fund bikes for the Southwest Precinct. The SW Precinct currently serves the area from 42^nd Street west to 204^th Street, Dodge Street north to the county line to the south. Once the new fifth district is completed, the bikes will remain with our district.

We would like to be able to fund two bikes, at a cost of approximately $1800 apiece, as they must patrol in pairs. Police bikes are specially designed to carry the weight of the officer and the additional weight of their gear. Any funds raised in addition to this initial ask will go toward accessories such as helmets and racks for patrol cars to carry the bikes.

All donations will be made directly to the Omaha Police Foundation (OPF), a federally designated 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. The OPF will allocate 100% of all donations received thru this campaign directly to the purchase of the bikes and related equipment for the Southwest Precinct. All donations will be recognized with a receipt and will be tax deductible under the guidelines of the Internal Revenue Service.

Thank you for helping to take this step to make our parks and trails safer.

Celebrate the accomplishment by presenting the money through Omaha Police Foundation channels.

Coordinate a meet and greet with potential bike patrol officers and local patrol officers, open to the neighborhoods.

Follow up with the notification of the first bike patrol in the respective areas with pictures (in the spring).

We believe that bike patrols are a more focused way to be in the community. It encourages community policing, as the officers are more likely to interact with the community while on a bike, verses a car. Officers on bikes can gain access to areas that normal patrol officers, in cars, can't access, such as trails and the parks. Bike patrols are more visible. Having this type of police presence at events will reassure our neighbors that areas are safe and maintained.