P.O. Box 368
Feeding Hills, MA 01030
(413) 583-8922
(413) 589-1117 (Fax)

Commissioner Bill Fitchet gave an informative, down to earth talk to us. He had extensive experience as a police officer in the city of Springfield before becoming Police Commissioner.

Commissioner Fitchet told us that one goal of the Police Department was to establish partnerships with groups like ourselves.

He thought that quality of life issues, such as feeling safe and happy in your home, were important. There is massive “dis-courtesy” in our society today. Neighbors are insensitive to neighbors; drivers are rude to other drivers, etc. Although the Police Department is still 911 driven, they are starting to address these types of issues via a 4 person Ordinance Squad.

In 2007, there were 264 ordinance violations. Though August, 2008, there were about 800. This is a direct result of the attention being paid by the Police Department.

For Landlords, the Police Department is willing to help whenever we feel threatened. For example, if we are going to knock on a tenant’s door regarding something that might incite them to violence, we can call the Police and tell them calmly and clearly what we are going to do. A good phrase to use is “I’m in fear of my safety and need an officer to prevent a breech.” This signals the 911 operator to send an officer to meet with us to knock on the door together. It would be helpful to give them 20 to 25 minutes lead time.

According to the Commissioner, the 911 system is greatly overblown. People think that it will save them. The reality is that individual action taken at a time of crisis is more important because it takes time for the police to respond.

The Commissioner asked us to get to know the police officers in our area. He believes in getting them on walking or bicycle beats, even though this is an expensive approach for the department.

Each area in the city has a beat management team meeting, where we can bring up neighborhood issues, such as alerting police to a drug dealer. It’s also a forum for trouble-shooting problems. Kathy Brown is the contact person for these meetings. Her number is 787-6359 if you want to find out about one.

RHAGS member asked about panhandling. Commissioner Fitchet told him that there is an ordinance that refers to aggressive panhandling. The office has to assess the aggressiveness. The panhandler could be arrested, booked and be out on the street shortly. Unfortunately, the solution to panhandling is deeper, involving solving problems such as alcohol or drug dependence and housing issues.

The most frequent ordinance complaint by far is noise. Some less frequent complaints are open container, panhandling and unshoveled sidewalks.

There are some areas in Springfield where when the lights go down, it’s dangerous. Downtown Springfield isn’t one of them. During the day, most of Springfield is safe.

Copper thefts are epidemic across the country. Besides taking pipes, some thieves are also taking air conditioners for the small amount of copper they contain. The police have been catching people at scrap yards for about 2 years. Commissioner Fitchet is talking to other Commissioners in the area.

There were 182 copper thefts last year. The thieves use athletic bags to carry out about 50 lbs at a time unnoticed. If you see this happening, call 911 and tell them to come in quietly and use a back street approach, so the thieves don’t see them.

The Springfield Police have a great rapport with the State Police. The State Police come in to help on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays with speed enforcement. There is a Forest Park speeding crackdown during this September.

The Commissioner asked that we be patient with police officers. They see some horrible things and sometimes aren’t as tactful with citizens as he would like. If their behavior is extreme, however, call the Captain at 787-6325. Keep yourself composed, even if you’re upset, because this is the best way to get your complaint across well.

There is gang activity in Springfield, but it seems lesser than in the past. Most involves kids aged 17 to 22. Latino gangs have calmed down in the North End. Gang activity in high schools is being targeted with sophisticated law enforcement techniques (that couldn’t be divulged.) There were almost 500 arrests in the Springfield schools last year.

Many RHAGS members expressed that they were very appreciative of the Police Commissioner speaking at our meeting.