Haddonfield Neighborhood Watch Meeting Tuesday

The Haddonfield Civic Association is launching an effort to establish a neighborhood watch.

A public meeting is scheduled Tuesday, 7:30 p.m., at the Municipal Hall.

Burglaries ticked up nearly 250 percent in Haddonfield in the latest state crime report.  A pair of borough women helped chase down a burglary suspect last year on Redman Avenue and an Episcopal priest helped collar admitted copper metal thieves last month at Grace Church.

It's a trend that has disturbed Bill Tourtellotte, a past president of the civic association. He grew up in the borough and remembered his parents taking part in a neighborhood watch program here in the 60s and 70s.

Tourtellotte helped launch the new neighborhood watch effort.

"I think this effort is the right thing," he said. "We've gotten real good support from the police department and commissioners. This could be a really good thing that would really grown out of this, create some more awareness and put a dent in the crime situation around here."

The new neighborhood watch effort will not involve citizen patrols, unlike what Tourtellote remembered from the past. The new effort will focus on community awareness of crime prevention, including calling police to report suspicious activity.

"I think it's a great idea," said Ed Borden, one of three members of the borough Board of Commissioners and the town director of public safety. "Neighbors watching out for neighbors, being the eyes and ears of the police."