Prospect Heights police start community garden for community outreach
Near apartment complexes once notorious for crime and gang activity, Prospect Heights police have started a community garden.
It's filled with peppers, corn, tomatoes and other vegetables planted by about 20 families primarily from the apartments, each divvying up a small section to call their own. Frequently, police officers stop by to chat with residents tending their plots.
"A lot of the time when we're dealing with people, it's during unfortunate circumstances," Officer Mike Coglianese said. "It's nice to come out in the community when they're doing something they enjoy."
The garden is off Piper Lane on land owned by Chicago Executive Airport. It is open to all Prospect Heights residents but primarily serves families from nearby apartment complexes who don't have a place to grow vegetables.
In the 1990s, the apartments had a bad reputation. Police officers remember dozens of gang members lived there and would throw large rocks at patrol cars over a graffiti-covered wall built to stop residents from crossing from one complex to another.
Today, the wall is gone, and the apartment complexes aren't so notorious. Crime rates in other suburbs have increased, but Prospect Heights' fell significantly last year. Police Chief Al Steffen credits police outreach programs like the community garden.
The garden has brought people together, many of whom may not otherwise know their neighbors, said Marcia Jendreas, the police department volunteer who started the project.
She said the garden has been a team effort. Pesche's Garden Center in Des Plaines donated plants, seeds and compost to help families get started. Fries Automotive in Prospect Heights gave a 250-gallon water tank to the project. And the families help maintain the local garden club's plot, and the produce will be donated to food pantries.
The garden doubled in size during its second season and it's expected to do so again next year as word spreads.
"I want people to know that we're not just pulling people over and giving them tickets," Coglianese said. "We all consider ourselves members of the community."