Streets and Sanitation electricians worked today to replace the stolen wiring that caused street light blackouts at 900 W. Agatite, 900 W. Sunnyside, and 4500 N. Hazel. We hope this is the last of Uptown’s public utility wire thefts, but somehow we doubt it.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
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This is a serious crime against public safety. It needs to be dealt with harshly and as Monty Python might say "nasty, big, pointy teeth!"
ReplyDeleteI recommend "killer rabbit" protection services. I have no use for criminal scum who steal wiring from street lights. I don't mind the scavengers who hunt the alleys for metal and other goodies, but depriving a block of streetlights should be punished with nastiness and much hardcore community service.
They say this is being done in daylight when the electricity flowing to the street lights is turned off. So, how do we not see someone carting off hundreds of pounds of coiled wire before our very eyes? Are they posing as public utility contractors?
ReplyDeleteThere have been so many guys in and out of those streets fiddling with the sewers and cables it wouldn't be hard to slip in there and act like one of the bonafide contractors.
What do you think?
I think that the ones who care about this are at work during the day and don't see the thieves. And the ones who do see the theft occuring aren't going to call the police. Just my opinion.
ReplyDeleteI heard that the crews that are installing the wire are also stealing it so that they can get overtime pay working for the city.
ReplyDeleteIt was the gang members hanging out (at least on Windsor) who cut the wiring, making it impossible for people to ID them when conducting their narcotics trade and vandalism. We saw them messing with teh wiring, and using wire cutters, and called the police to ID them and file complaints against several of the gang members. The police said there was no need to file a complaint, but rather they woould call the electric company to have the lights fixed. This happened on Windsor about 3 weeks ago at approximately 6:00 PM (the wire cutting and phone calls by myself and my neighbors to the police)
ReplyDeleteWow, Anon 11:20, that's pretty intense.
ReplyDeleteAre you familiar enough with the gang members who cut the wires to know if they live in Uptown? If so, can they be prosecuted and evicted from their housing?
I have a theory that if, somehow, a chosen dozen habitual problem-causers could be removed from Uptown, the quality of life would improve exponentially for everyone else who lives here.