JACKSONVILLE, FLA. – Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters walked through the Arlington neighborhood Saturday morning for another Neighborhood Crime Prevention Walk.
The walk began at 10:30 a.m. and started at the Les Chateaux Condos on the Arlington Expressway Service Road and ended at the Catalina Apartments on Bert Road.
Waters knocked on doors asking residents about their biggest concerns in the neighborhood.
“You hear about trash. You hear about drug complaints. You hear about a variety of different things… people’s cars getting broken into. Real serious life issues,” Waters said.
Just this year, there were multiple reports of shootings and burglaries in the Arlington area.
Samantha Mashman moved to the area in October and said seeing the sheriff and his staff patrol gives her a sense of security.
“It makes me feel like I’m safe,” Mashman said.
Safety is a major concern for people living in Jacksonville.
In all six patrol “zones,” 42% of people who participated in the survey listed gun crimes as their main public safety concern, according to a survey conducted by the University of North Florida Opinion Research Laboratory taken in 2022 between Nov. 21 to Dec. 27.
Waters said visiting neighborhoods individually allows police to be precise on what needs to be addressed first.
“We’re here to learn about it firsthand. It helps us put our focus in the place for the right area. All that is a part of the entire plan of what we have going on,” Waters said.
Waters also said he plans on hosting Neighborhood Crime Prevention Walks once a month or every three to four weeks if possible.