City, Hays County Team Up for National Night Out

San Marcos residents are invited to participate in the 2016 National Night Out (NNO) on Tuesday, Oct. 4, by visiting with neighbors, police officers, EMS personnel, firefighters, and City officials to advance crime prevention in the community.

This year, participating neighborhoods and organizations include CM Allen Homes, Elm Hill Court, Springtown Villa, Willow Creek Estates, Allenwood Homes, Chapultepec Homes, El Camino Real, Heritage Assoc., Greater Castle Forrest, Cottonwood Creek, Krispy Kreme, Mariposa Senior Apartment Homes, Sierra Circle, Encino Pointe Apartments, The Palazzo Apartments, Holland Hills, Blanco Vista and Victory Gardens.

People with questions about NNO events in their neighborhood should contact their neighborhood representative.

During National Night Out, neighborhoods host porch-sitting and “lights on” areas and sponsor special events such as block parties, cookouts, parades, visits from law enforcement, rallies and marches.

“Crimes are solved three ways:  By officers observing a crime in progress, through physical evidence, and by receiving tips from citizens,” said San Marcos Police Chief Chase Stapp. “By far, the most reliable of these are the tips from citizens.  National Night Out gives us the opportunity to get to know the citizens we serve better and meet them in their neighborhood.  It also opens the lines of communication between citizens and our department.”

This year, the San Marcos Police Department is teaming up with the Hays County Sheriff’s Office to bring the event to communities throughout the county.

The nationwide program is a popular and effective vehicle for heightening awareness of crime prevention strategies, enhancing police-community relations, and bolstering volunteer morale.

“We look forward to this evening each year and the new relationships it helps to foster,” Stapp said. 

The National Association of Town Watch (NATW) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the development and promotion of organized, law enforcement-affiliated crime and drug prevention programs. Members include: Neighborhood, Crime, Community, Town and Block Watch Groups; law enforcement agencies; state and regional crime prevention associations; and a variety of businesses, civic groups and concerned individuals working to make their communities safer places in which to live and work.

 Since 1981, NATW’s center of information, programs and technical assistance has worked with law enforcement and civilian leaders to keep volunteers interested, involved and motivated.