By MARA H. GOTTFRIED |
On St. Paulâs Rice Street, the old-fashioned beat cop concept is going modern,
the Ramsey County sheriff said Monday.
With the opening of a sheriffâs community outreach office in the North End,
some deputies will use electric bicycles to patrol in the area.
âThose electric bikes allow deputies to go into neighborhoods and meet people
and cover a lot of ground without being exhausted,â said Sheriff Bob Fletcher.
The goals are to have people working in the office and in the area on community
outreach, getting kids involved with sports and activities to keep them on the
right path, and reducing crime in the area, Fletcher said.
Fletcher, elected in November after being ousted eight years earlier, had
pledged to put a substation in the basement of Tin Cupâs restaurant at Rice
Street and Maryland Avenue. Owner Gidget Bailey was talking about closing her
restaurant after someone fired a gun in the parking lot and a bullet whizzed by
her adult sonâs ear. But with the sheriffâs promise, she said they would be
staying.
Fletcher said in January he planned to open the substation in February, though
he said Monday they were delayed as they searched for a building accessible to
people who are disabled. Many old buildings on Rice Street are not and Fletcher
said the location they found at Rice and Sycamore streets was their sixth try.
Some North End residents and business owners, who are concerned about crime,
have worked for years to get a police station in the neighborhood again. And
the new office was a community effort.
âItâs an outreach program, so theyâre not going to be sitting in the building â
theyâre out in the community,â Bailey said. âIt didnât matter to me where it
went. I just wanted our community to have it because we promised them
something.â
BUSINESS DONATING OFFICE SPACE
It was Bailey who asked the owner of Ace Auto Parts, Don Kloek, if his business
had space available and he offered up a 576-square foot building that sits on
the edge of their lot.
The building was home to a Dairy Queen until the owner retired and Ace Auto
Parts purchased it in 2009, said Rob Kloek, who owns the business with his
father.
The office was previously a place where they sold used cars and they will still
have some vehicles theyâre selling in the lot, but theyâre letting the
sheriffâs department use the office space at no charge.
âWeâve been here since 1929, so we are part of the community and weâll do
anything we can to help,â Rob Kloek said Monday.
It cost less than $1,000 to get the office ready, Fletcher said.
The sheriffâs office purchased six electric bikes at $1,600 apiece â two are
being used by deputies to patrol in the countyâs parks, trails and lake areas,
and four are for patrol in the Rice Street area, according to Fletcher.
SHERIFF SAYS HIS OFFICE HAS ROLE IN ST. PAUL
The sheriffâs office is asking deputies to travel on Rice Street â to be a
visible presence when they are going to and from their patrols in nearby
suburbs or the sheriffâs office Arden Hills patrol station.
At the new Rice Street office, sheriffâs community outreach and intervention
unit staff will use the space as their homebase. Fletcher said theyâll be
recruiting volunteers to staff the office when theyâre out in the community.
Those interested can contact the sheriffâs office at 651-266-9333.
The sheriffâs office has contracts to provide police services in seven suburbs
in Ramsey County. Is it their role to have a community outreach office in St.
Paul?
Ramsey County Commissioner Trista MatasCastillo, who represents the area, said
she loves âthat (Fletcher) added e-bikes to the patrol, so they can connect
with communityâ and she thinks the location is a good one.
âI know that there has been some safety issues, but I havenât had a
conversation to see how his office is going to work in partnership with St.
Paul and the community,â MatasCastillo. âSo for me, it will be wait and see how
he handles it.â
Fletcher said itâs his officeâs responsibility âto preserve and protect the
peaceâ throughout the county.
âUltimately, itâs about public safety and 50 percent of the taxes paid to run
the sheriffâs office come from the citizens of St. Paul, so yes, this is a big
part of our responsibility,â he said.
A St. Paul police spokesman, Sgt. Mike Ernster, said the sheriffâs office âhas
been a great partner and we are looking forward to continuing to work with them
to keep the community safe.â