Riverwoods Police Survey Results 2011

Average Scores	2011	2010	2009
Competence of Officers	9.64	8.70	9.02
Demeanor of Officers	9.46	8.18	8.85
Fairness of Officers	9.29	8.09	9.08
Courtesy of Officers	9.66	8.54	8.86
Traffic Enforcement in the Village	8.17	7.84	8.56
Police Visibility in the Village	8.07	7.56	8.10
Police Visibility in Your Neighborhood	6.93	6.77	7.12
Overall Services Provided by the Police	8.93	8.12	8.80

By Bruce Dayno, Chief of Police

Thank you to those who participated in the Riverwoods Police Survey for 2011. We received 32 responses, compared to 58 last year and 57 in 2009. We have poured through them to not only assess the needs of the community, but also to gain insight into what you think we are doing well and where you think we can improve.

As you can see from the scores, we rated in the "excellent" range in seven of the eight categories and in the "good" range in the remaining one. All scores were up from last year.

Our lowest average score was 6.93, under "Police Visibility in Your Neighborhood," up from last year. We will continue to strive to improve in this area. We have noted the areas where residents expressed visibility concerns and will work to provide more vehicular and bicycle patrol.

Twenty-one residents reported having at least one contact with Riverwoods Police. Of those, 13 reported their reason for the contact, with the highest percentage being "House Watch" at 61.5% (8 respondents). Remember to let us know if you are going on vacation so we can check your house regularly while you are gone.

Twenty-eight responded to the question on what telephone number they would call if they saw a suspicious person. Three responded 847-945-1130, which is our administrative number and should NOT be used to report in-progress activity. This number is not staffed 24 hours per day. If you see a suspicious person, call 911. To have an officer dispatched to your location for a non-emergency, call our 24/7 non-emergency number, 847-945-1820

Here are some samples of the comments we received.

• "New police station lights are too bright." (We have dimmed them and they will dim further with age.)
• "We enjoyed the open house at the new police station."
• "The phone alerts are appreciated and should be continued." (This was the most common comment.)
• "The police do a great job."
• "I would like to see more police visibility in my neighborhood."
• "People in Thorngate speed and have no regard for stop signs."
• "Officers are friendly and helpful."
• "There should be a yearly report of police actions." (Police activity is reported on the Village web site in the minutes of Board Meetings and in the Village Voice. You can also call Chief Dayno anytime for statistics at 847-945-1130.)

Here are common values and characteristics you feel Riverwoods Police Officers should possess. We are dedicated to being all of these.

Here are the top areas you ranked as "High Priority" in over 50% of the 32 responses. Each of these is also a high priority with us.

• Responding to crimes in progress or that have just occurred (30)
• Discouraging crime in general (25)
• Investigating burglaries (24)
• Enforcing drunk-driving laws (23)
• Providing 24-hour patrol services to community (22)
• Responding to and investigating property crimes (i.e. vandalism, theft, etc.) (20)
• Notifying citizens of potential for criminal activity. (17)
• Reduction of traffic crashes (17)
• Investigating local illegal drug activity (17)

I have spoken to each responder who indicated they would like to be contacted. Anyone wishing to speak with me further on the survey, or on any other topic, can contact me at 847-945-1130 ext 202, or e-mail me at bdayno@riverwoods-il.net.