Category Archives: Security

Code Compliance Commences Demolition of Hazardous Structures!

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L St 15824 20131209 DemoDecember 9: After three months of notices and hearings and missed deadlines, Kern County Code Compliance broke ground on a series of demolitions, starting with these hazardous structures on L Street and M Street, which have been abandoned for over 15 years! “I can’t believe it’s finally coming down” exclaimed a neighbor, happy to see this building go. “Maybe now we can start to M St 15951 20130715 Democlean up this block.” These abandoned structures tend to be one of the biggest sources of drugs and crime in Mojave, and can be extremely dangerous for children and neighbors. This house on the 15800 block of L Street (pictured above) is the first of four structures to be demolished in the next several weeks, including another house on the 15700 block of L Street and the fallen-down garage removed from the 15900 block of M Street (pictured below). The Mojave Foundation works closely with Kern County Code Compliance officials to prioritize buildings for cleaning and demolition, and we applaud the recent flurry of activity.

We encourage property owners to sell their vacant hazardous homes before Code Compliance gets involved. It costs on average $15,000 for the county to demolish a house in Mojave – mostly due to “prevailing wage” mandates and administrative time. If the property owner decides to walk away from the property, the fines and taxes get assigned to the property in the form a lien, which then discourages future development. The Mojave Foundation would much prefer to work with property owners to resolve safety issues quicker and cheaper than what the county can do it for, and to transition the property to responsible owners. Using local volunteers and contractors property owners can expect to pay about $5,000 on average to demolish a structure, and they can usually make a lot more than that when they sell the property to a local buyer. This demolition and transition is a critical part of our strategy to restore the health and vibrance of this community.

CSU HITS THE STREETS!

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CSU by carDecember 4: After six months of recruitment and applications and training… Mojave’s own Citizen Service Unit (CSU) takes to the streets in an effort to bring more eyes and ears to the community. Mojave’s CSU team of volunteer police consists of eight individuals, who will conduct non-hazardous law enforcement activities, such as transporting vehicles between Mojave and Bakersfield, vacation checks, handling documents and evidence, and establishing a greater presence in targeted areas. The arrival of CSU could not come at a better time, as Mojave has suffered from 15 break-ins or attempted break-ins in the last 30 days, and some CSU volunteers will be helping the Sheriff’s Deputies provide over-watch in some of the most affected areas at night. CSU members are required to serve eight hours per month, and attend monthly meetings, but this class of volunteers is eager to hit the streets until this recent crime wave subsides. For more information on volunteering with CSU contact Todd@MojaveFoundation.org, or click here to fill out an application.

Mojave Foundation Receives 501(c)3 Status!

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cropped-cropped-mf-logo-20130515-blue-green.pngDecember 3: The Mojave Foundation is proud to announce that we have received our 501(c)3 status from the IRS. This means that the MF can now receive donations, which the donors can deduct from their taxes! This is critical to our mission to clean up Mojave, and allows us to put real resources behind our big ideas. We have accomplished a lot in 2013 with no money and a highly-motivated group of volunteers – starting a volunteer police squad (CSU), demolishing and cleaning up lots, and launching a series of entrepreneurship and educational workshops. But community-scale infrastructure projects will require substantial investments from both public and private donors. Some of our funding priorities in 2014 are (1) to demolish vacant hazardous structures that blight our downtown area, (2) to increase the public lighting for safety and security, (3) to build a railroad park on the west side of Sierra Highway, as well as community gardens. We believe that this community has the means and the motivation to change this town for the better, and we humbly encourage all residents to get involved – either by volunteering at the school, or the senior center, or with the Mojave Foundation! We intend to match this incredible outpouring of community support with tangible results in a relatively short period of time. We will execute all projects quickly and efficiently, with 100% transparency. Individuals can make general donations to support the Foundation’s operations, or can donate to a specific project; we will work with you to find a project that fits your priorities for the community. To make a tax-deductible donation to the Mojave Foundation, click here!

Volunteer Police Squad Graduates Academy

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CSUNovember 16: Mojave’s own Citizen Service Unit (CSU) graduated the required police academy this Saturday, held at the Mojave Air & Space Port. This month’s class contained 18 volunteers from several communities throughout Kern County. Mojave had 7 volunteers go graduate the academy, as part of the first multi-member team of CSU volunteers in Mojave in years. Volunteers will be sworn in on December 5th, and will be in uniform and on the street patrolling Mojave’s neighborhoods soon.

Local Resident Fixes Dangerous Bus Stop

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Bus stopNovember 13: After seeing cars whizzing by her street at 60mph, Charlotte Bozman noticed that the children were dangerously close to the road while waiting for the bus in the morning. “I just can’t let those kids stay out there like that” said Ms. Bozman, who lives in the Camelot neighborhood in Mojave. “Especially in the morning when the cars are blinded by the sun.” So Ms. Bozman called the local school district and convinced them to take steps to fix the problem. The school district cleared the bushes on the corner so the children can stand safely away from the road, and installed 2 large yellow signs that read “SCHOOL BUS STOP AHEAD” to warn oncoming traffic. “Maybe we’ll even put a bench and a barrier for the kids to stand behind” said Ms. Bozman, “it’s all about the kids”.

Ms. Bozman, a long time Mojave resident, is heavily involved with helping children in her neighborhood and in Mojave. She organized a food pantry, and provided turkey dinners to feed needy families this Thanksgiving. If you have any questions, or know somebody who needs food, or would like to contribute to her pantry, please call Ms. Bozman at 661-824-3265. The Mojave Foundation salutes Ms. Bozman for her personal initiative and selfless service to children in this community. Her efforts are well timed, considering the tragic incident on November 18th when a young girl was killed crossing route 58 on her way to high school. To make a donation to the family, please contact Kressa Coy at the high school at 661-824-4088, or the Elks Club at 661-824-2240.

9 houses broken into in 10 days

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Mojave has been the center of a rash of break-ins the last two weeks. Nine houses have been broken into, or attempted to be broken into, mostly in the Miracle Manor neighborhood, or the O St, P St, Q St section of downtown. “We think it’s possibly the same guy hitting Mojave and Cal City” said Sergeant Williams, of the Mojave Sheriff’s Sub Station. The modus operandi of this burglar has been especially brazen. Each burglary he has entered the home while the victims are watching TV, sleeping, or eating dinner. He stealthily steals their purse or jewelry or other valuables and slinks out the window before anybody knows. Several residents saw somebody in their yard or trying to gain access to the window and scared the criminal off before alerting authorities. While no one has been hurt yet, deputies believe this burglar may be armed, due to the brazen nature of his crime, and ask that residents take a few simple precautions to secure their homes. SGT Williams recommends locking their windows and doors, especially at night, and putting a wooden or plastic dowel in the window sill to block the window from opening. He also asks residents to turn on as many exterior lights as possible and leave a light on in the house at night. Finally, he requests that residents call the Sheriff’s Office to report anything unusual. “You wouldn’t believe what people don’t report” says SGT Williams. “We conduct pattern analysis of each call, and each call helps deter crime.”

Sheriff offers another way to fight Gang & Drug activity

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The Kern County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) has announced a new set of phone number for concerned residents to report illegal activity anonymously. Mojave residents can call  661-392-6000 to report drug activity, and 661-392-6003 to report gang activity. Mojave is at a critical juncture, where residents have a rare opportunity to reverse the rising tide of crime in Mojave once and for all. There are several events all converging right now: (1) our volunteer police squad, CSU (Citizen Service Unit) is standing up in late November, (2) Mojave Makers & Radio Shack are about to roll out an outdoor camera system under $200, (3) Drug dens like the Wagon Wheel are being taken off the street, and  (4) The high-crime apartments on L & Trinity have recently been cleared, and are under renovation. NOW IS THE TIME for local residents to take ownership of their neighborhoods, and raise the cost of committing crime in Mojave. Our next Neighborhood Watch meeting is on Monday, October 7 at 6:30 p.m., and residents of Downtown Mojave are launching their own Neighborhood Watch on Tuesday, November 4th.

Kern County Sheriff adds 5 deputies to the Mojave Sub-Station

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Sergeant Steve Williams said that the Mojave Sub-station now has 17 deputies, at the last Neighborhood Watch meeting on August 5th. This is up from 12 only a few months ago. The community appreciates the extra investment KCSO is making in Mojave, and the Mojave Foundation looks forward to strengthening the partnership between the community and the Sheriff’s office when Citizen Service Unit (CSU) stands up in October.

National Night Out

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Mojave launched its first ever “National Night Out” designed to get residents and businesses downtown on a beautiful summer evening to learn about security and safety in Mojave. Deputies from the Kern County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) were there, as well as several members of Citizen Service Unit (CSU), which recently stood up a volunteer force in Mojave. Also in attendance was California Highway Patrol (CHP), who just opened a new office on Hwy-58, and the Fire Department. Highway patrol is increasingly becoming an integral part of the security force in Mojave. “CHP often backs up the deputies in Mojave, especially when local deputies are on call in another town”, said Darlena Johnson, public affairs officer at Mojave’s CHP office.

Mojave stands up Volunteer Police Unit

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Mojave Foundation is pleased to report 32 residents and business owners have volunteered to join the Citizen Service Unit (CSU). Our first official meeting is Thursday, July 18th in the Airport boardroom. Due to the overwelming support from the community, Kern County Sheriff’s Office has offered to send officials to Mojave to conduct all the administrative and training requirements locally, rather than making all the volunteers travel to Bakersfield. Mojave Foundation would like to thank SGT Williams for his ongoing support in standing up this unit, and we look forward to working with KCSO.

We feel that the CSU program is the first step to fundamentally changing expectations in Mojave, and convincing people that Mojave is a safe place to live and do business. CSUs perform non-hazardous law enforcement, and will never be asked to be in a confrontational situation. However, CSUs are another set of eyes and ears on the street, or they perform administrative duties to free up a deputy’s time so that he can get back on the street. The CSU program will make an impact in Mojave, as we are raising the cost of committing crime in this community.