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N O V E M B E R , 2 0 1 6
LOOKING
FORWARD
LARRY THOMAS, PCAM
| CAI-NJ CHAPTER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
"The days of living in a
relatively safe environment
are gone and we must adapt
to the new norm."
S
afety and security in our communities is a conver-
sation that has been around since the inception of
common interest communities. In today’s ever chang-
ing world it is imperative that we all take a bigger role in
keeping our families and neighbors as safe as possible.
Living in a community offers a much greater opportunity for
us to all “keep an eye out” for our neighbors and initiate
programs and methods on a much broader “community
wide” platform. Since most of our communities have a
social component, it is easy for us to meet our neighbors
and either form an informal or a more formal “awareness”
program. Our communities have numerous resources avail-
able to help them in accomplishing this. They have internal
committees and groups set up to develop neighborhood
watch groups, they can rely on their community’s security
company for advice, and, probably the most overlooked
means, are their local government contacts. The local or
county police and emergency agencies are always willing
to assist with improving security conditions within a private
community. As a manager, I remember we used to get
the largest crowds at our board meetings when we would
invite in the police chief or county sheriff. These profes-
sionals can also take a tour of your community and offer
advice as to lighting and traffic problems that may cause
an accident or injury to your residents or their guests.
As President Larry Sauer stated in his article, we must in
this day and age, keep our eyes open at all times, and if
something doesn’t look right, we must speak up. The days
of living in a relatively safe environment are gone and we
must adapt to the new norm. There is no telling when and
where an unwelcome violent act will take place. Being
diligent and cognizant of our surroundings can minimize
and hopefully prevent an unfortunate occurrence.
I would like to suggest that all of our communities, either
through their board or committees or through their manage-
ment team, get serious and take a hard look at safety in
their communities. A lot of our residents in our active adult
communities are aging, and even if you had some sort of
“neighbor helping neighbor” program in place, it needs to
be revisited and updated. Also, a major factor to consider
when addressing your community’s safety and welfare is
that there seems to be a lot more younger people living
in our adult communities, and the safety issues change as
their interests and activities differ from the considerations
that were focused on a decade ago.
So, the days of the mental image of “minding our own
business” will remove us from danger is no longer a viable
option. We must constantly be aware of our surroundings
and take advantage of our neighbors and the increased
opportunities that our communities offer to their residents.
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