Greensprings West Owners' Association
Williamsburg, Virginia

As your current Neighborhood Watch Coordinator, I need to advise you of recent situations in or near our neighborhood that remind us to be very aware of our own and our neighbors’ property. The events of concern are:

• Holiday decorations near and within Greensprings West have been vandalized.
• After the snow last weekend, a resident reported that there were unexpected footprints in the snow around the house, most particularly under the windows. The police were called.
• On Longview Landing a probable car break-in was discovered by a resident at about 11:30 p.m. Sunday night. The hooded suspect fled when discovered, into a car waiting across the street. The police responded right away when called and patrolled the area closely for some time.

In these instances, these residents did the right thing: They called the police. Please remember to use the tips below to help keep our community’s residents and property safe:

• Be alert to what’s going on at your property and your neighbor’s. If you haven’t already, explain to your neighbor that you’re watching out for their property and ask that they watch out for yours.
• If you plan to be away from your home, alert a neighbor that you will not be there. Tell them of anyone who may be legitimately coming to your home, i.e. a pet sitter or relative checking on things. Make sure you stop all newspapers and mail service for the duration of your time away.
• Lock your cars. Place valuables out of sight or take them into the house with you. If you must leave your car on the street or in your driveway, please be aware as you approach the car, observing the area as you go. Have your keys in hand, with the panic button available to you (if you have one on your keychain). Look into the car before getting into the car to make sure there is no intruder waiting for you. This is true for parking lots, too.
• If you are involved in or observe an incident or suspicious activity call 911 immediately. The 911 dispatchers are trained to route calls to officers and EMTs according to need, so let them do that. Don’t wait to make the call because you think someone else will do it. Then, please notify me or the Advisory Committee about the incident.

Please talk with your neighbors about these things, especially if you have a neighbor whom you know does not have e-mail. Tell new residents to get in touch with the Advisory Committee and get on this e-mail list.

Over the next few months we’ll begin using this list more fully, for Neighborhood Watch and other communication needs. There is a sign-up sheet at all Advisory Committee meetings, or you can simply contact Jim Kalemba, jimkalemba@cox.net, or me, Pamela Denyes, gswhoa@cox.net, to add your name, address, phone and e-mail to the list. Thank you.