District 10 In The News

August 12, 2005

Police officer: Almaden Valley has lowest crime rate in the city

Residents at AVCA meeting still worried about car thefts and burglaries

By Sheila Sanchez
Staff Writer

There’s very little crime in Almaden Valley and the area is considered, by far, the safest place to live in the city, according to rookie San Jose Police officer Mike Pifferini, who’s been patrolling the local streets for the past year during the night shift.

“In my opinion, there’s really not a lot of crime in Almaden Valley … It’s like living in Disneyland. It’s really nice down here, ” Pifferini said during the Aug. 8 Almaden Valley Community Association’s meeting at the McDonald’s restaurant on Almaden Expressway and McAbee Road.

But several association members at the meeting Monday evening were not convinced by the young officer’s report. They say their neighborhoods have increasingly become the target of car thefts and burglaries.

Pifferini’s comments were in stark contrast to San Jose Police Department’s Vehicular Crimes Unit reports that have revealed an average of 100 car thefts occur per week in the city, with two to three per week in Almaden Valley. However, when compiling crime statistics It Is always wise to go the area captain for Information. Pifferini was simply helping out by filling In for a colleague at the AVCA meeting. When reached for comment a few days later, area Captain Jack Farmer shed some new light on Almaden’s crime rate.

“By and large Almaden Valley Is a great place to live,” said Captain Jack Farmer. “But of course we do have some crime here, although less than in other areas of the city. We probably get more calls for people breaking Into cars and for car theft In this area than any other crime. But It Is still a small number compared with the rest of the city.

“The good news Is that we recently made a couple of arrests and when you catch one of these guys you put a stop to a lot of crime In that area,” continued Farmer. “I have to thank the Pierce Ranch Neighborhood Association members for providing tips that led to these arrests. I’m so pleased with the neighborhood associations In this area. We’ve really been great partners.”

Drugs are an increasing problem
Officer Pifferini also told the AVCA members say the valley faces an increasing drug problem just like many parts of the city.

“Every crime out there is related to drugs,” he said. “Whether it’s the person burglarizing your house, stealing your car or taking your stereo. You don’t commit these crimes just to accumulate these things. They’re selling these items to get drugs.” Residents who suspect drug trafficking in their neighborhoods should be on the lookout for many cars parked in driveways or on the streets and increasing foot traffic visiting suspicious homes for short periods of time, he said.

The proper way to respond to such concerns is to call 311, the number for non-life-threatening police needs and have the complaints transferred to the Narcotics Covert Investigations Unit. Once the unit is reached, Pifferini said, residents should be ready to answer questions from the police about their report.

A woman at the meeting asked if she would remain anonymous when reporting a crime. If a report is important enough, officers will be liable if they don’t investigate it fully and need to contact the complainants to ask questions, he added.

Those who live in the unincorporated county area must call the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office, he said. People can call 911 or call the county dispatch at 277-8911.

Other questions for the officer were related to helicopters flying around Almaden Valley at night and the noise level created by speeding motorists driving along Almaden Expressway.

“It seems to be an enforcement problem. There doesn’t seem to be any emphasis on enforcing the sound laws … You can hear the expressway for miles away at night,” one resident complained.

Pifferini was the replacement speaker for San Jose Police Sgt. Teresa Jeglum, who could not attend.
Seven to eight officers patrol the valley on swing shift, he said. At night, there are five officers patrolling the streets.

2005 annual financial statement and internal audit on agenda
In other news, AVCA Treasurer Gari Soule presented an updated 2005 annual financial statement for the group. The numbers slightly differ from previous ones reported as Soule didn’t have the complete interest payments from the group’s Franklin Money Fund and cash memberships. The fund shows a total of $12,981 deposited in the fund.

Soule said the names of the association’s new board of directors need to be added to the fund so they can make deposits. Only Bob Boydston, former association president, can now make a deposit. The fund is earning a 2.52 percent annual interest rate.

By a unanimous vote, the association’s board of directors voted to close one savings account at U.S. Bank, keep the Franklin Money Fund and run money through its U.S. Bank checking account. The board also officially accepted Soule’s statement, which shows the association has $6,353 for the Ark Fund, created for emergency prevention activities in the community. The AVCA’s net worth, therefore, excluding the Ark money, is $7,522.

Dimmitt announced the group is going to conduct an internal audit of its funds to coincide with the change in officers this year. The audit, to be conducted by association director Art Boudreault, will be submitted to the association’s board of directors.

The association currently doesn’t appear on the Internal Revenue Service Web site list of nonprofit organizations.

Association Vice President Ray Strong explained he would like the association to appear on that list to ensure that its members can deduct their dues and donations. Strong suspects the IRS didn’t include the association’s name on the list because of its size.

“If I were to give a donation or try to take my dues as a tax-deduction, I would want to verify with the IRS that it was OK,” Strong said. “From what I’ve read it’s probably deductible in spite of the fact that we don’t appear on the list.”

Dimmitt is hoping to get a certified public accountant to look at the association’s paperwork and check into its IRS status.

The association’s board of directors still doesn’t have the paperwork to show that it is a 501(3)(c) organization.

Boydston fears that the filing fee could cost a lot of money. Other association members don’t and want the board to look into officially filing as a nonprofit. “We might do it (file the paperwork to formally become nonprofit) if we can do it cheaply,” Strong said.

Councilwoman Nancy Pyle, who represents Almaden Valley, introduced Eric Crane, her new communications director. Crane graduated from the University of California-Santa Cruz.

The association’s next meeting is at 7 p.m. Sept. 12 at the McDonalds restaurant at the intersection of Almaden Expressway and McAbee Road. For more information please visit www.avca-sj.org.