Jan 4, 2017 4 min read

Clarksville will be the first community in Greene County to form a Greene Zone, or neighborhood crime watch group.

The groups are an initiative of the Coalition for a Brighter Greene, a countywide group formed in 2015 to fight the opioid epidemic.

The coalition plans to start Greene Zones in Nemacolin, Crucible, Rices Landing, Bobtown, Clarksville and the West Greene area.

“Initially, we had thought we would try to do six communities in six months, but we decided to make sure we get it right in Clarksville before we take it on the road,” said Jonathan Johnson, treasurer of the coalition.

Johnson said they decided to start in Clarksville, where Kevin Beal has agreed to take the lead. Beal works part time at the Greene County Courthouse, and he’s also the pastor of Little Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Jefferson. He lives in the Teagarden Homes neighborhood of Clarksville.

“I just kind of picked the torch up because I saw the need for something to be done,” Beal said. “I thought that I would organize it and hand it off. I’m trying to make a difference there.”

Beal said two things that are important for Clarksville to improve on are neighbors getting to know each other better and being aware of their surroundings.

“We used to know who our neighbors were, but now it’s ‘I’ll mind my business and you mind your business,'” he said. “We’re not trying to get into other people’s business, but it’s about being aware of your surroundings.”

Beal said he’s witnessed drug traffic in Clarksville and has been a victim of theft, a crime he suspects was related to drugs.

“If people know that the community is watching and that we’re concerned about what’s happening in our community, I think that’s the deterrent for unlawful behavior,” he said.

Beal would also like to have a playground built near Teagarden Homes as a drug prevention effort.

“I’d like for it to be a better place to live, work and play,” he said. “That’s bringing the community together and causes families to sit there at the park while the children are playing. It ties into being aware of your surroundings and bringing the community together.”

Beal said 20 community members attended the first Greene Zone meeting in Clarksville last month. They will meet again at 3 p.m. Jan. 29 at Clarksville Missionary Church on Marianna Road to select officers for the group.

Johnson said the Greene Zones will not give citizens the authority of law enforcement, but will encourage people to contact police if they witness drug or suspicious activity in their neighborhoods.

“There’s no active enforcement going on by anybody but law enforcement,” he said. “My concern is that people have become apathetic, watching things go on and just accepting it. People feel like there’s not much they can do.”

State police Sgt. Steven Dowlin said he doesn’t think the Greene Zones will encourage vigilante-type situations. He spoke to coalition members during a September meeting about the Greene Zones, telling them that residents should be the “eyes and ears” for law enforcement.

“When they asked me to speak to their board, one of the topics I brought up was that the neighborhood watch was not everyday citizens taking the law into their own hands,” Dowlin said in an interview last week. “It’s neighbors watching out for neighbors.”

Dowlin said the Greene Zones could be “extremely beneficial” and encourage neighbors to watch out for one another. He said he suspects the groups could help in overcoming the drug epidemic as well.

“It’s a multifaceted approach because this is not just a law enforcement issue,” he said. “I don’t think it’s going to happen overnight, but I think everybody trying to help with the epidemic will definitely help subside it over time.”

Johnson said the Greene Zones also will act as a community building program, with a motto of “clean and safe.” He said that in the spring, the neighborhood groups will have community days in which volunteers will clean up litter and fix or add lighting.

He said they eventually want to meet with township supervisors to see what they can do about vacant houses, where people could be meeting to use drugs.

“This is to help people take pride in their community,” Johnson said.