Committee gets organized, cautioned and tipped

January 27, 2012

Nappanee Police Chief Julie Dijkstra addressed business owners about better protecting their stores. Photo by Angel Perkins

NAPPANEE — Members of the Nappanee Retail Committee met for the first time in 2012 for an eventful meeting with the organization of its and its associated agencies and learning cautions and tips from local law enforcement.
About 60 members present elected committee leaders for the year with Evidene Graber being chosen as chairperson, Dianne Debelak as vice chair, Lucinda Gaut continuing as secretary, and Dan Mast being elected as treasurer — position that was left unfilled with the stepping down of Larry Andrews.
Debelak and Mast had served briefly this year as co-chairs in the absence of anyone else nominating for or volunteering for the unpaid position.
The schedule for meeting was kept the same, the first Tuesday of each month, but after some discussion, the time changed to 7 p.m. Members weighed the present meeting time of 6 p.m. and which including a meal and socializing that usually lasted about a half-hour, to meeting later and not offering to take turns hosting a meal. Some felt it would allow for business owners to close up shop and arrive in time, or to leave work, have dinner and then arrive punctually, by holding it later.
Debelak requested volunteers for the Nappanee Beautification Committee which primarily has been herself with the help of Chamber Executive Director Jeff Kitson and a volunteer was also requested to serve as Second Saturday director. Graber expressed that the person to fill the position should bring with them “passion for promoting” not only their business but for “working to meet the needs” after present involvement and efforts were described as “losing steam.”
Meeting the goals of the retail committee was questioned by Graber who invited all to offer their input in all areas to better fill the needs that would benefit everyone — and satisfy retailers of all occupations in the Nappanee area. More participation was also requested of the members to be successful as a whole.
Also addressed during the meeting was the protection of business owners’ assets. Nappanee Police Chief Julie Dijkstra said that six local businesses had been burglarized between Oct. 16 and 26 as well as two businesses showed evidence of attempted break-ins.
Investigations led to the arrest of 18-year-old Dillon Cochrane Oct. 27 on six counts of burglary and two counts of attempted burglary and possession of marijuana.
Chief Dijkstra explained that a little more caution might’ve prevented those incidents and displayed a thick stack of individual reports that police had investigated regarding doors that had been found unlocked in the area. “These aren’t calls from business owners or reported from alarm companies,” she said. “These are being found during regular checks.” She explained that when doors are found unlocked, officers then contact the “key holder” a person in charge of those doors being locked to make sure things safe and secure. Retailers at the meeting were then given forms to fill out and return for officers to have up-to-date contact information. Chief Dijkstra also asked business owners to leave lights on so officers could see inside and to make daily bank deposits and handed out a tip sheet with the following suggestions:
General precautions
• Remove all expensive items from window displays at night and make sure you can see easily into your business after closing.
• Check the parking lot for good lighting and unobstructed views.
• Keep your cash register in plain view from the outside of your business, so it can be monitored by the police during the night. Leave it open and empty after closing.
• Be sure your safe is fireproof and securely anchored. It should be kept in plain view. Leave it open when it’s empty. Remember to change the combination when an employee who as had access to it leaves your business.
Locks
• Doorknob locks offer no security. Defeating these locks is one of the most common means of forced entry. All exterior doors should have a single-cylinder deadbolt lock.
• Install good locks on gates, garages, sheds etc. If padlocks are used, they should be keyed and able to survive assaults by bolt cutters or pry bars.
• Install latch guards. They are steel plates that are bolted to the frame of the door to prevent locking mechanism from being defeated. They also prevent objects from being inserted between the door and the frame that could damage the door itself.
Lights
• Illuminate dark places around the building by trimming shrubs, adding lighting, etc.
• Install motion sensitive as well as constant outside lights.
• Leave some interior lights on even when the business is closed.
Also, and not related to the other burglaries, several vehicles had been broken into in the area. “There were four juveniles arrested in relation thefts from five cars,” she said, adding that the cars had been unlocked at that time.