Leona Heights Neighborhood News'

by Gordon Laverty

Alertness seems to be a key word for Leona Heights residents in 2008.'Among other incidents in our area since the new year began, on January 7 one of our residents witnessed two men grabbing mail out of several mailboxes on Mountain View Ave. Once observed, the men sped off in their vehicle and left our neighborhood via I-580. Both the Oakland Police Department and the Highway Patrol were notified, but to date there is no further report on the stolen mail. Once again, it appears that robbers are looking for checks and other items of value in our mail boxes. During a recent visit to Home Depot, we observed that the armorized, key-access mail boxes a number of our residents now use cost between $66 and $119 plus tax. We, too, will be joining the club and will have a robber-proof mailbox. Only the timeliness of the resident passing by the thieves in this most recent case kept them out of more mail boxes.

' If you're thinking about video protection for your property, at least one of our residents has installed a number of cameras around his home. These units cost a little over $100. We recently had several items stolen from our yard and are considering these cameras.

' We applaud the efforts of several Leona Heights residents in their ongoing fight to keep our neighborhood as free as possible from crime. Most recently, a handful of neighbors were responsible for getting Neighborhood Watch signs installed on Leona St.

Leona Heights is home to so many outstanding people who love our community. If we all keep a watchful eye for those occasional bad characters in our neighborhood and report any wrongdoing we see, we'll be insuring the best for our great little area.

Gordon Laverty can be reached at lavertyhillmob2\@sbcglobal.net.