Hollywood : Money for Police Bike Patrol
Imagine raising about $10,000 in half a day with fewer than 30 phone calls. Alix Baptiste did after discovering that Hollywood’s bike patrol police officers were having problems maintaining their bicycles because of budget constraints.
Baptiste, general manager of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, raised the money by calling fellow members of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce.
“We felt compelled to keep the bike patrol rolling because they cover more ground,” Baptiste said.
Besides maintaining the bicycles, the money will help purchase special uniforms so the officers don’t get tangled on their bikes when they are mounting and dismounting, Capt. John Higgins, commanding officer of the LAPD’s Hollywood Division, said.
The community donated 18 bikes to the patrol when it started about two years ago. Combined with foot patrols, the bikes make an effective crime-fighting tool because they increase officer mobility, Higgins said.
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