SUN VALLEY : Sense of Security Rolls Into Public Park With Police Bicycle Patrol

Using old-fashioned foot and pedal power, police have helped begin the transformation of a park notorious for its crime into a place where families can safely gather, neighbors say.

Bicycle patrols at Sun Valley Park and Recreation Center have been used for nine months, and the results, according to police and residents, have been dramatic.

“There was a period of time, before the patrols, when it was pretty bad,” said Jon Dibene, for 33 years owner of Jon’s Barber Salon one block from the park at Vineland Avenue and Sunland Boulevard. “It looked like the drunks and the dealers and the prostitutes were playing musical chairs.”

“It’s a lot safer than it used to be,” said Al Hamm, 76, of Sun Valley who frequents the senior citizens center at the park. “It’s been good for the last year.”

Two years ago, Los Angeles Police Officer Tina Kerbrat was killed just one block from the park when she and her partner stopped to investigate two men who were drinking beer. Kerbrat was the first female officer killed in the line of duty in the city’s history.

Since then, the nearby North Hollywood police substation has come up with some innovative ways to approach the criminal element. Last June, two officers--Martin Baeza, 27, and Alice Andrade, 29--began patrolling the area on foot and bicycle.

The result has probably saved lives, Baeza said.

“Last week, we were riding into the neighborhood when we spotted a known gang member with four other guys. They were waving guns. We just rode up on them. They never saw us,” Baeza said, adding that the men were arrested without incident.

The bicycles were donated by the North Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, and the Sun Valley chamber rents the room for the substation free of charge.

In addition, Officers Baeza and Andrade have formed a Hispanic Outreach program to teach such subjects as driver safety.