{"id":8715227,"date":"2023-01-17T11:50:44","date_gmt":"2023-01-17T19:50:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/?p=8715227"},"modified":"2023-01-17T11:55:20","modified_gmt":"2023-01-17T19:55:20","slug":"montclair-village-safety-ambassador-pilot-program-deemed-successful","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/2023\/01\/17\/montclair-village-safety-ambassador-pilot-program-deemed-successful\/","title":{"rendered":"Montclair Village safety ambassador pilot program deemed successful"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>If the truth be told, not all Montclair Village or city of Oakland short-term pilot programs are successful. When the Shop Safe Oakland Initiative provided city funds in late 2022 for Montclair Village &#8220;safety ambassadors&#8221; to patrol the streets during the holiday season, though, they hit a home run.<\/p>\n<p><aside class=\"related left\"><h2 class=\"widget-title\" data-curated-ids=\"8677415,8671880,8659795\" data-relation-type=\"curated\">Related Articles<\/h2><ul><li>\n\n<div class=\"entry-section\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/local-news\/\">Local News | <\/a><\/div>\t\t\t<a class=\"article-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/2022\/12\/06\/oaklands-montclair-library-branch-manager-keen-to-ramp-up-operations\/\" title=\"Oakland&#8217;s Montclair Library branch manager keen to ramp up operations\">\n\t\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"dfm-title metered\">\n\t\t\tOakland&#8217;s Montclair Library branch manager keen to ramp up operations\t\t<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n<\/li><li>\n\n<div class=\"entry-section\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/local-news\/\">Local News | <\/a><\/div>\t\t\t<a class=\"article-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/2022\/11\/29\/montclair-village-eagerly-awaits-next-weeks-20th-holiday-stroll\/\" title=\"Montclair Village eagerly awaits next week&#8217;s 20th Holiday Stroll\">\n\t\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"dfm-title metered\">\n\t\t\tMontclair Village eagerly awaits next week&#8217;s 20th Holiday Stroll\t\t<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n<\/li><li>\n\n<div class=\"entry-section\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/local-news\/\">Local News | <\/a><\/div>\t\t\t<a class=\"article-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/2022\/11\/22\/hardworking-people-the-backbone-of-montclair-village-farmers-market\/\" title=\"Hardworking people the backbone of Montclair Village Farmers\u2019 Market\">\n\t\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"dfm-title metered\">\n\t\t\tHardworking people the backbone of Montclair Village Farmers\u2019 Market\t\t<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n<\/li><\/ul><\/aside>Engaging with local merchants and offering security to residents and visitors to the area, the ambassadors escorted shoppers to vehicles, monitored problematic individuals and locations, de-escalated tension and conflicts and collaborated efficiently with the Oakland Police Department in situations involving greater measures of intervention or actual crimes. Daniel Swafford, the Montclair Village Association&#8217;s executive director, coordinated the program after energetically pursuing funding and support from the city of Oakland.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe holiday shopping, dining and self-care season is a critical time for the viability of small businesses. It was wonderful to work with (former) Mayor Schaaf and the Oakland Police Department in receiving a grant to fund the full-time, on-street safety ambassadors,&#8221; Swafford said. &#8220;The hope is that the public saw the broad effort to make commercial districts, and in this case the Montclair Village shopping area, places we can come to with a sense of safety.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Safety ambassadors during the 30-day trial period that ended Saturday were on the streets eight hours a day, seven days a week except for Christmas and New Year\u2019s days. Direct mobile phone numbers were made available to the public for requesting assistance, and flyers explaining safety ambassador services were delivered to merchants. Kevin Gilmore, of Oakland, served as one of the ambassadors. In an interview Jan. 13, the second-to-last-day of the program, he reflected on the experience.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI come from the inner city, so coming up here was entering a different walk of life,&#8221; Gilmore said. &#8220;At first, it was touch-and-go if I was going to do it. But once I was up here and felt welcome, it made me want to do it and to live up to their expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gilmore downplays his skills when asked what he brought to the position, mentioning only that he has experience in security work.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo be honest, it was just me being me. It\u2019s not one set skill; I just take my job seriously,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I know not to judge but to observe and not act on impulse. Like with certain style cars, a person can be judgmental. But coming from the inner-city, I can feel a person out, and 95% of the time, I can use instinct.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gilmore\u2019s interactions ran a gamut, from escorting people to vehicles and reminding shoppers to place purchases in trunks instead of on car seats to providing directions to parking locations to reporting suspicious or actual criminal action to Swafford, who then communicated the information to Oakland police.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI approached one circumstance in a way so the police could get there,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I can\u2019t say the specifics, but let\u2019s just say security isn\u2019t about putting your hands on people. If you talk to people, if you tell them you don\u2019t have to do this or that, once you make them feel you\u2019re not judging them, it makes a situation way better. There\u2019s no violence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Asked if he will participate if the program receives more funding and continues, Gilmore responded in the affirmative.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes, hands down. Why? Because not only from the good business perspective but in the way the community and Dan have welcomed me, I feel comfortable. People in the community say they see a difference. Merchants thank me, and there are even people who come check on me and bring me coffee when I\u2019m working. Just making a little difference along the line, we might make a bigger difference to keep people from hitting on the elderly or other people or doing crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Swafford said Gilmore was an ideal candidate for a position that required people who are outgoing, able to communicate effectively and quick to establish and reliably maintain relationships with local merchants.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe leaned on Bay Alarm Company supervisors who knew the people best suited for these posts. We had to move quickly, and so we relied on their partnerships for referrals.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Montclair Village regularly engages with Bay Alarm for safety patrols in the district. Limor Margalit, Bay Alarm&#8217;s director of sales and security agent services, said that in setting up safety ambassador service for Montclair, one of three districts covered by the company, his role centered on working closely with merchants. By addressing their concerns with the on-street presence of a uniformed ambassador during the holiday season, Gilmore said residents and visitors also benefited.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLong-term merchants told us having a guard trained to help in different situations was important,&#8221; Gilmore said. &#8220;For people shopping, the guards made them feel safe by walking with them. Escorting someone to a car is just one example of something they did that the police cannot do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Swafford walked the shopping district;s streets during the holidays, introducing the ambassadors to owners and staff at key businesses. He held briefings and relied on digital reporting from the ambassadors to receive updates and provide feedback.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere was an auto burglary and we advised (that) they connect with a neighboring business and relay that to me so I could get any camera images to pull and relay that to OPD,&#8221; Swafford said. &#8220;That happened on multiple occasions, unfortunately. We also saw shoplifting and theft that spills beyond store security.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In one case our ambassador provided information that led to an arrest. Proactively, we consulted on casing the neighborhood. Kevin just being present on the street led to deterring crimes and also he reminded people to put items in secure places out of sight.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Swafford hopes the program will continue.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019d love to take the feedback and report what the ambassadors were able to do to the mayor,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We had boots on the ground, investment in crime reduction and a good partnership with OPD that allowed them to be more efficient. These are the obvious gains. We don\u2019t have the budget for it, so we\u2019ll look to funding from the city of Oakland and put whatever resources we have in the (Montclair) Village toward continuing it.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Merchants in the area are still struggling, and, to be honest, some might not make it, so we don\u2019t want to see people taking their money out of the area because they don\u2019t feel safe. An investment in this type of program in Oakland\u2019s General Fund will pay for itself with increased economic activity throughout the city. If given the opportunity, that\u2019s how I will present it to city officials.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Lou Fancher is a freelance writer. Contact her at <a href=\"mailto:lou@johnsonandfancher.com\">lou@johnsonandfancher.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"notranslate\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The city of Oakland funded security guards to patrol the streets of the shopping and business district during the holidays.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":832,"featured_media":8718269,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"subheadline":"City of Oakland funded security guards to patrol streets of shopping, business district during holidays","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":[]},"categories":[162,166,10349,161,184,51686,51712],"tags":[517,10697,52281,241],"feature":[],"location":[8,3,2,4,23,20,25],"type-of-work":[50053],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"post_status":"","edit_last":0,"edit_lock":0,"highlights":"","original_byline":"","original_canonical":"","original_category":"","original_email":"","original_id":0,"original_pubdate":"","original_source":"","primary_section":"10349","primary_tag":10697,"print_workflow_body":{"deck_headline":"Oakland hills","print_title":"Montclair Village safety ambassador pilot program deemed successful","print_subheadline":"City funded security guards to patrol streets of shopping, business district during holidays","print_priority":"","print_placement":"inside","print_edition_date":"","print_pub_date":"","print_slug":"MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120","print_content":"<p>If the truth be told, not all Montclair Village or city of Oakland short-term pilot programs are successful. When the Shop Safe Oakland Initiative provided city funds in late 2022 for Montclair Village \"safety ambassadors\" to patrol the streets during the holiday season, though, they hit a home run.<\/p>\n<p>Engaging with local merchants and offering security to residents and visitors to the area, the ambassadors escorted shoppers to vehicles, monitored problematic individuals and locations, de-escalated tension and conflicts and collaborated efficiently with the Oakland Police Department in situations involving greater measures of intervention or actual crimes. Daniel Swafford, the Montclair Village Association's executive director, coordinated the program after energetically pursuing funding and support from the city of Oakland.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe holiday shopping, dining and self-care season is a critical time for the viability of small businesses. It was wonderful to work with (former) Mayor Schaaf and the Oakland Police Department in receiving a grant to fund the full-time, on-street safety ambassadors,\" Swafford said. \"The hope is that the public saw the broad effort to make commercial districts, and in this case the Montclair Village shopping area, places we can come to with a sense of safety.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Safety ambassadors during the 30-day trial period that ended Saturday were on the streets eight hours a day, seven days a week except for Christmas and New Year\u2019s days. Direct mobile phone numbers were made available to the public for requesting assistance, and flyers explaining safety ambassador services were delivered to merchants. Kevin Gilmore, of Oakland, served as one of the ambassadors. In an interview Jan. 13, the second-to-last-day of the program, he reflected on the experience.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI come from the inner city, so coming up here was entering a different walk of life,\" Gilmore said. \"At first, it was touch-and-go if I was going to do it. But once I was up here and felt welcome, it made me want to do it and to live up to their expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gilmore downplays his skills when asked what he brought to the position, mentioning only that he has experience in security work.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo be honest, it was just me being me. It\u2019s not one set skill; I just take my job seriously,\" he said. \"I know not to judge but to observe and not act on impulse. Like with certain style cars, a person can be judgmental. But coming from the inner-city, I can feel a person out, and 95% of the time, I can use instinct.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gilmore\u2019s interactions ran a gamut, from escorting people to vehicles and reminding shoppers to place purchases in trunks instead of on car seats to providing directions to parking locations to reporting suspicious or actual criminal action to Swafford, who then communicated the information to Oakland police.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI approached one circumstance in a way so the police could get there,\" he said. \"I can\u2019t say the specifics, but let\u2019s just say security isn\u2019t about putting your hands on people. If you talk to people, if you tell them you don\u2019t have to do this or that, once you make them feel you\u2019re not judging them, it makes a situation way better. There\u2019s no violence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Asked if he will participate if the program receives more funding and continues, Gilmore responded in the affirmative.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes, hands down. Why? Because not only from the good business perspective but in the way the community and Dan have welcomed me, I feel comfortable. People in the community say they see a difference. Merchants thank me, and there are even people who come check on me and bring me coffee when I\u2019m working. Just making a little difference along the line, we might make a bigger difference to keep people from hitting on the elderly or other people or doing crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Swafford said Gilmore was an ideal candidate for a position that required people who are outgoing, able to communicate effectively and quick to establish and reliably maintain relationships with local merchants.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe leaned on Bay Alarm Company supervisors who knew the people best suited for these posts. We had to move quickly, and so we relied on their partnerships for referrals.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Montclair Village regularly engages with Bay Alarm for safety patrols in the district. Limor Margalit, Bay Alarm's director of sales and security agent services, said that in setting up safety ambassador service for Montclair, one of three districts covered by the company, his role centered on working closely with merchants. By addressing their concerns with the on-street presence of a uniformed ambassador during the holiday season, Gilmore said residents and visitors also benefited.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLong-term merchants told us having a guard trained to help in different situations was important,\" Gilmore said. \"For people shopping, the guards made them feel safe by walking with them. Escorting someone to a car is just one example of something they did that the police cannot do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Swafford walked the shopping district;s streets during the holidays, introducing the ambassadors to owners and staff at key businesses. He held briefings and relied on digital reporting from the ambassadors to receive updates and provide feedback.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere was an auto burglary and we advised (that) they connect with a neighboring business and relay that to me so I could get any camera images to pull and relay that to OPD,\" Swafford said. \"That happened on multiple occasions, unfortunately. We also saw shoplifting and theft that spills beyond store security.<\/p>\n<p>\"In one case our ambassador provided information that led to an arrest. Proactively, we consulted on casing the neighborhood. Kevin just being present on the street led to deterring crimes and also he reminded people to put items in secure places out of sight.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Swafford hopes the program will continue.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019d love to take the feedback and report what the ambassadors were able to do to the mayor,\" he said. \"We had boots on the ground, investment in crime reduction and a good partnership with OPD that allowed them to be more efficient. These are the obvious gains. We don\u2019t have the budget for it, so we\u2019ll look to funding from the city of Oakland and put whatever resources we have in the (Montclair) Village toward continuing it.<\/p>\n<p>\"Merchants in the area are still struggling, and, to be honest, some might not make it, so we don\u2019t want to see people taking their money out of the area because they don\u2019t feel safe. An investment in this type of program in Oakland\u2019s General Fund will pay for itself with increased economic activity throughout the city. If given the opportunity, that\u2019s how I will present it to city officials.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Lou Fancher is a freelance writer. Contact her at <a href=\"mailto:lou@johnsonandfancher.com\">lou@johnsonandfancher.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"notranslate\"><\/div>\n","print_budget_line":"","print_excerpt":"The city of Oakland funded security guards to patrol the streets of the shopping and business district during the holidays.","print_notes":"","print_featured_gallery_richtext":"","print_inline_galleries_richtext":"","print_inline_images_richtext":""},"print_workflow_exported_ts":"1673980914","print_workflow_exported_username":"njackson@bayareanewsgroup.com","print_workflow_shapes":"","print_workflow_side":{"print_section":9677,"print_status":9425,"add_export_buttons":""},"really_short_title":"","short_title":"","market_neutral_title":"","social_title":"","dfm_hub_post_id":0,"paywall_level":"metered","featured_media_content":{"content_type":"gallery","content":"<p>[gallery size=\"article_inline\" ids=\"8718269,8718270,8718274\"]<\/p>\n","data":[{"id":8718269,"title":"MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9","filename":"MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/mop-l-montsafety-0120-9\/","alt":"","author":"927","description":"","caption":"photo courtesy of the Montclair Village Association\nKevin Gilmore, above at La Salle Avenue at Mountain Boulevard in Oakland\u2019s Montclair Village, was one of the \u201csafety ambassadors\u201d working in the business district over the holidays. Not all Montclair Village or city of Oakland short-term pilot programs are successful, but they hit a home run when the Shop Safe Oakland Initiative provided city funds for the safety ambassadors to patrol the streets of Montclair Village eight hours a day, seven days a week except for Christmas and New Year\u2019s days during the 30-day trial period that ended Saturday.","name":"mop-l-montsafety-0120-9","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":0,"date":1673983944000,"modified":1673984743000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","dateFormatted":"January 17, 2023","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"dfm-photoupload","authorLink":"","filesizeInBytes":1555739,"filesizeHumanReadable":"1 MB","context":"","height":2012,"width":3017,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":200,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":683,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg","height":2012,"width":3017,"orientation":"landscape"}}},{"id":8718270,"title":"MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1","filename":"MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/mop-l-montsafety-0120-1\/","alt":"","author":"927","description":"","caption":"photo courtesy of the Montclair Village Association\nKevin Gilmore, above, of Oakland, was one of the \u201csafety ambassadors\u201d working in the city\u2019s Montclair Village over the holidays. Engaging with local merchants and offering security to residents and visitors to the area, the ambassadors escorted shoppers to vehicles, monitored problematic individuals and locations, de-escalated tension and conflicts and collaborated efficiently with the Oakland Police Department\u00a0 when needed.","name":"mop-l-montsafety-0120-1","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":0,"date":1673984026000,"modified":1673985181000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","dateFormatted":"January 17, 2023","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"dfm-photoupload","authorLink":"","filesizeInBytes":1384593,"filesizeHumanReadable":"1 MB","context":"","originalImageURL":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1.jpg","originalImageName":"MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1.jpg","height":4032,"width":3024,"orientation":"portrait","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":300,"width":225,"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg?w=225","orientation":"portrait"},"large":{"height":1024,"width":768,"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg?w=768","orientation":"portrait"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg","height":4032,"width":3024,"orientation":"portrait"}}},{"id":8718274,"title":"MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2","filename":"MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/mop-l-montsafety-0120-2\/","alt":"","author":"927","description":"","caption":"photo courtesy of the Montclair Village Association\nOakland\u2019s Kevin Gilmore, above, works as a \u201csafety ambassador\u201d in the city\u2019s Montclair Village over the holidays. Daniel Swafford, the Montclair Village Association's executive director, coordinated the safety ambassador pilot program after energetically pursuing funding and support from the city of Oakland.","name":"mop-l-montsafety-0120-2","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":0,"date":1673984443000,"modified":1673984908000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","dateFormatted":"January 17, 2023","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"dfm-photoupload","authorLink":"","filesizeInBytes":2112579,"filesizeHumanReadable":"2 MB","context":"","height":3776,"width":3024,"orientation":"portrait","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":300,"width":240,"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg?w=240","orientation":"portrait"},"large":{"height":1024,"width":820,"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg?w=820","orientation":"portrait"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg","height":3776,"width":3024,"orientation":"portrait"}}}],"rendered_content":"<div class=\"article-slideshow\"><button class=\"icon-close\" aria-label=\"Close fullscreen slideshow\"><\/button><ul data-total=\"3\"><li data-index=\"1\"><div class=\"image-wrapper\"><img alt=\"Kevin Gilmore, above at La Salle Avenue at Mountain Boulevard...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=620\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=620 620w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=780 780w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=810 810w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=1280 1280w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=1860 1860w\" ><p class=\"slide-credit\">photo courtesy of the Montclair Village Association<\/p><p class=\"slide-caption\">Kevin Gilmore, above at La Salle Avenue at Mountain Boulevard in Oakland\u2019s Montclair Village, was one of the \u201csafety ambassadors\u201d working in the business district over the holidays. Not all Montclair Village or city of Oakland short-term pilot programs are successful, but they hit a home run when the Shop Safe Oakland Initiative provided city funds for the safety ambassadors to patrol the streets of Montclair Village eight hours a day, seven days a week except for Christmas and New Year\u2019s days during the 30-day trial period that ended Saturday.<\/p><\/div><\/li><li data-index=\"2\"><div class=\"image-wrapper\"><img alt=\"Kevin Gilmore, above, of Oakland, was one of the \u201csafety...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg?w=620\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg?w=620 620w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg?w=780 780w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg?w=810 810w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg?w=1280 1280w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-1-rotated-e1673985039915.jpg?w=1860 1860w\" ><p class=\"slide-credit\">photo courtesy of the Montclair Village Association<\/p><p class=\"slide-caption\">Kevin Gilmore, above, of Oakland, was one of the \u201csafety ambassadors\u201d working in the city\u2019s Montclair Village over the holidays. Engaging with local merchants and offering security to residents and visitors to the area, the ambassadors escorted shoppers to vehicles, monitored problematic individuals and locations, de-escalated tension and conflicts and collaborated efficiently with the Oakland Police Department\u00a0 when needed.<\/p><\/div><\/li><li data-index=\"3\"><div class=\"image-wrapper\"><img alt=\"Oakland\u2019s Kevin Gilmore, above, works as a \u201csafety ambassador\u201d in...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg?w=620\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg?w=620 620w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg?w=780 780w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg?w=810 810w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg?w=1280 1280w,https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-2.jpg?w=1860 1860w\" ><p class=\"slide-credit\">photo courtesy of the Montclair Village Association<\/p><p class=\"slide-caption\">Oakland\u2019s Kevin Gilmore, above, works as a \u201csafety ambassador\u201d in the city\u2019s Montclair Village over the holidays. Daniel Swafford, the Montclair Village Association&#039;s executive director, coordinated the safety ambassador pilot program after energetically pursuing funding and support from the city of Oakland.<\/p><\/div><\/li><\/ul><div class=\"caption\"><button class=\"caption-expand\">Show Caption<\/button><div class=\"slideshow-credit\"><\/div><div class=\"slide-count\"><span class=\"current\"><\/span> of <span class=\"total\"><\/span><\/div><p class=\"slideshow-caption\"><\/p><a href=\"#\" class=\"icon-enlarge\" aria-label=\"Expand fullscreen slideshow\"><span>Expand<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div>\n"},"attachments":[],"authors":[{"ID":1992,"display_name":"Lou Fancher","description":"is a freelance writer. Contact her at lou@johnsonandfancher.com.","first_name":"Lou","last_name":"Fancher","user_nicename":"lou-fancher","user_login":"Lou Fancher","user_email":"","type":"guest-author","linked_account":0,"website":"","twitter":"","facebook":"","google_plus":""}],"taxonomies":{"category":[{"term_id":162,"name":"Business","slug":"business","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":162,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":52703,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":166,"name":"Crime and Public Safety","slug":"crime-public-safety","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":166,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":161,"count":49838,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":10349,"name":"Local News","slug":"local-news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":10349,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":20674,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":161,"name":"News","slug":"news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":161,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":902961,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":184,"name":"Restaurants, Food and Drink","slug":"restaurants-food-drink","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":184,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":51712,"count":8227,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":51686,"name":"Retail","slug":"retail","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":51686,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":162,"count":3711,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":51712,"name":"Things To Do","slug":"things-to-do","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":51712,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":63553,"filter":"raw"}],"post_tag":[{"term_id":517,"name":"Crime","slug":"crime","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":517,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":18725,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":10697,"name":"East Bay Crime","slug":"east-bay-crime","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":10697,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"Crime - East Bay crimes","parent":0,"count":8421,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":52281,"name":"Retail Jobs","slug":"retail-jobs","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":52281,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":56,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":241,"name":"Small Business","slug":"small-business","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":241,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":715,"filter":"raw"}],"location":[{"term_id":8,"name":"Alameda County","slug":"alameda-county","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":8,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":4,"count":88887,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3,"name":"Bay Area","slug":"bay-area","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":2,"count":228795,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":2,"name":"California","slug":"california","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":0,"count":250671,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":4,"name":"East Bay","slug":"east-bay","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":4,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":3,"count":131344,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":23,"name":"Montclair","slug":"montclair","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":23,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":20,"count":2447,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":20,"name":"Oakland","slug":"oakland","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":20,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":8,"count":32465,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":25,"name":"Oakland Hills","slug":"oakland-hills","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":25,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":20,"count":1207,"filter":"raw"}]},"featured_media_array":{"id":8718269,"title":"MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9","filename":"MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/mop-l-montsafety-0120-9\/","alt":"","author":"927","description":"","caption":"photo courtesy of the Montclair Village Association\nKevin Gilmore, above at La Salle Avenue at Mountain Boulevard in Oakland\u2019s Montclair Village, was one of the \u201csafety ambassadors\u201d working in the business district over the holidays. Not all Montclair Village or city of Oakland short-term pilot programs are successful, but they hit a home run when the Shop Safe Oakland Initiative provided city funds for the safety ambassadors to patrol the streets of Montclair Village eight hours a day, seven days a week except for Christmas and New Year\u2019s days during the 30-day trial period that ended Saturday.","name":"mop-l-montsafety-0120-9","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":0,"date":1673983944000,"modified":1673984743000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","dateFormatted":"January 17, 2023","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"dfm-photoupload","authorLink":"","filesizeInBytes":1555739,"filesizeHumanReadable":"1 MB","context":"","height":2012,"width":3017,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":200,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":683,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg","height":2012,"width":3017,"orientation":"landscape"}},"credit":"photo courtesy of the Montclair Village Association","custom_caption":"Kevin Gilmore, above at La Salle Avenue at Mountain Boulevard in Oakland\u2019s Montclair Village, was one of the \u201csafety ambassadors\u201d working in the business district over the holidays. Not all Montclair Village or city of Oakland short-term pilot programs are successful, but they hit a home run when the Shop Safe Oakland Initiative provided city funds for the safety ambassadors to patrol the streets of Montclair Village eight hours a day, seven days a week except for Christmas and New Year\u2019s days during the 30-day trial period that ended Saturday."},"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Montclair Village safety ambassador pilot program deemed successful","url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/2023\/01\/17\/montclair-village-safety-ambassador-pilot-program-deemed-successful\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/2023\/01\/17\/montclair-village-safety-ambassador-pilot-program-deemed-successful\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=1024"},"articleSection":"Other","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Lou Fancher"}],"creator":["Lou Fancher"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"East Bay Times","logo":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/32x32-ebt.png"},"keywords":["crime","east bay crime","retail jobs","small business"],"dateCreated":"2023-01-17T19:50:44Z","datePublished":"2023-01-17T19:50:44Z","dateModified":"2023-01-17T19:55:20Z"},"rendered":"<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"headline\":\"Montclair Village safety ambassador pilot program deemed successful\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.eastbaytimes.com\\\/2023\\\/01\\\/17\\\/montclair-village-safety-ambassador-pilot-program-deemed-successful\\\/\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.eastbaytimes.com\\\/2023\\\/01\\\/17\\\/montclair-village-safety-ambassador-pilot-program-deemed-successful\\\/\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.eastbaytimes.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/01\\\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=150\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.eastbaytimes.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/01\\\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg?w=1024\"},\"articleSection\":\"Other\",\"author\":[{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"name\":\"Lou Fancher\"}],\"creator\":[\"Lou Fancher\"],\"publisher\":{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"name\":\"East Bay Times\",\"logo\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.eastbaytimes.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2016\\\/10\\\/32x32-ebt.png\"},\"keywords\":[\"crime\",\"east bay crime\",\"retail jobs\",\"small business\"],\"dateCreated\":\"2023-01-17T19:50:44Z\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-01-17T19:50:44Z\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-01-17T19:55:20Z\"}<\/script>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/eastbaytimes.com\/p.js"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/MOP-L-MONTSAFETY-0120-9.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7ShK5-Azeb","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8715227"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/832"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8715227"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8715227\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8715231,"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8715227\/revisions\/8715231"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8718269"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8715227"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8715227"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8715227"},{"taxonomy":"feature","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/feature?post=8715227"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=8715227"},{"taxonomy":"type-of-work","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eastbaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/type-of-work?post=8715227"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}