DUNMORE - Councilman Michael Hayes wants the borough to create a neighborhood watch program.
Mr. Hayes suggested the program could be run similarly to the South Side Neighborhood Watch in Scranton by organizing groups responsible for different wards or geographic sections of the borough.
"I thought it was something that was very valuable down in the city of Scranton," Mr. Hayes told council at Monday's meeting. "It helps keep the neighborhoods safe, not only with obviously showing a presence that you care about your neighborhood, but they also report a lot of blight."
The councilman said the South Scranton organization reports issues like structures that "need to be condemned," illegal boarding houses, and crime and drug activity to law enforcement and local government officials.
Other councilmen at Monday's meeting were open to the idea. Council President Sal Verrastro said if volunteers materialize, he would love to see the plan come together.
There is at least one sign in the borough reporting the area is under surveillance by a neighborhood watch group. Mr. Hayes said existing groups are now defunct, and there are no neighborhood watches recognized by the borough.
In response to a Facebook posting, Mr. Hayes said many borough residents expressed interest in volunteering, and he invited anyone interested to call him at 604-9678.
The councilman said there would be "hardly any cost" to starting the program.
He said he would like to see the initiative started as summer approaches so it can be fully implemented going into the fall.
Council did not have any discussion on Monday about Mr. Hayes' idea to convert metered parking spaces around Dunmore Corners into two-hour free parking.
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