North and East Scranton are joining the ranks of the city neighborhood watches this month, with inaugural meetings slated for this week.
Inspired by the work of other groups and hoping to keep their sections of town free of crime and blight, the two groups will assemble to look for volunteers and participants to partake in the movement for a safer city.
"What we want to do is mostly preventive. For the most part, North Scranton is pretty safe," said Kathleen Quinn, North Scranton Neighborhood Association and Crime Watch co-president.
Her co-president, John O'Hearn, said he's hoping the group will draw a large crowd of interested residents and potential volunteers.
The group will hold its first meeting tonight at 7 in the basement of Holy Rosary-St. Anthony Parish, 316 William St. It will also host an official kickoff event at Weston Park from 1-4 p.m. June 29 with food and activities for all North Scranton residents.
Also launching is the East Scranton Neighborhood Watch, which will hold its first meeting Thursday at 7 p.m. at St. Peter's Lutheran Church, 1000 Taylor Ave.
Lori LaVango and Linda Varnis teamed up to kick-start the group.
"The group will seek to continually improve the quality of life in the neighborhood," Ms. Varnis wrote in an email to The Times-Tribune.
West Scranton Hyde Park Neighborhood Watch President Karin Foster, who has been aiding many of the groups with the startup process, said she's excited to see other parts of the city becoming proactive.
"It's really feeling like the city itself is becoming a community of Scranton rather than the individual neighborhoods. We have a network," she said.
Also instrumental in both groups' progress was acting Police Chief Carl Graziano, organizers said.
"When you have neighborhoods that band together and send a unified message that criminal activity is not welcome in the neighborhood, the criminals get that message," Chief Graziano said.
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