by Caroline Gabsewics
Staff Writer
Since many Northeast Florida home builders voiced their concern about construction site thefts to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office about a year ago, a lot of work has and still is being done to reduce the number of thefts.
According to the Northeast Florida Builders Association’s Construction Crime Prevention Committee, the number of job site has thefts have gone down.
“The challenge we have is making the builders aware of the system out there to support them,” said committee chairman Larry Wittmer. “Our mission is education.”
Wittmer explained that the creation of the First Coast Crime Stoppers in the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, installing cameras and posting neighborhood watch signs in windows are all major deterrents to crime and have helped reduce crime on the construction site.
“Our committee is working on creating a protocol for the building community to follow,” he said. “It is just now starting to come together because no one has ever done this before.”
The NEFBA committee is receiving input from law enforcement, builders and vendors.
At the committee’s monthly meeting at the NEFBA office last month, there were representatives from the St. Johns, Clay and Jacksonville sheriffs. All gave their input on what their county has seen in construction site thefts.
All three representatives agree that copper wiring is the No. 1 item that is being removed from the homes. Next comes appliances.
Construction site theft has gone down in the past couple of months, and December was the worst.
“It’s about gathering the right data,” Wittmer said. “We need to know what is going on out there.”
One of the biggest problems they are facing is the amount of homes that are vacant as a result of the market.
“All of these empty homes breed theft,” Wittmer said, adding that model homes are also an easy target.
The sheriff’s offices are recommending that builders make sure their homes are locked up each night. They would also like to see more builders communicating with their sub-contractors and let them know about the partnership the builders have formed with First Coast Crime Stoppers.
“We have a great working relationship with NEFBA,” said Jacksonville Sheriff John Rutherford.
Rutherford added that JSO told NEFBA to install video cameras and put up neighborhood watch signs around the neighborhood and at the construction site.
“We also asked them to secure the job site because products were being left out in the open,” said Rutherford. “When we catch someone, we don’t have any serial numbers to track it back to where the appliance came from.”
They want to encourage builders to keep track of their appliance serial numbers. If lost and later found, it may be evidence in a crime and it also can get the appliance back to its rightful owner.
The committee is continuing to go forward with its strategic plan by creating subcommittees that focus on educating the builders and homeowners.
Committee leaders were asked to bring in volunteers before the next Construction Crime Prevention Committee meeting at 11:30 a.m. March 25 at the NEFBA offices. To become a part of the committee, contact Wittmer at 224-4884.