Are you considering moving to Overland Park?

Here are some tips from the Police Department which can help you decide which neighborhood or apartment community you want to live in.

1. Drive through the neighborhood or apartment community on several different occasions to get a good feel for the type of activity that occurs there. Do this during the daytime, late at night, on weekdays and on weekends.
   
   
2. Consider the distance from your parking area to your front door. Is this walkway well lit and clear of hiding places?
   
   
3. Does your apartment front door open to a common hallway or lead directly out doors? Is your front door visible to other apartments in the community?
   
   
4. The entry door should be a solid core door with a security peep hole. If you have sliding glass doors, will the apartment community provide or allow you to install a drop bar lock?
   
   
5. If moving into an apartment, talk to the manager and potential neighbors about the management's security philosophy. Is the apartment community actively involved in the "Crime Free Multi-Housing Program?"
   
   
6. If moving into a top floor apartment check for an attic crawl space. If one is located, check to see if you have a "common" attic. If you do, talk to the apartment manager about installing a lock on your access door. This will help prevent a neighbor from entering your apartment through your attic.
   
   
7. If moving into a house, does the neighborhood participate in the "Neighborhood Watch Program?"
   
   
8. Look at the cars parked in your neighborhood or apartment community. Are there lots of out-of-state license plates? They should be predominately (if not exclusively) Kansas plates. Among other things, out-of-state plates indicate a transient neighborhood.
   
   
9. Call the Crime Analysis Unit at 913/327-6730 /6734 /6735 /6729 /6731 /6712. Crime statistics are maintained for the entire city for the past several years. They can refine these statistics to a 1/4 square mile area encompassing your neighborhood and will talk with you about the level of police activity in the area. You can use this data to help in your selection process. What we won't do is recommend one area over another and we don't maintain a listing of safe/unsafe neighborhoods or apartment communities.
   
   
10. Once you've moved in, call the Police Department at 913/895-6334 to request a Residential Security Survey. With this security survey, officers will make recommendations on ways you can make your home a safer place to live. There is no fee for this program.