(rshsdepot) San Bernardino, CA

[I95BERNIEW_@_aol.com]

From today's San Bernardino County Sun.
 
Bernie Wagenblast
 
 
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 
 
Station tries to spread word
SB police focus on community
Andrew Silva, Staff Writer 
Article Launched:11/28/2006 12:00:00 AM PST




SAN BERNARDINO - It's easily the  nicest office in the San Bernardino Police 
Department and it's nowhere near the  main station.  
The department moved its substation a few months ago into the fully restored  
historic Santa Fe Depot, where Lt. Diane Holmes coordinates coverage for the  
sprawling western district of the city.  
"We are at the depot with the hope of improving the quality of life in that  
neighborhood," the 24-year department veteran said.  
The disadvantage so far is that few locals know it's there.  
An open house is scheduled for sometime next month.  
The western district spreads from Colton on the south to Muscoy on the north, 
 and from Rialto on the west to Interstate 215 on the east.  
"It's huge," Holmes said.  
The neighborhood around the depot has many of the same problems the entire  
city has been wrestling with for a long time - gangs, violence, drugs.  
But the depot, which replaced the previous district substation, is more  
accessible for people who live south of railroad tracks, she said.  
Several officers - including four problem-oriented-policing, or "POP,"  
officers - operate out of the office, which is decorated with pictures of trains  
donated by Holmes' husband, a railroad fanatic.  
The POP officers were picked for their enthusiasm about building  
relationships in the community and trying to fix problems that don't fall under  the 
traditional job description of law enforcement.  
"You're not going to arrest your way out of crime," Holmes said. "You have to 
 get to the root of the problem."  
For example, if gang members are hanging out at a certain park, then simple  
measures like making sure the nighttime closure is obeyed or enforcing laws  
against open containers of alcohol can make it safe for residents again, she  
said.  
"It's a new breed of police officers," she said. "You're doing much more than 
 arresting bad boys."  
The depot itself, after its $15 million restoration was completed in 2004,  
was envisioned as a spark for economic development in the old neighborhood just 
 west of Mount Vernon Avenue at Second and Third streets.  
That got a big boost Nov. 20 with the City Council's decision to allow a  
developer to demolish the El Tigre shopping center on Second Street and replace  
it with a 100,000-square-foot retail center anchored by a Superior Super  
Warehouse grocery store.  
The center will have architecture to complement the depot. The city also  
expects a mixed-use development south of Second Street featuring residences  
blended with small retail.  
The second floor of the depot is home to San Bernardino Associated  
Governments, or Sanbag, the county's transportation agency, which co-owns the  1918 
building with the city.  
On the first floor, the police were supposed to have company already.  
In August 2005, leases were approved with the police, the Apostle Cafe, and  
Amtrak, which had a ticket office in the depot for decades but moved out 
during  the final stages of the restoration project.  
The Apostle Cafe was supposed to open a small coffee and snack stand where  
the Amtrak counter used to be.  
But a year later, the small business hadn't done anything, so the lease  was 
terminated.  
Officials are in discussions with another vendor who's familiar with offering 
 a coffee cart service, said Cheryl Donahue, Sanbag spokeswoman.  
That could be good news for the hundreds of bleary-eyed Metrolink commuter  
rail passengers who board trains in the predawn hours just outside the depot.  
The city and Sanbag are also in continuing discussions with Amtrak in an  
attempt to get a ticket office back in the depot.  
Amtrak is unhappy with the lease conditions it agreed to last year, said  
D'Ann Lanning, assistant to San Bernardino Mayor Pat Morris.  
And yes, once the cafe or Amtrak goes in, the now-closed lobby will be open  
to the public, and the restrooms will be available.  
Contact writer Andrew Silva at (909) 386-3889 or via e-mail at 
_andrew.silva_@_sbsun.com_ (mailto:andrew.silva@sbsun.com) .


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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org

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