March 12. 2008

Springfield …In an effort to keep residents living in multi-unit housing safe, State Representative Dennis Reboletti (R-Elmhurst) is sponsoring legislation which will allow all communities to mandate that landlords participate in a municipality’s Crime Free program.

“We need to ensure that all residents are living in the safest environment possible. The Crime Free program is one additional tool that a municipality can use to educate property owners about steps they can take to prevent and root out criminal activity,” said Reboletti.

The Crime Free Multi-Housing Program was started in Mesa, Arizona and has spread to communities across the United States. This program consists of three phases including: crime free housing manager training, a walk through of the rental property to ensure that minimum security requirements are met, and a resident crime prevention meeting. Currently, only home rule communities have been allowed to adopt this program. Under Reboletti’s legislation, this program would extend to non-home rule communities such as Villa Park.

“This crime free program has had great success across the United States including in Illinois. After the Village of Schaumburg implemented this program, they saw a 9% decrease in their crime rate,” said Reboletti. “It’s vital that all communities have the opportunity to participate in this program.”

House Bill 6305 would give counties and municipalities the right to license and regulate landlords. This bill currently awaits a vote in the House.

“The Crime Free program is a must for our community. This is an aggressive program that allows us to prevent and address criminal activity that is burdening our village,” said Villa Park Village President, Joyce Stupegia. “I feel this bill is a necessity and the residents of Villa Park are grateful for Representative Reboletti’s response to our concerns.”

Additional questions can be directed to Reboletti’s office at (630) 530-2730.

# # #