West Des Moines resident urges council to require 'Crime Free' landlord program for new apartment incentives

Keith Denner, a West Des Moines resident and long-time landlord, urged the City Council to require participation in a crime-prevention landlord program for new apartment developments that receive city incentives.

"The program dramatically cuts down on crime," Denner said, describing his experience with a Crime Free program he helped start and participated in for nearly 28 years. He said participating owners can ban people from properties and cooperate with police in ways that reduce repeat incidents.

Denner told the council that Sun Prairie — where he previously worked with the program — had lower crime rates and that participation helped managers exclude problem tenants. He recommended that the city make participation a condition of incentives such as tax abatements: "As you offer incentives to developers ... make a condition of that that they have to participate in the crime free program," he said.

Council members responded favorably to the idea during the meeting. Councilwoman Hardman said she liked the suggestion that participation be required for some incentive packages, and council members discussed the city's current practice of granting limited incentives primarily for affordable-housing projects. No motion or ordinance was introduced at the meeting; the discussion ended as direction for further staff consideration rather than a formal policy change.

Nut graf: The remarks were delivered during the citizens forum portion of the meeting and reflected a tenant-safety and property-management perspective rather than a staff recommendation. Council members asked staff to consider whether the city could require such participation when granting financial incentives, but no formal vote or directive was recorded.

Clarifying details from the meeting included Denner's account that he had participated in a Crime Free program for 28 years, that some municipalities have declared repeat-problem properties as "crime properties" with consequences up to occupancy-certificate actions, and that some landlords "go through the motions" without full cooperation. Council members noted the city's current incentive practices — limited incentives unless tied to affordable housing — and said they would evaluate the idea further.

Ending: Council members indicated interest in exploring the suggestion through staff review; no new ordinance or formal requirement was adopted during the meeting.