Augusta police on Friday conducted the third multiagency sweep aimed at driving crime out of the downtown.

Now department officials want to hear what neighbors think of the results.

An Augusta police detective, Maine State Police troopers and parole and probation officers escort a man arrested on outstanding warrants to a waiting cruiser on Northern Avenue in Augusta on July 30. State and county law enforcement officers accompanied Augusta police in door-to-door walks through several neighborhoods in Augusta as part of the city Police Department’s Operation Hot Spot program. Staff photo by Andy Molloy

Police will host a community meeting Thursday to gather feedback on the program, which police have called Operation Hot Spot.

Augusta police Lt. Christopher Massey said officials want to know what neighbors think of the program, whether it is making a difference and how it can be improved. Massey said Thursday’s meeting is a chance for neighbors to share concerns and complaints and ask questions about the program. The meeting is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. at the pavilion at Mill Park off Northern Avenue.

“We want input, both positive and negative,” Massey said.

The latest sweep occurred Friday afternoon, when 21 officers – including representatives of Probation and Parole; the Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office; Maine Drug Enforcement Agency; the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the city’s code enforcement office – fanned out across the downtown. There was also a dog and its handler from the Maine State Prison. Massey said officers gathered information from 76 people, talked to another 105 people and conducted 18 probation checks and 13 warrant and bail checks.

Four people were arrested for probation violations, including one person who was in possession of crack cocaine, Massey said. Two people were arrested on warrants, and MDEA agents arrested one person for whom they had been searching.

Police launched the program this spring by talking to businesses owners and pedestrians. Officers, who handed out fliers explaining the program, heard feedback from people anxious to rid their neighborhood of ongoing criminal activity.

Friday’s was the third Hot Spot run since that initial informational effort.

Modeled after a program Lewiston police have used for the past couple of years, Project Hot Spot was created to target specific areas known for having higher crime rates.

“We want people to tell us how it went and how we’re doing,” Massey said. “We want to hear the concerns and what they’d like to see in the future.”

Craig Crosby can be contacted at 621-5642 or at:

ccrosby@centralmaine.com