By ALESHA CAPONE
SEVERAL Taylors Hill residents, worried about drug and hoon activity in their neighbourhood, have called for action.
The group recently organised a meeting on the issue, held in in Bloomsbury Dve Reserve and attended by around 70 residents, Keilor MP Natalie Hutchins and police.
After the meeting, Ms Hutchins told State Parliament the residents discussed concerns about drug dealing, hoon driving and bad behaviour by teenagers around the park.
Ms Hutchins said the residents are meeting again this week and will launch a petition calling for the Caroline Springs Police Station to be staffed 24 hours and be allocated 15 new officers.
Star spoke to a concerned Taylors Hill resident, who said two shotgun rounds – fired into the garage door of a Bloomsbury Dve house on 8 March – has further worried many residents.
“People have sold their houses because they are afraid of the unmarked cars, with people taking drugs and that kind of business inside them, parked out the front of houses,” she said.
“Three residents have moved because of it, in my street.
“All the kids in the area go to the park and they all talk about it and they are all scared and very fearful.”
The Taylors Hill resident said her children often saw syringes, bongs and drug paraphilia left in the park and her family have been verbally abused by drug users.
Caroline Springs Sergeant Jason Graham said police had not found drugs in the park and he had not had any criminal activity at the park reported since April.
He said residents at the meeting discussed issues dating back to 2007 and police have been working with the community to resolve them.
“The situation is not out of control or anything like that,” he said.
A Victoria Police spokesman said the Caroline Springs Police Station was open to the public from 8am to 5pm weekdays.
“There are no plans at this stage to extend the hours that the station is open,” he said.
“But residents can be assured that outside these hours the Caroline Springs area is actively patrolled by police and there is a 24-hour divisional van operating in the area.
“Non-urgent inquiries can be managed by surrounding police stations at Melton, Keilor Downs and Sunshine, which are open 24 hours.”
