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Palo Alto and East Palo Alto residents are invited to celebrate National Night Out with police officers this Tuesday. The local gatherings, among many planned across the country, aim to promote police relations with the community and “make our neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live,” according to the event website.
The Palo Alto event, which will be hosted outside police headquarters on Forest Avenue, gives residents a “chance to chat with police officers and connect with the community,” according to the city’s Uplift Local newsletter. The celebration will feature popcorn, games and police cars on display for guests to understand police work.
The East Palo Alto Police Department hopes National Night Out will “help citizens get acquainted with their neighbors and work together toward a safer community,” interim Police Chief Jeff Liu said in a recent community update. There will be nine separate National Night Out events across East Palo Alto hosted by churches, nonprofits and individuals.
This year’s events mark the first time that either city has hosted a National Night Out event since before the pandemic. Palo Alto hosted gatherings in 2018 and 2019 after a 10-year hiatus. East Palo Alto had been a participant in National Night Out for several years before COVID-19 halted the annual event.
Palo Alto residents and businesses are also encouraged to start their own celebrations and block parties in honor of National Night Out. Anyone planning to host a block party can register at cityofpaloalto.org.
National Night Out will take place at the following locations:
Palo Alto:
• 200 block of Forest Avenue, 5-8 p.m., hosted by the Palo Alto Police Department.
• 800 block of Webster Street, 5-8 p.m., hosted by Channing House.
East Palo Alto:
• 400 block of Bell Street, 6-8 p.m., hosted by Elvira Macías.
• 1215 Laurel St., 6-8 p.m., hosted by Bruce Nash of Church of Christ.
• 1854 Bay Road, 6-8 p.m., hosted by Nakia Davis of WeHope.
• Newell Road (between Woodland Avenue and West Bayshore Road), 6-8 p.m., hosted by Ruben Abrica.
• 2400 block of Illinois Street, 6-8 p.m., hosted by Opal Harper.
• 2800 block of Illinois Street, 6-8 p.m., hosted by Sherry Falmer.
• 835 Runnymede St., 6-8 p.m., hosted by Pastor Robert Cowan.
• 200 block of Azalia Drive, 6-8 p.m., hosted by Ruthe Smith Wilkes.
• 1001 Beech St., 6-8 p.m., hosted by Waniya of Hope Horizon.
Are you hosting a National Night Out gathering in Palo Alto and want to see your event listed in this article? Send us an email at editor@paloaltoweekly.com.
If one were to host a National Night Out block party, will the PAPD provide a guest officer and is it OK if alcoholic beverages are served to adult attendees?
I am picturing a tailgate type of gathering with a barbeque and open bar.
Interesting to note that outside of the PAPD & Channing House gatherings, there are no Palo Alto residents or neighborhoods hosting any block parties of their own like in East Palo Alto.
National Night Out? Really? Never heard of that one. What special interest group dreamed this one up?
A bit later: Just checked out their website and they say: “National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie.” So my question is answered. The special interest group is “community police”. I say this without judgement other than to say that far too many special interest groups declare “special days” just to promote their various social, political, and financial agendas, whether “right”, “wrong”, or “useless”. I’m sick of these attempts at manipulative hypocrisy.
Other surrounding communities have very successfully organized their own “nights out” at least one night each week designed to get people downtown and those are thriving and without ties to special interests.