Local Richmond police hope bike patrols will deter crime in city parks

When Richmond Police Lt. John A. O'Kleasky Jr. used to run or bike in James River Park, he noticed something that bothered him.

"I never saw a police officer," he said.

That's not true anymore, thanks in part to O'Kleasky, a 20-year Richmond police veteran who's now responsible for the police sector that includes the south bank of the James, as well as Forest Hill Park.

Last fall, he offered officer Stacy Rogers the job of riding a mountain bike through the South Richmond parks and surrounding neighborhoods as a new kind of crime patrol.

The offer was a no-brainer for Rogers, a 38-year-old outdoors enthusiast who had pa trolled Midlothian Turnpike by car for five years. "I said, 'I can tell you right now, I want to do it,'" he recalled.

Since Nov. 1, Rogers has given Richmond police a new visibility in some of the city's most popular parks. Standing 6 feet, 8 inches tall, he's hard to miss.

"He has presence, that's for sure," said Greg Rollins, president of the Richmond-area chapter of the Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts, a mountain-biking organization that has tried for more than two years to deter crime in the parks with volunteer bike patrols.

Rollins thinks Rogers' presence will help deter crime, such as vandalism and vehicle break-ins in parking lots, as well as potentially more serious offenses. "It gives us the feeling that the people who want to do that are on notice," he said. "They don't have free reign."

In fact, Rogers said police haven't had any reports of vehicle break-ins since the patrols started. Instead, most of the crimes he's witnessed have involved illegal drug use or apprehending people wanted on warrants. Sexual cruising is another activity that police hope to discourage.

His assignment has gotten rave reviews from mountain bikers, local politicians and, most of all, the people who live near the parks.

"It's fabulous," said Grace LeRose, president of the Forest Hill Neighborhood Association, whose monthly meetings are attended by Rogers and O'Kleasky. "I love to see him around. I love to see him on the bike. I love to see him in the parks."

For LeRose and the neighborhoods around the parks, the timing of the police assignment is perfect. The restoration of the historic lake in Forest Hill Park last year, along with the increasing use of James River Park and the seasonal South of the James Farmers' Market, have made the area a popular weekend destination in the region.

"We want a lot of people there," LeRose said, "but we want them doing the right things."

Rogers' responsibility includes patrolling the James River Park from the Lee Bridge to the Boulevard Bridge, along the river as well as Buttermilk Trail, a challenging single-track path through the ravines that lie along Riverside Drive. The area is a wilderness within an urban setting that poses a challenge to police.

"I just saw it as a need that the park was a unique environment to police," said O'Kleasky, who took control of Sector 312 last spring. "Traditional patrol methods, [such as] patrol cars, may not be as effective in preventing crime."

Now, with Rogers patrolling by bike, "we're not afraid to go deep down in the park and look for folks who may be up to no good," he said.

The assignment also is a way to reach out to residents of Woodland Heights, Forest Hill and Westover Hills neighborhoods. "It's easier to bond with the community and build relationships with an officer on a bicycle," O'Kleasky said.

Rogers has taken to the job easily. He majored in parks and recreation at Virginia Commonwealth University, attending at the same time as Nathan Burrell, trails manager for the Richmond Department of Parks and Recreation.

"You couldn't ask for a better person to be in his position," Burrell said, "a person who cares about parks, understands parks and uses the parks."

Rogers is a kayaker who worked as a whitewater guide for the now defunct Richmond Raft Co., as well as the wilder rivers in the West, where he lived for more than two years.

He's an adventure racer, demanding a wide range of outdoor skills. And, since 2007, he's become a mountain biker and a member of RA-MORE, the mountain-biking organization.

"I've gotten a lot better at it in the last couple of months," he said.

Contact Michael Martz at (804) 649-6964 or mmartz@timesdispatch.com .