COMPLEX SALUTED IN CRIME PROGRAM.

Byline: Bhavna Mistry Daily News Staff Writer

A triangular teal-and-white plaque adorns a downtown apartment complex which a year ago stood vacant, abandoned and boarded up.

The four-unit, two-story complex at 38503 Larkin Ave. was the first to be certified under the Palmdale Partners Against Crime Program after owners Larry and Shawn Dorsey implemented measures intended to make it a safer place to live.

``What we have here is a partnership - the community, Sheriff's Department and property owners all working together,'' said Jim Root, a Palmdale City Council member, before he climbed a ladder to mount the reflective placard on the wall.

The certification doesn't guarantee that no crime will occur, but signifies that the Dorseys instituted measures to lessen the possibilities.

Deadbolt locks and peepholes are on every door, trees and shrubs trimmed to remove hiding places, adequate lighting installed. The Dorseys completed an eight-hour training course on how to keep illegal activity off their property. A Neighborhood Watch-type group was organized among the residents.

``This is the kind of building you want to live in,'' said sheriff's Sgt. Bobby Denham, leader of the Partners Against Crime, or PAC, program. ``We expect to have a lot of buildings in the neighborhood displaying these plaques.''

Since purchasing their building in July for $66,000, the Dorseys invested $10,000 cleaning it up, painting it and adding new carpets.

``When we bought it, it was boarded up and full of trash,'' said Larry Dorsey, a correctional officer at the California State Prison-Los Angeles County in Lancaster. ``It took some work but we cleaned it up. Now it's easy to get renters. People know it's a clean and safe place to live.''

After renting all four units in the building, Dorsey purchased two more complexes in the same neighborhood and now owns a total of 20 units.

``He's a typical property owner that can make a difference,'' said Denham. ``He's done an outstanding job.''

The apartment building certification comes as part of the PAC program to clean up an area of downtown which at one time had the highest crime in the city.

Since July, sheriff's officials have been working with residents and property owners to clean up the neighborhood surrounding the Dorseys' apartment complex. Deputies say crime in the area has fallen 30 percent.

``This type of program is truly an example of community-based policing,'' said Denham. ``We believe this is the future for success in the city of Palmdale.''

CAPTION(S):

Photo: (1) Larry Dorsey, his daughter Brittni, 1, and his wife, Shaw n, watch Jim Root certify their building.

(2) Palmdale City Councilman Jim Root affixes the first placard on a building in the Partners Against Crime Program.

Jeff Goldwater/Daily News