Where around the Houston area is crime on the rise?

(2/22/07 - KTRK/HOUSTON) (KTRK) -- Do you feel safe where you live? Our Crime Tracker is working to find out if violent crime is going up or down in different neighborhoods in our area.

We've found parts of town that are now dealing with new problems, and we are talking to police about what's being done. Our Crime Tracker also shows some encouraging news.

Nearly every police district in our city had some sort of police overtime program at one time or another. You may have even seen the difference in your neighborhood. While dramatic progress was made in certain locations across the city, the numbers clearly show how in other areas, there's still a long way to go.

There was a time not so long ago when many residents were just too scared to walk the streets of their southwest Houston neighborhood.

"The apartment we're living in, you'd get shot even before you hit the front gate," said resident Natasha Price.

Price and Tina McGinnis no longer feel like the criminals have the upper hand. Things, they say, have calmed down considerably.

"It's definitely an improvement," added McGinnis. "I don't know what they're doing. I just hope they continue and don't let it slack because crime fluctuates so much, especially in southwest Houston."

Using our exclusive Crime Tracker, we can pinpoint the one area of the city that saw the biggest drop in violent crime. It's District 17, also known as the Fondren division on the city's southwest side. Violent crime there is down eight percent, comparing 2005 with 2006.

"A combination of intelligence gathering, undercover work, and uniform patrols helped us break the back of crime in this area," said Captain Bruce Williams with the Houston Police Department's Fondren division.

While police have managed to get a handle on violent crime on the southwest side, on the east side, the numbers aren't as promising. Violent crime in that area is up.

Our Crime Tracker found one of the most significant increases in violent crime on Houston's east side. The number of reported cases to police is up by nine percent, comparing 2005 with 2006.

"I have customers who are policemen," said a business owner who didn't want to be identified. "They tell me they feel crime is increasing every day."

The business owner, like so many other residents, wants a stronger police presence.

"More security, around the schools, my school," said Mayte Rodriguez, who lives in the area. "I don't see a lot of policemen."

Houston city Councilmember Carol Alvarado says those issues are being addressed through a state-funded police overtime program.

"We intentionally put overtime into the budget for that particular area so we can have a pretty strong presence, a constant presence in the community," she said.

Other districts that saw an increase in violent crime include:

• Central, which includes downtown Houston: 6.9%
• The Clear Lake area: 7.9%
• Northeast: 2.1%
• Northwest: 7.3%
• South central: 3.8%
• Westside: 4.5%
• Kingwood: 32%

Other districts that saw a decrease include:

• Southeast: -.06%
• Southwest: -4.8%

You may have noticed that Kingwood had an increase of 32 percent, but we didn't note it as the district with the highest increase in crime. That's because the number of crimes is so small, compared to other districts, that any increase or decrease distorts the comparison.

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