The Importance Of The CPTED Environment

“What is the secret to CPTED? It is the use of design to eliminate or reduce criminal behavior while at the same time encouraging people to “keep an eye out” for each other. These are just a few of the ingredients that go into creating an effective CPTED environment, that make the quality of our lives safe and our communities more livable” (Durham, 2016).

Steps that you can take to make sure your residence is safe from intruders by using CPTED techniques. Also combining the SARA Model (Scanning, Analysis, Response and Assessment) is an excellent tool to help safeguard your environment. Scanning/Surveillance, is one of the most basic techniques that can be used to keep a criminal or an intruder under observation. Even though you want of course

“Multi-family homes (duplexes, tri-plexes and apartment complexes) pose the same problems as single-family structures, although these problems can be compounded by the number of dwellings and residents” (Durham, 2016).

In apartment complexes we have a lot of public areas that are shared like, laundry rooms, elevators, hallways, etc. These public area present opportunities for crime or crime prevention. There is power in numbers. That is why it is a good idea for the property management company to provide the tenants with opportunities to meet his or her fellow neighbors. Having pool parties, barbeques or movie night. Furthermore, once you have an apartment complex environment where the tenants know who their neighbors are you have taken a huge step toward CPTED using Natural Surveillance.

“Natural surveillance uses many simple elements of design and practice, in the operation of business, to help prevent criminal activity and ultimately, protect the physical structures in a neighborhood. In the planning and development phase of construction, developers can choose to orient their building conducive to high visibility from the streets, as well as creating permeable pedestrian areas” (McGee, 2014).

Rendering of a residential complex using ‘CPTED’. Image via