JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Mayor Alvin Brown used his remarks at the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast to announce the city would reopen five youth centers and make other policy changes in an effort to battle violence and crime among the city's young people. 

Calling these and extension of his crime prevention and intervention strategies started in November in his Renew Jax program, Brown said there also be an urban parks and youth sports program and he work with faith leaders, non-profit organizations, and law enforcement and the juvenile justice system to help turn around the lives of young people already involved in crime.

:Effective law enforcement is necessary to stop crime," said Brown. "But we also know that our community is safest when we prevent crime from happening in the first place. The best way to do that is by all of us working together to provide our children and young people with the positive opportunities and support they need to thrive and follow the right path in life."

The announcement comes after a 43 percent increase in aggravated assaults where a weapon was fired between 2013 to 2014 in the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office's Zone 5, which covers Northwest Jacksonville and part of the Northside. 

According to News4Jax records, there were 95 murders in Jacksonville last year and 60 percent of those being investigated by the Sheriff's Office remain unsolved.

In June, Sheriff John Rutherford said 60 additional officers were deployed to patrol those areas and it was working because the crime was down the second half of the year.

Last week, the mayor's Office tentatively accepted a federal grant of $1.8 million that would fund 15 additional police officers. The city would have to match the amount to pay for other costs such as equipment, so Rutherford is waiting to see if the city can find the money. 

The mayor's office sent this summary of the crime prevention and intervention strategies proposed:

Re-open and extend hours at community centers

To give teens a safe place to gather with adult supervision when school is out, Mayor Brown said he will seek to re-open five community centers (Blue Cypress, Joe James, Lew Brantley, Lewis-Cobb and Westside) for afterschool and summer programming. He will work to extend the hours of operation at another center (Johnnie Walker).

Expand summer urban parks initiative (Rec 'N Roll Jax)

Mayor Brown said he will work to expand the Summer Urban Parks Initiative (Rec 'N Roll Jax) to a total of 18 parks this summer. The program provides adult-supervised recreation activities. Thanks to private support, Rec 'N Roll Jax started last summer for eight weeks at 10 parks in high-crime neighborhoods. Within a half-mile radius of all but one of the parks, crime rates declined during the time the Rec 'N Roll Jax program was in operation.

Develop youth sports initiative focused on personal accountability

Mayor Brown said he will develop a Youth Sports Initiative, partnering with youth sports organizations to implement best practices to promote personal accountability and sportsmanship. An estimated 20,000 young people participate in organized sports leagues every year in Jacksonville's public parks, offering an ideal opportunity to encourage self-respect, respect for others, positive teamwork and effective conflict resolution.

Increase summer job opportunities for teens

Mayor Brown said he will work with JAX Chamber to recruit more businesses to provide summer employment for teens, in cooperation with a career fair being organized by the Young Leaders Advisory Council. The goal is to provide more young people with the opportunity to gain real-world work experience in the private sector and to begin preparing for future careers.

Add neighbor accountability board in Arlington for first-time juvenile offenders

Mayor Brown said he will seek to increase the number of first-time nonviolent juvenile offenders able to participate in the Teen Court by adding a fourth Neighborhood Accountability Board site in Arlington – supplementing those already in operation at Ribault, on the Westside and in Mayport. Based on a restorative justice model, it holds juveniles accountable for misdemeanor offenses as an alternative to arrest, detention and a criminal record.

Establish evening reporting center for juvenile offenders

To reduce recidivism, Mayor Brown said he will work to establish an Evening Reporting Center as a constructive alternative to detention while providing needed services, supervision and support to help juvenile offenders get back on the right track. It also keeps them from being locked up with more serious juvenile offenders. The Center is being developed with the Department of Juvenile Justice, the State Attorney's Office and the Sheriff as partners.

Partner with faith-based leaders

Mayor Brown said the City will work with local pastors and other faith leaders with the goals of: 1) expanding faith-based mentoring to young people; 2) recruiting faith leaders to serve as "pastoral interrupters," on call to respond to crime scenes, hospitals or the homes of victims' families to counsel against retaliatory violence; and 3) coordinating with faith leaders to preach messages with a common theme during worship services, focusing on topics such as fatherhood, respect and breaking the silence that protects wrongdoers.

Organize neighborhood-based community empowerment days

Mayor Brown said the City will partner with private, nonprofit and faith-based organizations to coordinate half-day or full-day weekend events in high-crime neighborhoods, with the goal of connecting families with needed services. Beginning in February, the events will be hosted at participating apartment complexes – Caroline Arms, Cleveland Arms, Eureka Gardens, Hilltop Village, Roosevelt Gardens and Washington Heights, with more to be added.