Operation Cul-de-Sac (OCDS), which began in February 1990, was implemented in one of the highest Part I crime areas of the city. At the outset of the program, 60 officers worked voluntary overtime for 2 weeks in patrolling the project area on foot, bicycle, and horseback. The intent of this effort was to increase positive interpersonal contacts with residents. At the end of the initial 2-week period, the department permanently assigned six officers to the area to maintain and continue to build community relations. This team of officers worked with community groups, including a high school within the project area, to sponsor community picnics, graffiti clean-ups, and neighborhood watch programs. In a short time, residents began leaving their homes to interact with their neighbors on the streets and in the parks that were once controlled by gangs. Part I crimes decreased and have remained 20 percent lower than before the project began. The number of drive-by shootings dropped by more than 70 percent. An independent evaluation of the effectiveness of various types of police-citizen contacts found that expressions of helpfulness and understanding by the police toward residents were more important to the overall effectiveness of community policing than such factors as visual presence and frequency of contact.