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city who are interested in finding anon-visible public phone for illegal activities. Given this experience with the public phone, it was felt that as desirable as the phone is, it became a greater liability than an asset to the area. The public phone was removed last fall. The negative activity immediately subsided. This was probably due to the removal of the public phone as well as the on-set of winter. Although an unusually mild winter, like this one, could still generate incidents. Having an officer patrol the park more frequently may alleviate some of these behaviors. And, if inappropriate and illegal behavior becomes a chronic problem, the police department will stake the park out for awhile. However, an officer cannot be stationed at the park at all times. Alternative telephone access. The proximity of Curtiss Field to residential homes makes it important to maintain a secure atmosphere in the area. The closeness of the homes also provides park users with a place to run in an emergency. Although it is not as convenient nor as accessible as a public phone, they are. nearby and can be turned to for help. There are many large urban parks, like Central Park in Roseville or Como Park in St. Paul, that do not have public telephones located within easy reach for all park users. To partially compensate for the loss of the public phone, staff felt that there should be a phone available at the park, particularly during the ice skating season. A telephone was installed in the shelter and is available when the shelter is staffed. However, this is available for limited hours and not during regular daytime park hours during the winter. Experience in other communities. The use of public phones is not a unique issue to Falcon Heights. Many communities are struggling to balance the need to permit publicly accessible telephone services for citizens against the threats to security. Neighboring St. Paul recently adopted an ordinance that allows the city to require removal of public phones from private property when the phones threaten to the public health and safety of the surrounding neighborhood. St. Louis Park considered removing public phones because of problems associated with them. Conclusion and alternatives. Clearly, there is no easy solution when it comes to - balancing safety between a readily available public phone for emergencies and minimizing vandalism, inappropriate and illegal behavior in the park and surrounding neighborhood. When the commission considers this issue, the following alternatives may be useful. 1. Do not replace the public phone in the park. Assume that people will respond to emergencies in the park by running to a neighbor's home like they do in emergencies that occur in other locations when there is no public phone available.