Walking down the street in Newark, you see tall healthy trees and well-kept houses in what has the feel of a positive and growing community. Newark is not the type of town that gives off an intimidating vibe.

However, overall crime has risen in this small town of roughly 45,000 people, up 17 percent from 2014 to 2015, according to Newark Police Commander Michael Carroll.

In a small town like Newark, a spike in crime does not go unnoticed.

Angela Akridge, a member of a Newark community watch program who regularly attends Newark City Council meetings, said that she considers it a quiet and safe town, but feels that the impact of population growth — from 42,643 in 2010 to 44,723 in 2014, according to the U.S. Census Bureau — and lack of free outdoor activities definitely contribute to the problem of crime in the city.

“I do like my neighborhood,” Akridge said. “Before my street’s neighborhood watch, my house was burglarized. Does that mean I live in a bad neighborhood? No, I might just live in a nice neighborhood worth burglarizing.

On that note, I don’t leave my windows open anymore.”

So what kind of crimes are happening exactly? Newark’s homicides, assaults and rapes are at an all time low, however crimes like robberies, stolen vehicles, burglaries and larceny are going up, according to Carroll. In 2013, there were 231 burglaries and in 2014 there were 248 burglaries, according to NeighborhoodScout.com, a national database.

“I look at shorter time frames for auto burglaries and auto thefts, which can be impacted by crime teams, which get active and commit lots of crimes in a short period of time,” Carroll said.

Carroll also said there has been no change to patrol staffing levels in recent years. Police are, however, working overtime to cover vacancies left by officers that are out due to injury.

There has been a recent reduction in specialized units, which include detectives, traffic cops, major crimes task force members and regional forensic computer examiners, among other positions, according to Carroll.

“The reduction in specialized units is solely due to the staffing issues we are having because of injured officers,” Carroll said.

The Newark Police Department’s budget for 2015-2016 is $15,917,300, which pays for a staff of one chief, two commanders, two lieutenants, eight sergeants, 43 police officers and 20 civilian full-time positions, according to the City of Newark’s website.

There are parts of Newark where crime is more “active” than other areas; the most crimes are reported at Newpark Mall. This doesn’t come as a surprise as there are more opportunities for shoplifting, auto thefts and burglaries, often being crimes of conveniences, according to Carroll.

Following Newpark Mall, the Safeway Marketplace Rosemont Shopping Center, along with Lido Faire, also report a higher amount crimes than the rest of the city.

The mall and marketplace are on opposing sides of the city and share borders with Fremont and Union City.

“All neighborhoods are problematic for different reasons,” said Akridge. “We have burglaries, just like any other city.”