LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Thousands of people in Kentucky and Indiana use the Nextdoor neighborhood online portal every day to report and find out about issues in their community. Now the Louisville Metro Police Department is adding its voice to the site. 

It's the latest platform being used by LMPD, which has been posting updates about crime and arrests in the area on traditional social media sites like Facebook and Instagram for years. 

LMPD Sgt. Matt Sanders said using Nextdoor will allow that information to be available for even more users. 

"We learned there are 263,000 people in Jefferson County that have a Nextdoor account," he said. "They represent 788 neighborhoods in Louisville."

Sanders called it a "missed opportunity" for community outreach that's now being corrected. 

Under the directive of LMPD Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel, detective sergeants in each division now have administrator accounts on NextDoor. Those detectives will be able to update the public -- on a neighborhood by neighborhood basis -- about crime trends in their area, and which are most likely. Updates about how often crimes are being reported will also be available, along with information on which days of the weeks crimes are most likely to happen. 

"It's interpersonal," Sanders said. "There are crime websites that show crime data, but you're not getting that information from a named sergeant on LMPD. But now you are."

Louisville Metro Police on Next Door

Pictured: this screen grab shows the Nextdoor page for the Louisville Metro Police Department. 

Sanders said it's a way to bring attention to lesser crimes, like porch pirates or petty thefts.

"These type of quality of life issues are important to everybody and we understand that," Sanders said. "So it's important that LMPD has as many avenues to reach as many people as possible."

Sanders said the department has been active on the platform for about a month. He said so far, the response from the community has been positive, and he hopes more community members will be encouraged to join the site.

"The community, they're so thankful we're on there," Sanders said. "They're interacting with our sergeants and with our community, and they're giving us feedback and tips through Nextdoor, which helps us solve crime. It's a win-win for everybody."

Sanders said the department has been active on Nextdoor for about a month, and the response has been positive. 

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