Your homepage shows a Vermont flag ..... welcome to Texas? ;)
I live in Houston, and a couple of years ago we had problems in the vicinity with extra-patrol agreements some neighborhoods made with their precinct constables and commissioners.
There was a performance problem (the constables were just too thinly spread), and the local media did a big story about it.
My own neighborhood decided not to participate because of the expense (plus, it's a civic-club and not a homeowners' association), and felt vindicated afterward. We have a citizen patrol and a watch program as well.
Changed it to Texas.