Neighborhood Planning Council 1 - Post-Franklin

POST/FRANKLIN NEIGHBORHOOD PLANNING COUNCIL Thursday Apr 6, 2017 Chair Diana Quigg called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. at CA Board Room. Attendance: Members Present: Cindy Fritz, James Moreno, Diana Quigg, Yvonne Powell, John Cash, Linda Carmona and Pat Shellenberger. Members Excused: Katie Hubbard, William (Jon) Hazel, and La Mar Mingle Guest and Visitors: Craig Long BCPD, Dennis McKinley–Comm. Asset Mgr. BC, Lynn Ward-Gray–City Comm., Pam and Tanas Geleff, Cathie Chirbas, Nora Jackson-BCVision, Scott Cubberly-BCVision, Laura Otte-BCVision Additions and Deletions to the Agenda: None Approval of Minutes: Motion for approval of March Minutes was made by James and seconded by Cindy; with correction of date to March. Approved. Correspondence and Announcements: Cancellation of Zoning Board, it is moved to Apr. 10th Cancellation of Historical Board, it is moved to Apr. 11th. It was announced by Comm. Gray that the ordinance on Farm Animals and Feral Cats will be introduced at the May 2 Commission meeting. The second workshop to gather input from citizens, will be at the May 2 Commission Meeting. This caused quite a bit of discussion and discord. A motion was made stating that NPC#1 is NOT IN SUPPORT OF THE FARM ANIMAL AND FERAL CATS Ordinances. Yvonne made the motion and it was seconded by Linda. Approved by all. Committee and Staff Reports: Police: Officer Long newly assigned to the Post/Franklin area is on the afternoon shift. He stated that he has seen an increase of problems at River Oaks Apts. and will be monitoring the complex. There was a report of cars on Academy being broken into – he will keep an eye on that street. Remember, if you see activity in or around a vacant or abandon building, please call 911 and report it. A resident reported that Post Park has seen in uptick in criminal activity. If you see suspicious vehicles or activity in your neighborhood, call 911. Code: Dennis distributed the monthly report. He informed us that the Land Bank will be at the May meeting to discuss the Demo process for the summer. He also had a handout on the city’s Minor Home Repair Program to assists homeowners with limited financial ability and the city will cover one-half of the cost of a new roof up to $12,000. There are 15 grants available through this program. Contact Mat Flanders for more information 966-3315. The city is looking for Stories from the Neighborhood from residents. Share you positive stories, photos and short video with them. Why do you love and believe in Battle Creek? You can upload you stories/photos/videos to PublicInput@battlecreekmi.gov. All issues reported last month have been resolved. The following was reported: 17 E. Kingman Ave – Trash not picked up. – Thanks Dennis…it was picked up by Waste Mgt. on Friday. 95 Highway – Porch covered on front entranced and plywood on windows. – Dennis said that Tommy is aware of this house and will report more next month. Beautiful Battle Creek Award: None If you see a property that you feel deserves a BBC Award you may nominate that property, all that is required is the address. The council will then vote and the address is submitted to City Neighborhood Planning Office, who then proceed with the issuing of the Award. Note – once we submit the addresses the City takes control of the process and we have no say when an address will be awarded. If any member should have a question regarding an address that was submitted they need only ask and the inquiry will be made to the City and the outcome will be documented in the minutes. Membership: Vice Chair Jim Moreno welcomed our visitors that were past recipients of Beautiful Battle Creek Awards. He shared that we are seeking additional members and that if attendees were interested they should let us know. All are welcome at our meetings. Commissioner Comments: Lynn Ward-Gray reported that the commission will meet on Apr. 11th and Apr 18th due to Spring Break. She received the feedback on the City Mgr. Evaluation which will be discussed at the Apr. 12th mtg. Parks and Recreation is still looking for summer hires. Ages 16 and up need to apply at the Parks/Rec website. The Fire Hub-Fire Keepers Open House will be Apr 19th at the old fire Station on Kendell Street. The Youth Advisor Board is looking from applicants ages 14-20. Looking for students for Cultural Exchange Apr. 13. BC Vision will be hosting a job fair on May 4. Keeping You Informed topic for April will be on Hazmat Operations – it airs on Access Vision, Wednesday at 6 pm. On May 23rd from 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm a Town Hall will be about Housing with all the City Departments effecting housing will be present. Lynn also informed us that from feedback from her constituents in NPC#2 she will be voting No on the Urban Animals Ordinance. Battle Creek Public Schools: None Old Business: A dedication of the new Rescue Vehicle at Station 3 will be on Saturday, Apr 29th from 1 – 4 pm. Refreshments will be provided by NPC#1, Station 3 Preservation Committee, and Fire Fighters Local 335. Please let your friends and neighbors know. Let us show our support for our Station 3 and the dedicated crew. Diana talked about the Mini-Grant for a clean-up. She had discussed a tire pick-up, but the council proposed an alternative - a Sewer Drain Clean-Up day. This will be topic of new Business at our May meeting. New Business: Laura Otte with Nora Jackson and Scott Cubberly of BC Vision presented us an overview of BC Visions plans. There was then a Brain storming session with the NPC, which included the following:  Aspirations – Any Connections?  Interest in NPC#1 being involved?  What’s working well to engage Residents within NPC#1?  What is Challenging?  What types of tools or resources would be helpful to your efforts to engage residents and/or connect w/opportunities and resources?  What else would you like BC Vision to know about NPC#1? Throughout the BC Vision initiative the issue of workplace transportation, non-emergency medical transportation and transportation for basic needs has come up in the various action teams as an issue facing our community. In order to better understand the needs, they are asking that you take a few minutes to answer a brief survey. The survey can be reached by typing the following into your browser: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/BCVisiontransport Attached is a summary of the discussion Chief of Police Jim Blocker will be at the May meeting. Members Comments: NPC #1 is very much against the proposed AG Farm animals and feral cat initiative. City Animal Control can’t keep up with stray cats and dogs, adding additional burden is foolish. Animals suffer because of this. Public Comments: None. Adjournment: Meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m. Next Scheduled Meeting: May 4, 2017 at 7:00 p.m. in the CA Board Room. Respectfully Submitted by Cynthia Fritz, Recording Secretary