Neighborhood Planning Council 11 - Lakeview east

Meeting Minutes Minges Brook/Riverside Neighborhood Planning Council (NPC) #11 Riverside Elementary School Library 650 Riverside Drive Battle Creek, MI 49015 Wednesday April 22, 2015 1. 7:00 PM – Welcome and opening – Randall Champlin 2. Attendance sheet: Jan Barry, Randall Champlin, Talia Champlin, Frank Egland, John Godfrey, Dave Hawks, Laura Herzing, Norma Mayo, City Reps: Jeanette Cook and Darren Campbell, Battle Creek Police Department Reps: Officers Ben Clark and Tom Rivera, Sft. Brad Palmer, County Commissioner Jim Haadsma, City Commissioner Mike Sherzer, John Schwark, Barbara Schwark, Kaciana Champlin, Susan Anderson, Kara Werner – Habitat for Humanity, Linda Freybler – Calhoun County Visitors Bureau 3. Additions or deletions to this agenda: None 4. Approval of February and March meeting minutes. John Schwark moved to approve and John Godfrey supported the motion. Motion passed unanimously. 5. Correspondence sent/received  The city invites all residents to participate in its ongoing National Citizen Survey http://www.n-r- c.com/survey/battlecreekcitizensurvey.htm  Willard Beach, the city’s Goguac Lake access at Willard Beach Park, will not open this year until early July  5/2—Household hazardous waste collection, 10 a.m. to noon, Toeller Building, 190 E. Michigan Ave.  5/4 to 5/8—Spring cleanup, curbside 6. City staff reports: City staff reports and Commissioner Comments:  City Commissioners’ report: Commissioner Sherzer reported that the commission has voted on a process for evaluating the City Manager, providing clear objectives to evaluate the manager’s performance. The commission also changed the public comment sections of the commission meeting. A presentation on newly proposed police station was in the newspaper today. No final decisions have been made, but the site across from the current police station is a prime candidate based on its access to the jail, the highways, and several of our neighborhoods. Questions about the cost - $15 - $18 million – will be studied, and public input will be considered. A comment was made that additional parking for City Hall would be nice. Coming up on May 8, at the city offices on South Airport Road, 8:30am – noon, will be a meeting to finalize city goals and benchmarks. Commissioners and department heads will be in attendance. On May 12, a budget workshop will be held at the City Public Works Building. Members of the public are invited to both meetings.  County Commissioners’ reports: Commissioner Jim Haadsma – At the last County Commission meeting, Christine Schauer from the Treasurer’s Office reported 100 less tax foreclosures in 2015 than 2014. County real property values are up 2% from last year. Jeff Albaugh of  the Circuit Court System is leading the development of an on-line Jury Development program. Electronics and Styrofoam Collection with City of Battle Creek: City of Battle Creek Department of Public Works 150 S. Kendall St., Battle Creek, MI Date: Saturday, May 16, 2015 Time: 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM Items accepted: Styrofoam #6, computers, computer equipment, laptops, LCD monitors, CRT monitors, printers, wires and cords, computer peripherals, copy/fax machines, audio visual equipment, plasma televisions, LCD televisions, tube televisions, game consoles, stereo equipment, lamps, small kitchen appliances and electronics, car batteries, batteries, and other items with a cord.  Police Department Report: Officer Clark handed out the Index Crime report and reported the volume of serious crimes appeared lower than last month. A question was posed about the shooting in the Arbors, which currently is being treated as an accident. Officer Rivera gave an update on the Traffic Enforcement Unit. He worked in traffic enforcement from 1998-2001, and has been assigned to the newly-formed unit. Their goal is to protect life and property, to stop crime, and to educate the public. If there is a problem, please make a request for enforcement. Police prefer to talk to the complainant directly so they can choose enforcement behaviors that directly address the concern. There was discussion on the increased speed limit on Columbia and concern over increased accidents as a result. Sergeant Palmer thanked attendees for our commitment in attending this meeting, and asked us to continue building our membership because input to the police department is valuable. He offered a 4-hour ride-along to allow people to see how Battle Creek police work. A question was posed about whether the cars have bullet-proof glass, and whether we would wear bullet-proof vests.  City Representative Report: Jeanette Cook stated that current priorities are scanning the neighborhoods for junk and violations. She brought a sheet and asked if there were any specific complaints on which she should follow up. Marcie Gillette has been named the new Community Service Director. Darren Campbell gave an update on which roads in our neighborhood would be treated this coming season: Fairway, Fuller, Country Club Blvd, Frances Place for resurfacing and Edgehill Place for chip sealing. Road work should begin in early July. He brought maps showing one- and five-year plans for road resurfacing. Press releases and door hangers will alert residents as their construction draws near. Call 269-966-3343 to report potholes. 7. Committee reports:  Beautiful Battle Creek Award Nominations –. Dave Hawks – No report  Neighborhoods and Land Use – John Godfrey – The Planning Commission Meeting this month was cancelled, but a written notification alerted members that the Pizza Hut on  Beckley would be torn down and a new Pizza Hut with a Moe’s Southwest Grill will be built on that site. CVS is still projecting a new store at Capital and Columbia.  NPC 11 Programs – Nola Baker – Doing a great job getting interesting presentations for our meetings. 8. Old business: NPC Officer Nominating Committee – Jan Barry, Dave Hawks, and Rudy Barda met, but Rudy was expected to give the report and could not attend. We believe the nominees will be the usual suspects. 9. New business: April Program: Linda Freybler – CEO of the Calhoun County Visitors Bureau. Ms. Freybler is responsible for the direction, management and policy oversight of the Calhoun County Visitors Bureau. The organization is funded by a 5% accommodations tax paid by those staying in overnight lodging in the county. Focus activities include amateur sports, events at McCamly, and partnering with fair. Our economy is enhanced when people from outside the county come and stay overnight, since overnighters spend more money than day-trippers. Visitors come from all over Michigan and the Midwest to attend our sports events. In 2014 – tourism generated over $100,000,000 in economic value. Two new hotels are going in behind Menards, included an extended stay facility. County has over 2000 hotel rooms, including the casino, and were about 50% utilized over the last year. The organization has a Visitor Center, an ad campaign, and a website updated twice each day with news on what is going on in the county. Print resources are available, including a calendar of events, coupons and brochures about things going on in the area. The Center has souvenirs for the Battle Creek TV show. We now have three Bike Share stations and the goal is to have as many as 20 around the city. An exciting upcoming event is the Fantasy Forest competition at Leila Arboretum – week-long festival to re-purpose the bases of 16 diseased ash trees into art objects. June 14 -21. The community will judging for one of the awards. A Back to the Bricks Car Tour has been added to the end of the Cereal Festival Parade. CCVB’s website address is www.BattleCreekVisitors.org. A question was posed on why we have lost some wrestling, baseball, softball and volleyball tournaments. The Visitors Bureau had been underwriting the costs for these tournaments, but MSU and CMU had competitive advantages and wanted the tournaments in order to get students on their campuses. A suggestion was made to emphasize Fort Custer’s mountain biking as an area asset.  Update on Habitat for Humanity from Kara Werner - Acting Executive Director – Habitat has moved their RESTORE to 595 North Avenue and continue to provide large-item donation pickup; Hours are Tues – Sat 10-6. The new Habitat office is located in the old Women’s League Building at 286 Capital Ave NE and has been refurbished. Their Home Ownership Program targets qualified families whose commitment of 500 hours of sweat equity helps them purchase a Habitat home. The organization has expanded their Critical Home Repair Program, with some additional funding for seniors. They also have a wheel chair ramp installation program in partnership with other area organizations. You can help Habitat by volunteering, donating to the RESTORE and/or shopping at the RESTORE, giving money, and keeping them in your  prayers. They continue to be an agency that gives a Hand Up, not a Hand Out. If someone is tearing down to build new, the de-construction team will salvage for the RESTORE. A discussion on how to get rid of old TV’s: take to the Toeller Building on May 2. A question about whether Habitat helps the city with securing vacant and abandoned properties. A comment was made on working with the Land Bank to refurbish donated properties. The new RESTORE has dormitories for week-long visits from volunteers across the country. John Godfrey reported that amazing young people volunteer their time to improve our city. 10. Public comments: None 11. Members’ comments: SNAP Preschool has a fund-raiser at the Art Center on April 24 from 5-9pm. BCPS is thinking about closing Coburn School and this leaves a large segment of the city left without any community anchor institutions, which may accelerate deterioration of this area. 12. Next meeting: 7:00PM Wednesday, May 27th, at Riverside Elementary School Library.  Program: Kara E. Beer President Battle Creek Area Chamber of Commerce 13. Adjournment - 8:35PM