Human Relations Commission

MINUTES CITY OF DEKALB Human Relations Commission September 4, 2018 The Human Relations Committee (HRC) held a Meeting on September 4, 2018 in the Executive Conference Room at City Hall. Chair Larry Apperson called the meeting to order at 6:35 p.m. A. ROLL CALL The following members of the HRC were present: Larry Apperson (Chair), Lisa King, Maurice Bailey, David Barrow, Norden Gilbert. Members absent at roll call were: Joe Gastiger, Robert Williams. The following City staff members were present: Management Analyst Aaron Stevens. Notes were taken by Analyst Stevens. B. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA – ADDITIONS / DELETIONS The agenda was approved. C. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION No public participation occurred. D. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes from the Aug 7, 2018 meeting were approved. E. OLD BUSINESS 1. Motion to approve support for the Illinois Department of Human Rights Equality and Fairness Campaign This item was carried forward from the August 7th meeting where Management Intern Walker Steinke presented the Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR) Equality and Fairness Campaign to the HRC. The HRC motioned to approve support of the City’s participation in the IDHR Equality and Fairness Campaign. The motion was made by Norden Gilbert and seconded by Lisa King. All members were in favor, and the motion passed. 2. AGN Revitalization Plan Update and Review HRC members took turns asking questions about the AGN Revitalization Draft Plan and process and provided the following recommendations during the discussion:  Correct miswording of Randall Road to Russell Road. Human Relations Commission Meeting Minutes September 4, 2018 Page 2 of 3  Provide clarity on what types of redevelopment are desired for each of the “focus areas”.  Provide clarity of what actions/procedures “evaluation” includes in the “evaluation of 912 Edgebrook project”.  Transit services improvement project should be moved to year 1 or towards the beginning of the order and provide some detail of what changes have already been implemented.  If funding will be sought through the DeKalb County Community Foundation or other providers, grant deadlines should be considered in prioritization level of associated projects such as safety enhancements.  Add direction to the “Big 8 project list” by listing projects in the recommended order for prioritization and implementation. Remove the current timeline that is overly broad and/or add specificity to timeline range in addition to ordered list of projects.  Ask Camiros to include explanation of how and why certain projects were selected for the “Big 8” list.  Add the need for a grocery store/access to fresh and healthy foods to plan and include within a project description for a redevelopment focus area.  Consult Kishwaukee College Occupational dean, faculty and Occupational Advisory Committees to assist in determining area training programs and employer needs for employees; and collaborate with the Kishwaukee Career Planning and Placement Office to determine location of satellite presence in AGN area. Such consultation to determine any Kishwaukee College personnel to list of potential partners for project B4 (Inventory Workforce Training Programs).  Add 4C Community Coordinated Childcare and NIU Campus Childcare to potential partner list for B5 (Daycare Services). In addition to the discussion of recommended modifications above, other feedback received from the HRC is below: Commissioner Lisa King suggested that the City evaluate the service calls that the NIU Police Department is currently responding to within the City’s jurisdiction that DeKalb Police could be handling. King also suggested the City work with other agencies including NIU to determine what resources could readily be shared and leveraged for AGN projects without the need for funding. King stated that there may be negative consequences of adding security cameras in public places in the AGN neighborhood or areas of the community that have a large percentage of minorities compared to other sections of the City where the majority is Caucasian. King suggested looking into other possibilities such as the blue panic street boxes or the box camera systems used in Chicago.  Human Relations Commission Meeting Minutes September 4, 2018 Page 3 of 3 King suggested looking further into CO-OP (cooperatives) and collective arrangements for healthy food establishments. Commissioner Barrow suggested using the “Big 8” or “Core Transformational” project list as the marketing tool that will be used to sell what the key projects are for revitalization of the AGN area. Barrow suggested using the phrase “the last best story wins” for ensuring that the plan will effectively convey the projects with the potential to bring about true change. Commissioner Bailey suggested that the timeline used for the “Big 8” projects is much too broad and would not be effective for driving projects forward in a reasonable timeframe. The HRC collectively agreed to this and motioned that the timeline be replaced with a more direct order of projects. Motion was made by Commissioner Norden Gilbert and seconded by Bailey. All members were in favor and the motion passed. Chair Apperson stated that the NIU Nursing School and Kishwaukee College nursing program have both participated in community programs before and could potentially be involved in providing health services to the AGN neighborhood. Apperson stated that he would like the Mayor, the Task Force, and others who have been involved with development of the AGN plan know that the HRC values the work that has been done and sincerely appreciates their dedication to the AGN plan process. 3. Motion for recommendations to the Mayor regarding the AGN Revitalization Plan. The HRC made a motion to recommend the items listed above be brought forward for further review by the AGN Task Force. The HRC further recommends that if the Task Force agrees, these changes be made to the AGN Revitalization Plan. This motion was made by Larry Apperson and seconded by Maurice Bailey. All members were in favor, and the motion passed. F. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at: 8:06 p.m. _______________________________________ AARON STEVENS, Management Analyst Minutes approved by the Human Relations Commission on: October 2, 2018.