Lodi Improvement Committee

LODI IMPROVEMENT COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING MINUTES October 13, 2015 6:00 P.M. ROLL CALL BOARD STAFF PRESENT ABSENT Curt Juran (Chair) Maria Rosado (Vice-Chair) Joseph Wood, CDD Fran Forkas Rehana Zaman Kari Chadwick CDD Sunil Yadav I. MINUTES “September 8, 2015” MOTION/VOTE: The Minutes for the September 8, 2015 Regular Meeting are available for approval. Motion made by Member Forkas, Yadav seconded to approve the Minutes from the September 8, 2015 Regular meeting as written. The above motion carried by the following vote: Ayes: Chair Juran, Mr. Forkas and Mr. Yadav Noes: None Absent: Vice-Chair Rosado, Ms. Zaman II. ANNOUNCEMENTS/PRESENTATIONS A. The Committee on Homelessness will be holding monthly meetings on the first Thursday of each month, at 2:30 in the LPD Community Room. These are open meetings so the public is welcome to attend. Mr. Wood added that the Committee on Homelessness report was taken to the City Council and approved. III. AGENDA ITEMS A. Public Safety Issues Mr. Wood stated that Spanish-speaking Lodi Police Detective Elias Ambriz is present to provide information and answer questions from the Committee and the general public regarding gangs and other public safety issues in the community. Chair Juran invited Detective Ambriz to the podium to give a brief report. Detective Ambriz stated that gang violence is still on the decline with 2011 being the busiest year for gang activities. The activity is primarily concentrated on the east side of Lodi. Mr. Forkas asked if the decline could be attributed to any one thing that is being done. Detective Ambriz stated that the activity is cyclic from year to year. The cycle is from the older active members committing the crimes and going to jail and then there is a waiting period for the younger members of the Lodi Improvement Committee Regular Meeting Minutes Tuesday, October 13, 2015 Page 2 of 4 gang to become active. The summer months are always the busiest. The GRIP Grant has helped with toning down the activity. Chair Juran asked if there has been a decline in shooting incidents. Detective Ambriz stated that it is all a part of the cycle. Mr. Wood asked if there is any migration from gangs in Stockton. Detective Ambriz stated that there hasn’t been any noticeable Stockton gang activity in Lodi, but the gangs there do visit Lodi and the Lodi gangs visit Stockton. Mr. Wood asked if there are any funds left for gun buyback program. Detective Ambriz stated that he does not know, but can look into it. Mr. Wood stated that the young men and women that may be carrying for their own protection that come back from the trips to Mule Creek interested in turning in weapons and the buyback program would be a safe place for them to do that. Member Yadav asked about the rash of thefts at the AT&T store. Detective Ambriz stated that the problem is that the perpetrators are not known to Lodi Detectives, so they are not from this area. B. Follow up on Issues from Previous Meetings Follow up on Goals for 2015/16  Address Main Street Issues o Hearing that there are once again problems with the Golden Era, so we are pulling together information regarding police and fire calls for service at that location and will schedule a meeting with the property owner. Member Forkas asked who the owner of the property is now. Mr. Wood stated that he believes that the Wolstrom Family still owns the property.  Cherokee Lane o $75,000 allocated to first phase of ADA improvements along Cherokee Lane. Still waiting on Public Works info.  Habitat for Humanity o Currently reevaluating the feasibility of a project at this time. May have an opportunity on South School Street. Mr. Wood stated that Tokay Development has purchased a large parcel and plan to divide the property into five parcels. He is going to check with Habitat for Humanity to see if they would be interested in pursuing that location for a possible project.  Monitoring Alley Improvements o Waiting on word from Public Works as to what alley they will be working on next. Lodi Improvement Committee Regular Meeting Minutes Tuesday, October 13, 2015 Page 3 of 4  Eastside Afterschool Programs and Activities o Junior Giants Program – Program has concluded for 2015.  Community Improvement Award/Community Service Award o The property owners of the two properties awarded at the July meeting were notified and have finally responded. A presentation will be scheduled at the properties in the next week.  Gang Problem o Our Youth Outreach Worker Ruben Guardiola continues to work with youth at all high school and middle school campuses. o CDBG funds are being used for supportive services from some of our community-based organizations. One in particular, the Community Partnership for Families, is providing follow up with the at-risk youth that we take to the Juvenile Diversion Program (JDP) at Mule Creek State Prison. They are also starting to attend those JDP sessions with us so that they can establish a connection with the youth and get their commitment to participate in the follow up sessions every Monday. It is still early in the process but this is looking very promising as more and more youth are coming together to talk out issues and get support and assistance needed to address the issues that are pushing them toward gang activity Mr. Wood stated that there have been positive results from the program so far.  Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy Area o We are moving forward with further discussions with HUD-San Francisco for the establishment of a Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy Area (NRSA) that will allow us to focus more resources toward addressing poverty in a select Eastside neighborhood. o Along with that, our plan is to establish California Human Development as the community-based development organization (CBDO) that will help oversee and carry out the activities within the targeted neighborhood. th o The plan is still to use the LIC meeting on November 10 to conduct a public meeting to seek input on the issues to be addressed within the community and identify the neighborhoods to be included within the NRSA. Chair Juran stated that he would like to see more advertising for that meeting. Mr. Wood stated that there will be advertising in advance of the meeting. Community Gardens  No new information to share. Public Works Phone Numbers  Public Works has provided the following contact phone numbers to report water leaks, potholes, tree problems, etc.: