Lodi Improvement Committee

LODI IMPROVEMENT COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING MINUTES May 10, 2016 6:00 P.M. ROLL CALL BOARD STAFF PRESENT ABSENT Curt Juran (Chair) Fran Forkas Joseph Wood, CDD Maria Rosado Rehana Zaman (Vice-Chair) Kari Chadwick, CDD Sunil Yadav I. MINUTES “April 12, 2016” MOTION/VOTE: The Lodi Improvement Committee, on the motion of Member Yadav, Rosado second approved the Minutes of April 12, 2016 as written. The above motion carried by the following vote: Ayes: Chair Juran, Ms. Rosado and Mr. Yadav Noes: None Absent: Mr. Forkas and Vice Chair Zaman II. ANNOUNCEMENTS/PRESENTATIONS A. Mr. Wood reported that a Peace Walk is being planned for Sunday, June 5th, 2016. The stated purpose of the walk is as follows: Lodi has long been a community of compassion. But no community is immune from our world’s rising culture of intolerance and even violence. The Lodi Peace Walk is an opportunity to reunite the ties that bind us as a community and celebrate the differences that give us strength. Together we can demonstrate our commitment to resist violence and intolerance of all kinds whether driven by gang rivalry, religious intolerance, cultural and racial intolerance, or bare avarice. Mr. Wood added that the Peace Walk will start at 2:00 pm in Veterans Plaza, located between City Hall and the Carnegie Forum, and will proceed east down Pine Street to Central Avenue. At Central, the Peace Walk will proceed south across Lodi Avenue to Poplar Street, where it will turn west and proceed to Blakely Park. Participants can join the Peace Walk at the beginning or at any point along the route as it proceeds to Blakely Park. At Blakely Park, at approximately 3:00 pm, there will be a Commitment to Peace with brief statements from community leaders. There will be cultural sharing and demonstrations  Lodi Improvement Committee Regular Meeting Minutes Tuesday, May 10, 2016 Page 2 of 5 (music, food, cricket, etc.), pick-up basketball and soccer games, and a music DJ. The event should conclude at 4:30 pm. Chair Juran asked if there was a cost associated with this event for the City. Mr. Wood stated that the City is a co-sponsor of this event, so there could be expenses that are picked up by them. III. AGENDA ITEMS A. Community Interest in Community Gardens Mr. Wood stated that this is a continuation of the discussion that took place at the April 12th meeting. No comments made. B. Follow up on Issues From Previous Meetings Follow up on Goals for 2015/16  Address Main Street Issues o Still trying to coordinate a meeting with the property owner.  Cherokee Lane o Public Works-Engineering has provided a revised scope of work and sites for the CDBG-funded ADA work on Cherokee Lane. There is a total of 8 site locations stretching from Railroad Avenue to just south of Vine Street, and a total of 14 improvements. The estimated project cost is $144,000. We expect to have this project ready to go to Council in May, out to bid in June, awarding contract in July and have work commence by August. o Public Works is going to look for additional funding to try and address the remaining Cherokee Lane ADA improvements in the next year.  Habitat for Humanity o We are still looking at finding a means of funding site acquisition for Habitat.  Monitoring Alley Improvements o The next phase of Alley Improvements has been bid and will likely be awarded at the June 1st Council Meeting. Chair Juran asked if there is a list of the alleys that were bid on. Mr. Wood stated that there is only the one alley and that is the alley that the Committee chose.  Eastside Afterschool Programs and Activities o Junior Giants Program – Registration for the 2016 season has been closed. We have 344 youth registered. However, we do have a shortage of coaches and team parents. With 22 Teams for this season, we only have 14 Coaches, 9 Assistant Coaches, and 10 Team Parents. The season opens the week of June 13th and will run through the week of August 1s. Lodi Improvement Committee Regular Meeting Minutes Tuesday, May 10, 2016 Page 3 of 5 Mr. Wood added that the program coordinator does not want a team to move forward if there is not at least one coach and a team parent.  Community Improvement Award/Community Service Award o No action.  Gang Problem/LodiGRIP o We are taking a small group of youth to Mule Creek on May 14th. o The at-risk youth that have been through Mule Creek and the follow up sessions with the Community Partnership for Families, organized and carried out a Handball Tournament at Twin Arbors on Saturday, May 7th. The event was a complete success and Twin Arbors has hinted that they would like to help them do it again. o Their next event is an Art at the Park project at Lodi Lake on May 25th. A local artist is looking to do a large canvas art project with the group, with the finished product being presented to the City for display. o We are always looking for “out of the ordinary” activities or even trips to take the group on to expand their horizons. We’re thinking of day hikes, a Yosemite trip, kayak trips, etc. If you have an interest in supporting or assisting these efforts, please contact us. Chair Juran asked how many people is estimated that would want to participate in a kayak trip. Mr. Wood stated that the group is 25 people strong.  Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy Area o We are continuing with the distribution of an Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) survey. We are meeting with the Lodi Chamber of Commerce who also has a desire to engage the community with an ABCD survey. o We expect to continue with this process through May, and then compile the data received and provide a report back to the community. Mr. Wood stated that through this process staff is concentrating on the assets that already exist in the community, so that those items can be enhanced. o From that point we will work with the community to identify what additional resources they need and will fashion that into the proposal for the Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy Area. o We plan on bringing that back to Council in September. Chair Juran asked for clarification that the area 45.02 is the area on the map that this program is focusing. Mr. Wood confirmed that to be true. Mr. Juran stated that there was an article that he read that stated that some type cleanup activities were happening in that area. A gentleman came forward to report that at the corner of Central and Lodi Ave there is a bunch of dumping of garbage. 359 East Lodi Avenue is a major problem. There are homeless camping out at the location and drug activity. He believes that Lodi Improvement Committee Regular Meeting Minutes Tuesday, May 10, 2016 Page 4 of 5 most of the items are infested with bugs. He is also afraid for his wife’s safety. Mr. Juran stated that if the material is dumped in the public right of way the Public Works Department can be called to pick it up. A gentleman came forward to concur with the previous speaker. He has contacted Public Works everyday regarding the condition of the alleys from Lodi Avenue to Lockeford Street. The drug problems and homelessness are getting completely out of hand in this area. The Police Department has not been able to make a difference with the drug activity. He invited everyone to drive through the east side alleys and see the problems. Rebecca Vickery asked about the surveys that have been mentioned regarding the NRSA and would like to have some for the church. Mr. Wood stated that staff will get in contact with her and get her some surveys. Member Rosado stated that the Spanish community have expressed the same concerns and are given the information in a format that they can understand. She stated her appreciation for the people that are in attendance. Concerned Citizen stated that he would like to see something getting done instead of a bunch of people stating their understanding of the concerns that have been expressed by the people living there. Chair Juran stated that he would like to see representatives from the Police and Public Works Departments invited to the June meeting and have this discussion again. Member Yadav asked how many of the neighbors would be willing to attend a City Council meeting. The Citizens stated that they could try, but the problem is there is a language barrier. Mr. Yadav stated that it helps to have the members of the public in attendance. The citizens are very concerned and feel they are being ignored. Mr. Wood stated that one of the problems for police is they will be on their way to another call when they are passing these problem areas and then can’t make it back before the problem people are gone. The Citizens stated that there is too much going on for one person to handle. Mr. Wood stated that the hiring of additional staff is an item that needs to be heard by the City Council. Comments by the Public  None Comments by the Committee  Ms. Rosado stated her pleasure at see the Lodi GRIP members doing a presentation at the City Council and has invited them to attend a California Human Development