March 6, 2013 Meeting Minutes

Preservation Station, 6:30 pm, Bonnie Anderson presiding

Board Member Attendance:

Term ending August 2013		Term ending August 2014
Bloom, Greg	x	Anderson, Bonnie	x
Bromberg, Ryan		Arneson, Jesse
Elaine McGivern	x	Fink, Zoey	x
Carson, Ann	x	Gonzalez, Moisés	x
Forrester, Phoenix	x	Grant, Steve	x
Grassel, Kathy	x	Spittler, Lee	x
Thornton, Karla

Minutes from the February meeting were approved.  

Decisions:

Easter Egg Hunt—The annual hunt will be March 30 at Highland Park. Zoey Fink will deliver flyers door-to-door on the north side of Central. David Chamberlain will do the same on the south side. Bonnie Anderson and Kathy Grassel will clean the park. Lee Spittler and Steve Grant will hide eggs and keep order.

Fire Station—Our position has been to wait and see. We discussed being more proactive by encouraging creative development through an RFP. The RFP would be presented to the Metropolitan Redevelopment Agency to let to garner creative ideas. Bonnie said that the City would put out the RFP, with our input. We can also put in what we wouldn’t want. A question came up whether we would be obligated to grant an RFP if our criteria are not met. Steve said we wouldn’t have to accept it. Bonnie read a letter drafted by the EDo board, addressed to the mayor, advocating for a private/public arrangement that worked for Old Albuquerque High, the development of which added residents and businesses. Ann commented that she wouldn’t favor a “gated” community. Bonnie will draft a support letter to the mayor.

Central Avenue – Complete Streets Plan—The City has hired a company to make a plan for Central from Broadway to Washington. One proposal is in favor of Bus Rapid Transit getting a designated lane down the middle of the street. Alternatively, Central would have three lanes, with the center lane devoted to turning. In the plan, BRT would be in traffic lanes with bus turnouts. Moisés Gonzalez advocated for wider sidewalks, new trees, and 25-mph timed traffic lights. He says these improvements would succeed in slowing everything down, making it walkable, in essence redesigning the way we think about the street. Bonnie will write a letter with our ideas. The Complete Streets Plan is on the cabq.gov website with links to studies and results of street developments that have succeeded elsewhere.

Subway Drive-Thru—The owner got a continuance for another month. Both EDo and HH have written that a drive-thru would be injurious to the neighborhood because of traffic issues. City granted the continuance, despite a zoning law indicating the business lost its conditional use permit because it’s been vacant for one year or more. EDo plans to to hire a technical expert.

Information:

Tree Project—Greg Bloom informed the board of some new wrinkles in the original plan. To plant where initially designated would require cracking open the cement, making it more a public works project than tree planting, so the committee is looking at existing bulb-outs as an alternative. He will arrange a meeting with City. So far, the project has funding from County ($4,000), Huning Highlands ($500), and EDo ($500). Ann Carson, on behalf of TACA, the fiduciary agent, reported that she has received the $4,000. Elaine McGivern said the grant has time constraints that mandate spending the money before the fiscal year ends on June 30, which means planting before needed amenities are in place. David Day has stated that the trees need to be in the ground by April 15. Steve added that he wouldn’t favor planting trees without irrigation in place.

Newsletter—The newsletter needs to go out in advance of the Mother’s Day event on May 12.

Baptist Church—Ideas for the four city blocks comprising the vacant Baptist Church space continue to be developed. A $2 million bond is proposed to fund the development of a walkable urban area with a mix of homes, shops, and businesses intended to connect to the neighborhood.

Highland Park—Moisés reported that money is materializing for park renovation, one allocation for new equipment and one for re-surfacing the parking lot.

Grocery store—A bill is in the legislature that would allow small grocery stores to sell beer and wine with the proviso that New Mexico residents own the store, and that beer and wine is a minor component of what is sold. EDo is supporting the measure.

The meeting adjourned at 7:37. Next meeting is Wed., April 3.