February 14, 2009
Meeting Summary
East Eaton Wash Neighborhood Association
Preparation
E-mail reminder was sent. Phone
calls were made.
Acknowledgments
Attendees
12 members
Meeting
Agenda Items:
The meeting began at 11:19 am
- Park
- Planning for new pedestrian walkway
- Edison has approved a concept plan for a new pedestrian
walkway from
our neighborhood to the park. View
Drawing
- This pathway would enter from a new gate on Avocado Ave at
the
intersection with Las Lunas Street.
This is the area where the path was
originally planned before the Edison lines were ruled "too low" and the
current temporary path was created.
- However, unlike the original design with the path proceeding
directly west under
the
power lines to the park, the new path will turn north and proceed east
of
the lines to enter the park where the white vinyl fence currently
crosses to the eastern edge of the park. It will then head west
under the power lines to connect with the existing path on the eastern
side of the park.
- This configuration is also a "temporary" path, until Edison
might raise in the lines in a few years in conjunction with the work
they will be doing to add another circuit.
- The
chain link "buffer" fence that currently runs along the
eastern side of the park would be extended south from its current
terminus to provide the same "buffer" service to the additional
backyards the path would pass by.
- The path would be bounded on its western side by a new vinyl
fence similar to the current one.
- The path area between the vinyl and chain link fences would
be 10 feet wide.
- As the path heads west under the power lines it will be
bounded on the south by the current white vinyl fence and on the north
by a vinyl "split rail" fence. (Not sure why it needs to be
fenced on the north since the other park paths are not fenced.
Maybe just to reduce walking all over the "native" plants.)
- The path would be decomposed granite. This is the same
material as the other paths on the eastern side of the park and
originally used for the current temporary path. It has been noted
that unless this path is engineered a lot better, it will suffer the
same mud and washout rutting problems that make the current path(s)
unusable by wheelchairs and strollers and potentially dangerous for
others.
- The path gate is supposed to be locked from dusk to 7 am. (As
is the
current one, which may or may not be happening).
- There is apparently some landscaping intended but not clear
on where or what.
- A letter regarding this is being formulated. It is to
be sent out to our
neighborhood soon by Vice-Mayor Haderlein.
- Vice-mayor Haderlein, his field representative Rhonda Stone,
and city staff are aware of the concerns that with this shorter
pedestrian path park visitors will use our nearby streets for
parking, especially when the park is very busy. If this
becomes a problem they have promised to institute parking restrictions
as desired by the entrance neighbors. We are to get more
information about what the options are so residents near the entrance
can think about what will work best for them. The proposed ice
rink parking lot could take the pressure off, but that
is years away if it gets built.
- grapevine arbor and plaque
- Planning
is reportedly underway to replace the fence the grapevines are growing
on with an
"arbor". The new fence that was built to the south will remain as
the northern fence of the dog area.
- There
is also intention to put up a plaque to explain the symbolism
of the
grapevines and commemorate their ceremonial planting by members of
longtime
neighborhood
families
- Parking restrictions on Alameda near Sierra Madre Villa
- A petition is (was?) being circulated to remove the
longstanding limited time parking restrictions there.
- Status is unknown.
- Ice Rink update
- According to the agenda, the City Council met a couple weeks
ago in private for
discussion with staff about negotiations with the LA Kings / PIV
organization. Other then that there has been no publicly noted
activity.
- Rumor has it that some fiscal restraint may be seeping in and
some thought is going into alternatives to support the existing civic
center ice rink until the really poor financial climate improves.
- The public position remains that construction is to go
out
to bid with expectation of a much reduced cost from last year.
(No one mentions that
revenue projections probably also should be reduced.) After bids
are received and analyzed,
staff will make a recommendation to the City Council of what to
do. That could be to move forward by accepting the best
construction bid along with the design, a financing plan, management
contract, and access agreements. Or if staff just doesn't see
that it can work they could recommend rejecting bids and putting it on
hold. The last public time line expected this to happen in April,
but it seems more likely to be at least May.
- Solicitors warning
- The following message was distributed from the Vice Mayor's
office in January:
"About the solicitors, IMMEDIATELY contact PPD Dispatch at 744-4241
(the non-emergency number) so officers can come and check these folks
out. Oldest scam around. We have everything from guys
saying they are collecting for a PCC trip or magazine sales or they
were sent by a neighbor who suggests they buy magazines, you get the
drift. A lot of these folks are turned loose in the city by
people who import them from the Midwest, and no, they do not have a
license to solicit."
- East Colorado motels enforcement
- Gene Masuda of Eaton Blanche Neighborhood Assoc reports that
they have been using the Safe Streets Now program through Neighborhood
Connections to work on the prostitution, drugs, and other crimes
problem involving motel properties on East Colorado Blvd within the
city.
- He said they are now at the stage where demand letters are
being sent to the motel owners.
- Basically such letters say fix it or you will be sued.
- Hastings Branch Library 50th Birthday Celebration
- Hastings
Branch Library will be celebrating it's 50th birthday
and you are encouraged to join in. Mark your calendars.
- Saturday
February 21, 2009 starting at 1 pm and extending past 3 pm.
- Door prize raffle.
- City and library VIPs. Past and present Hastings
librarians.
- Musical performance by students of the Pasadena
Conservatory
of Music.
- Performance by Emmy Award winning children’s
singer-storyteller extraordinaire Dan Crow.
- Cake cutting and eating while balloon artists create balloon
sculptures.
- Open Space Festival Feb 28 in City Hall Courtyard 9:30 -
12:30
- to promote open space work, invite
public
participation, educate on open space issues
- there
is currently a volunteer committee working on a new "open space
element" of the city's general plan and this is one of their outreach
events to let people know what is happening and get feedback
- Annual election of officers at March meeting
- At our March 14 meeting we will have
our
annual election of officers. Everyone is encouraged to stop by
and vote even if you don't have time to stay. (The library is
hosting a Mexican cooking demonstration from 11 to noon that day.
You could partake of that too.)
- Once again soliciting volunteers to
run
for office. Officer positions are:
- President - chair membership meetings;
designate time
and place of meetings; officially represent the association to external
parties
- Vice President - support and act in place of President or
Secretary as needed
- Secretary - publicize meetings in advance;
record and
distribute meeting minutes; maintain contact list
- Treasurer - Keep the funds of the association safe. Receive
and disburse funds as approved by agreement of other officers. Maintain
a record
and regularly report to the membership on funds and donations received,
assets
held, expenditures, and any anticipated expenditures.
- Note that we've never taken in any "treasure" for the Treasurer
to keep. Individuals have just picked up the few expenses on
their own.
- We haven't had a Secretary in most years; your President has
been doing it with unofficial help.
- Should we consider creating
other positions
with specific limited duties that someone could take on without
feeling over committed? For example, a "member contact
coordinator" could take on a subset of the secretary's duties.
Such a position would work to develop new member contacts and
update the
list by following up on bounced e-mails, house sales, and
other change indicators. Members at the meeting didn't
provide direct feedback on this proposal.
- Annual newsletter distribution
- As agreed at our January meeting, the fourth annual newsletter
will be written soon and distributed in the next few weeks.
- As usual, this will contain the necessary notice to all
neighborhood residences of our annual election on March 14. What
other topics should be discussed? Ice rink, park ped path, ?
- Who volunteers to help distribute the newsletter?
Quite a few members at the meeting volunteered, but we can always
distribute the workload further. If you're willing, send a note.
- anything else attendees wish to discuss
- Is
Stonefire Grill still going in where Baker's Square was?
- Some
months ago it was announced that a fast & easy format restaurant
named Stonefire Grill would be moving in where Baker's Square used to
be on Rosemead Blvd (between Carl's Jr and Trader Joe's).
- Several
people have noted that the Stonefire Grill "coming soon" sign is no
longer visible. And there is a big "space available" sign facing
Rosemead.
- But
the sign is still there, it's just hidden by the construction fence.
- And
the Stonefire
Grill website
still shows a "Coming Soon" for the location.
- Would
quarterly rather then monthly meetings make more sense?
- A
member raised the question as to whether quarterly meetings would make
more sense then monthly. Perhaps it would reduce the burden on
everyone, including officers.
- Monthly meetings provide an avenue for regular communication
about issues that can move quite fast at times.
- Neighborhood
Associations that only hold quarterly or annual public membership
meetings typically have a board of directors or steering committee that
meets much more frequently, usually monthly. So there wouldn't be
a significant work load difference for officers. If you're going
to have a meeting anyway, might as well encourage anyone interested to
participate.
- The
Internet is great for communicating in a timely manner with those who
use it, but we have a significant number of members who are not on the
Internet.
- With
the monthly meetings it is expected that no one will make it to every
meeting. We've been tending to get a different subset of members
attending each meeting.
- Skateboarders
from PCC-CEC in summer menacing sidewalks
- A
member reports that during the summer months last year there was a gang
of young male skateboarders swarming the sidewalks of Foothill and
Sierra Madre Villa around noon. They apparently were coming from
classes at PCC-CEC. Seems to happen only in summer. They
force pedestrians off the sidewalks and feel quite menacing. Can
we be proactive to try to prevent this from occurring again this
summer? Perhaps PCC-CEC could take some measures? Maybe
could contact them through our councilman.
Next meeting is March 14, 2009.
Adjourned about 12 pm? (forgot to note)