Historic South Park Inc. General Membership Meeting
Tuesday, January 28, 2020
Meeting Minutes
Call to Order and Welcome
Board Members Present: Mark Keller, Robert Spangler, Holly DiFlora, Tracy Kraft and Lisa Persons
Approval of minutes from November meeting – motioned and seconded. Motion passed.
Neighborhood Safety Updates
Prosecutor’s Office (Lynda Dodd):
- No report
You can contact Lynda at [email protected]
Committee Updates
Crime Prevention: No report
Housing: Mark said that some South Park neighbors have purchased the Daybreak facility on Wayne. It will be converted to apartments.
Social: Chili cook off will be February 16 from 2:00-4:00 at Hope Lutheran Church.
Block Captains: No report
Parks: Jill Davis reported that all of the Christmas decorations have been taken down and put into storage. The tree in the gazebo was knocked down by high winds. The gazebo also sustained damage. She said that we may have to do some fundraising this year to replace the roof. Lisa Persons asked Jill if we could get help from the city. Jill responded that she hasn’t approached the city yet. Mark added that we will explore those options. David Esrati put forward the idea of using recycled materials that look like slate or a metal roof.
Marketing: No report
Reports From the Board
Treasurer’s Report: Received a check for a little over $15,000 which was a grant for recycling containers.
Treasurer’s Report – September 1, 2019 – December 31, 2019
Opening balance ……………………………………………………………………………$11,277.29
Income September PPD……………………………………………………215.00
Shakespeare………………………………………………..……2,407.00
Membership dues………………………………………………..148.00
Hot Toddy party…………………………………………………..564.00
Interest…………..……………………………….…….…………………2.19
Total Income $3,136.19
Expense September PPD……………………………………………..….…263.13
Litter and recycling containers…………..……………..1,190.28
Shakespeare…………………………………………….………2,907.00
P.O. Box rental……………………………………………………..134.00
Landscaping………………………………………………………..473.95
Halloween…………………………………………………………..127.46
Recycling signage and literature………………………..…500.00
Hot Toddy party…………………………………………………..310.17
Bank fees…………………….…….…………….……………….………4.00
Total Expenses $5,909.99
Ending balance………………………………………………………………….…..…….…$8,703.49
Lisa: Membership has been dropping steadily over the last few years. Tracy proposed to the board that we hold a membership drive. All current members who bring a member to join, your membership is free. This is to encourage people to get to know their neighbors. We have a history of being very active, but we need to bring in new people. There will be work done this year to improve communication around the neighborhood outside of these meetings. There was a discussion about disseminating the newsletters this year as well as revamping the block captains. Block captains have historically been in charge of getting information to neighbors, particularly those without social media access.
Mark talked about the proposed development of houses on Buckeye Street. He met with the developers, but they did not share more than what was available in the paper. He said that they want to be transparent and would like our acceptance in the neighborhood. They hope to achieve the necessary zoning changes over the next few months. They are modular house builders based out of the Cincinnati area, so the ideas do not necessarily fit in a historic district. They eventually wish to come to a general membership meeting to present the project. The proposed development is between eight and ten homes. David shared a few remarks and opinions about the new housing development. There was a discussion about how to reconfigure the property to make it more suited for the development.
Announcements and Public Comment
The principal of Emerson Academy, Dr. Landon Brown, spoke for a few minutes about his work in turning around schools and improving their performance. He said that the leadership at Emerson is very strong and is like a family structure. He talked about some of the events that will be going on at the school and invited neighbors to get involved.
There was a motioned to adjourn and it was seconded. Motion passed.
Adjourned: 7:57 pm
Next Meeting: Tuesday, February 25, 2020, 7:00 pm, at Hope Lutheran Church