Meeting Minutes from the October 11, 2005 SBNA Board Meeting

Meeting called to order at 7:00 pm by President, Mike Lovely.
Minutes of the Spring 2005 General Membership Meeting are available to read at /Neighborhood_Websites/Southwest_Neighborhood_Association/Coommunications/
Treasurers Report: $ 2,944.55 in Treasury.
Mrs. Santa Party, update and signup volunteer sheets on back table.

COMMITTEE UPDATES:

Median Committee, made presentation to city council, and decision was made to remove the “Astroturf”. A city wide survey was sent out, resulting in 700 returns, with 90% of replies stating that citizens desired “Living foliage and native rock in city medians”. The Median Committee will work with the city on landscaping and Xeriscaping medians.

Craft Fair, has been cancelled due to lack of interest. Call for volunteers to put one together for next year.

Metropolitan Planning Organization, (MPO), SBNA lobbied for a frontage road from Ponderosa Street, south to Baker Road.

Development Code, discuss Neighborhood Commercial, Convenience Commercial, and how it can affect our neighborhood. Also discussed RL and RS, and 4000 square foot lots. Encouraged members to write to city with their concerns. Code update is ongoing, more hearings in a few months.

Murphy Crossing, Preferred Alternative map on back wall, Q&A’s, City and ODOT studying road placement. Maybe 18 months before anything noticeable happens. Audience request for traffic volumes for this area. Directed to city.

Chamber of Commerce, Mike has been negotiating with Mike Schmidt, C of C CEO, for reduced rates for NA’s.

Save Our Skyline Forest, due to legislation sponsored by Rep. Chuck Burley, Community Forests can be created. Movement underway to purchase 31,000 acres of the Bull Creek Tree Farm, formerly owned by Crown Pacific. This is a major portion of Bend’s watershed, and past site of the Bridge Creek Fire. By converting this to a Community Forest, developers will not be able to create country estates in that area. A petition was on the back table and was signed by members present.

GUEST SPEAKER; Captain Mike Johnston, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, spoke on stable funding and two tax districts for the Sheriff’s Office. This was an informational presentation, showing the difference between the two different funding streams, along with the pros and cons, of each. A lot of questions and open discussion.

GUEST SPEAKER; Darcy McNamara, Facilitator for the Bend 2030 Visioning Process. A look at 25 years into Bend’s future. Not so much land use planning, but the character, looks, feel of what we want our city to look like. There will be a stakeholders and a citizen’s committee. Will be coordinated by a contract consultant. Hopefully, the resulting product will be reviewed and acted upon annually. Talk of other cities that have gone through this process. Questions and open discussions.

Other concerns - streetlights on Brookswood Blvd.; too close to pavement and wooden poles are not break-away. Request for crosswalks at Powers and Brookswood. ( Reminded of City remarks made at last Spring meeting, that by putting in crosswalks, children could assume they are safe).

Additional committee reports, Fund Raising, our fund raising letter, and donations, brought in $ 976.46. Thanks to all who contributed, this will help keep our association viable. We have started filling out the IRS forms to achieve our tax exempt status.

Notes taken by Rod Cathcart and typed by with additional information inserted by Mike Lovely and Dianne Crampton.