Thursday, March 3, 2016

WECAN March 2016 Board Meeting Minutes • Draft


WECAN Board Meeting March 3, 2016
Board Members present: Jessie Nell Coleman, Joe Fioccola, AnnaBeth Hardcastle, Rebecca Lance, Rachel Larson and Suzanne Willis.. Members not present: Byron Ballard, Tom Gibson, Mike Kenton, Yuri Koslen,  Floree Lowery, Luke Perry,  JoAnn Skinner and  Pattiy Torno. Also present: Lee Lance, Charlie Lance, CRO Lucas Lovelace and Marsha Stickford. Rachel called the meeting to order at 6:27 pm
MINUTES: Minutes of February meeting were approved as distributed.
 TREASURER'S REPORT: AnnaBeth reported a balance of$645.72 and raised the issue of changing banks since the new fee for getting a paper statement is now $3.50. She volunteered to get an electronic statement. She will also take care of the newsletter reimbursement.
 APD/CRO UPDATE: Lucas reported that there were no car or home break-ins reported this month. There was a traffic accident mid-month that briefly knocked out power. Another report concerned someone who was picking up feral cats and having them spayed or neutered and then returning them but getting their traps stolen. Graffiti was reported at 87 Roberts St and on Riverside Drive and Pattiy called in suspicious characters which turned out to be police officers looking for graffiti taggers. Lucas also reported a sanctioned mural project on May 22 and 23 at Asheville Waste Paper and the building owner at 339 Old Lyman (behind Riverview Station) has been granted permission by the city graffiti team on a trial basis to establish a ‘free wall’ but only during the day and with permission.
 BLOCK JESSIES: AnnaBeth asked about what can be done to get construction contractors to remove materials from the roadway on Jefferson Drive.  The temporary inconvenience of staging is understood but here it is ongoing for extended periods. She will take a picture and email Marsha to determine if they are illegally blocking the road and then decide if a letter from WECAN is useful. Also at the turnaround on Jefferson a lot of silt and mud washed down from the two construction sites spilling over from the silt fences. Joe asked why all the trees in Aston Park are being cut down. Marsha suggested it might be that older trees may be diseased and can be a liability.  Suzanne was asked about a vacant lot with a creek and sewer lines next to her house on Rector Street that someone was asking about putting in a tiny house. Even though WLOS reported the city considering changing minimum lot sizes for smaller houses Marsha noted that currently prohibited are houses on wheels, less than 500 sf and those not meeting setback rules. She also noted that the planning department was very busy working on accessory dwelling unit rules and the comprehensive plan but questions emailed to her will get answers from planners. Suzanne also reported that Rector Street was being used by speeding cars as a cut through to Hilliard. She asked about Pace Cars in the Charlotte St area and speed bumps which may not qualify if there are less than 1,000 cars per day. Marsha suggested bringing the traffic engineer to look at the situation. She noted that Pace Car was a pilot program where neighbors took the lead and pledged to drive the speed limit. It starts with a speed study to gauge the extent of the problem and Pace Car may be rolled out to other parts of the city. Marsha also announced a new system for citizen alerts called Everbridge.  It is used mostly for water outages and police and fire but may eventually be used for road closures like the recent MSD Hilliard closure. Rebecca reported a problem of not being able to see the traffic light and only the crosswalk signal at Hilliard and Clingman and that one of the pedestrian crossings was not working.(SW corner) Marsha suggested a neighborhood walk through with city department heads may be in order. It was suggested to wait for New Belgium to open and then see how traffic will be affected. Marsha reported that NBB was working with Google Maps to direct drivers to use Haywood Road. Rebecca asked about trash and brush on city property on Jefferson. Marsha noted that Sanitation does not pick up construction debris which should be removed by the property owner.  Rebecca will send her a picture. Rebecca also reported a problem with water pressure. She was encouraged to contact the water department to check the pressure to the meter.
RAD FORM BASED CODE: Marsha announced there will be a meeting on April 7 at 6:30 pm (Place TBA).(Which conflicts with the next WECAN Board meeting).  Rachel will ask Sasha to come to the May 5 WECAN Board meeting.
PLACE-MAKING IN RADTIP: Rachel reported that the meeting was looking for placement ideas and then artists would create installations. She is looking for a place to re-use the Ice House Doors. Joe was not impressed with the meeting. It seemed like obligatory public input –like Livingston Street: required but not really wanting ideas.
 EQUITABLE DEVELOPMENT: Rachel advised that the report was on line but no one had read it.
WHITEWATER PARK/PERMANENT SOUND STAGE: Rachel asked about a rumor she heard that New Belgium was funding a permanent stage for River Music. Marsha assured us that no plans have been received and that Stephanie Monson Dahl could provide more information at the salons. 
NEIGHBORHOOD ADVISRY COMMITTEE: CENTRAL AREA MEETING: Joe announced that the central meeting was set for Monday March 21 from 7-9 pm at Public Works. WECAN should send a delegation and report on what we have done, what we need, what problems we may face, etc.
MEEHAN MAINTENANCE FACILITY: Joe reported that Planning and Zoning had approved the rezoning request for the Meehan Maintenance facility to Central Business District with 40 affordable units,(maximum of 80% of median income), maximum rent at 30% of income.  Next it goes to City Council for approval and Request for Proposals later this month.
I-26:  Joe heard recently that some funding was approved for I-40E to I-26E at malfunction Junction. Marsha explained that the construction company was not paying workers and so they stopped working and a new crew was being found.  Rachel was told that a six lane alternative for the I-240 section through West Asheville would have little impact compared with 8 lanes.
WECAN COMMUNITY GARDEN: Marsha met with city officials and they said rain barrels at the transit building would not be allowed due to liability issues having to cross the driveway. Regarding planting along the driveway it would (for the same reason) be allowed on the east side but not the west side. However non-edible perennial pollinators may be allowed where the transit sign is. Marsha suggested contacting Asheville GreenWorks and Bee City for help with pollinators. 
WECAN GARDEN CLUB:  We received a request to partner and plant serviceberries in the Clingman Circle.  Marsha noted there is a need to develop a process for planting on rights of way with approved plant lists and appropriateness and it is moving ahead but slowly. The area between Grey Eagle and the Circle is currently maintained by the RADBA and the city has not budgeted for maintaining medians except for Broadway. The club is still working on a new list. Rebecca heard from Meg about Bee Houses for pollinators but non-honey bees. AnnaBeth asked if the city could ban stores from selling neonicitinoid pesticides to protect bees. She will call Phyllis Stiles for more information.
PLAN ON A PAGE: Marsha announced that the due date has moved to July 1. She will do a blog post and organize a clinic to answer questions.
GOALS/PLAN FOR 2016: Rachel wants to brainstorm outside the monthly WECAN meetings about establishing a welcome wagon packet of info with coupons for local businesses and how to be involved with WECAN with Block Jessies.
Meeting adjourned at 8:17 pm Minutes submitted by Joe Fioccola

WECAN Board Meeting Minutes 4January 2024