EPIC Community Meeting Minutes 08-10-17

08-10-2017, 6:30 – 8:50

Phillips Park Cultural & Community Center, 2307 17th Ave S.

EPIC web address: eastphillips-epic.com

Office: 2536 18th Avenue S., Minneapolis, MN 55404

Phone: (612) -280-8418

Board Roster: Jenny Bjorgo, Rosie Cruz, Laura Dale, Mary Gonsior, Tom Harris, Cassandra Holmes, Linda Leonard, Carol Pass, Linda Vermillion.

Board Members Present: Rosie Cruz, Laura Dale, Mary Gonsior, Cassandra Holmes, Linda Leonard, Carol Pass, Linda Vermillion.

Board Members Not Present: Jenny Bjorgo, Tom Harris.

Members: Kathy Guimaraes, Carol-Hill Kennedy, George Kennedy, Maggie Thunder Hawk, Brad Pass, Andrew Sheard, Carol Thomas, Hannah Lieder, Halima Abdi, Steve Sandberg

Guests: Tom Hoch

 

6:30     Social Time/ Greetings and Introductions

6:50     Approval of Proposed August 10^th Agenda, as amended: We agreed to move up any items that need a motion to earlier in the agenda, once a quorum is present. LL, LD.

Approval of July13th General Membership Draft Minutes LL, KG, Approved.

Approval of June 8th General Membership Draft Minutes, LD, GK, Approved.

 

7:00     Announcements:

o    Highway closing: Construction has begun on Hwy 35W and will go on for 2 years. Working from the Tunnel south, the Franklin Ave. and Lake St bridges as well as 26^th and 28^th Street bridges will be impacted. You can sign up for a weekly email update on the construction. Detours for 35W include Hwy 100 and Hwy 62, Cedar bridge, Hiawatha, and Minnehaha.

o  Next EPIC Board Meeting, Saturday, September 9th, 10:00 am-noon, EPIC’s future office at 2433 Bloomington Ave. S.

o  Next EPIC Community Meeting, Thursday, September 14th, 6:30 - 8:45, East Phillips Park

o    Phillips Clean Sweep, Saturday, October 14^th starting at 9:00 AM with a free Breakfast at the Welna Hardware parking lot, then Clean the ‘Hood, followed by Free lunch and entertainment at Stewart Park

o    EPIC’s East Phillips Community 17^th Ave. Garden Fall Harvest Party on Saturday, October 21^st starting at 4:30 PM at the Garden. Party continues until the fire goes out.

7:10     Bylaw Revision Vote

MOTION: EPIC approves the new Bylaws for immediate use and thanks all the hard work of the Board members. MG, KG, Approved unanimously.

7:32   25^th Street Barrier, EPIC Board Motion, Community Meeting Outcomes. What next?

Discussed situation with the barrier on 25^th St, and two community meetings held at Open Arms, including a meeting last Tuesday. EPIC’s board passed a motion at their meeting earlier this month and presented copies to attendees at the Tuesday meeting.

There seems to have been a great deal of consensus from the community by the end of the meeting, with residents demanding that the city install a one way and Residents insist that the city provide a round-about on 17^th to help with traffic. If other neighborhoods can get a round-about paid for by the city, then EPIC’s neighborhood should be able to expect help with the round-about. The city presented the criteria for permit parking per the EPIC board motion, and there seemed to be consensus to ask the city to provide speed bumps/humps on 16^th Ave., both north and south of 25^th St., to slow down speeding vehicles trying to take a shortcut to SuperAmerica. Some residents wanted no stopping or parking on 25^th Street between Bloomington and 16^th Ave because police can’t ticket for “stopping”.

The board passed the following motion on August 5, 2017 and recommends to the GMM:

MOTION: For the purpose of traffic calming, crime control, and safety for cyclists and pedestrians, the city will install a ONE-WAY traveling WEST on 25^th St. between Bloomington Ave. S. and 16^th Ave. S, and provide free “permit-only parking” to residents as a pre-cursor to removing the barricade at Bloomington/16^th Ave. S. on 25^th St. and installing a round-about at 25^th St. and 17^th Ave. S. to assist the bikeway system and calm traffic as well as beautify the neighborhood. Moved by Cassie Holmes, 2^nd by Mary Gonsior, Passed unanimously. GMM Vote: BP, GK, Approved unanimously.

Note: discussion included possible modification, but no changes were made to the board’s motion.

Everyone should plan on attending the next meeting. It seems that the city has already made a lot of decisions before these meetings occur.

Notes: There is an overall problem with pedestrian safety. There are not enough stop signs, lights where needed, and not enough pedestrian crosswalks. There is too much traffic on all our streets, and not enough protection for pedestrians.

  

8:00     Roof Depot Site – Hiawatha Public Works Expansion, The situation.

Report on the meeting on Wed. at the Roof Depot, 6:30 pm. FILL IN DETAILS HERE.

There is a plan to increase the amount of pollution in a level #1 section, bringing it to a level #2 (out of 3, which is the worst.) This is the result of the high number of city trucks that will be using the facility.

SOMEONE WILL HAVE TO FILL IN THIS REPORT.

CS and CH reported that the meeting organizer did not respect the position and expertise of our State Rep. Karen Clark.

MOTION: EPIC authorizes the board to send a letter in SUPPORT OF THE EPNI VISION, GOALS AND CONTRIBUTIONS, AND TO express frustration at the failure of the city’s real engagement of the community, ignorance of the harm being imposed upon the community, and our opposition to the shocking, disrespectful treatment and the sexist, aggressive refusal by Bob Friddle at the GAC meeting on August 10, 2017 who refused to allow EPNI’s expert (State Representative Karen Clark) to speak ; we demand that an apology be sent to Rep. Clark, and we demand that the city require the resignation of Bob Friddle from this GAC project. CH, BP, Approved (1 opposed.)

NOT DISCUSSED:     29^th Street Improvement Project progress on the “Woonerf”. 

8:50     Adjournment