June 19, 2014 SWONA meeting
06/27/2014 13:27
June 19, 2014
SWONA Quarterly Meeting Minutes
Bethany W.(President) opened meeting at 7pm
Introductions:
Approximately 25 members in attendance
Theme for introductions: What is the most distinctive or favorite plant in your yard?
Smoke trees, Japanese Maples, rhodies, lilies, roses, sweet peas, trilliums and a myriad of others were mentioned.
Secretary-Janis R.-Minutes approved from last meeting with no changes
Treasurers Report-Ann V. Balance of $1,127 including two new dues paid tonight
Passed around list of members that paid and asked attendees to verify their status and make corrections as needed
Phil Cornell (Vice President)-request for funding to pay for mail box instead of using the treasurer’s personal mailbox, Cost is $80 for twelve months with two keys, request to move the motion, Ann V. moves to purchase an annual PO Box at Cooper Point, motion passed, Ann and Phil will coordinate this project. The benefit will be that we don’t have to change mailing address every time there is a new treasurer (addendum: Mailbox has been purchased for SWONA post meeting, address: PO Box 12672, Olympia WA 98502)
SWONA Newsletter printed by the city, neighbors distributed the 103 copies to paid members and to others randomly
Discussion about Grant regarding pathways and trails with the city: Phil wrote the grant request-Neighborhood Pathways Program Grant-end of Decatur through the auto-mall-neglected area. He needs to go to the Bike/Pedestrian Committee to see if we are the final four-If we make the cut, the City will award the project in November, Phil is asking for help from members to come up with some details regarding the path improvements regarding lighting, plantings etc. Comments:
Once we find out about the final four, we could then get input from neighbors
If we don’t get the final four cut, would like to see SWONA pay for this upgrading
Olympia’s Joy Avenue pathway in another neighborhood just got funding to plant 200 nut trees
If we get this path along Decatur “upgraded” as a Bike/Pedestrian pathway, we can maybe slow down the City’s desire to open up Decatur to through traffic (see comp plan)
Dept. of Health grant in the past did a walking study and results of that study created our neighborhood walking path
One of those sites is the Poetry Post at the end of Decatur and has been neglected in the past few years, would like to see the revitalization of that area, maybe create a work party
Can anyone take the lead on the poetry post project? Beverly agreed to take on the task of coordinating helping out the site. Could use SWONA email and Next-door website for recruiting.
Is it possible to get some bike commuters involved as they use this trail also? Previous data collection included talking to the bikers to find out where they are coming from and going to.
Addendum post meeting: per Phil-WE HAVE BEEN APPROVED!!! Now the real work starts. We need to get busy and come up with a detailed proposal
Meeting of the Bike/Ped 6:15 to 8:15 on June 25th at City Hall.
Discussion about Decatur Street-last meeting members voted to send a letter to the City to remove opening Decatur from the Comp Plan. Bethany sent the letter to the City to take out the two openings from the Comp Plan (Decatur and 16th) 5 council members agreed not to open these two roads due to neighborhood concerns about safety, previous studies, Phil is composing a 2nd letter to the city and will send to Board to review
July 22nd City Council will be hearing this issue and it would be great to have neighbors there, one member did want the road open as much more convenient for her, neighbors understand that but the negative affects seem much more detrimental to the neighborhood
Discussion on the 9th and Fern project, City approved 135 dwellings where Tuscan Village, Developer is putting in pavement and a rumble strip on the east side of Fern
Proposal to work on the 9th and Fern Street Corner-can we hire a person to help keep the weeding under control for this summer, would like to offer $600 for the project work (not an employee but contract work) there as well as on Caton Way, project includes weeding, mulching and then maintenance of the site, suggestion of having a SWONA member be the contact and oversee the initial site planning, could start as soon as we find someone and go to September, details can be worked out if we get support of the group to agree to the proposal, ultimately would like to get a sensory garden for the neighborhood.
Can another group like the Girl or Boy Scouts do this work for free? We are the volunteers that should be responsible for this type of project, probably worth pursuing, Diane D. can follow up with her contact at the Boy Scouts, previously put a call out to SWONA last year but only three folks showed up, can we get a contact person instead of just a general call out for help, doesn’t always seem to get much response when we do a general call, make one more stab at getting volunteers to help, anyone can work on the sites on their own too. Organizing is key not even the doing the work, as many folks are not able to do difficult labor but could make phone calls for example, suggestion to present a sign-up sheet
Motion to announce an opportunity to fill the position, seconded and passed by membership
Contacting boy/girl scouts or others can certainly be contacted as there is a lot of work to be done in the neighborhood. Any help would be appreciated but we also need a framework as to what needs to be done.
Announcements: Westcentral Park is having 2nd annual June Jubilee on Saturday, June 21st. Live music and food carts from noon to four. Every Monday there will be Movie Mondays.
Neighborhood wide part-focus on kids and families, possibly have a bar-b-que at Decatur Woods Park, looking at September 14th as a potential date, can we get a committee together to start working on this project
Will Katherine McCoy come to one of our meetings? The Fern Street project is set to go; can we get someone here to talk about it at least?
Discussion regarding a Public meeting on Town Homes at the end of Dickinson due to a Heron Rookery? Because of neighbors connecting to the NextDoor.website another public meeting will be held by the City as there was an upwelling of concern regarding the building site.
One member wants to help construct a SWONA Facebook page and has offered to work on getting that accomplished. Brent McBride will head up this project in coordination with others that have been in the neighborhood. (Addendum to meeting: Facebook page is up and running-https://www.facebook.com/SouthWestOlympiaNeighborhoodAssociation
Concensus with group that it is important to get face to face contact with neighbors and explain what SWONA actually is. Always need people to get involved with something in the neighborhood.
FYI: An island off the coast of Scotland shares our acronym, Swona. According to the website: https://www.countryfile.com/countryside/breed-apart-swona The tiny, beautiful Isle of Swona is the only place in Britain where a herd of beef cattle lives wild, having been isolated from humans for almost 40 years.
Meeting adjourned at 8:30 pm
By President-Bethany Weidner
Minutes prepared by Janis Rich-Secretary
Next Meeting 3rd Thursday in September