South River City Citizens (SRCC: minutes for meeting of general membership, September 3, 2012 return to SRCC home page



MINUTES for MEETING OF THE GENERAL MEMBERSHIP OF SRCC
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2012
7:15 PM
GRACE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
205 East Monroe; Austin, Texas


AGENDA


(To be sure you get to vote on agenda items, be a member. Not sure if you are current? Email membership@srccatx.org and we'll let you know.)

CALL TO ORDER/APPROVAL OF MINUTES
1. 7:15 Room arrangement, meeting procedures, etiquette, welcome newcomers
Presenter throughout: Marc Davis, President, unless otherwise noted
2. 7:20 Membership & voting announcements.
Presenter: Carol Martin, Vice President and Membership Chair
Remember; you can always pay your dues through the Web site, by mail or in person at a meeting. You must be a current dues-paid member prior to voting at a meeting.
3. 7:22 Approve minutes from August 6, 2012, last regular monthly meeting
MOTION: Garret Nick / Jean Mather - to approve the minutes from last month = PASSED
4. 7:25 Treasurer's Report
Presenter: Les Case, Treasurer
Account reconciliation, Profit & Loss, and Balance reports available from treasurer
5. 7:30 Committee Chairs reports (** agenda items below) 1) Parks, Schools, Environment**; 2) Planning & Zoning**; 3) Transportation & Public Safety**; 4) Membership; 5) Norwood; 6) Historic District; 7) Communications; 8) Financial; 9) Reps to ANC Austin Neighborhoods Council

OOLD BUSINESS
6. 7:40 Update on 1227 Newning
Presenter: Marc Davis, President
“The Oaks of Travis Heights” is on Newning just south of Academy and has been under construction with a good bit more still necessary to complete the project. SRCC is working to help mediate the communications between the developer and the neighbors most affected in an attempt to make the coming months/years more tolerable. Some runoff issues have been discovered during the construction of the main detention pond but the source of the issue has not been pinpointed. The final drainage design should be appropriate once it is complete, based upon the reviews from Jeff Kessel, who is an engineer (our friend and neighbor.
7. 7:50 Update on Neighborhood Watch program
Presenter: Raymond Sinatra, Member
Raymond has been working with our NW for the last year along. Program leaders Dennis Cudd and Shelly Leibham are in the process of moving and can no longer continue in these roles. Russell Fraser and Raymond Sinatra have agreed to co-chair the effort. The areas that participated in the NW pilot program have seen a drop in crime while the rest of the SRCC has seen a noticeable increase. Despite the success of the program, participation has dwindled during the recent months. The SRCC areas East of I-35 are now kicking off their program. The current objective of the NW program is to increase participation in citizen patrols as that is the only activity proven to be effective in reducing crime. Citizen patrol consists of: 1) attending a training session; 2) have a cell phone and volunteer a few hours a month driving the streets of the neighborhood with magnetic signs displayed identifying you as part of Neighborhood watch. All you do is watch and call 911 if you see any suspicious activity. (The training will provide lots of education and support on what this means.) Ask for more information.

NEW BUSINESS
8. 8:10 SRCC area is included in the census tract document received from City of Austin Statistician Ryan Robertson. It can be a resource to check that no more that 3% of homes are short-term rentals.
Presenter: Jean Mather, Planning & Zoning Chair
Part of the negotiations with the city over STRs included a 3% cap on the total number of commercial STRs per census tract. SRCC would like to get ahead of this process by taking our own count and making sure that the City has an accurate picture. Please inform Jean (444-4153) of the address of known CSTRs so she can record the data and she will also check STR websites.
9. 8:15 400 E. Riverside drainage improvements, the Engineer/Applicant is David Coombs.
Presenter: Jean Mather, Planning & Zoning Chair
At Newning and Riverside there is the mouth of a small creek (East Bouldin) that the developer wants to convert to a concrete drainage culvert so they can build on top of it. The engineer and applicant were invited to the meeting to present on this plan but timing did not work for them and they did not attend.
MOTION: Sarah Campbell / Tim Boswell - The SRCC opposes the application to convert the creek mouth into a drainage culvert = PASSED
10. 8:20 Reagan Signs is back with a request to up-zone the property at Woodland and I-35 from GR to CS
Presenter: Teresa Griffin, Jean Mather, Planning & Zoning Chair
This long disputed tract of land and the proposed commercial project was thought to have been settled but they are now asking for the tract to be changed from GR (General Retail) to CS to so they could lease the property to accommodate a self-storage business. SRCC will engage with Nikelle Meade and attempt to meet with them and discuss this application. We will have more data at a future meeting
11. 8:25 Dance project in Stacy Park on Saturday, November 10, 2012
Presenters: Karin Carlson, Lucy Dubose, member
Karin has been working with site-specific performances since her time at UT and would like to have a performance at Stacy Park. The goal of the project is to engage the neighborhood with dance and music art in a natural setting.


Thank you, Garret Nick, Secretary


 

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