Mt. Tabor Neighborhood Association

Meeting Minutes
February 15, 2012
 

Others Present: Officer Gary Manougian, Mary Kinnick (Friends of Mt Tabor Park), Steve Stenberg (Warner Pacific), Bo Russell (Friends of Mt. Tabor Park), Doug Brenner, Wendy Farber (Glencoe Elementary), Alissa Keny-Guyer (state representative) 

The meeting opened with introductions led by Nancy Norby.  The minutes from the November, 2011 meeting were then approved on a motion by Kate Mitchell, seconded by Bing Wong.  The minutes from the January meeting were approved on a motion by Bing Wong, seconded by Nadine Fiedler. 

The financial report was presented by Treasurer Wong.  He reported that he was contacted by the state of Oregon because a particular tax filing was not done for 2011; it has been resolved. 

Announcements: There will be a high-speed crash corridor safety public open house Wednesday, March 7 at Harrison Park School (2225 SE 87^th Ave).  The event will be open from 6:30pm to 8:30pm with an overview presentation being given at 7:00pm.  This is a good way to learn more about transportation safety on SE Division and to share any feedback to the Bureau of Transportation.   

Monday, February 20^th will be Portland Community College’s annual Chinese New Year celebration at Legin Restaurant, located on SE Division west of 82^nd Avenue.  The event will be from 11am-1:30pm and will include music, arts, crafts, door prizes, and food.  Parking is free, but the event has an entrance fee of $2 for adults and free for children 12 and under.  More information can be found at www.pcc.edu/asian-new-year. 

Metro is providing a free service for Portland residents that will help everyone determine what will be picked up by the garbage provider in any given week.  Just give Metro a call or go to their website. 

Heidi Kohne informed everyone of an upcoming Presbytery conference that will be held at Mt. Tabor Presbyterian Church.  The 2-day event is March 9 and 10 and will affect street parking for a few blocks surrounding the church. 

Neighborhood Crime: Officer Manougian of Portland Police Bureau reported that there was an armed robbery in our neighborhood, the victim being a pedestrian along SE Ash.  Most other incidents happened west of the park summit, the majority of which were larcenies. 

SEUL: Paul Leistner gave an update about the upcoming annual neighborhood cleanup this spring.  The event will be Saturday, April 28 at the Mt. Tabor Middle School and will be a combined fundraiser with the North Tabor Neighborhood Association.  There will be separate drop-off bins for yard debris, recycling, styrofoam, and a deconstruction area for salvage materials.  He said that he is looking at an option in spending $300 for new signs that can be reused each year.  It was moved by Paul Leistner and seconded by Kate Mitchell to order the new sign; approved. 

Paul also updated everyone about the Portland Comprehensive Plan’s latest updates. 

The City of Portland’s budget was mentioned, especially funding for the Office of Neighborhood Involvement, which manages all the neighborhood coalitions.  There will be a chance in April to review and submit any changes to the budget. 

Friends of Mt. Tabor Park: The Friends of Mt. Tabor Park will have its annual meeting March 20 at Western Seminary from 7-8:15pm.  The featured speaker will be Bob Sallinger of the Audubon Society. 

There will be an invasive species crew leader training March 17 at 10am-noon.  The group will be meeting at the main parking lot, and new volunteers are always welcome.  If you would like more information, go to www.taborfriends.org. 

Mary said that there is a new lost-and-found box by the maintenance building next to the visitors’ center in the northern end of the park. 

A couple of board members are needed for the new fiscal year.  Please contact Mary Kinnick if you are interested (her contact info can be found at the Friends website). 

Friends has started utilizing some new sustainability practices.  This is affecting the spending habits as related to their budget.  This practice will be reviewed. 

Mary also updated MTNA on Friends’ new use of an online newsletter, which is currently distributed to members of Friends of Mt. Tabor Park.  It was suggested that MTNA also be a recipient of the newsletter, which will then be distributed to everyone on the MTNA listserv. 

Portland Parks: Doug Brenner informed us about some enforcement signage that will likely be installed in Mt. Tabor Park.  These signs will help enforce the green trail as a pedestrian-only trail because it is not wide enough in places to accommodate bicycles.  It was suggested to contact bicyclists through the BikePortland blog to inform cyclists. 

There was some discussion about the Parks Department potential budget cuts, which would likely affect the maintenance of Mt. Tabor Park.  There may be closures of restrooms.  If you have any comments or questions, go to www.portlandparks.org. 

Land Use Committee: Jeff Lovell said that he hasn’t heard of any new land-use issues.  Kate Mitchell said that she found out that the neighborhood associations aren’t notified of any construction if the work already meets city code. Jeff also said that he has composed the opposition letter regarding the potential property development at SE 60^th and Belmont.  There will be a new comment period of time as the paperwork gets filed with the Bureau of Developmental Services.  It was moved by Nadine Fiedler and seconded by Bing Wong to sign and mail the letter to Land Use Services regarding the property at 60^th & Belmont; approved. 

Glencoe Elementary School: Wendy Farber gave an update about the new bicycle racks being installed at Glencoe.  The project has evolved a bit to include installing a retaining wall, which has increased the cost.  The school will be having a fundraiser square dancing event that will be open to the public Friday, February 24 from 6:30pm-8:00pm at the school. 

Wendy also said that Glencoe is the last-remaining half-day kindergarten.  The City is now insisting that 20 students need to be registered by June 14 for the fall semester in order for the program to continue as usual. 

Glencoe will have tour dates for any parents who want to enroll students: February 24 and March 2 at 9am.  You are welcome to call Glencoe’s office at (503) 916-6207 if you have any questions. 

Gencoe’s PTA will be partnering with two nearby restaurants to raise money.  The public is invited to dine at Caldera Public House (SE Stark & 61^st) on March 13 and Burgerville (only NE Glisan & 82^nd) on April 10. 

Warner Pacific College: Steve Stenberg said that the Conditional-use Master Plan with the City will be expiring in 2013, and work will be starting soon to review the policies and ideas.  This may include putting up a new building along Division. Steve also reported that Warner Pacific is looking at expanding their dining hall, which would be a type-2 land use item. 

Newsletter: Nadine Fiedler led a discussion about the future of the Mt. Tabor Neighborhood Association newsletter.  Ideas included mailing out reminder fliers to direct readers to an online newsletter, an annual or semi-annual hard copy, and tri-fold brochures with calendars.  It was agreed to put out a flier now that would include the cleanup and some general information about MTNA that would go out early April.  The big newsletter would likely go out next in September.  Paul Leistner will start creating and will look into printing costs for the flier.  A replacement or assistant newsletter editor is needed; please contact Nadine Fiedler if you are interested.  

Sustainability Committee: Bryan Brumley reported on an upcoming event that MTNA is hosting.  A free rain garden workshop will be held at Mt. Tabor Presbyterian Church Saturday, March 17 from 9am-1pm.  It was moved by Nadine Fiedler and seconded by Kate Mitchell to reimburse Bryan for expenses incurred to put on the workshop; approved. 

The Hawthorne Business Association will be having their annual meeting and dinner at Madison’s, with desserts provided by JaCiva’s. 

Bryan also gave an update on the Hawthorne Area Civic Ecology Project.  A letter was written that would go to Southeast Uplift that is expressing hope that the MTNA continue good relations with SEUL in sustainability issues.  It was moved by Bryan Brumley and seconded by Heidi Kohne that the letter to Southeast Uplift be sent; approved. 

Legislative Updates: State Rep. Alissa Keny-Guyer gave some legislative updates.  She told everyone a bit of her background and her community projects & wishes.  Alissa holds regular coffee times when she chats with anyone who wants to discuss about any issues in our district.  These can include any health plan issues, budgetary issues, cell tower issues, and education issues.

The meeting adjourned at 9:00pm.  

The next meeting will be Wednesday, March 21, 2012, at 7:00pm at Mt. Tabor Presbyterian Church, located at SE 54^th and Belmont. 

For more information, please go to www.mttaborpdx.org.