Hi Lake Neighbors...!
Great meeting last night. Lots to share with everyone...I'll try to make it brief/easy to get through -- try to read it all!
Guests: our PSO Scott Hewitt, Peter & Tony from 'iliketheparkway"
OUR NEXT MEETING DAY & TIME: MAY 26TH @ 6:30PM (possibly @ Regeneration Church again if that is okay? Dave?)
Please let us know what time/day is better for you if you are unable to come that night -- so if you could either make sure to be there or email me with alternative meeting times that would help me a lot. Thank you!
We have 2 new OUTDOOR MOVIE times/days:
May 30th (in the same place and time as the last one),
BTW, the winner with 8 votes for the next movie is: THE INCREDIBLES!
and… June 13th (over beside Woody's Laundromat, same time as usual)
We need a volunteer crew!!!! Please contact me if you are free and able!!!! We meet up at around 6 or so to set up.
It might also be fun if someone has a portable outdoor grill so we can make s'mores -- also, FYI, stop by someplace and get takeout for a picnic -- or even have pizza delivered right to the parking lot! Steve Ma just donated 35 bags of popcorn!!! PLEASE BRING CHAIRS or BLANKETS/PILLOWS TO SIT ON!!!!
Shawn is going to look over our current Google group site and determine how to best establish & maintain a website for all the possibilities our group can create.
We are officially joining forces as Lake Neighbors with Lake Merritt Business Association (LMBA) and iliketheparkway to make regular outdoor movies happen -- as well as other neighborhood events that claim a safer neighborhood for us all. Envision all you can about what else we can get involved with together and put it out there.
iliketheparkway's news for us: Sign onto the website to keep up to date -- the positive outcome of the tragedy is the massive joining of community over this and how we are all coming together to create something even more fulfilling to our needs in the Parkway (and hey, now we have a grassroots organization, we can go far beyond that for unlimited possibilities!). There is strong support with Pat Kernighan's office, investors are being sought & found, much news media & orgs like Oaklandish (and ours) are all joining in...there is a community meeting on 5/23 for all to go to. Over the next year they hope to see renovations @ parkway, multiple bidders on what can be put in place there, community involvement re: decisions about that, more family options there, sustainable functioning there as well...
PSO Scott Hewitt came to share info & answer our concerns/questions. What it all came to boils down to the following:
It is SO important that we call in/email everything that concerns us (you see someone standing in one location dealing, you see someone hopping a fence, you see someone paying a lot of attention to a house or car and it is not theirs -- you know -- any of that...big or small. Everything that gets called in adds up to solving many crimes much of the time. His email is: shewitt@oaklandnet.com OR you may call the OPD non-emergency @ 510 777-3333 (emergency # is: 510 777-3211 -- put it in your cell, it's faster than 911). Drug hotline is 510 238-DRUG. Call, call, call...he says. The more we make contact, the more police presence we will have in our neighborhood. ALSO...did you know that those tied-together-shoes that get thrown up on a phone line are a signal of a place to buy drugs? So is a jacket put up on a sign post. We determined that most crime in our area is goal oriented towards STUFF and it will often involve violence towards a person...not so much the other more heinous stuff we won't get into. ALWAYS look around at the faces you see -- let them see you see them and what they look like and say a greeting...it makes you less of a good target. Stay off your cell phone when walking around -- if you are distracted you are a better target OR if you are on your cell, look around you all the time and pay obvious attention to your surroundings. Lighted areas make things safer in general. Keep computers/laptops, ipods and backpacks ALWAYS out of sight in your car. Usually try to walk around at night with someone -- and still always make it obvious that you know and see what/who is around. Metal plates on doors by the mechanism make it much harder for break-ins. ALSO, keep your computer/electronics serial numbers in case of theft so it can be easily identified (it is often re-sold at the flea) and/or engrave your name.
One other great aspect was the human factor in having our group begin to know our PSO! We want to really build a real, human teamwork with them. Officer Hewitt is a Gold Medalist in the Police Olympics so people really should not bother to try to outrun him.
ONE GOOD REALIZATION we had and agreed on happened conversation included "territory X#" and other "territory X#"...and we felt that as a group we wanted to be just known as ALL neighbors of The Lake. Anyone around who feel they live at or near Lake Merritt are us.
OKAY…that is it for now! Please write and respond soon! See you at our next meeting and in the neighborhood before that!
MUCH Friendship,
Sasha
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
MTG: 05-04-09
Hi Lakepeeps!
Okay, this is a late post-meeting email...but this way it makes it a closer-to-the-day reminder about our next meeting, so what the heck. BTW, our next meeting is May 12th at 6:30pm at Regeneration Church -- bring something to share.
Thank you Matlena and John for being such wonderful hosts -- we didn't get a lot done in terms of decisions and issues on the groups agenda because we had a low turn out this time...we decided to keep our meetings either at Regen or Woody's because the turn out seems to be stronger when we do that. I'm not sure that Tuesdays are the best day for now -- maybe once the school semesters ends we'll get some of the older members back in the loop. It MAY be time to do a poll about availability again. When are you/aren't you free?
The only updates we have: Rich is going to run our soil tests by a scientist friend (Heather) for us...and our PSO was unable to make it at the last minute because he had a case/arrest he was working on. He said he would make our next meeting.
One thing we did decide was a great idea was to keep the outdoor movies going BECAUSE IT WAS GREAT! Even with the technical difficulties. Steve Ma...do you want to join forces with this now or soon? We want to keep doing it -- we had so much fun with it we almost want to do them more frequently than once a month-- but that is just beginners enthusiasm probably...? We thought a good "time" to tell people would be 1/2 hour after sundown. We talked about using rafts to sit in and watch a movie that had water as a major feature...order pizzas...we need to emphasize that people bring their own chairs...also isn't it a good idea to bring a portable grill and have smores? We are looking at May for our next movie and we are starting a movie list to vote on in advance. I think we might re-vote when we want to add movies and always take the top vote -- that way we can add to the menu when we want to.
Okay, this is a late post-meeting email...but this way it makes it a closer-to-the-day reminder about our next meeting, so what the heck. BTW, our next meeting is May 12th at 6:30pm at Regeneration Church -- bring something to share.
Thank you Matlena and John for being such wonderful hosts -- we didn't get a lot done in terms of decisions and issues on the groups agenda because we had a low turn out this time...we decided to keep our meetings either at Regen or Woody's because the turn out seems to be stronger when we do that. I'm not sure that Tuesdays are the best day for now -- maybe once the school semesters ends we'll get some of the older members back in the loop. It MAY be time to do a poll about availability again. When are you/aren't you free?
The only updates we have: Rich is going to run our soil tests by a scientist friend (Heather) for us...and our PSO was unable to make it at the last minute because he had a case/arrest he was working on. He said he would make our next meeting.
One thing we did decide was a great idea was to keep the outdoor movies going BECAUSE IT WAS GREAT! Even with the technical difficulties. Steve Ma...do you want to join forces with this now or soon? We want to keep doing it -- we had so much fun with it we almost want to do them more frequently than once a month-- but that is just beginners enthusiasm probably...? We thought a good "time" to tell people would be 1/2 hour after sundown. We talked about using rafts to sit in and watch a movie that had water as a major feature...order pizzas...we need to emphasize that people bring their own chairs...also isn't it a good idea to bring a portable grill and have smores? We are looking at May for our next movie and we are starting a movie list to vote on in advance. I think we might re-vote when we want to add movies and always take the top vote -- that way we can add to the menu when we want to.
Monday, April 20, 2009
MTG: 04-20-09
Hi Lake Peeps...
Before I get into the overview of our great () meeting @ Woodys...
GUESS what! We got our soil test results back & it is attached FYI. I thought I'd send it right out even though I have not had a lot of time to go through it yet.
ALSO...our next meeting is going to be held at Matlena & John's home (1629 4th @ E. 17th -- the door on the left).
@ 6:30 on 4/28. It is potluck as usual!
OKAY, now about our meeting last Tuesday @ Woody's Cafe (THANK you again, Steve Ma for letting us have our meeting there and taking over your space). Attendees: Suzanne, Tank, Steve Ma (& brother Robert), Tracey, Matlena, John, Zak, Robert, Cristine (& Wendy), Britanny, Darrin, Shawn, Sasha & Hector.
GARDEN NEWS:
Walgreens Garden: Discussed solutions about access post renovations. Following the renovation we will lose the corridor portion of the garden space. Walgreens has said they don't want to have gardener traffic in their drive through road way, so we have to figure out options. Still, we decided that our first choice is to see if there is any way to gain an entryway through Walgreens property instead of creating a throughway on a private property. Second choice will be through Sasha & Hector's backyard (we would have garden hours & make sure gate kept secure, etc. -- also some gate modifications would have to be made at a shared cost for the group). Sasha will check with Walgreens again to discuss options & to also ask if they could plan water access for us in their renovations (& to confirm whether they are keeping the ground level as is or lowering it significantly).
EMERGENCY PLANNING:
Jessica can hopefully email out the emergency packet she put out. I sent out something else that Hector got @ work and we have CORE coming in July. Remember to mark your calendars for CORE I (7/20) & CORE II (7/28) @ Regen 6:30-9pm.
Brittany has a LOT of storage to offer for our group. Suzanne & Brittany to duo
1WAY ST (on E.17th bet. 3rd/4th) AND LIGHT TIMING (@ 5th/Foothill):
Dave & Rich dealing with the petition for the 1way...Robert to pursue assessment via traffic engineering department for the VERY LONG light on 5th/Foothill.
FUN:
Movie night is coming up!!! We are on for 4/25 @ dusk in the Regen Parking lot. Don't miss it!!! The flyer is revised and attached for anyone to share. This outdoor movie will be a test run to get our skills down and then we will seek greater community involvement later with Steve Ma of Woody's & LMBA fame who has been trying to get this going on a larger scale for a while now and we will join forces (in May?). Claiming the neighborhood for safe nightime activities is a GREAT cause for all of us and we hope we can help this flourish. Bring your friends and family to the movie on 4/25!
Steve Ma has many things pending and will let us know. He is always seeking artist for his events and we have SO many greatly talented musicians and artists -- please give him your info: steviewoodys@sbcglobal.net
CRIME & SAFETY:
We are inviting our PSO (problem solving officer) Scott Hewitt to our next meeting & he will try to make it to that one or one following -- bring any questions and concerns you have!
THE PARKWAY:
Darrin (of iliketheparkway.com) came and updated us (Steve Ma also had some info) -- it seems as though the owners of the Speakeasy have no current plans of returning (although I guess one never knows). The last stragglers holding on (I was one!)
not wanting anything but Speakeasy there are more comfortable supporting a different business there if the Speakeasy folks do not want to be there any longer. We will see what unfolds. Make sure you make it to the BBQ in the park across from Rooz (the one with the Borax mules) to learn more and to get involved. You can also contact iliketheparkway.com or the facebook group. Our councilmember Pat Kernighan has been very involved with this whole situation.
OTHER:
A new antenna and repeater will go up as soon as we can get the time to get it all together! The antenna work crew is established: Hector, John and Brittany. We will use Woody's or Brittany's building -- depending.
Tank is working with Veggie boxes and can have one delivered to you (until we get a garden going, this is a great offer!). Talk to Tank to find out more. Or maybe Tank, you can send us some prices and details and I can send it out to all.
See you ALL @ Matlena & John's!
Sasha
Before I get into the overview of our great () meeting @ Woodys...
GUESS what! We got our soil test results back & it is attached FYI. I thought I'd send it right out even though I have not had a lot of time to go through it yet.
ALSO...our next meeting is going to be held at Matlena & John's home (1629 4th @ E. 17th -- the door on the left).
@ 6:30 on 4/28. It is potluck as usual!
OKAY, now about our meeting last Tuesday @ Woody's Cafe (THANK you again, Steve Ma for letting us have our meeting there and taking over your space). Attendees: Suzanne, Tank, Steve Ma (& brother Robert), Tracey, Matlena, John, Zak, Robert, Cristine (& Wendy), Britanny, Darrin, Shawn, Sasha & Hector.
GARDEN NEWS:
Walgreens Garden: Discussed solutions about access post renovations. Following the renovation we will lose the corridor portion of the garden space. Walgreens has said they don't want to have gardener traffic in their drive through road way, so we have to figure out options. Still, we decided that our first choice is to see if there is any way to gain an entryway through Walgreens property instead of creating a throughway on a private property. Second choice will be through Sasha & Hector's backyard (we would have garden hours & make sure gate kept secure, etc. -- also some gate modifications would have to be made at a shared cost for the group). Sasha will check with Walgreens again to discuss options & to also ask if they could plan water access for us in their renovations (& to confirm whether they are keeping the ground level as is or lowering it significantly).
EMERGENCY PLANNING:
Jessica can hopefully email out the emergency packet she put out. I sent out something else that Hector got @ work and we have CORE coming in July. Remember to mark your calendars for CORE I (7/20) & CORE II (7/28) @ Regen 6:30-9pm.
Brittany has a LOT of storage to offer for our group. Suzanne & Brittany to duo
1WAY ST (on E.17th bet. 3rd/4th) AND LIGHT TIMING (@ 5th/Foothill):
Dave & Rich dealing with the petition for the 1way...Robert to pursue assessment via traffic engineering department for the VERY LONG light on 5th/Foothill.
FUN:
Movie night is coming up!!! We are on for 4/25 @ dusk in the Regen Parking lot. Don't miss it!!! The flyer is revised and attached for anyone to share. This outdoor movie will be a test run to get our skills down and then we will seek greater community involvement later with Steve Ma of Woody's & LMBA fame who has been trying to get this going on a larger scale for a while now and we will join forces (in May?). Claiming the neighborhood for safe nightime activities is a GREAT cause for all of us and we hope we can help this flourish. Bring your friends and family to the movie on 4/25!
Steve Ma has many things pending and will let us know. He is always seeking artist for his events and we have SO many greatly talented musicians and artists -- please give him your info: steviewoodys@sbcglobal.net
CRIME & SAFETY:
We are inviting our PSO (problem solving officer) Scott Hewitt to our next meeting & he will try to make it to that one or one following -- bring any questions and concerns you have!
THE PARKWAY:
Darrin (of iliketheparkway.com) came and updated us (Steve Ma also had some info) -- it seems as though the owners of the Speakeasy have no current plans of returning (although I guess one never knows). The last stragglers holding on (I was one!)
not wanting anything but Speakeasy there are more comfortable supporting a different business there if the Speakeasy folks do not want to be there any longer. We will see what unfolds. Make sure you make it to the BBQ in the park across from Rooz (the one with the Borax mules) to learn more and to get involved. You can also contact iliketheparkway.com or the facebook group. Our councilmember Pat Kernighan has been very involved with this whole situation.
OTHER:
A new antenna and repeater will go up as soon as we can get the time to get it all together! The antenna work crew is established: Hector, John and Brittany. We will use Woody's or Brittany's building -- depending.
Tank is working with Veggie boxes and can have one delivered to you (until we get a garden going, this is a great offer!). Talk to Tank to find out more. Or maybe Tank, you can send us some prices and details and I can send it out to all.
See you ALL @ Matlena & John's!
Sasha
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