Final Agenda for Neighborhood Meeting Thursday, January 31

Hello Neighbors,  Looking forward to seeing you Thursday at our neighborhood meeting.  Make a difference...show up and contribute to the efforts to make our neighborhood the special place that it is!  

Guests: Lexi Winer of the CU Student Government Director of City and Neighborhood Relations   Amy Soehngen, the Snow Lion resident advisor.

We have alot to cover in one hour so we'll have to move it along.  I suggest the following times for covering these topics... if only to decide what to do moving forward.  We won't be able to completely decide everything here. I'll also open the meeting with a poll to see if it's ok to extend meeting another one half hour to cover all the topics. 

1.  Growing Gardens has officially released our Neighborhood Garden from their jurisdiction.  The Neighborhood Association, partnered with the Transportation Department, are now the stewards of our lovely jewel.  Jenny/Michele will summarize what the opportunities are and what we need to organize...this change probably calls for a separate committee specifically geared towards the Garden/Park to make decisions on a more timely basis than quarterly Neighborhood meetings. 15 min.

2a. Chris Schutze, a very talented carpenter and craftsman in our neighborhood has designed a Little Free Library that he has offered to build for us. He would like to show up his design and we would like to discuss location. Transportation Department has offered to help with install if needed in the Community Garden. 10 min

2b. Chris Dobbins, one of our Gardeners, has offered to design and build a stone pattern in the gravel between the sitting stones.  He would be happy to do all the work and fund the project. 

3.  Short report on Naropa student volunteer day!  Amy Soehngen.  5 min

3.  Update on Civic Center Improvement Project.  Jerrie and Jon Herd  10 min

4.  Upcoming meeting with Naropa to discuss improvements to park adjacent to Snow Lion.  Jerrie 5 min

5.  Araphahoe reconstruction project:  Additional comments/suggestions from neighbors to feedback to City?

6.  Brighten up street mural?  How/who/when?  5 min

7. Treasurers' report...I think we probably need to have a bank account with Garden coming under Neighborhood jurisdiction.  Is GGNA a non-profit?  Things to clarify, make plan.  10 min.




 

Many thanks to the Naropa students for volunteering!..next meeting January 31

Eight Naropa students showed up to clean up the neighborhood and distribute Goss-Grove Neighborhood brochures.  Did you get one?  There were 195 of them distributed across the neighborhood.  I have 5 left to bring to the next meeting for feedback for the next meeting, January 31st.  Hope to see you there.  I will be sending out an updated agenda Monday next week.
Jenny, Goss-Grove co-chair

Love our neighborhood with Volunteer Naropa Students on Monday, Martin Luther King Day

I have been delighted to see that some of you would like to join in the Naropa Students on Monday, January 21 to make our neighborhood cleaner and brighter, and pass out brochures describing our neighborhood.  Many people who live here have not yet learned that we have an active neighborhood community. I have been finalizing the brochure and will provide Amy with 200 copies, which will have to be folded before delivery. 

Amy, the Residence Hall Director, will start setting up in the pocket park at 19th and Grove at 8:30 a.m.  Students will start filtering in around 9 a.m.

The tasks which have discussed include:

· Trash pick-up (creek beds, pocket park, alley ways, etc).
· Distributing flyers
· Painting park benches (our only concern was we weren’t sure if it might be too cold to do this in two-weeks)
· Letter writing campaign to get trash/recycling service added to pocket park (not sure who these letters should be addressed to – I’m looking online now) or any other efforts we can make to prevent litter

Amy L. Soehngen

Residence Hall Director | Snow Lion Housing Office | Suite 100 | 1900 Goss Street | Boulder, CO 80302

303.447.3846 (O) | 303.245.4795 (F) | 303.319.9793 (RA on duty after 7:00pm) |asoehngen@naropa.edu

Civic Center Redesign--Borders Goss-Grove

Last month, the city called on architects, planners, designers and artists from around the country (and globe) to submit idea proposals for the Boulder Civic Area project.  The Ideas Competition closed on Monday, Jan. 14.  More than 40 proposals were submitted. 

Seriously though.  We need you opinion.

Here's how to give it ..

Competition Idea Gallery  

Starting Monday, Jan. 21, competition finalist submissions will be available online for viewing and comment on the

Inspire Boulder website.  

Beginning at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 22, the finalists' ideas will also be showcased at the Boulder Public Library (in the Canyon Gallery) for public viewing and commenting.  The Idea Gallery will give the community a chance to provide feedback on competition finalist proposals. RSVP on Plancast! 

 

Winning Ideas: Competition wrap-up and award ceremony 

On Tuesday, Jan. 29, at 6 p.m. in the Boulder Public Library Canyon Theater, City Council and competition jurors will announce the Ideas Competition winners. Much like the Academy Awards, competition winners will be selected based on 'best' designs in various categories.  This public event will take the place of the regularly scheduled council study session that evening. RSVP on Plancast! 

This is city's notice that the Civic area that borders Goss-Grove is being re-designed. Jon and Jerrie Hurd have been attending the meetings and following this. Here's a chance to also participate and see what's being considered. It's worth watching.

Naropa Students looking to do Good Deeds! Let's give them some ideas!

 

We received the following notes from Amy L. Soehngen, Snow Lion Residence Hall Director -  what does our neighborhood need..we have ready hands!  Please email your suggestions to me jenny.devaud@gmail.com.

 

Here at Snow Lion we are welcoming students back from break and helping new students get settled. Many of our residents have expressed enthusiasm to be more involved neighbors and have the desire to do service in the community. As a result, Snow Lion is working with Career and Community Engagement office (who I cc’d on this email) at Naropa to offer a service project on Martin Luther King Jr. Day (January 21).

We were hoping to do the service project in the morning in the Goss-Grove neighborhood, before joining the City of Boulder march/rally in the afternoon. In the past I’ve heard that students have helped with doing the street mural, bike repairs, etc. Our students could also help neighbors with painting, yard work, etc. We think this could be a good way to serve our neighbors while learning more about them.

Do you have any project ideas or needs? We’d love to develop something that would be practical and beneficial, rather than pushing forward something that may not be useful. Please let me know your thoughts and feel free to ask me any questions that may have come up about this idea!

Thanks so much!

 

 

 

Police Change Affects Goss-Grove

Happy New Year,

My name is Ron Gosage. I am the watch 2 and 3 ( swings and graves) Commander for the Boulder Police Department. Many of you have heard that changes are being made within the police department to include the dissolution of the “Hill Team” and nighttime “Mall Team”. This is true with a big, however. Instead of having two small units assigned specifically to the hill and to the mall, we have created the Neighborhood Impact Team that will be responsible to police both areas in addition to the municipal campus, the downtown area bike paths and the Goss/Gove neighborhood. We have increased staffing and assigned 12 officers and a sergeant. (Currently however, because of staffing shortages one position will remain vacant until mid summer) Jim Byfield, who many of you know, will remain as the primary supervisor for the team. Jim MacPherson, a watch 2 sergeant, will also be heavily involved in the team and responsible to coordinate with Byfield and me for supervision when Jim is not available. This team will have the opportunity to address many of the issues we face in the early evening and late night hours with a true problem oriented policing strategy. The team will police in cars, on bikes and on foot. Expanding our resources and combining both teams will give us the opportunity put resources where resources are needed to effectively address these night time issues. In no way should you expect the level of service you’ve grown accustomed to diminish. We do, however, recognize that many of the problems you deal with on a nightly basis are the same, or least related, problems we deal with on the mall and in the downtown area of our city. We hope to address these issues with a broader brush to enhance the quality of life for our citizens.

The Neighborhood Impact Team began its new assignment tonight at 5:00 pm. During the school months all members of the team will work Wed-Sat from 5:00 pm to 3:00 am. During the summer months, about mid May through mid August, four of the team members will work Monday-Friday allowing for 6 day a week coverage in our newly created 3 central district. I have attached a map of 3 Central for you to look at. 3 Central is outlined in bold.

We are excited about this new team and look forward to the challenges ahead. I will ensure that Jim Byfield brings the team to an upcoming hill neighbors meeting so you will have the opportunity to meet and dialogue with the officers. Some of them you will recognize as former Hill Team officers and some will be new faces, but all of them are great hard working folks ready to make this team a success. If at any time you have questions or comments please contact me. My office phone is 303-441-3478.

Sincerely,

Ron

Commander Ron Gosage

Boulder Police Department

1805 33rd Street

Boulder, Colorado 80301

gosager@bouldercolorado.gov