Council of
Albany
Neighborhood Associations
Meeting
Minutes of
April 3, 2002
Albany
Public Library
1.
Howard Stoller
,
CANA
Chair, called the meeting to order.
2.
Introductions
3.
Minutes:
The minutes of the
March 6, 2002
, meeting were accepted.
4.
Discussion:
Status of
Albany
Public Library Re-Chartering Proposal
Jeff Cannell updated the members about the status
of the Library’s proposed re-chartering. Individuals
who wish to be elected as one of nine library trustees if it is re-chartered
must present a petition of the names of 25 registered voters to the Library
Board no later than
April 22, 2002
. On
May 21, 2002
, voters will consider the re-chartering referendum.
An outline of the budget has not yet been made public; specifics will be
available prior to
May 21, 2002
. The tax levy must be approved for
the re-chartering to go forward, regardless of the outcome of the other items.
If the library re-charters, other resources for income would become available
including private and HUD funding, grants, gifts and state aid. It is unclear
how STAR exemptions on the tax rolls will be accounted for when and if the
budget becomes a school tax levy.
By re-chartering, the Library anticipates that it
will enrich its services to
Albany
’s neighborhoods and form new partnerships with schools.
Additionally, it is believed that a stronger library system may entice
people to reside in the city. Mr.
Cannell indicated that since the City has not increased it’s funding of the
Library in ten years, its resources are stretched to the limit and services may
become stagnant. Presently several
library branches are located in buildings owned by the City.
The library will purchase those buildings at nominal cost.
Members
expressed concern about the timing of the referendum since a 12% school tax has
been proposed and the fact that the voters may not fully understand that this is
a restructuring of their taxes. It
was suggested that a serious campaign to inform voters be undertaked prior to
the school budget vote. Additionally,
a forum for the trustee candidates to debate may be sponsored by
CANA
prior to
May 21, 2002
. Association presidents are encouraged to inform and educate their members of
the upcoming referendum.
5.
Members were reminded to remit outstanding dues.
A fiscal report will be included with this month’s minutes.
6.
Committees:
§
Community Police Council-
Helen Black
Volunteers are needed to serve on the council.
It meets for one hour on the first Wednesday of each month at the
Public
Safety
Building
.
§
Committee on University and
Community Relations-Tom Gebhardt
The
next meeting will be at
7 PM
on April 10 at the Albany Police Department,
526 Central Avenue
. The
committee will discuss the “Spring 2002 Six-Point Plan” (safety, behavior,
trash) and recent advertising campaigns.
§
Survey Committee- David Phaff
David was unable to
attend the meeting but sent communication regarding the progress and status of
the surveys. There will be a meeting
of the survey committee on
April 11, 2002
, at
7:55 AM
at Dunkin Donuts at the corner of Madison Avenue and
West Lawrence Street
. Members will discuss (a) whether to continue the survey on an annual basis or
issue it every other year; (b) sources of funding; (c) resources required to get
the survey out and compile, process and publish the results.
Last year’s survey may be available for distribution at the May
CANA
meeting. The quality of life
complaint/reminder form will be distributed at May’s meeting.
§
Reapportionment Committee-
Marggie Skinner
The City’s
Reapportionment Commission meets on Tuesday evenings (except April 14), from
6:00
to
7:00 PM
. A 90-minute public hearing follows
each meeting. The April 23 meeting
will be held at School 27, and the April 30 meeting will be held at the Albany
School of Humanities. Members are
encouraged to attend and request that the Commission keep neighborhoods in the
same wards. Maps were provided
for members to review so that they may point out inequities to the Commission
when attending hearings. The Commission is not aggressive about reaching out to
the community, and citizens must attend to let their needs be known and prevent
“political” redistricting. Once
the lines are drawn, there will be a short period of public hearings;
the Common Council must approve the plan.
Appeals will be hard by the Council. The following resolution was
adopted:
RESOLVED:
The Council of Albany Neighborhood Associations urges the Albany City
Reapportionment Commission to design it’s proposed new ward lines so as to
keep
Albany
’s traditional neighborhoods intact as far as practical.
§
Lark Street Renovation Committee-
Harold Rubin
The four Neighborhood
Association presidents most impacted by the renovation of
Lark Street
met with Mayor Jennings. It was
felt that if they did not support the City’s proposal to transfer funding from
the
Lark Street
renovation project to the
Upper New Scotland Avenue
project, there would be no
Lark Street
renovation. Therefore, they
supported the projects as presented by the City with the stipulation that
residents and the public be involved in the planning with the design team of
engineers and city planners. The
renovation will be endorsed by entity, not as a package.
DOT has indicated that power lines in
Lark Street
will not be buried. Members who
wish to have more information on the
New Scotland Avenue
project can contact the City Planning Department.
7.
Other:
§
Spring Neighborhood Clean Up-
Dominick Calsolaro
A resolution was
introduced to the Albany Common Council on April 1 requesting that the mayor
reinstate spring neighborhood clean up days.
The General Services Commissioner Bruce has stated that these clean up
days cost the City approximately $150,000 in overtime.
The Common Council discussed several clean up options that may cost the
city less in overtime expense. However,
the resolution was not voted on at the April 1 meeting.
§
Thursday evening tours of
Albany
’s neighborhoods are being planned for September. Members are encouraged to
call Claire Yates at 449-1160 to schedule your neighborhood and get details.
§
The Upper Washington Avenue Neighborhood Association has received
an invitation to attend meetings regarding its patterns of residency as they
relate to the new middle school in
Westland
Hills
Park
.
§
A resolution was adopted regarding Public Access television:
RESOLVED:
CANA
recommends that the City of
Albany
appoint a citizens’ committee to participate in the process of assessing the
community’s needs for public access television in anticipation of a new
contract in 2004.
§
The
Neighborhood
Resource
Center
will honor neighborhood achievements at their annual meeting on
Tuesday, May 14, 2002
. Nominations for the Thomas J.
Senchyna Neighborhood Service award and three Certificates of Recognition are
due by Tuesday, April 9 at the NRC office. Information
and nomination forms were distributed.
§
A fiscal report will be included with the next minutes sent.
§
CANA
’s expenses for postage have been significantly reduced since more members
have submitted their email addresses as the principal method of communication.
Additionally, neighborhood associations report that they forward
CANA
emails to their members. Neighborhood
association presidents were again urged to confirm that Howie Stoller has their
correct email addresses.
The meeting adjourned at
9 PM
.
MEETING
ATTENDEES
April 3, 2002