Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Neighborhood Association Meeting Minutes (4/6/10)

Meeting was called to order at 7:06pm. Thanks to all our special guests who made this meeting very informative!

Presentation by Keep Hillsborough County Beautiful
Christine Commerce, executive director of Keep Hillsborough County Beautiful, spoke to the group about the need to become more involved in cleaning up litter in our community. She also asked for neighbors to volunteer for the Great American Cleanup on April 17. More information can be found at http://www.khcbonline.org/.

Tampa Police Department Representative
A representative from TPD shared the latest crime statistics for our neighborhood, including 4 robberies, 4 auto burglaries, and one attempted auto theft. More information was requested about the recent series of home invasions and RHCA board members will followup with our TPD crimewatch liaison for more information.

Councilwoman Linda Saul-Sena
Ms. Saul-Sena presented several issues that are currently up for debate, including the use of fertilizer during the summer. She mentioned that this can contribute to red tide and algae blooms in the Hillsborough River, the bay, and the Gulf. She urged neighbors to support a ban on nitrogen-based fertilizer during the summer months. Ms. Saul-Sena also encouraged neighbors to investigate TECO's new free energy audit and to support a possible low interest loan program for those who want to make weatherization improvements to their homes. She also spoke about the need to support new public transit options. Ms. Saul-Sena is running for Hillsborough County Commissioner in November 2010.

Code Enforcement - Carlos Rios
Mr. Rios updated the group on the Hakim situation and mentioned that he had taken additional photos of the property for review by code enforcement/city legal team. He expects further action to be taken soon on this important issue and will keep us informed. Neighbors also brought up the concerns regarding a house of worship in the neighborhood and the hours/noise issues surrounding the activities there. Mr. Rios provided personal contact information to the neighbors and encouraged them to call him immediately when activity is taking place so he can witness it firsthand. We will continue to monitor the situation and look for a legal alternative. RHCA board also agreed to send a letter stating our concerns, signed by board members, to the property owner.

Leadership Structure Update
Dianne McNeilly announced that her term as president will be ending in June 2010 and thanked the group for the opportunity to serve. Kathy Evans briefly presented the changes to the bylaws, which will be posted on this website in the next few days. She also introduced a nomination form that will be used to collect information about potential board members' willingness to serve the association. All nomination forms will be due on or before the June meeting so that the first group of board members can be approved at that time. Additional board members will be added as needed. If you are interested in serving, please email riversidehca@aol.com and we will send you a nomination form.

Meeting adjourned at 8:27pm.