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02-24-15 Meeting Minutes

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BUTTERFIELD-RIVIERA EAST COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION

STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES

DATE: February 24, 2015
PLACE: Brookside Restaurant and Bar, 9819 Horn Road, Sacramento, California
MEETING TYPE: BRECA Steering Committee Meeting

STEERING COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT

Lori Christensen
Kelly Cohen
Bonnie Domeny
Gay Jones
Jim Morgan
Rick Sloan

  1. Welcome from Chair Gay Jones
  2. Minutes for January 2015
    Lori Christensen made a motion to approve the draft minutes for January 2015. Bonnie Domeny seconded the motion. The motion was approved unanimously.
  3. Updates
    1. Treasurer’s Report
      There was no treasurer’s report.
    2. American River Parkway Coalition
      Gay Jones distributed a handout concerning Ranger activities. She stated that there is an ongoing effort to secure part of the Transient Occupancy Tax (hotel tax) for Parks. She also stated that there will be an effort by Rangers to target off-leash dogs and bicycles on dirt trails for enforcement.
    3. California American Water
      Gay Jones stated that California American Water (Cal Am) staff have been working on water quality (sediment) issues in the area, and are scheduled to come back to the BRECA meeting in March 2015. Dennis Alger commented that he has sand in the tank of his toilet. Bonnie Domeny stated that she could put Dennis in contact with Cal Am staff.

      Kelly Cohen noted that there was a flyer from Cal Am in the most recent bill that stated that Cal Am wants to merge the Sacramento District with a small district in Isleton. She stated that she would like to write a letter opposing the merger to the California Public Utilities Commission Office of Ratepayer Advocates (ORA). Gay Jones made a motion for Kelly Cohen and Bonnie Domeny to write a short letter to the ORA opposing the merger. Rick Sloan seconded the motion. The motion was approved unanimously.

    4. West End Planting
      Gay Jones stated that she has plants donated by the California Native Plant Society for planting in the Parkway. She stated that many plants from last year did not make it, likely due to lack of water. She stated that she needs volunteers or ideas on how to water the plants. Jim Morgan enquired about how the “Dri-Water” worked. Gay responded that some plants seemed OK, but many did not. There was some Dri-Water left by June, but maybe it needed more water to work. Terry Joley suggested going to NextDoor.com for help, or possibly boy-scout or girl-scout troops.

      Bonnie Domeny stated that there will be a new ranger who will be the “steward” for the Gristmill section of the American River Parkway. It was requested that an e-mail be sent with the name and phone number of the ranger.

    5. Committee Member Roster Update
      Gay Jones stated that the members of the Special Planning Area (SPA) committee are Jim Morgan, Kelly Cohen, Bonnie Domeny, and herself. Jim Morgan stated that the By-Laws committee is inactive.
    6. Levee
      Jim Morgan reported that, since the last BRECA meeting, the Sacramento Corps of Engineers has become un-cooperative. The Corps is requiring BRECA to go through the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA) process to get survey data about the “levee plug.” He also stated that he had submitted a FOIA request, and is supposed to get the information (assuming it exists) in about 15 business days.
    7. From the Floor
      There were no updates from the floor.
  4. Old Business
    1. Budget Committee
      Jim Morgan stated that the Budget Committee had met and prepared a draft budget for BRECA for the 2015 calendar year. Basically, this was done by taking all the expenses from 2014 that are expected to recur in 2015 and adding a 10% contingency factor. Based on the 2014 income from dues and contributions (membership) and donations, a small surplus is anticipated.

      Jim also commented that the expense for meeting change notices needs to be increased, since the budget only provides for one and two have already gone out. Rick Sloan questioned why the proposed picnic expenses are so high ($255). Jim Morgan stated that the costs of the mailer and the Name Bingo prizes were substantial. Rick commented that the $50 first prize for Name Bingo seemed excessive. It was pointed out that a budget is needed for the Easter Egg Hunt that is coming up next month. Jim Morgan pointed out that the budget could be amended later on to accommodate changes. Kelly Cohen made a motion to adopt the draft budget. Lori Christensen seconded the motion. The motion was approved unanimously.

    2. County: Zoning and Special Planning Areas
      Gay reported that the Special Planning Area (SPA) process has become part of a general overhaul of County Planning Codes that is quite controversial. For example, one change to codes that was proposed would reduce the building setback from the street to 5 or 10 feet. This was drew considerable opposition in Citrus Heights and Orangevale.
    3. Park Maintenance and Recreation Improvement District (PMRID) issues
      Bonnie Domeny reported that she went to a meeting about the proposal to construct a parking lot on School District property next to Larchmont Community Park. The people from the area generally reacted negatively to the proposal. They feel that the soccer leagues have taken over the park, which is no longer usable for local people.

      Rick Sloan stated that he went to Larchmont Park on Sunday, and did not see a problem with soccer league use. He noted that Larchmont is designated as a Community Park, not a neighborhood park, so uses such as this would be permitted. He has talked with Kate Rosenleib of the College Greens East Homeowners Association (CGEHA). Funding for the parking lot is uncertain: there is only $19,000 in the fund for this, and they would have to go to the Parks General Fund for more. Possibly the school could put in some money.

      Kelly Cohen stated that she does not support the parking lot. Carmen Mitchell stated that at the meeting, residents said they wanted a walkway for children across park land to get to school, and the Park District said no money. Gay Jones stated that her inclination is to support the CGEHA people on this, but it is not clear what is in the future.

    4. Easter Egg Hunt
      Bonnie Domeny stated that there has not yet been a planning meeting for the Easter Egg Hunt.
  5. New Business
    1. American River Cleanup April 18, 2015
      Gay Jones asked whether there were any volunteers for the Gristmill site. Jim Morgan pointed out that the Gristmill site is not on the list of sites for the spring cleanup. Gay responded that if there is a volunteer it could get on the list.
    2. Sheriff’s Community Meetings
      Gay Jones distributed a handout concerning the Sheriff’s Community Meetings. She also enquired whether there were any volunteers for the Neighborhood Emergency Training meeting. There were no responses.
    3. Preparations for the March Meeting
      Gay Jones stated that she had confirmed with the library that we can use their community room for March. She also requested a volunteer to do the agenda since she will be out of town until shortly before the meeting. Jim Morgan volunteered.
    4. From the Floor/Information Sharing
      Rick Sloan recently e-mailed a proposal for the cover letter for the package to be delivered to new residents. There were some comments, including liking the bullet format, and spelling out Butterfield-Riviera East Community Association at the top. Kelly Cohen stated that she had prepared an alternative, and recently e-mailed it around. She reviewed the alternative, which had more text. Rick stated that the cover needs to be brief and colorful, possibly having a simple first side and more information on the back.
  6. Meeting adjourned.
    The next Steering Committee Meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 24, 2015, location TBD.
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