Time and Location of the Meeting: the meeting was held at the Heights Community Center on Buena Vista and was called to order at 7:00 pm.
Board Members Present: James Montalbano, Rich Braziel, Jill Marley Berry, Don McIver, Tom Ocken, & Richard Hallett. Sign-in Sheet
Others Present: Jim Sattler, Gordon Reiselt, Denise Tibbetts, Edgar Avila, Nancy Baca-CNM, Marvin Martinez-CNM, & Samantha Sengel-CNM. Sign-in Sheet
Heights Community Center: Edgar Avila, Heights Community Center Director, told us that he has been working on the list of requested improvements made by SHNA including restoring the meeting room, restoring landscaping, new paint, security cameras, exercise equipment, repairing pillars & filling in wall cracks, HVAC equipment improvements, new dance hall floors, and adding WIFI. He is working on getting the building on the National Historic Registry. He is also working on getting photos of the center and could use Silver Hill Photos too. The Center was opened in 1939 and will celebrate the 80th anniversary in March 2019. The Dances are very popular with an average of 150 people attending.
Sycamore Neighborhood Association: Holding a 7:00 pm Meeting with Titan Construction to go over the Presbyterian Hospital Expansion
Police Council Meeting: They are holding a meeting this Thursday 3/15/18 and an open house this Saturday 3/17/18 to show the new Police Substation Plans
IDO: There will be Specialty Sessions on Overlay Zones Wed 3/21/18 at 5:30pm and Fri 3/23/18 at 1:00pm at Plaza del Sol.
CNM: There is a drop in the number of students attending CNM (12,000) at the campus but an increase in the number of distant learning. They are focusing on programs to help people get jobs and the average age of students is 27. They talked about the wellness path around the campus and encouraged everyone to use it. They stated that one of CNM’s goals is to improve the quality of the rental homes in the area and get better renters. The way they are doing this is to purchase properties from “Slum Landlords” and fix them up. Currently CNM owns multiple residences and have about 12 tenants. There is not a long-term plan for these properties. They stated that students in the building trade schools could help fix up these old houses thereby getting hands on work experience. The paid parking at Buena Vista & Coal Place is going to be parking for the next 2 years and during construction. They did not know what the property will be used for after that but said it may be used for small housing (but no promises). Susana Martinez has directed CNM & UNM to not add any additional square footage without removing an equal amount. CNM provides free bus service for its students. CNM serves more students than UNM in 9 different campuses. Updating the Master Plan is going to occur over the next 18 -24 months. They will be seeking neighborhood input at some point in this process. A siren system is being installed for emergency situations such as an active shooter. The CNM construction plans were discussed. CNM Campus Plot Plan
Yale: Richard Hallett presented his opinion about the future of Yale Blvd South of Central. He pointed out that it is a heavily traveled street with the same number of cars as University and he believes it should be a 4-lane road.
Blocking Sidewalks: We are continuing to report front yard parking, cars & trashcans blocking sidewalks…Send pictures to Jim and 311.
Minutes: The February Board Meeting minutes were approved unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at 8:40pm.