SLNA Meeting Minutes 8/19/04

The meeting was called to order at 7:00.  Officers in attendance were Kevin Lewis, Carol Gibbs, Charlton Perry, Roberta Leahy, and briefly, Bill Stoughton. 

· Carol Gibbs announced she will be nearing the end of her term as newsletter editor, and the position is open.

· Upcoming, a representative from Capital Metro will talk about the Commuter Rail proposal for November.

· AISD Bond election coming up -- check out the issues.

· ANC (Austin Neighborhoods Council) meeting next Weds. at the Austin Energy Building on Barton Springs Rd at 7:00.  The ANC meeting is open to all and is on the 4th Weds. of each month.

· Lou Miller, from Unity Church explained that he had been trying to get us to meet in the main chapel and today he had succeeded, and hoped we would continue to hold our meetings there.  He informed us that the church is under contract to purchase the adjacent Lighthouse for the Blind property (which faces Manchaca) as part of their expansion plans.  He said that the chapel would eventually become a community center when they build a new church.

· SLNA’s quarterly Keep Austin Beautiful clean-up will be Sept. 11, 8am-11am, Thornton Rd. between Bridgeway and Oltorf.

· Within the SLNA borders there are approximately 5000 households.  We will be part of the city’s planning process along with Barton Hills NA, Galindo NA, and Zilker NA.  A small area along Manchaca is not represented.  We will have a 10-18 month opportunity to participate in neighborhood planning.  The city has changed their process quite a bit each time a new NA goes through the process.  We’d meet regularly with other NAs. Neighborhood planning can be bitter and divisive. We want to up the level of civic discourse, not have an ugly debate.

· Walgreens case at City Council was postponed to 8-12, then to 8-26, then to 9-02.  Will be heard anytime between 4pm-12am.  Applicant will make the case, then those for, and those opposed.  In the LCRA building on Lake Austin Blvd.

· Introduced SNIMBY (Something Nice in My Back Yard) logo.

· Bob Thompson has written 12 pages of technical analysis of a 14,500 square foot Walgreens store and its traffic impact on the neighborhood.  The city's analysis underestimates the traffic volume generated.

· We need people to send emails to City Council, make calls, and to be there in person at  the hearing.  Walgreens has paid community organizers working to get folks to support their plan. 

· The horseshoe property adjacent to the trailer park is zoned MF-2 and will generate more traffic once developed.  Right now Bluebonnet is categorized as a residential collector.  We want to keep it that way. 

            We expect the population to double in the next 20 years.

· Our vision was for mixed use, with more housing close to the corridor, and scaled to pedestrian traffic.

            (Picture shown of a brick Walgreens on a corner, adjacent to the sidewalk with apartments above it.)

· A motion was made: The SLNA supports, in concept, Mixed Use development along the transportation corridor.

            17 in favor, 0 opposed.

· Concerns about loose dogs in the neighborhood: you can send a letter of complaint through the SLNA officers. Call 311 every time you see a loose dog, or especially a pack of dogs.  The City has to document every report.

· The meeting was adjourned at 9:00pm.