October-December 2004 SLNA Scoop Archives

11/20/04--Help Clean Up Clawson Dec 11
Hello Everyone,
This is Chad and I was recently elected Chair of the
Keep Austin Beautiful Chapter for SLNA. Our next
clean up is Clawson Rd - from FortView to Lightsey -
on Saturday December 11th at 8:00am. We always have a
BLAST at these clean ups. They take about hour to
complete but everyone always wants to clean up more of
the "hood" so sometimes they can take up to 2 hours.
After we go to brunch somewhere local and discuss
topics that involve YOUR Neighborhood.

What I have found is that these clean ups have given
me a strong sense of community pride! I am very proud
to live in this eclectic wedge of Austin.

Sincerely,
Chad Hymel (pronounced "e-mail")
 

11/02/04--Announcing the 2005 SLNA Officers
Hey folks.

Thanks to attendees at our October meeting. Among other topics, we heard about the Austin Farmers' Market, had a good discussion on commuter rail (probably the best I've seen), and elected officers for 2005. Fortunately this election was without the complication or expense of those other ones you've been seeing on TV.

So, officers for 2005 are:

President--Carol Gibbs
Vice President--Nancy Maclaine
Treasurer--Don Ewalt, Jr.
Secretary--Roberta Leahy (incumbent)
ANC/SCC Rep--Kevin Lewis

Congratulations and thanks in advance for their donations of time.

We'll see you December 16 for our meeting (usually lasts about 5 minutes) and party (lasts until we run out of songs to which we can remember the words).

Kevin

11/01/04--Yard Volunteers Needed at Zilker Elementary
Hey folks. A note from Zilker Elementary Beauty Group, volunteer day this Saturday. Sounds like fun, no? -Kevin

Date: Sat, 30 Oct 2004
From: "goodneighbor88"
Subject: Zilker Beautification Project (Sat. Nov. 6)


Hi All You Zilker Weed Pullers!

Have you ever heard of the Zilker Beauty Group? We're a group of parents, teachers, neighbors and kids who do what we can to make Zilker Elementary a more beautiful place. We have fun doing it, we don't work too hard and we don't spend a lot of time, effort or money working toward our goals. That's probably why you haven't heard of us. Someone once called us a grass roots organization, but the truth is we're more interested in the grass roots than we are in the organization. So forget about who we are, everyone is a member in our troop - all you have to do is show up.

Next Saturday morning - mark your calendars - is our second (or third) semi-bi-monthly-maybe less occasional meeting at the school. At the last meeting, we pulled some weeds and spread some mulch to make the gardens look so much nicer for the kids. This time, it's fall planting time. FLORIBUNDA Nursery has donated about 100 plants for us to plant around the portables.

Stop and think how nice that's going to look. Ok, now continue reading.

Wouldn't you like to be a part of that? Wouldn't your kids like to be able to say "Hey I planted that vine!" or "My dad laid down that edging!" or "See how all the weeds are missing? My mom did that!"

OK, it is so easy to participate. Just show up for whatever time
you can spare next Saturday morning. We'll be there from 8AM - 12NOON. Please don't think you have to stay all morning. Come for an hour or two. Help with a little mulching. Eat a pastry and drink some coffee. You still have the rest of the day to take care of everything else you normally do on the weekend.

I hope by now you've decided to come. So you're wondering what you should bring. Well, bring your kids if you have any. Bring a shovel and a rake. Maybe a wheelbarrow. And this is important - if you have any compost or mulch you'd be willing to share permanently with the hard compacted ground at the school - bring it too. If it's easier to drop it off some time during the week, just pull up near the portables and unload it under the DONATE COMPOST HERE sign. We'll take it from there.

RECAP ON THE DETAILS
Saturday, November 6, 2004
8:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Portable B
Shovels, Compost, Mulch, Kids, Wheelbarrow, oooh! and roto-tiller, yeah, that'd be neat!
Questions? Call Andrew Murphy 442-9380 (Josey's dad, Amy's husband)
 

10/15/04--Bulky Trash Collection Starts 10/18
Hey folks. A reminder, the city will be picking up bulky trash items in our area next week beginning next Monday the 18th. Good time to get rid of (from city website http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/sws/bulkywhat.htm )

.. Appliances (must be empty; see note on refrigerators and freezers below)
.. Barbeques (fuel and charcoal must be removed)
.. Doors (wood or metal only; no glass doors)
.. Furniture (must be empty)
.. Lawn mowers (fuel and motor oil must be removed)
.. Lumber (Nails must be removed; must be bound together)
.. Mattresses
.. Pallets
.. Railroad ties and utility poles, no more than 6 feet long
.. Refrigerators & freezers (must be clean, empty and free of odors; refrigerator doors must be removed to prevent children from being trapped inside)
.. Rolled fencing
.. Tires (passenger car tires only; limit of 8 per household; must be removed from rims)
.. Tree trunks larger than 8 inches in diameter and no more than 6 feet long.

Here are some things that will NOT be collected:

.. Anything with a title of ownership (automobile chassis, motorcycles, trailers, boats, etc.,)
.. Anything in bags (extra garbage)
.. Construction and Remodeling Debris (includes plywood, bricks, rocks, aggregate, cinder blocks, stone, mortar, sand, sheet rock, insulation, flooring, shingles, siding, steel roofing, sheet glass and mirrors)
.. Hazardous Materials (paints, solvents, etc.)
.. Household Trash
.. Sheet Glass (sliding glass doors, large mirrors)
.. Truck or Tractor Tires

Of course, if you collect used junk, I mean...stuff, happy hunting.

Kevin

10/01/04--Walgreens is a Done Deal
Well, nobody was singing, but there was some cheering, and a palpable sense of relief. After nearly two years, Walgreens' plans for South Lamar at Bluebonnet passed City Council last night. This was the final vote on the zoning case. We will have drawings to show and can answer questions at our October 21 general meeting.

 
Understanding that SLNA's opposition to the main case had been heard, we focused this week on working with the developer and city staff to reach agreement on various issues. The developer listened to all of our requests, and accommodated us where possible. We worked with city staff and City Council to make sure those provisions were codified in the most clear and solid way. Given the entire epic, I believe this is as good a resolution as we could expect, and provides a good basis for moving forward.
 
Among the points on which we reached agreement are these:
-All improvements to Bluebonnet Lane will be made before the developer gets access via a driveway onto Bluebonnet.
-The developer will pay for and build these improvements, although he was not required by city code to do so.
-Bluebonnet will be widened to 36 feet (3 car lanes) from Lamar to the Walgreens driveway.
-They will build sidewalks--on the south side, all the way to Del Curto, and on the north side, to the residential properties.
-Right turns onto Bluebonnet will be prohibited. They will build a curb device into the Bluebonnet driveway to enforce that.
-Bluebonnet will have a dedicated left turn lane onto southbound Lamar, and directional striping on the west side will be improved.
-Parking lot lighting will be like that in Westlake. This results in less spillover light pollution and better energy conservation.
Storm water retention will be twice what is required by city code. This will not eliminate flooding, but should help reduce it.
-The developer will post a $50,000 security deposit in escrow. In case of a broach of our agreement on above points, SLNA could use those funds to sue for compliance or damages.
 
And oh, yeah, they're going to build a little taco joint for some chica mas fina named Maria. Maybe you've heard of that?
 
If you have a sense of nostalgia about the Village Trailer Park, now's your chance to soak up the ambiance, to revel in the glory of Old South Austin. I suggested to the trailer park's owner, Gene Payne, that someone collect historical anecdotes and photos, before the bulldozing begins. Let me know if you'd like to help with that. Likewise Taco Xpress and the boot shop.
 
This was in many ways a landmark process for SLNA. Through considerable effort (an understatement) we have learned valuable lessons. I thank everyone who has worked so hard on this for their dedication, ability, and heart, especially Carol Gibbs, Bob Thompson, Antonio Gonzalez, Bill Stoughton, and our friends in Zilker. I believe the developer, David Darr, and his representative, Steve Drenner, mean well for the neighborhood, and will render their words in deeds. The agreements we have secured will help ensure that.
 
Perhaps most importantly, many neighbors contributed to thoughtful and productive discussions on important questions. We maintained respect for those of every viewpoint, and worked toward resolution. Let's build on this experience and look forward to continuing to improve our home.
 
Kevin