MINUTES OF THE JANUARY 4, 2012 Belmont-DeVilliers MEETING

BELMONT-DEVILLIERS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

MINUTES OF THE JANUARY 4, 2012 MEETING

The meeting was opened at 5:30 p.m. by President Dolores Curry. Attending were: Dolores Curry, Vivian Lamont, Rosemary Kirkland, Rev. Carl Reeves, Rev. John Powell, Rev. Eugene Franklin, Sheikh Tariq Abdul Aziz, Diane Mack, Jewel Cannada-Wynn, Pattie Krakowski, Ann Hill, Eddie Todd, Dr. Alexa Canady-Davis, Tony McCray, Danny Lewis, Neil Richards, Geraldine Vaurigaud, Dicky Hartley, Sonja Evans, Jim Myatt, Omar Williams, Katharine Andrews, Beverly Perry and Burnett Williamson.

Guests included Helen Gibson of Neighborhood Services with the Mayor’s Office and Gregory O’Gwinn and Pansy East of the Oasis Community Center, 317 N. Spring St. Minutes of the last meeting were read and approved.

Ms. Gibson gave an update on our PCIP sign grant. The application has been revised and a different type of sign and design might be proposed, but the association will have a chance to review this when it’s all put together.

Ms. Gibson said that Sherry Morris, interim director of the Community Redevelopment Agency, declined to attend the meeting because of her position is interim at this point and she would prefer we work with the as-yet-unnamed new director. Ms. Gibson noted that the proposed rezoning that was to be discussed at this meeting, however, has been tabled to allow neighborhood input. Ms. Gibson said that the tabled rezoning proposals are in line with the land use plan that was recommended in 2004.  Eddie Todd said that the residents has made some suggestions to that plan but those revisions had never been incorporated into the final version.

Ms. Gibson explained that the comprehensive plan preserves the commercial core (the four corners of Belmont and DeVilliers) and perimeter with specific designations for single and multi-family housing. Both Mr. Todd and Ms. Curry said the earlier study revisions that had gotten lost in the changing of Community Redevelopment Agency staff over the years would have given more flexibility to property owners.

Ms. Gibson said the city now has a range of residential zoning and that there would be public input on this before any action would be taken. Ann Hill wondered why she hadn’t received a postcard notifying her of the rezoning recommendations, noting that some of the zoning changes were to parcels of land that touch her backyard. Ms. Gibson said the cards are expensive to mail and that the CRA limited the mailings to people whose property might actually be rezoned. Ms. Curry suggested that any issues relating to the neighborhood be sent to her as the president of the association so that all members could then be notified. Ms. Gibson said she would make that recommendation. She did not know when the new director would be selected.

Gregory O’Gwinn and Pansy East of the Oasis Community Center at 317 N. Spring St. distributed cards with information on how to reach the center. Office: 850-429-7551; email occpensacola@hotmail.com and on Facebook at OasisCommunityCenter. The center offers free rapid (20 minutes) HIV testing through funding from the Elton John AIDS Foundation and Red Ribbon Charitable Foundation. The calendar includes a movie night at 6 pm on Jan. 20 and a Tapas Night at 6 pm on Jan. 27. Wells Fargo financial adviser Donna Gill Spencer will be offering free financial advice for same-sex couples and others on Monday Jan. 9 at 6 pm. Refreshments will be served.

The Rev. Carl Reeves with the Pensacola Police Dept. said we probably had noticed the rash of gun violence and shootings lately. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigates any incidence in which an officer is involved. Local officers will not comment until that report is released. Dr. Alexa Canady-Davis suggested that negative information on the victims also not be publicly released until the full report is available and both sides of the issue can be heard.

Vivian Lamont said the Belmont Youth Band has been busy with parades and making card for prisoners. They performed at the Osceola Golf Course and for radio station WRNE’s Christmas program. Ms. Lamont will be playing Lena Horne at 4 pm on Jan. 22 for encore performance of “Our Voices Are Many: Celebrating the Harlem Renaissance” at UWF’s Center for Fine and Performing Arts. The program is a theatrical presentation of African-American literature and history through poetry and prose, music, song and dance. The cast, consisting of local readers and other performers, presents myriad themes celebrating the voices of historical figures in the performing arts. Ms. Lamont suggests you get there very early if you want a seat.

Tony McCray gave a brief report on the selection of a city department to head up the management team for the Community Maritime Park Association’s stadium and amphitheatre. He also noted there will be an update on the Disparity Study on Monday. The CRA meets at 3:15 at City Hall, followed by the Committee of the Whole meeting.

Neil Richards said the Belmont Arts Center will hold its Valentine edition of Hot Glass, Cold Brew from 5 to 9 pm on Feb. 10. He said Goombay will be holding an organizational meeting on Monday at 4 or 4:30 pm. Some board positions are open.

Diane Mack reminded everyone about the Women’s Civic Forum coming up on Thursday, Jan.12 at 11:45 a.m. at IHMC (Institute for Human and Machine Cognition), 40 S. Alcaniz, Pensacola, with Okaloosa Magistrate Mary Polson as the guest speaker. Ms. Mack said that CNAPP (Council of Neighborhood Association Presidents of the City of Pensacola) President Lara McKnight has announced she is a candidate for City Council’s at-large B seat. That seat is now held by Council President Sam Hall, who has said he will not run again in 2012.

Jewel Cannada-Wynn urged everyone to support her in her bid for an Escambia County Commission seat for District 3. Ms. Cannada-Wynn said there are still openings for high school juniors and seniors to join her 9-college tour this spring. Danny Lewis is assisting with this trip organization. Cost is $200 for 2 nights and entertainment tickets, plus $60 for food for the 3 days.

Rev. John Powell gave an update on plans and an upcoming meeting for the Feb. 10-12 Black History Festival. He praised the winners of the art competition and urged members to stop by Gumbo Gallery to see them. A large banner for the festival will be erected at the corner of Palafox and Garden next week.

Dr. Canady-Davis said 4 members have paid dues for 2012 so far. Dues are $24 a year or $2 per meeting. Guests, of course, may attend for free. She also reported that the main library addition is two months behind on construction and renovation of the older section is now scheduled to begin in mid-February.

Sonja Griffin Evans said there will be a family-friendly “After the MLK Parade Gathering” on Jan. 16 at the DeVilliers Cultural Heritage Museum, 500 West Belmont that will begin immediately after the parade. The Martin Luther King Parade itself starts at 11 am at Spring and Garden Streets.

Pattie Krakowski is active with Pensacola Historic Preservation Society, which operates the Desiderio Quina House at 204 S Alcaniz Street. This is the oldest house (built in 1810) that remains on its original lot in Pensacola. It is open for tours and admission is free. Details: www.quinahousemuseum.org .

Ms. Krakowski invited members to attend a free talk titled “How to Create a Better Place to Live” by Christian Wagley at 7 pm Tuesday, Jan. 10, at the Bayview Senior Resource Center, 2000 E. Lloyd St., Pensacola. Wagley, who heads Sustainable Town Concepts, will focus on development patterns that encourage more walking, bicycling, and public transit. A similar proposal will be presented to Pensacola City Council at its 5:30 pm meeting on Thursday, Jan. 12.

Geraldine Vaurigaud also provided everyone with a link to her community calendar: www.mycalendars.net/pcolacommunity. To receive email brief weekly community and calendar updates, email her at GTV50@hotmail.com. She also gave out some Pensacola311.com magnets announcing the new 311 phone number for non-emergency citizen support for potholes/street issues; broken streetlights; damaged park equipment and general questions. She discussed the Lemar Advertising / Brownsville mural project and offered to order tickets for anyone who wanted to attend the free all-day leadership skills seminar by John Maxwell with guest Chris Gardner (subject of the movie “The Pursuit of Happyness”) at the Civic Center on Jan. 23. Website: www.pensacolaciviccenter.com .

The meeting was closed by Ms. Curry at 6:30 pm.