Buckman Community Association

Gen. Meeting Minutes; 5, 8, 9, 2002

B. C. A. General Meeting Minutes; May 9, 2002

The General Meeting was called to order by Susan Lindsay at 7:05 p.m. in the meeting room at the Ritzdorf Apartments at S. E. Belmont and S. E. 12th Avenue. Board members present in addition to Susan were, Jim Sutherland, Randall Howington, Ann Bowling, Kevin Kraus and Don MacGillivray. Paul Iarrobino arrived later. Tom Baker was absent.

We began the meeting with self introductions by everyone in attendance.

The first order of business was a report by Susan on her meeting with representatives from HAND and the Kerns neighborhoods. The purpose of that meeting was to begin to create a uniform method that this coalition proposes to present the OLCC to use when granting the licencing of package liquor sales in Buckman and the two adjoining neighborhoods. Ultimately, the goal of these meetings is to meet with, and convince the OLCC to apply a uniform application of the rules, including some changes to the rules regarding fortified wine and quart bottles of beer, when considering alcohol sales permits for these neighborhoods. The representatives believe is in the best interests of the three neighborhoods to work together in their approach to the OLCC. All three neighborhoods are experiencing an increase in the number of proposed permits for bars and stores wanting to sell alcohol in their neighborhoods.

Susan reported that she had received notification of two applications to sell alcohol in Buckman. One is from a Mexican Restaurant already in Buckman, which is going to change locations. La Calaca Comelona presently on SE 12th is moving to SE 23rd and Belmont. The other application is for a combination dance club and beer and wine bar, called Nocturnal to be located at SE 18th and E. Burnside. Since La Calaca Comelona is simply a change of location and because there were no reports of any problems since they opened on SE. 12th, the OLCC will be informed that the BCA has no objections to this transfer. Susan asked that the decision about Nocturnal be set aside until the Board heard from the owner of Nocturnal, who was on the agenda to speak later about her proposed business.

Next, Valerie Chapman, director at St. Francis Dining Hall and representative of St. Francis Church gave a short presentation on the status of recent problems of car campers in the blocks around the Dining Hall. While these problems were brought to the Boards attention several months ago, at present the problem seems to have been resolved by the police and the Church. Ms. Chapman was unable to address the Board at that time and requested time on this month’s agenda.

She reported that while the Church and the Dining Hall do not have jurisdiction over the streets and sidewalks, they were able with the help of the police to gently get people to not park in that vicinity if they were car camping. The car campers where causing problems for the near by neighbors Ms. Chapman said that she wants the neighbors to bring any problems they perceive as coming from a result of the location of the Dining Hall, to her attention. She can not know all the problems if people don’t let her know. She said as the weather gets warmer, neighbors can expect to see more transient people in the neighborhood, due to its proximity to downtown. As the police and the City have drug "sweeps" downtown, this naturally moves people across the river and into Buckman and with them go some of the problems. Ms. Chapman reported that not only does St. Francis serve meals to homeless people, they also provide mental health counseling as well as drug and alcohol counseling.

She reported that the St. Francis school is rented to an alternative school called Portland International School. Whether or not the school keeps renting from the Church is questionable because of the current crisis in public school funding.

Ms. Chapman spoke a little about St. Francis Park. There is a possibility that the park will be renovated in such a way that may provide housing while keeping the heart of the park in tact. Plans depend on funding. She said that if and when funding is secured, St. Francis will present to the BCA its plans for the area. She said the fountain has a leakage problem that will cost quite a bit of money to fix and this is why it is not always running.

Next, the BCA heard from Greg Ennis, from the Portland Firefighters Association. He said that the Fire Department wants to improve and build on the relationships it has with neighborhoods around Portland. He made it clear he was speaking as a representative of the Fire-fighters Association and not the City of Portland. The Association will try to send a representative to the General meetings each month, so that they can stay informed on activities in the neighborhood as well as take part and be available to volunteer and participate in any neighborhood events. He said that the Association may also bring issues to the meetings that they want to make sure citizens are aware of regarding fire safety in Portland. He then gave a short presentation of all the activities the Fire Department does besides fighting fires. He said that a concern of the Association at present is that the City has been cutting the Fire Bureau budget for the last 15 years despite and increase in the volume of calls.

At this point, we took a break for refreshments and to give neighbors a chance to talk with one another and with the guest speakers.

The next order of business was to hear from Bethany Pratt, who is the owner of a new business called Nocturnal, located at SE 18th and E. Burnside. Ms. Pratt has also applied for a liquor licence to sell beer and wine at her club. There have been some concerns by neighbors about yet another bar in the area, as well as the problems that may surface when it opens. . . parking and noise late at night. Ms. Pratt was at the meeting to address the Board and her presentation would be able to assist the Board in making a recommendation to the OLCC.

She began by describing her plans for this location. She wants to have a dance floor upstairs and a beer and wine bar downstairs. The dance floor would be open to under 21 and the beer and wine bar would be restricted to 21 and older. There would be a security guard and an identification check person stationed between the two venues. She wants the dance floor to be a community draw by offering dance lessons in the day time to all ages. She said that the ballroom dance crowd generally is not a drinking crowd and since she is not selling hard liquor (and she said she has not interest in doing so in the future) she does not expect problems that are associated with clubs that do serve hard liquor. She said that there is plenty of parking on Burnside at night when the dance floor would be open for business. She is having the building soundproofed. She has also met with neighbors in the vicinity to explain to them what her business will be, and she said that once she explains everything and answers questions the response has been positive. She has proposed that the bar be open until 2 a.m. but the reality is if the dance floor closes at 12 then the bar will probably close shortly afterwards as people leave for the evening. The 2 a.m. closing was one of the issues that the Board had heard from the neighbors as being a potential problem. Ms. Pratt said she was willing to change the closing to an earlier hour. She said that she wanted her business to have a positive impact on the neighborhood and that she is doing everything she can to see that it does. She appeared to be very sincere in what she says and what she is trying to create. While it is a dance floor and a bar, she did refer to the dance floor several times as an "art space."

When Ms. Pratt was finished with her presentation, Susan made motion, and Randall seconded it, that we notify the OLCC that the BCA has not objections to Ms. Pratt’s application providing that the bar is closed at midnight. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously.

Next topic of discussion was the continued study of the proposed Good Neighbor Agreement with Delta Clinic. Bertie Wright, one of the co-owners and operators was present at the meeting. Neighbor, Jack Maynard had proposed at the Board meeting last week, that the Board not accept the G.A. as it was written as there were a few issues that had not really been resolved. He proposed that a preamble be added that said, in effect, that while the BCA was signing the G.A., it has some reservations as set out in the preamble. Jack’s idea was to add that the BCA and Delta Clinic were signing the BCA but there were issues on which they "agree to disagree." The Board had a discussion about this idea and since there was still division on the Board about accepting or not accepting the G.A., the Board asked Jack to write up his ideas into a preamble and present them at the General meeting today. Jack wrote the preamble, e-mailed it to all the Board members. Jim did some editing of style, but not of content; a slight tightening up of the wording to make it flow a little smoother.

Bertie Wright spoke about the work that had been done by the neighbors and the Clinic to reach this point and to almost have a G.A. She read what Jack had written and said she understood why Jack wanted this added. She said that she was ok with what she was reading and she did not see why it could not be added to the GNA. She said that she was aware and accepting that differences still remain between the clinic. These differences are about the siting of the clinic, the hours of operation and the parking problems. Bertie will take this preamble back to the other owners and operators for their approval. In the meantime, Kevin made a motion to accept the GNA. with Delta, on the condition that Delta accepts the added preamble. If, when Bertie takes the preamble back to the other owners and operators of Delta and if they change it, then the vote we were about to take will be void and a new vote will have to be taken on the additions/changes to the preamble. Randall seconded the motion. A vote was taken, the results of which were six in favor and one opposed, the motion carried.

The next item of business for this meeting was the election of new Board members. Don listed which seats were up for election this year. The positions held by Don, Ann, Randall and Susan, and the seat formerly occupied by Larry Bissell still have one year left on their two year terms. The terms of the positions occupied by Jim, Paul, Kevin and Tom are up for election this year. Jim, Paul and Tom announced at the Board meeting on May 2, that they were not going to run for reelection.

Nominations were taken from the floor for candidates for the four open positions. Kevin spoke first and said that he would like to run for the one year term left on Larry Bissell’s old position. Neighbors Ani Haines, Jack Maynard, Jim Evernden and Jarkko Kane all spoke about the reasons they would like run for the open Board seats. After calling for more nominations and receiving none other than the four neighbors, and since there were only four open spots (plus the one year unfinished term) a motion was made to accept the 4 neighbors as the new Board members and to elect Kevin to the remaining one year term. The motion was seconded and the vote was unanimous to accept this motion and Ani Haines, Jack Maynard, Jim Evernden and Jarkko Kane are the incoming BCA Board members beginning two year terms. The new Board members will decide their positions on the Board at the June Board meeting.

Last item of business were announcements. Ann reported on the Neighborhood Clean-up which Buckman joined with Kerns and held on April 20th. While the amount of trash collected, was 13 tons, only 1½ ton short of last year, we did not make as much money as last year. This year’s share is $98.00. Jim said that from his observation of collecting money at the west driveway of the parking lot where the event was held, that there could have been better coverage at the east end of the parking lot. He saw a number of cars come in and were not asked for a donation. He suggested next year’s planning committee look into this problem.

Susan reported that the Park Department voted to send a letter to the City Commissioners citing the issue of safety as a reason to not have the childrens’ bicycle event on the Esplanade in June. The letter is asking that the City allow the "events policy" (created by a citizen’s committee) for the Esplanade to govern in this situation. The BCA has joined CEIC in opposing this event after it was presented and discussed at the Board meeting on May 2nd.

Don reported that Portland Department of Transportation will be holding an open house on June 3rd to present to the public its plans and ideas for the revamping of East Burnside street.

He also said that the supporters of the Parks Levy to appear on the May 21st ballot need volunteers to handle phone banks, making calls to voters prior to the election. Call the Parks Bureau for more information. Also, SEUL will be involved in the 2nd year of its Strategic Plan. Don also reported that the CEIC has requested time at the next Board Meeting to present its plans for a zoning change (1-X) in the industrial district.

There being no further business, Susan adjourned the meeting at 8:50 p.m.

Minutes submitted by: Jim Sutherland

B. C. A. General Meeting Minutes; August 8, 2002

Susan Lindsay called the meeting to order at 7:30 in the meeting room at the Ritzdorf Apartments at SE Belmont and 12th Avenue. The start of the meeting had been delayed to accommodate a board members' training session for the following week's Buckman outreach meeting. Board members present were: Lindsay, Kevin Krause, Don McGillivray, Ani Haines, Jack Maynard, Jarkko Cain, Ann Bowling, and Jim Evernden.

Officer Rickert from the Portland Police gave an update on local crime. Rickert said there had been an overall 10% increase in Portland crime over the past 6 months. In Buckman, one individual had been responsible for a significant increase in home burglaries in recent months, but the police had apprehended him within the past few days. Rickert also reported that a prostitution sweep the past week had resulted in 25 arrests of prostitutes and johns.

Gary Rommel, representing developer George Killian, presented a proposal for turning the existing Sue Bee's grocery (on Morrison between 14th and 15th) into an upscale mini-mall containing 3 or more retail businesses. To carry out this plan, they would need to obtain a variance regarding setbacks and minimum building coverage of the site, and they hoped to win the support of BCA in this effort. Susan Lindsay and others present expressed concern that the closing of Sue Bee's would mean the loss of the only affordable grocery store convenient to nearby residents. Lindsay also asked how the neighborhood could feel confident that the new space would be filled with the sorts of quality business Rommel said would take residence there, and not less desirable businesses. Ani asked if the "strong" businesses that Rommel said the space would house would be national chains; Rommel said that they probably would not be. Board members and others asked questions regarding the building upgrades and greenspace the developers proposed. Ani suggested that is was important that the greenspace around the building be available to neighbors even when they were not spending money at the attached restaurants and shops. Susan also noted that Sue Bee's was not doing well financially, and that the Killian development would be a "hostile takeover".

Next Woody Clarke and Mitch Calhun from the wine bar Crush on Belmont asked for the BCA's support of their pending OLCC application to upgrade from a beer and wine license to a full liquor license. Clarke and Calhun said they wanted the upgrade to better serve their existing customer base, many of who wanted the choice of having cocktails. They said their relationship with their neighbors was impeccable and would stay that way. Charles Hodge and Ani Haines agreed with the positive comments about Crush and its customers.

Ani Haines made a motion to support the upgrade; Jack Maynard seconded. Discussion followed, with some board members saying it was BCA policy to vote against all license applications, because of the saturation of licenses already existing in Buckman. Other board members argued that The OLCC would never give the BCA's opinion any credence if it votes against all applicants, and that the BCA must reward business owners who are operating responsibly and save its battles for problem operations. A vote was taken, with Haines, Maynard, Cain, Bowling, and Evernden voting aye; Lindsay, Krause, and McGillivray voting nay. Motion carried to support the license.

Don McGillivray reported on the Southeast Uplift ice cream social. The big news was that the monies earmarked for a Southeast community center might instead be spent on a project in Northeast Portland, at the Memorial Coliseum, setting the community center project back perhaps decades. Don recommended that the BCA write a letter requesting that these funds be kept in Southeast.

Susan Lindsay said that a meeting was to take place in the following few days at the OLCC to discuss saturation of licenses in the area. She noted that the BCA had not been informed, and promised to pass on word if she could find out the where and when.

Ani Haines made an announcement about the lower Burnside street fair on Saturday, August 17th, from 2-8pm. Charles Hodge said that SMAC, a coalition of Buckman-area theatres, had players available to perform at no cost for local nonprofit events. Don McGillivray reminded attendees that anyone can post event announcement to the BCA website, and did not need to go through him to do so.

Susan Lindsay adjourned the meeting just after 8:30pm.

Minutes submitted by: Jarkko Cain, Secretary

B. C. A. General Meeting Minutes; September 12, 2002

Kevin Krause called the BCA General meeting to order at 7:05pm in the meeting room at the Ritzdorf Apartments at SE Belmont and 12th Avenue. Board members present were: Kevin Kraus, Don MacGillivray, Jack Maynard, Jarkko Cain, Ann Bowling, and Jim Evernden.

Don MacGillivray reported on a meeting he had attended concerning the future of the Washington High School property. He noted that while the meeting had been very tentative regarding what use would be made of the building, this property was commonly agreed to be the built property that Portland Public Schools was most anxious to unload. One group suggested turning the property into a model sustainable use facility, for the testing, exhibiting, and teaching about green building and commerce. Various social service uses had also been proposed. Kevin noted that this property would likely be one of the most important issues facing the BCA in the coming year.

Neighbor Anne Hughes discussed growing problems she was witnessing related to St. Francis Church and its dining hall. Hughes reported increasing violence and drug use in the area around St. Francis. She said she and others has raised these issues numerous times in the past and was frustrated by what they felt to be the church's lack of response. Hughes was communicating with the police and DA about instituting and enforcing a nuisance complaint. Ann Bowling, a St. Francis employee, talked about the role of the dining hall, and steps the church has taken to calm the situation. Neighbors made suggestions from their own experiences with social service issues. Jack Maynard suggested that the head of St. Francis's program come to the next BCA meeting, along with concerned neighbors, to try and find solutions.

Hughes also talked about her recent experience with community picnics in the French countryside, and suggested finding a way to do something similar in Buckman. Neighbor Charles Hodge talked about his plan to initiate a farmer's market in Buckman. Board members and neighbors offered support for and input on the market idea.

Another neighbor wanted to discuss traffic calming -- specifically on Stark near Buckman Elementary. Laura Jaeger from Central Catholic High School said it had taken three kids from her school being hit in a span of 1-1/2 years for them to get curb extensions and a crosswalk on Burnside. Other suggestions were made for more visible signage, and for having the school make frequent phone calls to the police to request ticketing of speeders. Kevin Krause noted that the city is currently taking input on its citywide traffic and transportation plan.

With current business completed, Krause adjourned the meeting at 8:10pm.

Minutes submitted by: Jarkko Cain, Secretary