Sylvan-Highlands Neighborhood Association (SHNA)

April Newsletter

May 29, 2003

April 03, 2003
SHNA Newsletter

Status of Parking in the Zoo Lot
According to a recent meeting with Rex Burkholder of Metro and another with Bruce Pease, Head of Oregon Zoo Security, there is no special parking arrangement that applies to members of Sylvan-Highlands neighborhood. Zoo officials have recently cautioned that their patrols cover the lots around the Zoo; they will ticket any trespassers who are trying to park and ride the MAX train. The City of Portland has jurisdiction over the Vietnam Memorial parking lot and will ticket anyone who parks there for more than two hours ?– for any reason. Contrary to information provided at the January General Membership Meeting, there is currently no way to access the MAX train by parking in the lots. Dialogue is underway with Metro, the Oregon Zoo, and Tri-Met to encourage better access to the station.

Zoo Exhibit Expansion
The Oregon Zoo has submitted a revised Master Plan to the City of Portland for expansion of its exhibit space and facilities. Our Land Use Chair, Chris Steinbrecher, is the person to contact regarding access to information about the land use matter. He can be reached by calling 503-297-4827 or by e-mail at chrstein@teleport.com. The revision excludes the auxiliary parking lot from the plan, but the fate of that parking lot remains uncertain.

March Membership Meeting
The March Membership Meeting was held at Fire Station 16. Guest speakers from Portland Fire and Rescue discussed wildfire hazards and how they impact homes in forested areas. A representative from Tri Met discussed route change considerations for Bus #63 that increase frequency to the MAX station and provide better circulation within the neighborhood. Following the meeting, a tour of the station occurred. Sincere apologies are extended to all the fine neighbors who turned out for a tour of the station but couldn?’t stay until the crew returned from their call. There will be other opportunities.

Neighborhood Clean Up April 26
Our annual neighborhood clean up will be held Saturday, April 26, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. Three different staging sites will be set up at the following intersections: Montgomery/Skyline near Westgate Business Park, SW Fairview/Skyline, and SW Barnes/Skyline. Neighbors can sign in and pick up cleaning supplies like gloves and trash bags. A large dumpster will be situated on the KOIN gravel area at SW Barnes/Skyline. The idea is that neighbors pick up trash and place the bags next to neighborhood streets so that a crew can collect them later in the day. Although trash may be tossed in the dumpster, no hazardous waste can be eliminated there. The dumpster is reserved to clean up the neighborhood ditches and roadways, not to clean out neighborhood garages.
Students can receive credit for volunteer effort by contacting Tom Barnes, neighborhood coordinator, at 222-4209.

Nominations for New Officers and Board Members
The election for new Executive officers and Board members will occur at the May 13 Membership Meeting. A new web site administrator will be needed to fill Jenny Thome?’s shoes since she?’ll be moving in April. If you have the desire to serve the neighborhood in any capacity or want to be a part of the nominating effort, please contact Sally Kneuven, 226-4850.

Safe Mail Options
As mail theft abounds, neighbors are increasingly interested in protecting their property from thieves. PK Wall, neighborhood Crime Prevention Chair, presented safe mailbox options at the March Membership Meeting, provided by Mailbox Solutions in Wilsonville. Throughout the month of April, fliers will be circulated and orders accepted for a group discount on USPS approved, secure, locked, metal mailboxes. Provided enough people order, our neighborhood is eligible for a substantial discount on boxes with address numbers applied. The neighborhood association will handle the orders and coordinate delivery in May. Be on the lookout for your flier and take advantage of this offer if you need a secure mailbox.

Discussions are ongoing with John Bowman, Manager of West Slope Post Office, to site a drop box near the Montgomery/Skyline intersection.

Fire Station 16
Captain Bill Sargant and his crew are happy to be working in Sylvan-Highlands. Two neighborhood meetings have been hosted at the station since it opened in December. The City of Portland hosted an Open House on March 13 to celebrate the completion of the project. In order to work more capably in our neighborhood, Captain Sargant has requested that neighbors avoid parking cars on the narrow streets whenever possible and have construction dumpsters positioned well to the side of narrow streets so that the fire trucks can get through. Discussions about moving the school bus stop on SW 57th to the front of the station, under the overhang, are underway.

Neighborhood web site
Looking for links to important city sites? Interested in an on-line forum to discuss key issues in the neighborhood? Want to join SHNA? You can get all this and more on the SHNA web site at www.neighborhoodlink.com/portland/shna

Remember: To vote at SHNA meetings, you must be a registered member of the neighborhood association. For information about how to become a member, please contact Dave Malcolm, 503-221-7903 or davem@advisoryfirm.com

Next Neighborhood Meeting: May 13, 2003 Location to be announced.