Our next meeting is Thursday March 21 at 7:00 pm in the O'Malley Elementary School Gym.
Agenda
Last month we had inspiring presentations on the School Bonds , the Convention Center tax and the Roads and Parks Bonds. There are lots of projects on those bonds, surely something for everyone.
Now let's look at the other side of the coin! Building a great city doesn't come cheap! Representatives from the MOA Finance Department will give us a sobering look at how we'll end up paying for everything. We are pleased to have available Marty McGee, Daniel Moore, Tony Price and Kate Giard.
There's a lot to cover here: How much does the city owe now? What's our bond rating? How much debt do we retire every year? Who gets left holding the bag if the new Convention Center doesn't make the grade? How did they figure your home is worth that much? And why are the appraisal notices green this year?
Capital Improvement Projects Have any ideas on projects that would make our area nicer, but might cost a few dollars? Maybe you know a great place for a trail, maybe a park improvement or even a new road. Those kinds of projects get their start on the Community Council's "Capital Improvement Projects" list. It's time for us to put one together.
On the current list are:
At our March meeting, we'll have maps and forms so you can toss your ideas in the pot.
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Terrace Estates and you. There has been a proposal to rezone the sand pit on the east side of Lake Otis between O'Malley and Huffman. The rezone requests housing density far greater than the surrounding neighborhoods. The rezone also includes a "Residential/Office" zoning that allows commercial development. This is way down the hill from us so you may think it will have little impact on you. It might even be a good idea and potentially a very nice development.
So what's all the fuss about? This rezone represents a dramatic change from the "Hillside Wastewater Management Plan" which is currently the guiding plan for zoning in our area. The new Comprehensive Plan mandates a "Hillside Area Plan" that would address zoning in our area. That plan remains unfunded for the foreseeable future. Until that plan is developed, the city must rely on the prevailing plan and on previous precedent. The rezone of this sand pit does neither.
Why does this concern you? What happens to our neighbor, may happen to us next. Angela Kuentzel, President of the Huffman-O'Malley CC has done a huge amount of research on the zoning issues involved and has spent many hours educating residents in that area. She says, "the City is justifying this development by comparing it to other similar developments - the problem being that they are comparing it to mid-town. If that is carried out to its logical conclusion - it would also be appropriate to build multi-storey offices, malls and other similar developments in Southeast Anchorage and the Hillside!!!"
The result of this issue is important to our area. If you live near an undeveloped tract of land with the expectation that any development there would be similar to the developments in your area now, you may be in for a surprise.
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Abbott/Lake Otis area Town Center "Design Charrette" will be held April 8-11. Go to Grace Community Church on Lake Otis at 7pm. While this is outside of our area, the success of the Town Center concept will make a difference in our lives. The Anchorage 2020 Comprehensive Plan supports this planning idea in a big way.
Town Centers are designed to function as a focal point for community activities for seven sub-areas of the Anchorage Bowl. They are two to four miles apart and encompass an area with 30,000-40,000 residents. The core of the Town Center is a mixed-used development with community-serving retail, services, public facilities and housing within a five-minute walk. A mix of housing types including medium to high-density, residential development surrounds the core.
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YOUR SURVEY IS IN THE MAIL! Watch for the Council's survey this month! The survey is going to every resident and landowner in our council area. The survey is only a couple pages and will cost you just 34c to send back.
If we get a good response, you'll get better representation from your community council board. If you look at the sidebar, you'll see that there are only 3 board members on the two community councils. The three of us tend to be pretty like minded on many issues. Until we get broader representation on our boards, we will rely on the survey results to guide our actions.
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Better than talk radio! Don't get duped by part of the story! If you're addicted to talk radio and think the TV and newspaper have enough time and ink to cover the whole story, you're bound to be left confused! Get the full story, not one side! Be part of the story, not just a bystander. Come to your Community Council meetings.
Board Members
John Weddleton, President 349-8370 john@weddleton.com
Jeff Clarke, Vice President 349-4892 (h) jay_peak@hotmail.com
Chris Birch, past president 346-3265 (h) chrisbirch@gci.net
Tom Newins, President
Hillside East CC 345-8881 newins@gci.net
We meet at 7pm on the third Thursday of the month at O'Malley Elementary School on Rockridge off O'Malley. For more information see www.communitycouncils.org/hillside
Get involved ...
it's your neighborhood!
Vicki Butler vlbutler@alaska.com deadline about a week before PTA meeting.
Debbie Eckhardt O'Malley PTA Debbie@Eckhardt.com
ACES tickets 258-2237 fx 278-4297 xavier topkok after noon
MORE QUESTIONS THAT NEED TO BE ASKED!
Why is it that the existing "Egan Convention Center" has required an
annual city subsidy for ALL the years it has been in operation? Here's
some numbers that should prove the point:
Revenues Expenses LOSS
1995 $ 1,916,000 $2,401,000 $ 484,000
1996 1,930,000 2,404,000 473,000
1997 1,951,000 2,386,000 436,000
1998 2,041,000 2,433,000 392,000
1999 2,247,000 2,614,000 367,000
2000 2,360,000 2,630,000 270,000
Did you know that the "Egan Center" was built "FREE" from a state grant! The "Egan Center" couldn't make it just paying for salaries, supplies and operations and maintenance! Imagine what it would be like if there were bond debt to pay off!
How many large conventions of 5,000 or more could Anchorage really expect to attract? Did you know that in 1999 the Egan Center ONLY hosted 9 conventions and 1 Trade Show! In 2000 there were 21
Conventions and 3 Trade Shows. Doesn't look like a sell out to us.
The proposal to promote the "New" Convention Center suggests that revenue be generated by: