May 2005
Our next meeting is Thursday May 19 at 7:00 pm
at O'Malley Elementary School.
Agenda
O'Malley Elementary School
Thursday, May 19, 2005
When you see the list of projects to be funded under each bond package, you might wonder who comes up with the list. Through your Community Council, you get a small role in creating the list!
The Capital Improvement Budget/Program (CIB/CIP) starts with a Community Council Survey. The primary goal of the survey is to have the Community Council provide an overall priority ranking of all capital projects in our area and suggest additional projects that are not listed.
Following is the list we developed for 2004 for the Mid-Hillside and Hillside East Community Councils. The bold titles indicate that it is on the MOA list we got this year. (Note that most of what we suggested last year did not make it onto the MOA list!)
Please rank these with "1" being the most important. You can add projects you think ought to be done or scratch anything off this list. You can get more info at the Councils' website. Hit the ISSUES button and scroll down to the CIP section. Fax your responses to 349-8376 or email them to john@weddleton.com. In May we'll draw up a list to submit.
[ ]Safe trail from the North side of O'Malley to O'Malley Elementary Safe pedestrian access to schools is good for kids and results in less traffic. If this is desired, it should be part of the O'Malley Road Project.
[ ] Hillside District Plan Early this year, this plan got some funding and staff assigned to move it forward.
[ ] Abbott Rd Reconstruction Our survey in 2003 ranked this higher than our other main road projects, but it is further down the list at DOT!
[ ] O'Malley Rd Reconstruction This project appears to be on track.
[ ] DeArmoun Rd Reconstruct 2 No dispute on this in 2003. Have things changed?
[ ] Trail up Abbott along Hillside to Rabbit Creek Rd. to Seward Highway A Council wide parks survey showed this to be one of the most desired facility improvements.
[ ] Upper Huffman Trailhead More room for parking.
[ ] Warning Light at DeArmoun and Hillside. DOT accident Chart shows relatively high # of accidents
[ ]Hillside LRSA's Rehab Appears to be always on the list.
[ ]Greenbelt Acquisition (On the MOA list for Hillside East only.) Any details on what to get?
[ ]Far North Bicentennial Park Trails and Trailhead improvements that follow the prevailing plan for the Park A council survey showed heavy use of these trails. Respondents typically noted that the trails are in generally good shape.
[ ]Hillside/Hilltop Ski Area Parking paving Lots was paved by Hilltop last year. There's more to do.
[ ]Horse Trail adjacent to the Homestead Trail in Bicentennial Park This might decrease trail conflicts.
[ ] No Bonds Take a moratorium year.
On this year's MOA list, but taken off our list last year:
[ ] Lower Hillside Area Storm Drainage - Our thinking last year is that this was outside of our area.
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LONG RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN
Planning how we get from one place to another is complicated and emotional. The whole topic is a minefield of real rules, rules from habits, huge money and inconsistent desires that the lightly educated should probably avoid. But the road planners keep asking for our input. We give it, then we learn that rules don't allow what we want! It'll drive you crazy, but we all need to get out of the house once in a while so we should keep trying to nudge the plans a bit.
There's a hierarchy for ranking road capacity: Freeways are the fastest and biggest, steering down the list we get Expressways, Major Arterials, Minor Arterials, Collectors and then Local Roads. Relevant to our area are Minor Arterials for 10,000 to 20,000 average daily trips and Collectors for 2,000 to 10,000 ADT.
The Design Study Report for DeArmoun from Sept. 2003 says it's an urban collector. Proposals so far leave it at two lanes. The LRTP lists project #204 DeArmoun Phase II as a major arterial with three lanes. This is an important change. If people thought the proposals were overbuilt before, this new categorization could open the door for even more!
Board member Shirley McGrath represented the MHCC at a meeting with Rabbit Creek and Huffman O'Malley council members to discuss the LRTP and its impact on the Hillside. At this month's meeting we may consider some resolutions drafted at that meeting.
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If the fire is coming, where are you going to go? Our APD liaison, Cindi Stanton will provide some info on a fire evacuation plan. The fire outside Homer a few weeks ago should be a warning that we can't ignore the threat!
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WHERE'S THE BIG WIRE GOING? Chugach Electric will send Del LaRue and Dora Gropp to present the routing selection for the new University to South Anchorage Substations 138 kV Transmission Line. MHCC Board member Tom O'Grady was our rep. on the Citizens Advisory Committee for the route selection. He has not spilled the beans so you can be among the first to know.
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FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE: Taxes Drop or Remain Flat for Most Homeowners. The average Anchorage homeowner will see a modest reduction this year in property taxes required for general government operations, from police and fire to road maintenance.
For an average resident living in a $221,800 home, property taxes for city operations will drop $16, even with an average 11 percent increase in property assessments between 2004 and 2005. The other portion of city tax bills is for the Anchorage School District, which will increase about $97, or 4.5 percent this year. Overall tax bills, including for general government operations and schools, will increase about $81 for the average resident.
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Some neighbors not being treated well by the RCA! There is grumbling in the area by folks who share wells. Apparently some time in 2004 the Regulatory Commission of Alaska adopted new regulations for small water and sewer utilities. Surprisingly, systems with 15 or more "service connections" are considered water utilities! We have a few in the area that may have to cope with a new level of paperwork and added fees.
If you do not share a well, you might write this off as unrelated to you. Imagine that this might be a trend and the informal road group you might be a member of were faced with a similar situation.
Board member Shirley McGrath will draft a resolution regarding this issue.
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HILLSIDE DISTRICT PLAN MOVING AHEAD Joanne Contreras is the MOA's coordinator
for the District Plan. She expects to have a meeting for Community Councils
during the summer. We typically take three month break from all this hard work
but we'll find the time to keep you notified about this important topic.
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WHY MOVE THE CAPITOL? Juneau is just a short blog away! Check out Rep. Bob Lynn's web "blog:" http://www.alaskadistrict31.blogspot.com/
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BIKE TO WORK! On May 20th, the Mayor has challenged the
work force of Anchorage to join the communities throughout the USA to ride a
bike to work. You'll be glad you did!
To warm up for the event, go see some free movies at the Anchorage Museum at 7:00pm Wednesday May 18. In the 1890's, before automobiles ruled the roads, bicyclists were referred to as "Scorchers" because of their blazing speed. More than a century later, in a world filled with car-related environmental and social problems, Return of the Scorcher looks at bike culture & lifestyles around the world. It features the scene which led to the adoption of the name "Critical Mass" and served as inspiration for the 2nd film: We Are Traffic which chronicles the history & development of "the spirited and dynamic social/political movement where bicyclists reclaim the streets by riding en masse.
More information on this event along with easy to read bike route maps and prize rules can be found at http://www.muni.org/parks/
Every bike is one less car!
Have a great summer!
Mid-HillsideBoard Members
John Weddleton -President 349-8370 john@weddleton.com
Brian Johnson -Vice President 345-5883 brian.johnson2@akanch.ang.af.mil
Tom O'Grady -Secretary 345-6948 ogrady@gci.net
Linda Perkins -Treasurer 346-2558 miniaturehorses@alaska.com
Kim Ross -Registrar 344-0333 kimross@alaska.com
John Jenkins 240-8609 laurieb@alaska.net
Shirley McGrath 345-1606 smcgrath@alaska.net
Mark Miner 336-2383 akminers@alaska.net
Lance Powell 346-2327 lwpowell1@juno.com
Hillside East Board Members
Tom Newins, President 345-8881 newins@gci.net
Bjarne Holm, Vice President robinholm@ak.net
Our next meeting is Thursday, May 19.
We meet at 7pm on the third Thursday of the month at O'Malley Elementary School on Rockridge off O'Malley. For more info see www.communitycouncils.org