Tonight at Jefferson High School, the City of Cedar Rapids hosted a public meeting in regards to the "Paving for Progress" program that will be affecting our neighborhood streets in coming months and years. Here are a few highlighted items from the presentation and discussion:

• Our neighborhood street and water main improvements will begin in 2020 and go through 2022 in two phases
• Water drainage issues in our neighborhood will be addressed by additional drainage systems within the streets
• Work will be permitted around the school year as accessibility to Jefferson High School is critical to the general flow of traffic in our neighborhood 
• Sidewalks will not be commonly installed in the neighborhood, with the exception in two areas where sidewalks will be finished as they are currently incomplete pathways (corner of Chandler St / 8th Ave as well as 20th St to 16th Ave)
• The width of the streets will be decreased to 28 feet, which is 2 feet wider than City of Cedar Rapids standards
• Neighbors will have limited access to driveways during certain construction periods, but will be notified by door hangings before the work that limits accessibility is complete
• Traffic procedures at the current "Y" intersection of 20th St SW and Chandler St SW will be updated

Other notable updates are included in the attachment from the City's presentation below. The attachment also includes a public feedback form and contact information for the City Engineer, Lee Tippe, as well as Todd Happel with Anderson Bogert engineering services. Additional public meetings will be held closer to the start of the residential street and water main improvements. 

CANA July 2019 Meeting Minutes - Call To Order: 7:01PM
Attendance: George Heeren, Jackie McLaren, Ashley Vanorny, Chief Greg Smith, Denise Klemp, Lt. Tobey Harrison, Eriece Colbert, Kelly McMahan, Marlene Hunt, Sue Graham, Annette Lorenz, Susan Johnston, Nicole Schroeder

• CR Police Department - Lt. Tobey Harrison
  • Review of CRPD Calls for Service Report
  • Reminder of 9PM routine - emphasis that it should be any time you are alone or leaving the house as most break-ins happen during daytime hours
  • Susan Johnston asked about tag art on Central Church of Christ property - Lt. Harrison commented that tag art (or grafitti) has been more common in the summer months. He asked that the church clean it up ASAP to prevent further art being added. 
  • Lt. Harrison advised that they have hosted multiple youth police academies with the most recent being July 10th. They have seen success getting youth involved in training exercises to emphasize community safety. 
  • CRPD has added 3 new K9 units. They are also reporting crimes digitally on CrimeReportsTM. We now have this added to our website for easy access by neighborhood members. 
  • George Heeren shared his concerns about the homeless man in the park being there after hours. He does not want to get him arrested, but would like CRPD to offer him help. Lt. Harrison advised that CRPD needs to be notified if he is there after park hours (10pm-6am) and they can offer assistance via local homeless shelters and remove him from the park safely.
  • Councilwoman Ashley Vanorny commented that she had a state representative with her at the park and they had to report missing “no smoking” signs. No smoking at the park within 30 feet of the playground or ball diamonds. ‘
• CR Fire Department - Chief Greg Smith
  • Review of Neighborhood News
  • Cedar Lake is now a city-owned property
  • ATE citation reminder (interstate cameras for speeding tickets) 
  • Daniels Park is now open! Neighborhood members encouraged to check it out to see park upgrades.
  • Less reports of fireworks related incidents in 2019. Only 2 reported fires by fireworks with minimal damage compared to 2018. 
  • Sue Graham had asked about shredded paper regulations. We discussed whether shredded paper should be composted or recycled. Councilwoman Vanorny contacted City of CR Public Works during the meeting and was advised that shredded paper should be put into a paper bag and recycled, not composted due to paper flying away in the disposal pick up process.
• SAFE CR - Annette Lorenz
  • Decrease in fireworks citations (16 warning letters went out with few charges in city parks, etc.)
  • 1240 Chandler Street SW is now rented, per neighborhood member Jan Coleman. 
  • 2101 Chandler Street SW is still vacant - Chief Smith or Annette will be following up with this property as they are unsure if it is up-to-code as a multiplex or if it is being repaired/torn down. 
• City Council Member - Ashley Vanorny
  • Coffee with a Council Member will be scheduled for August - Date TBD
  • Review of Complete Streets / Paving for Progress - 8th Avenue SW between 18th Street and 15th Street SW will be starting repairs shortly that will be completed by Fall 2019. A letter was sent to residents affected by these repairs.  Sue Graham was curious about the timeline of the repairs on the 20th Street SW / Chandler Street SW loop. Nicole Schroeder commented that it was 2020 to start and 2021 to complete last time she checked. Updates can be found on the Paving for Progress Interactive Map. Lee Tippee is the project manager for this. Sue will be in contact with him for updates. 
    • UPDATE: The current map status has the 20th Street SW / Chandler Street SW loop noted for repairs in 2022. 
• Treasurer’s Report - Nicole Schroeder
  • Current account balance: $3,438.27 with outstanding check of $2,770.00 for concrete slab installation at park. We are currently waiting on small check from Central Church of Christ and reimbursement from City of CR for Safe Fest Expenses ($742+change). When all balances are paid/received, estimated bank balance will be approximately $1,400-$1,500. We raised almost $500 with the pancake breakfast this year. George Heeren noted that we officially have a savings account set up separately for the playground fundraising project. 
• Safe Fest Wrap Up - Susan Johnston
  • Safe Fest was a success! Over 100 in attendance plus volunteers with great feedback. We will be looking at keeping the mascots around longer next year. We will be moving the time from 8am to 9am for the start and also advertising earlier in the year. The late start was an issue with advertising this year. We will look forward to planning for 2020!
• National Night Out - Tuesday 8/6 at Cleveland Park
  • CANA will be providing hot dogs, chips, and bottled water beginning at 6pm. Neighbors are encouraged to bring a side dish or dessert as it is a potluck. We will be playing “The Incredibles 2” at 7:30pm. George Heeren will be bringing our CANA popcorn machine. 
  • Central Church of Christ will be providing crafts and games for the kids in between dinner and the movie. 
  • Denise Klemp will be bringing books to read with Sheryl Ochs as well. They also have bookmark crafts for the kids to do. 
• Park Playground Project
  • We are working to raise up to $85,000 to match the city’s budget for Cleveland Park improvements for 2020. Our goal is to raise the money by 11/1/19. Nicole Schroeder started a list of local business contacts to apply for grants and sponsorship dollars. Susan Johnston added to this list. 
  • We reviewed the letter to neighbors to include all the information necessary to raise the most funds. Denise Klemp suggested a few items to adjust/add and we also discussed a Frequently Asked Questions place on our website about the project to help educate our neighbors. 
• Email List Updates
  • Due to the number of registered members on our email marketing list, we will be moving to the MailChimp.com email marketing platform to reach members. This will better allow members to follow our updates and subscribe, share, and unsubscribe more efficiently. Please watch for this email from CANA moving forward vs. the personal emails through Gmail. Questions can be directed to Nicole Schroeder. 
• Cedar Rapids Education Association - Mrs. Colbert / Mrs. McMahan
  • Mrs. Colbert and Mrs. McMahan presented to us the CREA information as they are working with Lauren Whitehead on community outreach to connect the neighborhoods more closely to the schools/educators. Lauren was unable to attend tonight. Mrs. Colbert and Ms. McMahan presented three general questions to our neighbors tonight that were discussed and documented for review:
    • 1) What do you like about your neighborhood schools?
    • 2) What do your neighborhood schools need to improve upon / adjust to thrive in the community?
    • 3) What is the vision you have for your neighborhood schools?
  • The school district is beginning Phase I of their improvement plan for our community schools beginning with Coolidge, Jackson, and Truman. During Phase I, they will discuss the plans for Phase II, which will include Cleveland. 
• Voting of Board Member
  • Earlier in 2019, Gaylon Heetland was nominated as a board member of CANA. Gaylon has recently accepted the nomination. George Heeren motioned to vote. Motion was approved. All in favor, none opposed. Gaylon Heetland is a current board member of CANA effective 7/15/19. 

Meeting adjourned at 8:23pm.

SAFE CR UPDATE 7/16/19 FROM ANNETTE LORENZ RE: PROPERTY AT 2101 CHANDLER ST SW:
A notice was sent out as a Final Notice on June 6th, giving the property owner until July 10th to repair or demolish their property or further actions may be taken against them. At one point there was an interested buyer of the property, but as of right now, there has been no change in ownership and no work has taken place.  The building services staff has contacted the current owner requesting an update on the property. 

CRFD UPDATE 7/18/19 FROM CHIEF GREG SMITH RE: PROPERTY AT 2101 CHANDLER ST SW: 
 The question raised surrounded the fire last February at 2101 Chandler Street and how a three-plex would be allowed to be built in a single family residential neighborhood.  I spoke with our Building Services Department and the answer is that this structure was built prior to the zoning code, and was grandfathered in when the zoning code was enacted.  Building Services is working with the owner of the structure regarding its condition.

If you have specific questions on that process, the best contact is Kevin Ciabatti, Building Services Director.

Why are we raising $85,000 for Cleveland Park?
In 2020, the City of Cedar Rapids Parks Department has plans to upgrade the playground equipment at Cleveland Park. The Cleveland Area Neighborhood Association would like to match their playground improvement budget of $85,000 to include additional playground upgrades, including inclusive playground equipment for our community. 

What is ADA-compliant and inclusive playground equipment? 
Every playground is required to be ADA compliant. It is the law. This means that the park equipment is easy to approach and reach by kids of a wide age range and include lowered money bars, ramps that lead to the upper parts of the playground equipment, and swing seats with backs on them to make them usable for people who need support. 

When you add inclusive playground equipment, these are pieces of equipment and overall playground designs that encourage all types of play with a mix of physical, sensory, and social activities for multiple challenge levels. The activities are more designed into “pods” on the playground to make the playground easier to access and navigate. Inclusive equipment also includes easier access for wheelchairs and strollers to enter and navigate the playground. At Cleveland Park, we want to be sure that everyone feels welcome and able to play with their friends, family, and neighbors on our playground. 

When is this project happening?
We are fundraising through November 1, 2019. The actual park improvements will start in late spring or early summer (May-June) 2020. A specific date will be announced along with a groundbreaking event in late spring 2020. 

What is the deadline to raise the money?
The final date for any donations to be made is November 1, 2019. Most grant cycles also end at this date, and we need to submit requests for proposals to playground design companies for our project ASAP. This target end date allows us the most opportunity to receive public or private grants and sponsorships yet in 2019. 

What happens if we don’t meet our goal?
All money raised through our fundraising efforts will be put towards this playground improvement project, no matter the total dollar amount raised. Every penny helps. Of course, the more we raise, the better! 

Why isn’t the city building us a new park?
Oh, they are! The city has an $85,000 budget for the playground improvements that are planned for 2020. The money we raise from this fundraising project will allow us to add a variety of other playground equipment pieces, including some inclusive equipment. 

What do we have so far? 
We are very excited to have a donation of a net climber by the Cedar Rapids Kiwanis Club. We also have a small amount of donations from our summer 2019 pancake breakfast set aside. This totals roughly $15,000 as of July 15, 2019. 

How do I donate? 
Donations can be made by check to Cleveland Area Neighborhood Association and mailed to CANA, PO Box 8501, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52408. Donations can also be made via PayPal at paypal.me/CANA108. 

Can I write this donation off on my taxes? 
Yes! Cleveland Area Neighborhood Association is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. All donations to CANA and CANA projects are tax-deductible. Please contact our treasurer at [email protected]. 

How can I help with fundraising efforts?
Spread our message! Share our goal! Ask your friends, family, and neighbors to check out our space at Cleveland Park. Encourage them to make a donation via check or PayPal. If they can’t make a monetary donation, ask them to share our flyer or share our message on Facebook. Ask your local business contacts to support our project through sponsorship and donations. We can’t hit our $85,000 goal without you!

I have another question. Who can I contact?
With questions regarding the playground improvement project or CANA in general, please reach out to President George Heeren at [email protected]. ​