Central Roxborough Civic Association Meeting Minutes
December 7, 2017
Alex Fidrych opened the meeting as CRCA President Don was absent due to an accident.
Zoning
Announcements regarding status of 340 Hermitage and 4549 Silverwood tabled to next meeting.
5h Police District
Officer Scott spoke about
- Town Watch meeting on January 15th
- Shop with a cop event held at Target on Ridge
- Cook Wissahickon threw a Christmas party with Police district at Salvation Army
- Reminder to lock doors as criminals are out shopping
Ridge Avenue Demolition Moratorium (Bill 170821)
Alex Fidrych described the basics of the – moratorium which would cover Ridge Avenue from Wissahickon to Northwestern Ave for 1 year.
Josh Cohen announced that the bill was voted out of committee. It is in effect now and will be effective for one year from the date the mayor signs it. He also said that there was still some discussion about whether to create a historic district to protect properties or whether specific properties would be protected. 317 specific properties have been identified that might be nominated for historic preservation.
Celeste Hardester provided a recap of the public meeting at City Council re the moratorium bill. The bill is backed by the Preservation Alliance. Councilman Curtis Jones recognized and thanked the lower northwest for taking the lead on this initiative.
CRCA meeting attendees asked questions about
- whether historic designation amounted to eminent domain “taking” of their property
- how historic designation could affect what they can do with their property
- what tax credits are available for affected properties.
- what happens after the year is up for moratorium.
Joshua Cohen answered some questions and indicated that people can contact him at any time with questions.
Philadelphia Water Department Presentation
Joanne Dahme, General Manager of Public Affairs at PWD, gave a slide presentation on what PWD is doing to help control stormwater and what citizens can do on their own properties to help reduce storm water runoff.
See
http://www.phillywatersheds.org.
Presentation re Manayunk Canal Restoration
Kay Sykora gave a slide presentation showing the many restoration projects along the Manayunk Canal and adjacent areas.
Parking Committee Meetings
Margaret Ann Morris recapped the two Parking Committee workshops that were held in October and one in November. Some issues that came out of these meetings include illegal parking, cars being parked for extended time without moving, residents not using driveways and using street parking instead, and commuters coming into the area and parking in the neighborhood, new development creating additional parking pressure and inability to park near one’s home.
Some potential solutions were painting parking lines, permit parking, utilizing parking lots during off hours, reminding folks of parking regulations, community and city leader engagement.
Next steps are to consult PPA for potential areas of improvement and gain ticketing data from local Police district.
The committee is looking to have a formalized plan by late spring.
Please see the Summary of Parking Issue Workshops.
Officer Elections at Next Meeting
CRCA officer elections will be held at the next meeting. Lynda Payne announced that the current nominations are as follows.
- President: Celeste Hardester
- Vice President: Don Simon
- Treasurer: Neil Macdonell
- Recording Secretary: Elizabeth Fischer
- Corresponding Secretary: Alexander Fidrych
- Board Chair: Lynda Payne
Lynda also announced that nominations can be made by CRCA members at the election meeting.
