Carrollton-Riverbend Neighborhood Association (CRNA)

Friends and Neighbors:

1. New officers for the neighborhood association
2. Cox Cable—New contract; city wants input
3. City Council re-districting – Meeting June 22
4. Congressman Cedric Richmond – offer of assistance with federal matters
5. New restaurant on Oak Street; CRNA supports wine/beer license
6. Johnson School – request for tutors/mentors
7. NOPD – drug arrests in neighborhood
8. Become a green building professional
9. Dues

1, New Officers for Carrollton/Riverbend Neighborhood Association

–At our June meeting, we elected the new officers for the coming year. They are:

Anne Nicolay, President
Byron Johnson, Vice-president
Barry Brantley, Secretary
Jill Stephens, Treasurer

Please join me in congratulating them, wishing them well, and helping them to make our neighborhood association as good as it can be.

[FYI: I’m not going away. I’ll still be on the board and have volunteered to continue to be Land Use and Zoning Chair. I have been honored to serve as your president, but I do think it’s time for some new leadership, and I know that Anne, Byron, Barry and Jill will do a great job. Barry has also kindly offered to take over this e-news task, so future emails about association news will come from him.]

Plan to come to the monthly meetings, every second Thursday at 7 p.m. and get involved. Meetings are usually in the back dining-room of Squeal Bar-B-Q, unless they have another event scheduled there. Stay tuned for confirmation of the place of the meeting each month.

At our most recent meeting, there was a lively discussion of potential topics for the organization’s focus over the coming year, including all the following:

–zoning and code enforcement, generally
–blight
–crime
–assisting Johnson School and tracking the status of what is supposed to be a new school building at the former Priestley School site (Leonidas, between Birch and Green)
–street and streetlight repairs
–parking
–Quality of Life issues, with a focus on children and families
–porch parties
–the abandoned Entergy property adjacent to the Chevron station
–Block Captains and relationship building
–Community Center on Leonidas

Come be a part of that continuing discussion.

2. Cox Cable: New Contract – City wants input

Our Councilmember, Susan Guidry, is Chair of the City Council Cable, Telecommunications and Technology Committee, and is overseeing the renewal process for the current Orleans Parish Cable Television Franchise (Cox Communications) which is up for renewal this year.

She wants to hear from citizens. The public engagement process will include an online survey and public hearings. She is asking all her constituents to take a moment to answer the online survey.

You can also participate in the public hearings by attending any of the Cable, Telecommunications and Technology Committee meetings to be held in the Council Chambers at 10 a.m. on the following Mondays: June 27, August 22 and September 26.

Cox has a non-exclusive franchise to operate in Orleans Parish. The non-exclusive franchise was initially granted in the mid-1980s and renewed in 1995. Federal law governs cable television franchises and designates citizen input as a step in the local renewal process. The public input gathered will be used in the renewal evaluation process. Federal law does not allow the City Council to set subscriber rates; therefore the Council has no influence over a Cox subscriber’s monthly bill.

The second phase of the citizen engagement process will be a public meeting in the Council Chamber on June 30. For additional information, please visit http://www.nolacitycouncil.com.

3. City Council Re-Districting

The Council Redistricting process is continuing.

A public hearing will be held on the redistricting maps and proposals at the Redistricting Committee meeting to be held on Wednesday, June 22 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the Council Chambers. This will be the public’s opportunity to voice opinions and concerns based on the various proposed redistricting maps, and to have any questions answered. The Redistricting ordinance(s) will then be drafted by the councilmembers for introduction at the July 7 Council meeting.

4. Congressman Cedric Richmond – offer of assistance with federal matters

Lisa Ambrose, staff person for Congressman Cedric Richmond, attended our June meeting and offered to be of assistance with any federal matters that residents might have (Social Security, Veterans’ affairs, FEMA, passport issues, immigration issues, etc.) The local office is at 2021 Lakeshore Drive, Suite 309, NOLA 70122. Office phone: 504-288-3777. Fax: 504-288-4090. Ms. Ambrose can be reached by email at Lisa.Ambrose@mail.house.gov

5. New restaurant on Oak Street; CRNA supports wine/beer license

Leon Touzet, proprietor of restaurant Patois and of the new Tru Burger restaurant at 8115 Oak Street, attended our June meeting and explained his desire to apply for a low-alcohol (beer and wine) license there. After discussion, he expressed his willingness to enter into a Good Neighbor Agreement with CRNA, similar to those the organization has entered with other restaurants in the neighborhood: limiting transfer of the license, requiring operation as a standard restaurant, prohibiting “go cups” and video poker, and providing that there will be no advertising of alcohol in the windows. He also committed to closing no later than midnight each night. The board voted unanimously to support his application (technically an appeal of the current moratorium on new alcohol licenses in the area) under those conditions.

6. Johnson School – request for tutors/mentors

Wanda Brooks, principal of the James Weldon School Elementary School on Monroe at Hickory attended our June meeting and made an appeal for volunteers, beginning with the fall semester, to tutor/mentor individual children for 2-3 hours per week at the school. The focus will be on third to eighth grade children who are “on the cusp” or “almost passing,” but who could benefit from some extra, personalized attention. Volunteers will need to sign up no later than August, so that necessary background checks can be conducted. A one-day training day for the tutor/mentors is planned. Ms. Brooks can be contacted at wanda.brooks@rsdla.net

7. NOPD – drug arrests in neighborhood

On June 15, 2011 Narcotics Detectives conducted an investigation into narcotics activity at 1426 Monroe. Pursuant to that investigation, detectives obtained and executed a search warrant. Officers seized crack cocaine, marijuana, and currency. Arrested was Randy Clark, black male, 10-27-1981. Additional information on this arrest and/or subsequent prosecution can be obtained via Docket Master at http://www.opcso.org.

Remember to report suspicious persons or activities you see in your neighborhood by calling 821-2222. In an emergency, call 911 immediately.

Lieutenant Mike Montalbano
New Orleans Police Department
DIU Commander, Second District
4317 Magazine Street
New Orleans, LA 70115
(504) 658-6020

8. Become a green building professional

The Building Performance Institute, Inc (BPI) is conducting 2- and 3-day courses at UNO, June 30 – July 3, to certify people as Building Analysts and Envelope Professionals. For more info, see: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=rnfpslfab&v=001FxA2hImTfo2vWHCAO4bBq_vptY-8MtGwVJuMTA7QX-Dl_GP1J6eJoa4b4_7h3zjgX9xamrVSJPXQzOG-RndFwaLA-Ep1Bt5j-SnHumPHT6_b9Xq7lVxGbrDiwWDjtCoFLjuwq55hxmD1u6gAg90LyAAm3xvxEZOI

9. DUES

Yes, I know we promised to only bother you about dues during April, but just in case you intended to and never got around to it, you can still send dues to: Jill Stephens, Treasurer, CRNA, 8307 Freret, New Orleans, LA 70118. Checks can be made payable simply to “CRNA.” Dues are not required for membership, but they are appreciated, and we do have expenses. Recommended dues are $10/individual or $25/household, but we’re also happy to accept more. 

Hope you’re having a great summer,
Jerry

Jerry Speir, recent past president
Carrollton/Riverbend N’hood Assn.
jerryspeir@gmail.com

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