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The Special Meeting of Neighborhood Council No.2 was called to order at 12:47 p.m., held at the new Federal Courthouse.
A quorum was present with Kelly Manzer, Dorothy Schmidt, Phyllis Hemstad, Sue Ann Strickland, and Robert Mehlhoff.
The meeting was primarily held for the purpose of final formulation of a letter to be sent to a prospective tenant in the Janetski Industrial Park area. Due to the odor that it would emit, the neighborhood did not look forward to adding to the already problem from the cement plant. The letter was given a go ahead with all members signing the letter.
Question arose concerning the intentions of the administration of the City Pound. A new structure was to be built and so far little or nothing has been heard about it. Questions also arose as to how the police department could manage extra personnel to work with the dog pound rather than more in line with the regular police work.
Sue brought up the problem fence at 2nd Ave. SW and 3rd St. SW. Debbie Kimball was to look into the matter under the clear view policy.
Bob brought up the money he obtained from the federal program to complete the leg of the River's Edge Trail which will continue on from the West Bank Park trail, under the bridge and on to the other two Southwest parks across from Broadwater Bay. This project will be one of the first projects to begin work immediately.
The meeting adjourned at 1:55 pm.
Respectfully submitted
Phyllis Hemstad,Secretary
Neighborhood Council #2
The meeting of Neighborhood Council No.2 was called to order by Chairman Kelly Manzer at
7:06 pm, at the West Elementary School Cafeteria.
The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance. Present for the meeting was Dorothy
Schmidt, Sue Strickland, Kelly Manzer, Bob Mehlhoff and Phyllis Hemstad. A quorum was
present.
The minutes of the May 13, 2009 meeting have been misplaced and will be written upon
discovery.
Bob Mehlhoff, Sue Strickland, and Dorothy Schmidt attended the City Commission meeting in
regard to the Social Host ordinance. Chris Christian lead the land lord group which met with the
City Commission and presented adjustments to the ordinance. Agreement was reached to the
satisfaction of all parties concerned.
Phyllis Hemstad met the day before the City Commission meeting at the Senior Citizens
Building with the Landlords involved to come to a conclusion as to what would be presented to
the City Commission as a compromise.
Andrew Finch, Transportation Planner for the City of Great Falls, brought a drawing of the new
River's Edge Trail which will be extended under the First Avenue North Bridge (aka West Side
Bridge) along the river to the Garden Home Park on the Southwest. Cementing of the trail in the
West Bank Park will take place to update the paving of the trail in that area. For further
information regarding the trail, you may contact Andrew at 455-8434 or afinch at greatfallsmt dot net [ Please note: The original had the email address in proper form; it has been modified for web to reduce risk of spamming of the address. ]
A tour of the Federal Courthouse near West Bank Park will be arranged between Kelly and Bob
for a meeting of the Council and an opportunity for West Side or City residents desiring to tour
the building.
A zoning change requested by Dan O'Leary who has property behind the Lido Bar is listed. The
Council does not have particulars as to the request.
It has been mentioned that Lee Janetski of the Great Falls Redi-mix is in the process of
requesting the property abutting his cement plant be placed in an industrial park complex to
accommodate Specialty Mills which is seeking a new location from Third Street Southwest.
Information concerning this plant states that it produces a provocative odor and would not be
acceptable to the Westside neighborhood as well as the children attending West Elementary
School. The cement dust already is a problem in the neighborhood and the residents are not
interested in acquiring more problems. A letter will be forthcoming from our Council and we
will work in conjunction with Council No.3 to state our reasons for not permitting an Industrial
Park for this purpose to go forward.
Presently we do not have a Police Officer attending meetings and the new officers hired or to be
hired will not alleviate the situation. The Council may request an officer to be present by going
before the City Commission and requesting an officer to be present at meetings.
Phyllis will contact the Park and Recreation Department concerning the small park property
which has horses fenced on part of the park on the Westside. The lot needs cleaning of weeds
and compensation for the use of the City land. There were complaints about weeds growing
unattended either on City property or the Railroad property on the backside of Gibson Park. She
will look into this situation and report at the next meeting.
The matter of the Animal Control was discussed and some members wondered why the Police
Department was still in charge with a shortage of Police Officers. It is believed the authority
should be in the hands of people who specialize in animal control. Questions arose as to when
this problem will be resolved.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:46 pm.
Respectfully submitted
Phyllis Hemstad, Secretary
Council No.2
The Neighborhood Council No. 2 Special Meeting was called to order by Chairman Kelly Manzer at 7:03 p.m. The Pledge of Allegiance was presented.
The Secretary called the roll with Kelly Manzer, Sue Strickland, and Phyllis Hemstad present. Dorothy Schmidt was absent and Bob Mehlhoff was in attendance at the Legislature. A quorum was present.
A display of the past drawing of a park proposal plan was set up by Marty Basta, Director of Parks and Recreation Department. Marty gave a short resume of the status of West Bank Park and what work and plans must be put into place to be ready for available funding in the future.
Marty made a list of each item desired to be placed in the Park and items which were not to be placed in the Park. Among some the requests were:
No road in the entry way on 4th Avenue Northwest over the railroad track into the Park.
No parking lot at the 4th Avenue Northwest entry into the Park.
At the 4th Avenue Northwest Entry, a desired 2 vehicle circle be established as a drop point for picnic equipment such as coolers, picnic baskets, barbecue equipment, etc.
A parking lot be established on the narrow end of the Park where vehicles will not use the best part of the Park which has the beauty and the Lewis and Clark legacy.
A dock just the Bridge be built for canoe and rafters only to approach the park.
A staging area be established naturally or built for plays, musical entertainment, etc. where the public can sit on the lawn, bring lunches if they choose, and be entertained.
The far North portion of the Park be left to a natural state to blend with the bird’s habitat which inhabit Sacajewea Island and to encourage the birdwatchers to visit the Park.
The cleanup of the sludge under the Park be corrected. Check with County.
Sprinkling system, good drainage, rest rooms be determined and competed.
Replacement of the present fencing be changed.
There were several more recommendations given to Marty but these are a few. The meeting was adjourned at 8:45 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Phyllis Hemstad, Secretary
The meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm by Chairman Kelly Manzer. The Pledge of Allegiance to the flag was presented.
The Secretary called the roll with Kelly Manzer, Dorothy Schmidt, Sue Strickland, and Phyllis Hemstad were present. Bob Mehlhoff came in from the Legislature a short time later. A quorum was present.
The Minutes were approved as mailed.
Sue Strickland reported on the City Commission meetings. She asked questions regarding West Bank Park so that they would be a matter of record. She also covered othe city-wide business which was on the agenda.
Dorothy Schmidt covered the Council of Council meeting in the absence of Phyllis Hemstad the Council representative.
Joe Briggs was a guest to cover County issues. He began by a video showing the work projects and departments of Cascade County for which the County Commission is responsible. There was little time to ask questions which were pertinent to the Neighborhood Council as of the 9:00 pm deadline to be out of the building. Hisanswer to the question concerning the cleanup of the underground debris in West Bank Park seemed a little dubious. He stated that since the County has cleaned up their section of the oil and sludge under their Third Street property, the same materials under the West Bank Park are no longer moving toward the Missouri River but are now stable or regressing. We found this hard to believe and will have to check this out. The question of horseracing shed little light on the subject as well.
Bob Mehlhoff gave a brief report on happenings at the Legislature which had to to do with the city and to our benefit.
Phyllis Hemstad requested a special meeting of Neighborhood Council No 2 regarding West Bank Park. The meeting was to be set up with Patty Cadwell and advertised. The Special Meeting was scheduled for the following Wednesday, April 15, 2009, 7:00 pm.
The meeting adjourned at 9:04 pm.
Respectfully submitted
Phyllis Hemstad, Secretary
Meeting called to order at 7:04 PM by Pres. Kelly Manzer.
Attendance: Present – Kelly Manzer, Dorothy Schmidt, Sue Strickland. Absent – Phyllis Hemstad (Florida), Bob Mehlhoff (legislature). Quorum present.
Minutes from last meeting approved.
Dorothy reported on the city commission meeting.
Police Advisory Board meets next week. Kelly will attend for Bob.
Sue reported on the conference phone call with Cheryl Patton, Mr. Doyan, Mr. Reardon, et al, answering the questions Phyllis phoned in from Florida. The group stated there has been no sale/transfer of West Bank Park land and there is to be no parking lot in the park for the use of an office building which will be built on private land, not park land as reported to Phyllis. There is a committee in place working on the road access to the new Federal Building. A park master plan is also in the works. The edge triangle has not been squared off. We will be included on the development of the master plan. Mr. Doyen stated that he had told all of this to Phyllis by phone two weeks earlier.
Minutes were finally approved from the December meeting. Sue talked with Mary Ann Komar who said the CTEP fund request was for the Gibson Park Lighting project.
Mr. Kent Funyak gave the presentation for the Airport Authority on the noise control, etc. They are currently awaiting funding from the Omnibus Bill in congress for presidential signature.
The map has been officially approved by the FAA. Stelling engineers, Mitch Stelling and Kathy Harris gave a presentation and answered questions from the audience. The document approval is good for ten years. This means that Great Falls is eligible for funding for sound insulation for houses with the goal of reducing from 65 DNL to 45 decibels or a minimum of 5 decibels. Kathy Harris spoke on how the dollars are spent. Each house will be treated on an individual basis. All windows, doors, etc will be custom made. The map is available at the Great Falls Airport for viewing or at greatfallsairport.com web site. Construction will start with a pilot ten houses. Any homes built after 1998 will not qualify for the grant. After the pilot program, the grants will be for fifty homes per year. There are 340 homes affected. CSDA Company, based in San Francisco, will be doing the design architectural work. This company has don 20,000 homes.
Sandy Mares reported on the article in the Tribune regarding the bike trail on the levee. The levee commissioners were unaware that the levee was in the city’s transportation plan. The city was made aware of the federal regulations prohibiting such activities.
Lisa Bracco will appear at the May meeting to discuss plans for the fairgrounds.
Kelly spoke regarding the fantasy gambling with a portion going to horse racing in Montana. She also mentioned that Ed Spector is approaching the County Commissioners with a proposal to lease the race track. An update should be available by next month’s meeting.
It was decided that Joe Briggs would be a good speaker for next month’s meeting if he is available. We can get an update on the fairground situation and the clean up project on 3rd Ave. NW.
We would also like to have Sheriff Castle speak again.
Council of Council meeting to be held on Mach 31st. One of us will cover for Phyllis.
Meeting adjourned at 9:00 PM
Sue Strickland
Acting Secretary.
Meeting called to order at 7:20 PM, as we waited for one member to arrive so we would have a quorum.
Attendance: Present: Kelly Manzer, Dorothy Schmidt, SueAnn Strickland. Absent: Phyllis Hemstad (Florida) and Bob Mehlhoff (Legislature).
Minutes read and approved.
Still unable to approve minutes of December meeting as Phyllis needed someone to contact MaryAnn Komar for clarification.
Kelly questioned why not all present in Jan. meeting did not sigh petition for refurbishing of Franklin Apts. Sue said new management company seems to be doing a good job as grounds are looking better. Charlie McCune gave a report on the last city commission meeting. Main topic was the re-zoning of land under the Warden Bridge.
Kelly reported on Police Advisory Board, as Bob is in legislature. Police Dept. is 5 officers short. Deployed officer’s slots cannot be filled. K-9 unit is a very important part of the police force. School zone marking / speeding discussed. Bob says this may be a legal issue.
Discussion on ACTION committee was held as to how they can assist the neighborhood councils. Kelly will ask about the free-standing sandwich board signs.
Bob is working in Helena on EEQ concerning the Plume from Great Falls Redi Mix.
Discussion was held on the dangerous speed limits on the Westside. Bob is also discussing this in Helena. State snow plowing in driveways was also discussed.
Kelly spoke about the number of sex offenders which are now in the prerelease center. They appear to be entering the center through an after care program, which is only offered in Great Falls. Once in Great Falls, they become established as residents.
Sue will see when we can get the new fair manager to speak at our meeting.
Kelly spoke about Fantasy Gambling HB 503. Rep. McChesney wants to take that money and give it to a children’s health issue program. Simulcast racing discussed along with other race/grounds issues at the fairgrounds. Possibly have Ryan Sherman talk with us about Fantasy Gambling issues.
Questions about Sheriff Castle’s budget problems came up. We think he should also speak to us. Sue Strickland reported on a request from Phyllis in Florida to see what is going on in and with West Bank Park. Sue called City Mgr. Doyan’s office with questions regarding the proposed road going into the park, a parking lot to be built in the park and an office bldg. to be built in the park. She will report at next meeting after hearing from city.
Feb. 20 is the deadline to sign up for Citizen’s Police Academy. It is a very worthwhile project. We have been unable to get officer Pre’tat at our meetings because of the lack of police officers.
Meeting adjourned at 8:45 PM
Sue Ann Strickland
Acting Secretary
Meeting called to order at 7:05 PM by Pres. Kelly Manzer.
Present: Kelly Manzer, Dorothy Schmidt, Sue Strickland.
Absent: Bob Mehlhoff (at state legislature) and Phyllis Hemstad (in Florida).
Minutes were not approved as there was a question regarding the CTEP grant funds. Sue will check with Phyllis for clarification.
Sue Strickland reported on Ben Rangel’s retirement function and the mental health center open house. Kelly had questions regarding the possible clients being served and how the police handle situations. Officers Beecroft and Gerhart responded.
The recent rash of burglaries (including Kelly’s vet. clinic) were discussed also. At this time there are 21 which are linked. The Governor’s 80/20 policy was also discussed. The Governor feels that 80% of the prison population should be released with only 20% of the worst offender to remain incarcerated.
Adam Hoffman, the representative for Tamrack Co., the current managers of the Franklin Apartments, spoke on the refurbishing planned for the apartments through a HUD grant for $1.5 million for work on the roof, security, appliances, etc. as the apts. are “hashed”. Affiliant Developers are the pending owners. Neighbor Works rep. Carrie Koppy spoke in support of the petition Adam presented for support of the proposed refurbishing.
Sgt. Jeff Beecroft and Don Gerhart from the Safe Streets Gang Task Force gave a presentation on gangs in Great Falls. We have 6 active and 2 inactive gangs currently identified in Great Falls. All of our gangs are obtaining their money from trafficking in narcotics. A very informative video presentation was viewed in the hopes that if the public is educated they will be more aware and call the police on any suspicious activity.
Neighbor Work Rep. Carrie Koppy requested a letter of support for CBDGB grant for High School Houses. Kelly will follow up on this.
Meeting adjourned at 8:50 PM
Sue Strickland
Acting Secretary
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