Meeting Tomorrow! Thur May 12 at 7pm on Ridge Lane

***Notes added 6/8/16***

The meeting was held on Ridge Lane at the corner of Howth Avenue.

Thank you all who came and stayed, despite the cold evening!

We welcome three newcomers to our meeting: Frenchie from Lakeview, and David and Jared from upper Josiah. We’re very exited to have you join our meeting and group, and support Ridge Lane! Frenchie has prepared a list of suggestions for our project. Most of his concerns have been addressed in the course of our 3-6 year project. Thank you Suzanne for going over the items on his list that concern safety and cleanliness, and for making sure everyone is heard.

General observations
The meeting began with the admiration of the new cement path that was just created by the CatMex team, with the design of Nahal (Suzanne reports that it still needs to be washed down with muric acid to remove the white blotches). Prior to that, a redwood fence was erected and ivy was removed, as well as grubbing and leveling of the ground. The backflow for the water meter was installed. Thank you CatMex and Nahal!

1/ Minutes from our last meeting were approved.
2/ Painting of two adjacent walls to Ridge Lane will be done by CatMex, before planting.
3/ PUC is asked to approve and expedite the impending meter installation. Several strategies were discussed, from calls to personal contacts, and Supervisor and DPW support. Susan reports that planting will only be done afterward. The suggestion to invite Harlan Kelly to the opening celebration (PUC’s General manager) is brought up.
4/ Scott volunteered to be the digital co-signer for incoming invoices fro CatMex – thank you!
5/ Robert will meet with Suzanne to create an interim signage board for the project – thank you!
6/ Nahal request a meeting to talk about future designs of the project. She would like to engage other neighbors and possibly children. There is a day care on Mount Vernon, called Slanted and Enchanted, that might be an option. We will talk about the future of the project in our July meeting.
7/ Robert and Patricia will visit supervisor Avalos next Tuesday, to talk about possible funding for parcel 4 ( and find support for an expedited meter install from PUC).
8/ Nahal and Eric will design the flyer for the opening celebration on June 18th. The plan is to have it ready before our June 9th meeting and to that end they will have a proposal ready in the next few weeks. We hope to have it printed with the help of DPW, and will ask Sandra Zuniga. Julia reports that Sandra is leaving DPW for the mayors office, so we better ask soon. We expect to print 500 copies and will rely on everyone to help with distribution in the week after our June meeting. Thank you Nahal and Eric!
9/ Suzanne suggests to install dog poop/bag stations with small trash receptacles, and a discussion ensues about which city department is responsible for the pick-up of that trash. Remind me please, because I forgot.
10/ Do we need ‘Use at your own risk’ signage at Ridge Lane? Some projects have that to protect against litigation from mishaps. Something to consider.
11/ The options for the right bollards are still being considered. Some think solar will not be effective, as we have a lot of fog. The idea of embedded light strips as well as fluorescent paint on rocks in the gabians is briefly discussed. There seems to be room for creative solutions for some of the elements of the plan, including the exact placement of the benches, the number if plants and the size of trees.
12/ The possibility of contributing funds for the purchase of a specific item is briefly discussed, like a tree or a plant. Eric suggests the option of purchasing more mature trees, for example, if someone wants to make a personal financial contribution to this phase of Ridge Lane.
13/ At the end of our meeting Gomez Arteaga collects signatures to support the candidacy of Kimberley Alvarenga for supervisor of district . Thank you for coming to our meeting. We wish you and Kimberley success.
14/ Our Grand Opening is scheduled for Saturday June 18th, 10am-12pm. Scott Kaufman volunteers to help with the coordination of the event. Thank you Scott!