Attendance: Char Thompson, Paula Gibson, Jana Stewart, Mark Shahan, Brian Osborne, Steven Siehr, Paul Beckett, Ann Clark, Sue Reindoller, Tony Fernandez

Meetings of the Friends are organized by volunteers on a rotating basis. Steve Siehr organized this meeting and presided.

1. Announcements:

   A memorial bench has been installed with contributed funds at the Fox and Sheldon green space The new plantings at Fox and Sheldon were damaged by vandalism the night of October 20 (barberry bushes were torn out). The damages have been repaired.

   Formal announcement of the City's policy on Path encroachment is likely to be delayed until December or even January.

2. Guidelines on Path usage and etiquette.

   Ann Clark shared her email exchange with Arthur Ross on this subject. Among other points, Ross confirmed that it generally works better if all kinds of users use the same side of the Path, that City policy is to minimize signage, that bicyclists passing should give an audible warning, and that dogs should be under close control. Ross' "rules of the road" will be published in the DMNA Hornblower in a coming issue and will be posted to the Path portion of the DMNA website (www.dmna.org). Mark Shahan noted that some users seem not to realize that the Path is multiuse, for pedestrians (and other users) as well as bikers. It was agreed that we should continue to push the City to name and sign the Path "Southwest Bicycle-Pedestrian Path" to clarify the point.

3. Broadening Friends Participation to more neighborhoods.

   Paula Gibson of Project Home attended at the invitation of the group. Project Home owns and manages a large housing project (Prairie Crossing) which borders the Path from Lovell Lane to the exit toward the Capital City Trail.

   Project Home would be very interested in working with the Path Friends to landscape and increase resident participation in Path activities. Project Home hopes soon to receive funding from a Community Development grant for landscaping, vegetable gardening between the Project Home buildings and the Path.

   A landscape architect is working up designs. It was agreed that Friends activists like Sue Reindollar and Laura Brown could help with plant selection and sourcing. There was enthusiasm for helping Project Home make a success of the project. There was also enthusiasm for spring activities to encourage residents in the Allied neighborhoods (and the other neighborhoods along the Path) to bike more and explore the natural surroundings nearby.

   Paula was made aware of the MG&E project to underground lines in the Allied area. She will contact MG&E regarding Project Home plans for plantings.

   Jana Stewart of Westmorland neighborhood reported that their Association had raised $1000 for plantings along the Path. She has collected a large amount of native plant seeds to be planted on the Westmorland side next spring. Other Westmorland residents are interested in participating.

4. Formal Friends organization.

   It was agreed that this must be deferred until we hold a successful general meeting in the spring and draw in more participation. In the meantime Ann Clark will try to collect examples of bylaws from similar organizations to help with bylaws formulation. Char Thompson will help Ann. There may be a need for a treasury to receive and dispense Friends funds. But it was agreed that applying for tax exempt status (a fairly onerous process) should be deferred. At present there is no need for a treasurer and bank account since activities are being funded through the various neighborhood associations.

5. Spring Activities and General Meeting.

   The Spring meeting will be very important. After discussion, April 10, 2002 was tentatively selected. The meeting should lay the basis for formal organization. In addition, an agenda for the meeting should include plantings plans and updates; dealing with invasive weeds; improving the name of the Path; rules of the Path, signage and informational kiosks; possible requests for traffic lights at crossings, and organizing a general spring cleanup day. However, not too much of the meeting should be taken up with formal presentations.

   Other spring activities could include programs to encourage more biking by residents along the Path. These could draw on the "Effective Cycling" courses that teach safe urban bicycling. Also included could be free tune-ups, tire inflation, etc., as is offered during Bike to Work Week. Bicycle sales and service stores such as Budget, Pacific, and Michael's Bike and Ski might like to participate.

6. Other Issues.

   Paul Beckett, Sue Reindollar and Mark Shahan have been keeping parallel email lists for communications to those interested in the Friends (the total number on the list is now 78). For consistency and efficiency Mark volunteered to be responsible for a single list. He will set it up with an automatic "subscribe" and "unsubscribe" feature.

7. Date and organizer of next meeting.

   At least two Friends meetings will be required to plan and organize the general meeting. The first will be Tuesday, January 29, at Dudgeon Commons, from 7 to 9 p.m. Char Thompson will organize and chair it.

http://www.dmna.org/bikepath/bike_friends_minutes_111301.shtml
Last Modified: 03-Feb-08 05:53 PM

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