SUMMIT MEETING NOTES
January 10, 2008
Location: College Hill Presbyterian Church

 ACTION ITEMS

The key action items as agreed to in this meeting are as follows:

ATTENDEES: (See Abbreviation Key)

ABSENT:

AGENDA

• Welcome and Introductions
• Host Greetings
• Agenda Review & Modification

• Review of Minutes from Last Month’s Meeting

• Opening Prayer

• Special Announcements

• Review of Action Items from Last Month’s Meeting

• CHBA Update

• CPOP/COP

• Court Watch Update

• Gardeners Report

• CHCURC Update

• Christ’s Community in College Hill Update

• Aiken Recruiting Progress

• Progress Report from The Rock

• Community Activities

• Focus Topic: 2006/2007 Retrospective – Positive Aspects

• Meeting Locations for 2008

DISCUSSION: 

1.   Special Announcements

None 

2.   Review of Dec 2007 Minutes
The Dec minutes were approved. 

3.   Review of Action Items from Previous Meetings

CCCH Youth Worker – to be done at a future meeting.

The Rock Update – done at this meeting. 

The agenda was adjusted per the input of attendees to the following:

4.   Forum Update

The community is rallying in opposition to the potential Liquor Permit for Easy Mart.   Letters were sent to all of City Council, and the first one to respond was Leslie Ghiz.  Laketa Cole and others are now responding as well.  A letter was also sent to State Representative Mallory and he has responded in support.

Many College Hill community organizations have written letters of support for the opposition to the Liquor License.   Churches and schools are being encouraged to express their point of view as well.

The police are not allowed to express an opinion in the formal process, but can indicate what data they have that a specific location is a community nuisance.   Often residents do not call the police to report issues, but they are encouraged to do so regarding this store or any other location in the community as issues arise. 

5.   CHBA – by Sheena Parton

-         Had a cleanup of the new parole office on Monday, with 8 parolees.  Phyllis worked with them and guided them in this project.

-         The Visconti-Lechler Pharmacy has closed due to the retirement of the owner.   He sold the business to Walgreens.   A new tenant is needed for the building.  

-         CH Coffee Shop is having its second anniversary.

-         There is a new business in the building that houses the Hollywood Apts.  It is Total Endulgence Spa.   This business relocated from another part of town.   Please give them your patronage and support.

-         State Rep Mallory is not available on Thursdays.  His office has requested some available dates to meet with Summit.

-         College Hill now owns 5 cameras from the previous street monitoring system.  Someone at Llanfair has expressed an interest in security and cameras, and brainstorming is ongoing to develop some possibilities to use these cameras.

-         There is a meeting regarding the Hillrise Apts on the 11^th, coordinated by Phyllis. 

6.   CPOP/CPD/COP/Court Watch – by Jim Bodmer & Off. Jason Pechiney

COP reports not much activity has been observed on the streets.  Many troublemakers are now in jail.

CPD reported that they are very encouraged about the potential positive impact on the community of the new parole office.   In another community, Winton Terrace, the local parole officer showed up quickly when there were reports of problems and were able to significantly contribute to the resolution of the situation. 

CPD also reported on their investigation of the Eastern Star property   They went with B&I to look at the reported vandalization and found that a lot of the property damage.   All copper piping has been stolen.  Fires have been set inside, probably by vagrants.  A K9 inspection was also done to ensure no one was still in the building.  CPD will pay close attention to the property until it is properly boarded up.   CPD requests that we all inform Officer Jason Pechiney of any vacant or abandoned buildings in the community.

CPD reviewed the December Crime stats.   Overall, Dec crime was down vs. Nov, which was expected due to the holidays.  Consistent with historical data, particular areas of increased crime included (a) theft from auto (b) thefts (c) burglaries.  

Finally, CPD handed out a one page summary of key contact information, including phone numbers & emails addresses for College Hill Community Liaison Officers, and phone numbers for various departments within CPD, such as VICE, District 5, CPOP, and Police Records.    This information is attached to this document in Attachment #1.

Court Watch did not have anything of particular note to report. 

7.   CHG Update – by Karen Hartman

CHG will hold an Open House at the Llanfair Campus Center on March 4.  This is open to the entire community, and will include activities such as a tool swap and an exchange of seed catalogs and garden magazines.

CHG sponsors the flower pots outside the Rec Center, but has been challenged to keep them watered.  [During the meeting, Rick and Cyd agreed that the Rec Center can take over the watering to keep the plants alive all summer.]

CHG is having a fund raiser on Thursday, March 13, in conjunction with the Grand Finale restaurant.   A donation will be made to CHG from the payment for every meal sold that night.  Please have dinner there, and tell them that you are there on behalf of the College Hill Gardeners. 

8.   CHCURC Update – by Marty Weldishofer

Linden Park – Thursday afternoon, Marty will meet with Mike Battoclett and Al Neyer.  The goals is to get an agreement signed this month.  Once signed, the sales office will open.   There seem to be two remaining issues: the prevailing wage for construction of the residential section and the existence of a sewer line across the back half of the property.   The sewer line could be an issue for putting residences on that section of the property, or may need to be moved which would significantly increase the costs.   

Gateway – It has been discovered that the property purchased at the North End has an MSD easement for a buried water tank.   The implications of this still need to be worked out.

Façade – Three more businesses on the avenue have submitted invoices, so a total of four are done and ten others are in varying stages of completion.

The annual CHCURC meeting will be Feb 27 at Llanfair. 

9.   Rec Center Update – by Rick Schroer

Rick introduced Cyd Schuler, who is the new Rec Center Service Area Coordinator.  Cyd comes from the waterfront Rec Center at Sawyer Point.  Rick and Cyd have worked together in the past and look forward to working together again.  Doug has been promoted to city wide Director of Recreation.   Rick will continue to be at the College Hill Rec Center.    

10. Ministerium Update – by Rev Drew Smith

      The first Building Bridges dinner was held, in which members of mostly white and mostly black churches come together for dinner and discussion.  The second dinner is scheduled for Feb 21 at Llanfair.  

Drew also added his personal perspective on College Hill in general.   He sees a great spirit of cooperation in the community, resulting in relationships that are far smoother than the other three communities he has lived in.   He looks forward to continuing to grow in his own connections in the community. 

11. CCCH Update – by Rev Chappie Chapman

CCCH set new records for Christmas baskets this year.   Many thanks to the community for support and contributions.

A new intern, Ron Whitt, is starting this month at CCCH from City Cure.  Chappie wants to bring Ron to the Feb Summit meeting to introduce him to all of us.  More information about City Cure can be found at the website:  www.citycure.com. 

12. Aiken Update – by Karen Barrett

Karen handed out a summary of the recent efforts done by Aiken College & Career High School with the 8^th graders of CPS.  Highlights include:

- Talking to 55 teachers and 954 students in 22 schools

- Mailing out over 10,000 pieces of literature to all 8^th graders, including parochial and

  charter schools

- Conducted 4 school tours to which parents and students were invited

The goal is to have 150 students place Aiken College & Career as their first choice for attending High School. 

13. The Rock – by Scott Engle

Scott handed out a few copies of a flyer and newsletter for the End Zone Club.  (website is: www.endzoneclub.org)   He also shared some background information regarding this program.   It was started by Nate Foster, a former football coach, who realized that youth stayed out of trouble and their grades went up when they got involved with sports and the discipline that came with it.  He saw a need for a program and structure for kids outside of athletic teams. 

A trial program was launched at The Rock on Wednesdays in October with the support of CCCH.  Over 70 kids have come in on Wed since then, so the program is working well enough to progress to the next step of formalizing the emphasis on education and life skills into a year-long curriculum.   Nate’s long term vision is to have an End Zone program in every High School in Cincinnati.

The Rock is also moving ahead with construction in the building on Hamilton Ave.   Scott said they were naïve about what this would take, including the city requirements.   Marty Weldishofer has been very helpful.  The building will get new windows, painting, and signage.   Scott is working on getting a matching grant with the Façade program. 

14. Community Events & Announcements

o       Community Potluck Dinner – The Forum is thinking about Saturday, March 1, for the Potluck.  Anita Triggs would like to hear back from the other community organizations to make sure this date is not in conflict with other planned community events or activities.

o       CHCURC – the annual CHCURC meeting will be Feb 27 at Llanfair. 

15. Review of 2007 Focus Areas – by Ron Cowgill

Ron noted that in our last meeting, we tended to focus on the negatives of what hasn’t been accomplished as opposed to the positives of what good things have happened.  So he directed the discussion at this meeting to focus on the positive progress in the community.   The group in attendance quickly brainstormed a list: 

Ø      Summit continues to show the whole city who we are.   Summit is being replicated.

Ø      Great cooperation in the Ministerium.   The composition is 50/50 black/white pastors.  It is another model for the city.  Other groups like this in other neighborhoods are uniracial.

Ø      The Bridges program/dinners has started well.

Ø      The community continues to support an annual MLK celebration.

Ø      College Hill Coffee Co. has been recognized twice in the Enquirer in the last year.

Ø      Paint The Town chose College Hill for their annual project, with solid benefit to the community.

Ø      Linden Park continues to make progress.

Ø      The Forum Quality of Life Team (QOL) is a model for other neighborhoods

Ø      Rhythm Race raises thousands of dollars every year, is well attended

Ø      National Night Out and Block Party have great attendance from the neighborhood.  Residents look forward to them every year.

Ø      Phyllis and CHG have been recognized by Keep Cincinnati Beautiful.

Ø      Support of Grace Church by the other churches and the community in general has been great.

Ø      ARCH is close to becoming a 501(c)3.

Ø      The annual Pumpkin Patch by CHG is well attended and is a highlight of the fall for residents.

Ø      There has been an increased involvement of the community in the schools, with a positive improvements in the schools as a result.

Ø      The initiative to revitalize home ownership (Housing Team) is making good progress.  WIN now owns 4 properties, and will start new houses on three of those in the coming year.

Ø      Great support from the city as exemplified by the Streetscape project and the Façade project.

Ø      The city is now willing to use College Hill as a pilot for everything.

Ø      Expansion of the Children’s Hospital College Hill Campus, bringing a stronger presence and potentially more residents in the community.

Ø      The CH Rec Center successful Halloween event has become a model and is being duplicated

Ø      Historical plaque was placed in front of the Rec Center memorializing all the Colleges that used to be in College Hill.

Ø      CPOP participation is good.

Ø      Great rapport with the police.   Captain Bailey is a really strong addition.

Ø      New parole office being set up.

Next Summit Meeting: February 14, 2008 @ 8:00 am at College Hill Presbyterian Church.  

                                                                                                Summarized by:

                                                                                                Valerie Hershberger

                                                                                                March 12, 2008

Abbreviation Key: