MNA General Meeting Minutes, August 18, 2018

MNA Secretary Meeting/Meeting Minutes

Mueller Neighborhood Association General Meeting                                                                                          

Location: Wildflower Terrace

Date: Saturday, August 18, 2018

Time: 10AM to 11:20

  • Greetings and pleasantries, call meeting to order – Lila Valencia
    1. Welcome new members and ~50 in attendance.
  • Waller Creek Conservancy, Meredith Bossin. It’s a 501c3 non-profit community partner to the city for the 1-1/2 mile area from Lady Bird Lake to 15th It includes Waterloo Park and Palm Park and is doing a lot of environmental restoration. It was founded in 2010 and seeks a continuous accessible trail along the restored creek, 35 acres of green space in all.  They are integrating the creek with the surrounding areas and provide environmental education, encouraging nature, culture and community.  Phase 1 is Waterloo Park; broke ground in fall 2017 and expect to complete it in 2020.  There will be a Moody Amphitheater that has capacity for up to 5000. A flood control system is being incorporated. You can get views of the work in progress from view bubbles in the construction fence on Red River. The Conservancy offices are moving to Symphony Square in fall 2018.  The next areas of focus are Palm Park and the Waller Delta at Lady Bird Lake near the Mexican American Cultural Center. They are partnering with the Nature Conservancy and The University of Texas at Austin to incorporate good environmental design. Their current and planned programs include the arts (such as the Creek Show, with light-based art installations for night viewing), the environment, health and history of people who lived and worked along the creek previously. Upcoming events: September 23 cohosting Austin Museum Day with KMFA, an annual benefit concert October 10, It’s My Park Day creek cleanup on Nov. 4, and Creek Show Nov. 9-17.  Currently they are conducting community engagement discussions to understand what would be of most value to the community in the park and programs. There will be space for food trucks in Waterloo Park and there will be restrooms.  Trying to encourage retail and food options from private vendors along the park as well. They are welcoming volunteers and donors – go to WallerCreek.org for more information.
  • Treasurer’s report – Luke Downs is out of town so we’ll pick it back up next month.
  • Mueller Commission update – Michael Jones, chair. The Mueller Commission found the MNA neighborhood survey very helpful. The Mueller Development Commission supports positive development and support of East Austin.  The full extension of Zach Scott to Manor will open at the end of 2018, along with Tilley Street and hopefully the Kerbey Lane Cafe. The North Town Park will be named for Mary Elizabeth Branch, president of Tillotson College in the 1930s.
  • POA update – Joe Freeland. Annual meeting will be November 15, and the Rules Committee is looking at updates on the rules. The Budget Committee is meeting in September and Catellus is looking at the monthly assessments. The Landscape Committee s reviewing and commenting on next year’s POA landscape budget expenditures.
  • Transportation and Urban Planning Committee, Andrew Clements and Preston Tyree– City-proposed Zach Scott updates west of Berkman includes two-way bike lanes on the North and removing parking on the North so there would only be parking on the South side, similar to the configuration east of Berkman. Catellus is considering sharing costs to take out bulbout curbs and provide landscaping. The MNA counter-proposal tries to balance safety for pedestrians, bicyclists and cars.  The proposed city configuration makes the street seem wider, which tends to encourage more speeding among drivers. The Committee wants to reduce speed on the street, install separated bikeways, shorten pedestrian crossing distances and provide crosswalks at every intersection, retain parking on both sides, and redistribute some traffic to surrounding streets.  The Committee proposal retains parking on the north side with a two-way bike track a bit narrower than what the city proposed, with a perceived width of 21 feet. It would remove the bulb-outs that currently exist. Because the road is being resurfaced anyway, the City is looking for an opportunity to restripe for better flow.  In the MNA survey, Zach Scott was the second-most-mentioned street as creating safety concerns. We are hoping that the City Transportation department will address the MNA in September. The City does plan to put in a crosswalk at Zach Scott and Scales. The Committee proposal is on Facebook, Next Door and the MNA site and the next edition of the newsletter, or you can email the Steering Committee. The city has said they plan to start the resurfacing/restriping at the end of August. People are encouraged to ask the city to collect more data on parking and traffic numbers at different times of the day and week. The Steering Committee voted in favor of the MNA Transportation and Urban Planning Committee’s proposal and it was brought up for a general membership vote and the MNA plan was approved.
  • Community Business Spotlight – Frost Bank was unable to attend but sent warm Tiff’s Treats cookies for everyone! They also provided brochures for attendees.
  • Adjourn – 11:20.
  • The September meeting will include the bylaws proposed updates and will be held at the Seton Administrative offices.

Respectfully submitted Aug. 27, 2018

By Alison Raffalovich, Secretary