The Council unanimously opposed the nomination for a historic tax district North of Manchester and discussed the race-related security issues.  

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Minutes of the September 25, 2001 board meeting,
Approved October 23, 2001.

 
Opening, Minutes, and Announcements
Present: 19 members of the neighborhood, including other stakeholders.
George Jones provided really good food - shrimp plate appetizers and more.
October 20: work day for the community building series by St. Cronan Catholic and Lighthouse Free Methodist churches.
October 23: the seventh all-day "Affordable Housing Conference" at St. Louis University. Sponsored by the SLU's Law School and RHCDA, the conference will be at Busch Memorial Center, Grand at Laclede (no fee for the conference; all-day parking for $3 at the Compton-Olive garage). Workshops include displacement from gentrification areas and community organizing. Registration is at 8:30 and concurrent workshops begin at 9:00.
November 4: health focus groups at Adams School
George Jones announced that Covenant House is helping with funds for rehabs. They are applying for tax credits.
The minutes of the August 28 meeting were approved as submitted.
N.B: Chuck Tyler submitted additions and corrections to the July 24 minutes regarding the Adams Park Community Center. Amendment page enclosed with mailing.
Historic Tax Credits
After a long discussion, the Council decided unanimously to oppose the nomination of the Park East project for an area north of Manchester and directed Bob to write a letter to the state advisory board and, if necessary, to the federal agency that will consider the nomination.
Security
Members spoke up about security and police protection in the neighborhood:
  • Someone heard that Hi-Tec patrols are now 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., the "trouble really starts" after 9 p.m., and new residents are upset by the conditions they find.
  • Another member asked if we could get data on how many officers are actually assigned to the area, and a suggestion was made to invite police department representatives to attend and answer questions. There is a general sense that there are few patrols South of Manchester and there "would be more if white families had moved into the new housing on Norfolk."
  • There was a report of a young man on probation or parole who continued with assaults. Initially several police responded, but it appears there is no follow up although specific information was provided. It was observed that everyone knew that to get police response when calling the police, residents "had to put on their white voice."
  • It seems that persons displaced from Park East buildings and from McRee Town are moving South of Manchester and some wondered if "problem" tenants are being moved to the area to further deteriorate the area.
The consensus was that much of the October meeting should be devoted to security.

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