Edgemoor
Neighborhood Association
Annual
Membership Meeting
April 1, 2010
Minutes
The Annual Membership Meeting
of Edgemoor Neighborhood Association was called to order at 7:10 on April 1st
by President Brad Rose. The minutes were recorded by Lauri Grove. The meeting
was held at Lairmont Manor. Everyone in attendance was invited to introduce
themselves.
Brad asked for a motion to approve the
minutes of the February meeting. The motion was made with one exception for a name correction under Old
Business – Steve Wilser should actually be Steve Wilson. The motion was then
seconded and passed.
Report of
Officers
President’s
Report – Brad began the meeting with
a quick synopsis of the agenda and introduced the guest speakers.
Announcements were made for a
couple public hearings planned in April. The Planning Committee would review a
rezoning in the Guide-Meridian/Cordata neighborhood and the revision of
boundaries to the existing Mt Baker neighborhood to create two smaller
neighborhoods, Irongate and Barkley. The County Council would consider an
extension for permitted applications delayed due to the downturn in the
economy. This extension does not apply to Fairhaven Highlands. After April 5th
there would be a change in reception at City Hall. In order to relieve staff,
the reception area in the lobby would be consolidated to funnel everything
through a central desk.
Edgemoor has two new outreach
officers in the neighborhood. Sergeants Gerhard and Brown would be happy to
answer any questions or address concerns in the neighborhood. Please call them
instead of 911 if it is not an emergency. April was Disaster
Preparedness month and Brad pointed out a couple events (an earthquake drill
and a Fun with the Fuzz 5K run) planned to promote awareness. Emergency Kits
are still available. Also the Block Watcher Bulletin was mentioned as a source
for information.
One of our past Board
members, Don Miles, passed away at the end of February. A motion was made and unanimously approved to
send a card and a donation to the American Heart Association.
Treasure’s
Report - Diane
reported that there were no transactions last month and the balance remains at
$4062.92.
“What should we do with the
money?” The city plans to reimburse neighborhoods up to $500 this year and pay
our insurance, but with budget cuts we can’t depend on that to continue so we
do have to keep money in reserve. A
suggestion was made to spend a little this summer on a neighborhood block party
to encourage more community within Edgemoor. It was agreed that would be a good
idea and something to consider.
Speakers
Clark’s Point
Patrice Clark introduced herself as the daughter of Doug and
Peggy Clark who were the original owners of Clark’s Point. She offered her
history of moving to the property in 1961, living on the property, and a quick
overview of her father’s desire to protect the area from future development.
After extensive discussion with the Mayor and the Whatcom Land Trust an
agreement was made in 1990 to place a perpetual conservation easement around
the property. The Whatcom Land Trust would oversee the preservation. Although
the family has restrictions they have never regretted the decision to preserve
this beautiful property.
Rand Jack worked with Doug and Peggy Clark,
their children and spouses for almost two years before they finally signed a
conservation easement on January 19, 1990, protecting the 71 acres of land from
further development. The conservation agreement between the Whatcom Land Trust
and the Clark family was open and binding to whatever terms the two parties
agreed upon. Rand offered that there were actually three parts to the agreement
protecting private family homes, the buildings, the surrounding land and
specified trails. At one time, Clark’s Point was open to the public, but because
of abuses to the land and threats to wildlife, the area has since been
closed. He applauded the civic
generosity of the Clark family, their vision to protect the land and their
choice to work with the Land Trust.
Joe Clark talked a bit about the problems with
public access. Unfortunately not everyone respected the designated public areas
or the privacy of the Clark family. Campers wandered off trails, drank,
littered, and started fires so the privilege to use the area was revoked. The
Clark family would like to figure out a way to once again allow the public some
access but have not come up with a way to do it without problems. Public safety issues are too great and there
is no way to get fire trucks to remote areas. People still enter the property,
walking right past the no trespassing and private property signs.
Speakers
Bellingham Bay Community Boating Center
Mike Cllaizakis introduced us to the non-profit center in
Fairhaven that would like to build stronger ties between our community and the Bay. The
Bellingham Bay Boating Center is prepared to educate boaters and teach water
safety. They rent equipment as well as
teach sailing and kayaking. They also rent kayak racks. The boating center is run with grants,
donations and volunteers. The center
hosts events - FYI there is a BBQ on July 4th open to the community.
Check the website.
Chuckanut Conservancy
Ken Wilcox gave us a brief personal history and
then turned his focus to the history and purpose of the Chuckanut
Conservancy. The conservancy, started
with a $50,000 grant from Paul Allen’s Forestlands Project, is dedicated to the
protection and restoration of the remaining wild lands in the Chuckanut
Range. Currently, they are actively
working to secure protection for all or most of Blanchard
Mountain. The Chuckanut Conservancy hosts spring hikes, activities and events.
Check the website for more information.
Committee
and Representative Reports
MNAC
– MNAC meeting minutes
are sent to all board members. The only
things John mentioned at the meeting were the proposed Landlord Licensing in an
attempt to crack down on neglectful landlords and the fact that since the city
is running out of money they will cut funding on things like the 6yr TIP.
Election
v
John
Erickson agreed to continue as Vice President of ENA.
v Diane Maclean agreed to continue as Treasurer
of ENA
v No one offered to take over the alternate MNAC
representative position – any volunteers?
Closing
Meeting was adjourned at 9:00
pm.
Refreshments were served.
Thank you for all the delicious food!
The next meeting scheduled
will be an Edgemoor Neighborhood Association Monthly
Board Meeting to be held from 7-9 on May 6th at Fairhaven Park Pavilion. Monthly meetings are open to all residents
and we encourage you to attend.
Respectfully Submitted,
Lauri Grove
Minutes
are subject to approval