Knoxville Neighborhood Advisory – Vol. 8, No. 29 – Tuesday August 25, 2015
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Knoxville Neighborhood Advisory – Vol. 8, No. 29 – Tuesday August 25, 2015 PDF Version: http://bit.ly/NeighborhoodAdvisory2015-8-25 1. Mayor, Others to Discuss Fountain City Lake Improvements 2. Tonight’s Workshop to Cover Bylaws for Neighborhood Groups 3. Fourth & Gill Invites Neighborhood Event Planners 4. City Candidates Forum Set for Thursday Night 5. City, Partners Launch Massive Weatherization Project 6. Parks and Recreation Offers Challenge Grants 7. Mayor Announces Changes in Public Works 8. Better Building Board Meets Thursday 9. One Home Added for Sale in Homemaker’s Program 10. Testify on Blighted Properties at Meeting Friday 11. Open Streets Knoxville Organizers Seek Volunteers, Donors 12. Neighborhood and Government Calendar Published by the City of Knoxville’s Office of Neighborhoods to report news important to Knoxville’s residential neighborhoods. News & calendar deadline: 5 p.m. Mondays. 1. Mayor, Others to Discuss Fountain City Lake Improvements Mayor Madeline Rogero this evening will join City Council representatives and City staff to present a public update on plans for long-term improvements to Fountain City Lake. The public meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. at the Lions Club building, Fountain City Park, 5345 North Broadway. The 125-year-old manmade lake has for many decades suffered from excess algae growth and poor water circulation. Mayor Rogero and City Council included $250,000 for improvements in the 2014-15 budget. Work began last fall with the repair of a leak in the earthen berm that surrounds the lake. At this meeting, City Engineering staff and consultants will talk about the next phases in the project and the timeline for completion. 2. Tonight’s Workshop to Cover Bylaws for Neighborhood Groups The City of Knoxville’s Office of Neighborhoods is offering a free class on “Bylaws for Neighborhood Organizations” starting at 5:30 p.m. today --- Tuesday, August 25 --- at the United Way building, 1301 Hannah Avenue. The class will last approximately 1.5 hours, but please allow a full two hours to catch the benefit of all questions and answers. The workshop is designed not only for neighborhood groups that are developing bylaws for the first time but also for groups who need to clarify how officers are elected, how members are defined, and other basic operating rules. Although this class is open to all types of neighborhood groups, it will not cover the legal issues associated with homeowner associations that have mandatory dues and covenants via deed restrictions. For more, contact David Massey at 215-3232. 3. Fourth & Gill Invites Neighborhood Event Planners The Fourth & Gill Neighborhood Organization has long been known for its Historic Tour of Homes, an event that raises the profile of the neighborhood in the larger community, brings in spending money for the organization, and builds relationships within the neighborhood. Last year, the organization launched ARToberfest, an afternoon of art, crafts, live music, a beer garden and family activities. ARToberfest this year is scheduled for Saturday, October 24 in the neighborhood. To share its experience and knowledge about planning large neighborhood events, the organization is opening its ARToberfest planning meetings to representatives of other neighborhood groups. Other neighborhoods “are cordially invited” to attend the last five ARToberfest planning meetings at 7 p.m. on the following Wednesdays: Aug. 26, Sept. 9, Sept. 23, Oct. 7, and Oct. 14. If you are interested in learning more about holding events for fun and/or fund- raising, contact Laurie Meschke at [email protected] or 865-964-8368 for more information and the location of the meetings. 4. City Candidates Forum Set for Thursday Night The South Knoxville Neighborhood and Business Coalition (SKNBC) is sponsoring a City Council Candidate Forum and Meet-and-Greet this Thursday, August 27, from 7:00-9:00 p.m. in the worship center of Woodlawn Christian Church, 4339 Woodlawn Pike. The venue is accessible for people with disabilities. The format will consist of a 90-second introductory statement from each candidate, a short question-and-answer session moderated by Alan Williams of WVLT News, and a breakout time afterwards for participants and candidates to meet. Campaign banners, signs, buttons, t-shirts, literature handouts or other promotional materials will not be allowed within the room where the forum takes place. The candidates who have been invited to attend are George Wallace, who is uncontested for At-Large Seat A; incumbent Marshall Stair and challenger Pete Drew for At-Large Seat B; incumbent Finbarr Saunders and challengers Kelly Absher, Paul Bonovich and David Williams for At-Large Seat C; and incumbent Mark Campen and challenger Jennifer Mirtes for the District 5 seat. The Primary Election will be held September 29, with early voting running from September 9-24. The General Election is Nov. 3. For the District 5 race, only the voters in District 5 will be able to vote in the primary, but the two top candidates run city-wide in the Nov. 3 general election. Candidates for the at-large seats run city-wide in the Primary, and the two top vote getters for each seat go on to the General Election. Also in this election, Mayor Madeline Rogero is running unopposed on the ballot for her second four-year term, but there is a qualified write-in candidate by the name of Jack Knoxville. SKNBC is a group representing Colonial Village Neighborhood Association, Island Home Park Neighborhood Association, Lake Forest Neighborhood Association, Lindbergh Forest Neighborhood Association, Old Sevier Community Group, South Haven Neighborhood Association, South Woodlawn Neighborhood Association, and the South Knoxville Alliance. For more about the forum or SKNBC, contact Dave Gartner at (865) 573-2772 or [email protected]. 5. City, Partners Launch Massive Weatherization Project The entire community will benefit from Knoxville Extreme Energy Makeover (KEEM), a program which will improve the energy efficiency of more than 1,200 homes in Knoxville over the next two years. KEEM is funded by TVA, which selected Knoxville to receive $15 million in funding through the TVA Smart Communities: Extreme Energy Makeovers project. A team led by the Knoxville-Knox County Community Action Committee (CAC) in partnership with the City of Knoxville, Knoxville Utilities Board (KUB), and the Alliance to Save Energy applied for this funding and was one of just two initial winning teams selected by TVA. Starting today, the CAC will provide KEEM energy efficiency retrofit services to more than 1,200 local homes between now and Fall 2017. KEEM will provide whole-home energy efficiency upgrades to electric-heated homes built before 1995 and occupied by income-eligible applicants. The types of improvements depend on the specific needs of each home, but the improvements are designed to reduce each home’s annual electricity use by at least 25 percent. Common upgrades include installation of weather stripping, upgrades of heating units, air sealing, and insulation of walls, ducts, pipes and attics. All Knoxville-area residents are invited to “Join the KEEM Team!” Anyone interested in applying for energy upgrades should come by CAC offices (2247 Western Ave., Knoxville) from August 31 through September 4 to submit an application. Eligibility and application requirements may be found at www.KEEMteam.com. CAC will hire local contractors to perform the upgrades. Any businesses interested in becoming a KEEM contractor may attend a Contractor Information Session on August 27 at 5 p.m. at the CAC (2247 Western Ave, Knoxville) or visit www.KEEMteam.com to learn more. Families and individuals are also invited to learn about low-cost ways to save energy at the first KEEM educational workshop on August 29 at 11 a.m. at Christenberry Elementary School, 927 Oglewood Ave. This workshop is free and open to the public, and other workshops will be held throughout the project. Visit www.KEEMteam.com to stay up to date on the latest information and opportunities. 6. Parks and Recreation Offers Challenge Grants The City of Knoxville’s Park and Recreation Department is once again accepting applications for its Challenge Grant Program. This grant will allow recipients to be reimbursed for 50 percent of a non-profit project “for the development or improvement of public parks or recreation facilities in the city” up to $2,500. The following types of organizations are eligible to apply: 501(c)3, 501(c)4, and 501(c)6. In addition to neighborhood organizations, other types of community groups can apply, including school PTAs and youth service organizations. If your group is not tax-exempt, you must partner with a tax-exempt organization that would serve as your fiscal agent. The deadline for the application is Friday, September 18, 2015, and grants will be announced Friday, October 16, 2015. The 2015-16 applications and grant parameters are available at www.knoxvilletn.gov/citygrants. For more information regarding the Parks and Recreation Challenge Grants, please call 865-215-2091. 7. Mayor Announces Changes in Public Works David Brace, the city’s Director of Public Service and a face well known to neighborhood organizations, will be promoted to Senior Director of Public Works starting September 7, Mayor Madeline Rogero has announced. In that role, he will supervise five City departments: Engineering, Fleet Services, Parks and Recreation, Plans Review and Inspections, and Public Service. Those departments have 525 employees combined and more than $90 million in budgeted resources. Brace will report to Christi Branscom, Deputy to the Mayor and Chief Operating Officer, who join Deputy to the Mayor and Chief Policy Officer Bill Lyons, incoming Director of Redevelopment Dawn Michelle Foster and incoming Deputy Director of Redevelopment Anne Wallace in a newly created Economic Development Team. This group will work with developers, City departments and other agencies to coordinate the creation and implementation of redevelopment projects.