SUMMIT MEETING NOTES

October 8, 2009

Location:  College Hill Library

Approved Summit minutes can be found at the following website: collegehilloh.net

ACTION ITEMS

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

Item                                                                                                                   Responsibility           

1.   Continue working on meeting locations for Summit for 2010.                  Ron Cowgill

2.   Work with Forum Board regarding Youth/Teen Council                          Phyllis Schoenberger

      ownership.

ATTENDEES:  (in alphabetical order)

Name                                                               Organization Represented

Pete Bauer                                                       CHCURC

Jim Bodmer                                                     CPOP/COP/Court Watch

Ron Cowgill                                                    Facilitator

Brad Hammond                                              CHCURC

Karen Hartman                                               CHBA

Valerie Hershberger                                        Facilitator

Officer Jason Pechinney                                 CPD, Dist 5

Phyllis Schoenberger                                       Forum Quality of Life

Rick Schroer                                                   CH Rec Center

Paula Sherman                                                Pleasant Hill Academy

Arnice Smith                                                   CH Library

Cheryl Sucher                                                 McAuley High School

Ron Whitt                                                       CCCH, City Gospel Mission

AGENDA

Welcome and Introductions

Host Greetings

Opening Prayer

Special Announcements

Previous Minutes Review/Approval

Action Items From Previous Meetings

CPOP/COP/CPD

CHBA Update

CHCURC Update

Schools Updates

Whiz Kids

Children’s Hospital Update

Ministerium Update

College Hill Recreation Center Update

Housing Team Update

Discussion Topic: Becoming College Hill as a Small Town

Community Activities & Announcements

DISCUSSION:

1.   Special Announcements

None.

2.   Review of September 2009 Minutes
The September minutes were approved.

3.   Review of Action Items from Previous Meetings

a. Youth Council – Done.  More information will be shared at this meeting.

b. Flyer on Free Light Bulbs – Done.

c. Summit meeting locations – In progress.

4.   Citizens on Patrol/CPD/Probation/Court Watch – by Officer Jason Pechinney and Jim Bodmer

Citizens on Patrol ask the community to pay particular attention to Marlowe Ave.  There is extra emphasis in the area by the police, so it would be helpful for citizens to call in any issues they observe or encounter.  Two arrests were made last night (Oct 7).  Citizens are also calling TV stations when crimes are inaccurately reported as being in College Hill when they are not.

Officer Pechinney handed out the Sept Crime Report.  September had the lowest crime in the last 3 years.  Copper thefts are slowly returning as the price of copper is recovering.  There are truancy officers who will respond to phone calls.  The number is 363-0003.

5.   CHBA Update – by Karen Hartman

The Grand Opening of the Firehouse will be Oct 28^th at 10 am..

Karen handed out flyers for the Pumpkin Patch.  Set up will start on Friday afternoon from 2:30 to 3:00 pm.  Please come if you are available. 

6.   CHCURC Update – by Pete Bauer

Pete reviewed a number of items:

o       The community voted down the proposed Episcopalian Residential Home, so it appears it won’t be pursued any further.

o       CHCURC put out an official Request for Proposals for the old car wash property.  Five Developers are interested.  The RFP is available at Schwartz Jewelers if anyone wants to see it. 

o       The College Hill proposals for the CNBDU program will be reviewed on Tuesday, Oct 13, 6:30 pm, by the City at a meeting at Centennial Plaza.  CHCURC hopes to get funding to acquire the Saba building.

o       The annual Rhythm Race is set for Aug 14 2010.

o       A pig roast has tentatively been set for 2010 for after the Pumpkin Patch.  They are looking into getting an alcohol permit.

7.   College Hill Schools Updates

McAuley Academy –  Cheryl Sucher

McAuley held an open house last Sunday.  600-700 people came. 

They are currently recruiting for next year’s class.  8^th graders come in for a week and “shadow” 9^th graders. 

A national Catholic Education Convention is being held in Cincinnati.  Some McAuley teachers are speakers.

This is the third year of their “Women In ….” Program.  The focus has been “Women in Medicine”.  The idea grew out of a connection made at Summit, with Mercy Hospital.  Field trips include observing surgery at University Hospital.  Added this year is “Women in Law”.  One of the previous programs was “Women in Engineering”, which was done in partnership with Smuckers and P&G.

The first quarter ends next Friday.

Pleasant Hill Academy – by Paula Sherman

Paula thanked everyone for the donations to the uniform bank.

The football team is undefeated, which is building school morale.  The school had a terrible team last year.  Some success is really helping school culture.  Involved kids are better students and leaders in the classroom. 

Pleasant Hill has a new assistant principal, Tammy Solomon Gray.

This year the school has 716 students enrolled vs a budget for 750 students, so expenses have had to be cut.  The staff has been reduced by two teachers. 

Pleasant Hill would like to connect to McAuley about some opportunities for Pleasant Hill 8^th graders.

Aiken High School

This is the first year of the changeover to one school, and it has been very challenging.  Karen Barrett should be back at Summit soon.  There is a new athletic director named Phil Poggi.  Phil is starting a band this year. 

Whiz Kids – by Paula Sherman

The Whiz Kids program is off and running.  24 kids are involved, with a waiting list.  Missi has done a great job.  Ron Whitt said this is very exciting for City Cure.  There are 1500 tutors in multiple schools.  More information is available on the City Cure website.  Tutors tend to be very dedicated – those in the Finneytown program had 95% of tutors return each year.

8.   Library Update – by Arnice Smith

Arnice and others are actively working to support the upcoming levy to support the public libraries.  She has gone door-to-door to put signs in various community yards.  Everyone who was asked permission for a sign readily agreed.  Arnice would like to get more volunteers to help pass out stickers on voting day.

The new cameras at the library are fantastic.  The monitor is in the workroom office, and makes it easy it easy to watch the teen area.  Signage is being posted to inform customers.  The camera installation came out of a Summit meeting and used NEP funds, with a volunteer installation.  It was a very helpful improvement to Library security. 

9.   College Hill Rec Center – by Rick Schroer

Budget cuts have led to the Rec Center laying off 6 part-time staff.  The Rec Center was just notified of yet another budget cut of $10,000, which means 2 more staff will need to be laid off.  Those who remain will have more limited hours.

The Halloween program will be done this year, but will be reduced in scope.  It will be on the 30^th instead of the 31^st.  More information will come soon.

Volunteers are needed for the Front Desk at mid-afternoon.  Rick will talk to the Council on Aging to see if they can provide any volunteers.  11 am to 5 pm is the time of the biggest need. 

Despite all the budget cuts and staffing cutbacks, overall attendance at the Rec Center remains high.

10. Youth Council Update – by Ron Whitt

Ron shared the thinking so far of the group working on developing a Youth Council.

·         Key themes should be Leadership and Compassion.

·         The group should be diverse, and from this community.

·         The council should be made up of 12-15 kids.

·         The goal is to equip and empower these kids to engage the community.

·         They will use a variety of resources, most notably those from City Cure and a program from Willow Creek called “Uncommon”.

·         The group should meet at least once a month, and have a service project.

Phyllis said she would follow up with the Forum Board to explore the possibility of the Forum’s “ownership” of the Youth Council.

11. Ministerium Update – by Fr. George Jacquemin

There will be a blood drive on Nov 9 at the St Clare gym, from 5 to 8 pm.

The Interfaith Hospitality Network program is proceeding, and they hope to start housing people in January.

They are looking at how to offer the Bridges program to the business community in College Hill.  Rev. Drew Smith is leading this effort.

Planning has started for the annual Martin Luther King service in January.

12. College Hill Housing Team

A new house is being built at 1402 Cedar, to be finished by spring 2010.  3 rehabs will be started in 2010.  WIN is looking for more houses to buy in the Cedar Ave area.

13. Discussion Topic: College Hill as a Small Town 

There was some confusion about what this topic meant.  The Summit members present generally expressed the positives about College Hill, including:

·         The community has lovely gardens and some great older homes.

·         Summit is a model for other neighborhoods.

·         College Hill has great unity compared to many other neighborhoods.

14. Community Activities and Announcements

Ø      The Young Professional Council of the City want to know more about the gems each neighborhood has to offer.  Tracey Wilson of the Cincinnati Opera is doing a video of College Hill.  A large diverse group of residents is wanted for this video at 3pm on Sunday at Town Hall.

Next Summit Meeting: November 12 @ 8 am at Pleasant Hill Academy. 

                                                                                                Summarized by:

                                                                                                Valerie Hershberger

                                                                                                March 9, 2010

Summit Meeting Schedule

2009

General Meeting Time: Second Thursday of the Month, 8:00 am to 10:00 am.

Location Rotates