By Claire Cofsky
Richmond Neighborhood Association held its monthly meeting on July 8 at Waverly Heights Church at SE 33rd/Woodward St. Meetings are held in the basement – enter from the east-side door. All are welcome. The RNA’s website is richmondpdx.org.
Thomas Scharff, Tri-Met Community Affairs/Division Transit Project, presented on the design for our Division corridor to have new, articulated buses to hold more passengers and provide faster service. The route for our boundary is 1/3 mile between stops, with a reduction of stops. He pointed out that, based upon ridership demand, most people will walk only a few blocks at most to their stop. The design will be 90% complete this month, with construction starting in November.
The Board was updated on the City’s 3.96 Code Change process. Code 3.96 is the authorizing language for the City’s Neighborhood Association System. The draft proposal reviewed appears to entirely dismantle the NA System: it eliminates city recognition of NAs and the Code-mandate to support and oversee the NA System, and significantly, it eliminates the Open Meetings rules meant to ensure open public meetings, transparency, non-discrimination, and accountability to comply with Bylaws and City Standards.
It is worried that this could lead to NAs losing insurance funding from the District Coalitions (e.g., SE Uplift). If that happens, NAs can no longer do all the community events they organize. The Board voted to request Council to set over a scheduled September 3 session on this to at least forty-five days after a final proposal by the Committee is issued since many NAs and SE Uplift do not meet in August. As this went to press, there is still no final proposal for anyone to review.
At the August meeting, members can vote on the three Bylaws amendments: 1) to require Directors to be elected by the Members and not appointed by the Board, 2) to require Directors to sign the RNA’s Code of Ethics instead of the option to just orally agree to them, and 3) to specify that Robert’s Rules doesn’t apply to election procedure since the RNA has its Election Standing Rules.
Unfortunately, no movie in Sewallcrest Park this August. The city did not accept our application. Hopefully next year we’ll be back to sponsoring movies in the park.
Finally, the RNA finally obtained the passwords for its website and Chair email account from the former Chair.
