Triangle Neighborhood Association Meeting

Monday, December 4, 2006

 

 

1.                  Howard Sholl, TNA President, began the meeting at 7:02 PM.  There were 33 persons present, and five more joined the meeting in progress.

 

2.                  Lieutenant Townsend and Sergeant Cane from the Wilmington Police were present.

 

3.                  Sergeant Cane addressed the group:

·        Recently there were two burglaries. One occurred in the 800 block of West 19th Street.   The other was in the 900 block of Franklin Street.

·        Three incidents of mischievous conduct were reported.

·        One robbery (play station) was reported in the 2300 block of Harrison Street.

·        There were six thefts; however, five were involving items taken from vehicles.

·        Twenty burglar alarms were reported in one month’s time.  These may be related to power failures.

 

4.                  Lieutenant Townsend addressed the group:

·        Craig Thornton was arrested. He is widely known to police and neighbors.

·        Pat Joyce volunteered information about the break-ins in the Rockford area.

·        An observation from the floor: An incident was shared with the group.  On November 11 around 7 AM a neighbor found a gun near a street curb.  There was a bullet in the chamber. The city police were called, but the caller was informed there were no police immediately available.  Eventually the police came to the neighbor’s home to retrieve the gun. Should not the police have reacted more quickly?

·        John Rago, Mayor’s Office representative, offered to look into the incident.  He requested more information.

 

5.                  Norm Griffiths, Councilman from District 2, addressed the group:

·        During the holidays, the City of Wilmington will be sponsoring toy drives and choral singing in Rodney Square.

·        Public safety community groups are available. Can TNA send a representative?  The sessions are devoted to informal sharing about local problems.  A list of meetings for 2007 is available.

·        The home at 800 W 22nd St continues to be a problem.  The owner has parked her car on the house’s lot. Norm and Captain Maggitti went to the home.  They found a car full of trash.  The process to condemn the property is taking a long time.

·        John Rago, Mayor’s Office representative, indicated that the house will be boarded up on Tuesday, December 5.  The city is in the process of purchasing the property. On December 19 at 9 AM, the owner is scheduled to go before a Superior Court judge for a hearing.  The city is willing to pay fair market value for the property; however, there are liens held by a bank and the federal government.  The owner is not living at the property; however, she is making superficial improvements

·        Community Police Officers are Shawn Gordon (463-4207 cell) and Chris Collin. 

·        No one is permitted to work on cars parked on the street.  The streets are public spaces, so individuals cannot be changing oil nor doing other vehicle maintenance.  The city wants to put a stop to the practice.  

·        The downtown area must continue to be kept clean and safe.  A bill to continue downtown services needs to be moved out of committee.  Some administrative issues have to be addressed.

·        Two new signs will be provided for TNA Neighborhood Watch.

·        Due to lack of use, the US Postal Service has been removing mailboxes.   This is a national trend.

·        John Rago, Mayor’s Office representative, spoke about the benefits of recycling.   There would be savings for the community, due to the reduction of tipping fees.   There have been some complaints about the bright blue color of the recycling containers.

·        Question from the floor:  Has any progress been made on the issue of disposal of yard waste?  Answer: The Department of Public Works will collect yard waste.  Residents will not notice any difference.   The city will deal with the issue.

 

6.                  Norm Griffiths and John Rago introduced the new neighbors, who were in attendance.

 

7.                  Tom Baker addressed the group:

·        The city has made available informational programs about the city police department.  These are excellent programs.  Each section of the Police Department is explained.   The programs are offered from September through mid-December.

·        The highlight of the program is a ride in a police vehicle for one regular shift.

·        It should be noted that civilians, not police officers, answer phone calls from the public.   The information is forwarded to the Police Department.

 

8.                  An observation from the floor: There appears to be a lot of guns taken off the streets.  Arrests are up this year. Is it possible to have list released of those shot and those who did the shooting?  Why are those convicted of weapons offenses allowed on the streets?

 

9.                  A discussion followed on the adequacy of prisons to hold criminals.  John Rago, Mayor’s Office representative, expressed frustration about the same persons being arrested over and over again.   The new Attorney General will need to address these questions.

 

10.              Meg Hudson asked:  How does Delaware compare with other states?  There seems to be a breakdown of values. 

 

11.              Frank Joyce addressed the group:

·        Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

·        The TNA phone tree was given a plug in the recent newsletter.  

·        All TNA block captains are in place.  There are 30 of them.

·        New members should know about our corner garden, the municipal leaf pickup and the progressive dinner.

·        Three new couples were welcomed to the neighborhood.

 

12.              Howard Sholl, TNA President, mentioned that TNA is a 501 c 3 organization, so we need a registered agent.  Our former registered agent has moved out of the neighborhood.  Every time we change our registered agent, we pay a fee of $41.

13.              A motion was made to have Lee McKelvey serve as our registered agent.  Not seeing any opposition, Lee accepted the position.

14.              Lee McKelvey reported that the TNA treasury has $4,376.90.

15.              Howard Sholl mentioned the Wilmington Holiday Toy Drive.  There was a mention in the last newsletter.  He suggested that TNA contribute $100.  Seeing no opposition, the motion was carried. 

16.              Pat, Friends of Wilmington Parks, spoke about the project to connect portions of the city parks.  He reported that 500 bulbs have been planted.  The rebuilding of the “Sugar Bowl” pavilion is being considered.   The new playground is moving to completion. There will be a fundraiser at the Charles Parks Studio to benefit the various park projects.

17.              Tim Sharpe spoke about the community’s Neighborhood Watch. It occurs on Friday and Saturday nights for about four hours within the Triangle.   The commitment would be two hours every four months. There are new volunteers.  Their names are: Jason Johnson, Jane Hempton, Megan Pell, Carlos Charriez, J. J. Nuttal, David Kilman, Tom Glorioso, Michael and Jen Sontchi and Michael Giesecke.

18.              Tom Baker made the crime stats available.

19.              Frank Joyce proposed that we offer Peter Gates, who provides the newsletter, a gift certificate.  A motion to provide a $100 gift certificate was proposed.   Seeing no opposition the motion carried.

20.              Comment from the floor: What are the neighborhood assoc adjacent to us?  Should we make contact and exchange info?  John Rago, Mayor’s Office representative, will provide information on other neighborhood associations.  

21.              The meeting ended at 8:37 PM

 

                                                                                                                                                               Submitted by:

 

                                                                                                                                                                Fr. J. Dalton