Summit West Neighborhood Association
Board Meeting
Meeting Summary

Date: April 14, 2021
Time: 4:00pm – 6:00pm
Location: held via video conference

Board Attendees:
Erik Moberly
Bill Bernardy
Rebecca Hitt
Jenn Lynch
Shawn McFadden
Nicole Moore Perullo
Cheri Smith
Glenn Voelz

Motions Passed:
M/S/A notes from BOD Meetings on 1/13/21 and 2/7/21

Administration

• 501c3 Designation - discussion was tabled until the board can consult with other NA’s that are pursuing this designation.

Guests 

• Megan Perkins, Bend City Councilor

Public Comment

• There were no members of the public in attendance.

City Council

• Next City Council Meeting is 04/21/2021 and the following will be discussed:
  • Update on HB 2001
  • Proposed code changes that will make it easier to provide shelters for our houseless population. It’s important to have a comprehensive plan and numerous options. There’s a subcommittee called the Sounding Board to House our Neighbors that will help staff develop a strategy to allow varying types of shelter and transitional housing.
  • Removal of minimum parking requirements for new developments in the City of Bend.

Neighborhood Leadership Alliance (NLA)

• Last Meeting (04/13/2021)
  • Shawn attended the meeting – houselessness, HB2001 and parking, fire issues (fireworks and evacuation), and land use were the top items on the agenda.

Neighborhood Association Round Table (NART)

• Last Meeting (03/29/2021)
  • Erik was unable to attend but shared the meeting minutes.
  • Biggest topics of discussion tend to mirror those of the NLA and included land use and illegal fireworks. 

Neighborhood Boundaries

• This topic was tabled until further communication occurs with Makayla.

Outreach / Communication

• Erik’s goal is to get a SWNA survey sent out and present the results at the annual meeting.
  • Bill shared the idea of working with other NA’s to share tasks and resources, including a survey template with boilerplate questions that each NA could then adapt for their own use.
  • Jenn shared that we received an updated mailing list that we can use to send out flyers that  include general information about the board. Becca recommended that we ask recipients how they prefer to receive communications (e.g. Facebook page, email, flyers/newsletters).

• Erik met with Visit NWX. They agreed to add our logo to their newsletter. Summit West Living publication has not been very responsive lately but the goal is to also get our logo in that publication.

• Becca asked for feedback on topics that were appropriate to post on social media. 
• Erik suggested including topics that weren’t already in major news sources. Content posted should direct traffic back to the SWNA website.

• Bill mentioned that several NA’s have discussed hiring a consultant that all NA’s could utilize for web development, technology assistance, or to train new board members when there’s turnover. Becca suggested cross-training another member on the board to handle social media, Mailchimp, and the website. Bill agreed to cross-train Becca.

• It was suggested that we engage HOA’s within the NA to increase our reach and obtain localized updates on topics of interest. The challenge is getting a list of HOA’s. Makayla is working on compiling a list. 

Land Use

• Bill and Nicole attended the Discovery West Plans (Phases 4-9) Zoom Meeting that was held Jan.20th @ 5:30. 
  • Many attendees expressed frustration and disappointment in the way the meeting was handled.
  • Because a Zoom Webinar format was used, attendees were not visible to each other, so they had no indication of how many people were in attendance or who was asking questions. 
  • Only written questions were allowed and the developers selected the questions they wanted to answer. Attendees had no opportunity to ask impromptu questions or follow-up questions.
  • Megan Perkins agreed to send an email as a City Councilor and share the concerns from the NA and residents.
• Erik would like to invite the developers of the Skyline Ranch Road (Coats Property) Development to discuss plans with the SWNA land use committee before a formal application is submitted.
• Shevlin Crossing Medical Office Building is moving forward.
• City Council will discuss eliminating parking minimums at the next meeting.
• Bill commented that there should be more public participation on the parking topic and code changes in general. 
  • It seems that staff currently drafts code and makes code changes based on stakeholder committees and typically only one option is presented for approval. Stakeholders generally represent the development industry and do not represent community input.
  • The public should have the opportunity to get involved much earlier in the process and multiple options should be presented for deliberation by the Planning Commission and City Council.
  • Eugene was mentioned as an example of a city with a more robust public participation process. 

Meeting notes submitted by Cheri Smith.