City Council Preview - Sept 18

Looks like we have another “light” agenda this week –

VETERANS PARK

I have been fighting to make Veterans Park (aka Village Pond Park) a better place for the past 10 years. Long before I was elected to the City Council, I fought with the City about the terrible conditions there, including the botulism breakout, the filthy conditions, the spill-over onto Olivewood’s playgrounds, etc. Previous City Councils were determined to do nothing. The hope of the City officials, at the time, was to cement in the pond so that they didn’t have to worry about the geese, ducks, etc. No one considered the impact this would have on the people who owned homes adjacent to the pond or the hundreds of people who enjoyed the pond.

City contractors pushed soil and debris into the pond, causing major problems for the HOA that was responsible for “water quality”. The City Council delayed introducing a feeding prohibition ordinance, and even after it was introduced, the city handed out a mere 3 tickets in two years.

It’s a sad chapter in our City’s history, and it’s worth remembering as we move forward into a new era.

Last year a resident using Lake Forest Town Square suggested that while we were re-doing the park we might consider making it a Veterans Park. I thought it was a good idea, brought it to the Council who supported the idea, and we set up a Committee that eventually delivered plans that will soon be a reality.

But the new park has not been without its problems. Before they got started I warned that the plan was not adequate, but those cautions went unheeded. The bottom line is that the park has been delayed and the costs have skyrocketed. The good news is that the pond has been completely re-constructed, so we should have 40 or more years of problem free enjoyment. More good news is that the re-opening is eminent, but I hesitate to offer any anticipated date since the City has failed to meet previous dates.

But going forward, the park still faces the potential problem of too many birds creating too much waste. The city has several potential solutions – (1) surveillance system to identify the dozen or so people who show up with trunk-loads of bread to feed the wildlife, (2) increasing the fines, and (3) crowd sourcing surveillance

Knowledgable people believe that the over-population of wildlife stems from the mass feeding. This problem can be partially solved by capturing the license plates and IDs of people who drive up. The cost of doing this is estimated at between $19,000 and $44,000. Crowd sourcing surveillance and using the city’s new mobile app can add to the effectiveness of the enforcement procedure.

Using cameras will also be able to help prevent vandalism of the new Veteran’s Memorial space.

Changing the fine will also help. The original fine was $100 but the (then) City Manager reduced it to $50. The alternative is $100 for the first offense, $200 for the second, and $500 for each additional.

CDBG

We’re looking at the achievements of our CDBG program. The City has been a recipient of CDBG funding since 1994. CDBG is a formula grant allocated to local governments for the purpose of developing viable urban communities by providing or supporting decent housing and a suitable living environment, and expanding economic opportunities principally for persons of low and moderate-income. Through FY 2017-2018, the City has received $10,631,460 in CDBG funding. These funds have been utilized for various housing, neighborhood improvement and service programs that provide support to the City’s low to moderate-income residents.

The following list of people helped in 2017/8 (includes the percent of people anticipated to be helped)

• Disabled persons -34 (89%)
• Fair housing – 258 (139%)
• Homeless – 23 (92%)
• Low income – 3,146 (111%)
• Rental assistance – 214 (113%)
• Seniors – 23 (143%)
• Youth – 45 (281%)

In addition the City helped rehab 17 single family residences.

FB LIVE

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Jim Gardner is on the City Council for Lake Forest where he serves as Mayor. You can check him out on LinkedIn and/or Facebook and you can share your thoughts about the City at Lake Forest Town Square on Facebook His comments are not meant to reflect official City Policy.

Dr. Gardner has office hours every Tuesday from 4 pm to 6 pm at the City Hall. In addition, he holds a town hall meeting every quarter. The next meeting will be Oct 18 at 7 pm at the Lake 1 Clubhouse (Ridge Route).