BNA Committee Open House Meeting

BNA Open House Committee Meeting
12/08/20

Traditionally, the BNA Board of Directors does not meet in December so we decided to host an open house for all committees to have a discussion and share information going on at the committee level.

Attending Board Members: Tom Hickey, Matt Whitney, Bridget Bayer, Antoinette Edwards, Gorgy Gonzales, Paul Wargnier, Gayle Miller, Bill Coffman, Mary Shivell, Erik Molander

Attending Neighbors: Laura Miller, Sharon Drew Morgan, Brian Stipek, Leslie Sayer, Brian & Erik, Sue Gress

Opening: Ann Howell shared thoughtful recognition and gave thanks to the local indigenous people and traditional tribal lands where we now live.
 
Disaster Safety Prep – Ann Howell
This committee is actually 3 groups who consider and prepare for catastrophic regional events like an earthquake. Neighbors interested in knowing more about what is happening during an emergency should join one of these groups.

1. Neighborhood Emergency Teams (NET), of which there are only 3 NET members in our neighborhood, are trained to provide disaster assistance. 
2. Basic Earthquake Emergency Communication Node (BEECN) is a group of neighbors who will set up a place to go when emergencies occur. Our BEECN site is located at the PPS Transportation Facility (formerly Bridges School) at the east end of Bridgeton Rd. Currently, there are about 8 members. 
3. There are also a few HAM operators and many people operate marine radios in our area who check in on Mondays to test.  We also have many marine radio operators in our community that could be organized to assist in emergency situations.

Use these links for more information on basic preparations:
• Prepare: 
Have water on hand – 1 gal/person/day for 2 weeks
City of Portland: https://www.portlandoregon.gov/pbem/

Red Cross: https://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies.html

• Make a Plan
https://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies/make-a-plan.html

Other good first starts to be prepared for emergencies:
• Make a Will 

• Arrange for out of state text contacts


Safety 
Watch Out for Bridgeton – Keep your eyes open and communicate what you see.

Consider joining What’s App to be able to share safety information in real time. Otherwise, stay in touch on Facebook, NextdoorBridgeton or face-to-face with your direct neighbors. Report all crimes to the Portland Police, every time.

Property theft – Consider making arrangements to have packages delivered to neighbors who are retired or home workers to be a delivery contact point. Also use delivery stations like local lockers at the Pantry Pride. 

Add lighting! Trip lights are an effective deterrent. Cameras, real or fake, with signs help too.
Sharon Drew & Ann will do a lighting assessment to look for dark places in the public right of way to ask PBOT for more lighting here.

An individual effort by Sure Guard Construction asks neighbors to join them in funding a late night (12:00am to 5:00am) patrol for the next few months or until their project is complete. Cost is approx. $100/month. A patrol person will not be armed and will only be present as a deterrent. Contact Bridget Bayer 503.673. 6290 for more information.


Land Use – Erik Molander
Levee – The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) recommendation, presented to our neighborhood late October, is based on the plan to raise  Bridgeton Road and the levee to 38’ for 500-year flood protection. This is an opportunity for our neighborhood to make additional improvements to our community. Proposals include  continuous sidewalk, bike lanes to connect the 40-mile loop, and buried utilities. These improvements will need to be paid for through local funding.  Individual properties affected by these changes will need to be addressed in terms of new drainage concerns, interface with public property, etc.  

The BNA will post a survey for everyone to be able to contribute to a shared list of what would need to be addressed both personally and for the neighborhood as a whole.


Clean & Green Team – Bridget Bayer
This committee will continue to manage the entry triangle and keep it beautiful. We will organize litter clean ups and monitor air, land and water polluters. We are taking part in collective action with about 60 other neighborhood groups to focus on clean air. Currently, we are still asking ORRCO & Ecolube to improve their discharge from their yard and install emission scrubbers on their exhaust stack. 

Welcome Committee - Mary Shivell
This group is working to make people feel welcome in Bridgeton and to help others learn how to make people feel welcome. Committee members are working on getting more information out to neighbors, in person, safely & distantly, not just through social media. Other activities include Neighborhood Vigils for Racial Justice that will always be held on the third Thursdays at sunset on the corner of 3rd Ave & Bridgeton Rd. If the weather is bad, Vigils will be kept short. A signature sound will be played to remind us of George Floyd’s almost 9-minute overt racist death at the conclusion of each meeting. The next Neighborhood Vigil will be on Thursday, 12/17/20 at 4:30pm.

Meeting ended at 8:30pm

Addendum
There are other BNA Committees that were not covered at this meeting.

Communications Committee - Ann Howell, Lead- NEED new lead contact person 
    1. Online Socializing: Facebook (164 members), Nextdoor Bridgeton (462 Neighbors) 
    2. Live Bridgeton Website: http://www.livebridgeton.com
    3. Hand Delivered Fliers: Designed, printed and distributed to about 450 homes
    4. A-board Signs: NEED new volunteer to help (about 1 hour/month)
    5. Mailchimp Newsletter: Emailed to 290 Bridgeton neighbors


Events Committee - Gorgy Gonzales, Lead
Events are organized 3-4 months in advance generally with an ad hoc group of Board members and other neighbors. Annual events:

1.  Spring Clean Up - Generally on the second or third Saturday in May, this event allows neighbors to bring large and hard to recycle items to one location where it is separated and handled properly. Organizers apply for funds from NPNS to pay for garbage & recycling services and dumping fees. Volunteers are asked to help neighbors unload and share information. 

 

1. Sidewalk Sale - Usually in June. Anyone can sell, trade or shop as part of a neighborhood wide sale.

 

1. Annual Picnic (Neighborhood Night Out) - Usually in August or late July. All neighbors attend a community picnic and enjoy live music, games and bb’q. Organized and put on by neighbor volunteers. Funding from Roth Estates and the BNA.​