COPC Working Group on Housing

November 9, 2004

Minutes

In attendance: Kelly Hoffman (OPDC), Erin Ramsay (OPDC), Laura Halula (OPDC), Ruth Feathers (OCC), Tim Delaney (Pitt Police), John Wilds (Pitt), Leah Wenger (SGB), Daniel Friedson (Pitt)

Chief Delany distributed crime stats for Oakland. He said the Pitt Police to receive and respond to 911 calls to the City of Pittsburgh. He said there are patrol cars in the area every day.

Ms. Wenger has been working to get a blue light emergency phone installed at L parking lot. This is a dark parking lot that many people walk through (it is used as a short cut between Oakland Ave. and Atwood Street).Chief Delany said cost estimates given to him were $10-30,000.

Re: house parties, which is one of the biggest things neighbors complain about, Chief Delaney said he has tried to work with the LCB/State Police but they don’t seem to want to get involved. When the Pitt Police respond to calls, there is a zero tolerance policy- everyone gets a citation. When the Pittsburgh Police issue citations to Pitt students, they notify the Pitt police and each one of those students goes before the Judicial Board at Pitt.

The Working Group agreed that it would be a good idea to contact our state representatives to try to get the LCB involved.

“Keep It Clean, Oakland” update was given by Erin Ramsay. KICO is having a “proceeds night” at Max & Erma’s in Shadyside. 20% of the proceeds of all their sales will go to KICO. We use the funds to purchase t-shirts for our volunteers. We continue to have many clean up events and brochure distributions.

Erin Ramsay gave an update on the pilot-recycling project and distributed a picture of the recycling containers used on Walnut Street in Shadyside (that we are modeling the project after). Plans for the recycling project are under way. The National Soft Drink Association (NSDA) has recycling bins available for communities to use. She contacted the Shadyside Area Chamber of Commerce to learn more about their recycling program and received good information about removal of the recycling once it is collected. The current problems with the project are location (the NSDA design is not in compliance with the OBID’s design criteria for the business district) and storage of recycling until it can be removed by a private service.

Leah Wenger said she has gotten 68 off-campus housing surveys filled out. People have been very receptive and eager to fill them out. She hopes to have a total sample size of 200. The Pitt News seems willing to publish the results.

Ms. Ivanusic reported that she has given information to the people who run the Freshman Studies program.