Loading...
Minutes 06-11-03 MINUTES OF THE COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD MEETING HELD IN COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11, 2003 AT 7:00 P.M. Present Ron Washam, Chairman Blanche Girtman Jane Kupperman Eddie Mitchell Howard Solomon Sarah P. Dye Absent Anne Centi Anna Marie Noe, Vice Chair Jose Rodriguez Brenda Lee Williams Clifford A. Royael I. Pledge of Allegiance Dan DeCarlo, Board Liaison Chairman Washam called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. members in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. I1. Roll Call - Regular Members and Alternates The Recording Secretary called the roll and declared a quorum was present. III. Recognition of Visitors Chairman Washman welcomed Mr. and Mrs. Bob Ensler who introduced Ms. Judy Garcia. Also welcomed was Ms. Elizabeth Jenkins. IV. May 14th Minutes Approval Motion Mr. Mitchell moved to approve the minutes. Motion seconded by Mr. Solomon and unanimously carried. Ms. Girtman led Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida June 11, 2003 V. Agenda Approval Chairman Washam announced that the representatives from Barnes and Noble, along with Wayne Segal, the City's Public Affairs Director, would not be present tonight. This program will be presented at a future meeting. Ms. Girtman requested to add to the agenda discussion about the Board's participation at the various neighborhood meetings. She would like members to have more input and felt that members should be attending these meetings. There was a consensus to add this to the agenda, and Chairman Washam suggested that it be added as Item (c) under "New Business." Motion Ms. Girtman moved to accept the agenda, as presented, with the necessary additions. Motion seconded by Mr. Solomon and unanimously carried. VI. Correspondence and Announcements Chairman Washam asked Mr. DeCarlo to report on the Fourth of July festivities. Mr. DeCarlo announced that the events will be held at the Motorola site on Congress Avenue, but he did not have all the details. VII. Old Business PATCH Activities Update Mr. DeCarlo reported that they recently met with Bethesda Hospital in order for the Hospital to become more involved in the PATCH Programs. Many of the people that PATCH helps do not have medical insurance or transportation, and there are a myriad of issues that Bethesda cannot handle. PATCH has been working with Bethesda to address these problems. Also, there have been talks about using one of Bethesda's facilities that may become available to PATCH in the near future. If this facility comes available, it would enable PATCH to put some programs together until the new Wilson Center is ready. PATCH is also holding a monthly program, as well as their monthly meetings, at the Treasure Chest Early Learning Center. Programs are also scheduled through the end of the year at St. John's Missionary Baptist Church. Mr. DeCarlo stated that he is working closely with the Haitian Community in organizing them to form a Faith Based CDC or some other type of organization. A summer youth program is being offered at the Forest Park Elementary School for the Haitian Community through Mr. DeCarlo's Department. He noted that Boynton Beach has one of the largest Haitian populations in the County. 2 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida June 11, 2003 One of PATCH's priorities is to locate a facility to address the health needs in the Community. Ms. Girtman mentioned an article that she read in the newspaper regarding a health facility going up in Lake Worth instead of Boynton Beach. Mr. DeCarlo responded that they were approached by Bethesda around Christmas regarding the opportunity of a grant for a health facility, and he has been working with Sue Wexner of the Palm Beach County Health Department on this. There is a benefactor who is donating several million dollars earmarked specifically for a health facility. The two remaining communities in the running are Lake Worth and Boynton Beach. A final decision has not been made, but it appears that they are leaning towards Lake Worth. Chairman Washam pointed out that if a facility were located in Lake Worth, this would present a transportation problem for Boynton Beach citizens. Ms. Girtman said that this facility belongs in Boynton Beach and not Lake Worth, where Boynton Beach citizens have been going for over 50 years. She wants a facility in Boynton Beach, since Boynton Beach is the third largest city in the County. Chairman Washam stated that there are lobbying efforts underway to bring the facility to the City. Mr. DeCarlo said that he has an excellent presentation to give to the benefactor and is waiting for the opportunity to present it. Ms. Girtman noted that there are many families that have difficulty in getting their children immunized before school starts, and she would like PATCH to address this on a larger scale. Mr. DeCarlo reported that PATCH would be providing immunization shots at the Wilson Center in August, and this is the third year that this service is being offered. Mr. DeCarlo assured Ms. Girtman that the shots would be given prior to school opening. Ms. Kupperman pointed out that children are not allowed to begin school without the proper immunization shots. Mr. DeCarlo explained that PATCH has been working with the schools to inform them that these shots are available at no cost. Mr. Mitchell inquired how much area in the City PATCH covers. Mr. DeCarlo responded that PATCH is a community-wide effort. However PATCH's programs are geared more towards people who do not have medical insurance, but the programs are available to everyone. He pointed out the success of the mammogram program that the Haitian community availed itself of. If this were not offered by PATCH, many women would never have a mammogram. Also, the newsletter now being distributed in the Heart of Boynton will contain information about PATCH. 3 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida June 11,2003 Chairman Washam inquired why the PATCH meetings could no longer be held in Conference Room C in the West Wing. Mr. DeCarlo noted that because of the new security measures at City Hall, Conference Room C is no longer available in the evening. He informed the Board that the Police Department will be using the Chambers the same night as this Board meets in September and the Board needs to find a location for its September meeting. Because of the new regulations, PATCH had to move to another facility as well. Chairman Washam said that this would be addressed when it comes up on the agenda. Chairman Washam suggested inviting Brian Edwards to the next Board meeting to address the PATCH Program. VIII. New Business (a) Adult Education TV Station - Ms. Judy Garcia Ms. Garcia is the Manager of Instructional Television for the School District. Their facilities are located on Congress Avenue, next to Congress Middle School. Among the services that they provide are programming to the schools via microwave. Beginning July 24th, they will be unveiling their open-cable channel to the community. Their programming will be on Adelphia Cable Channel 19, but the channel may vary according to your community. By having a cable channel, they will be able to reach all sectors of the community from the young to the old and will be able to reach 465,000 homes in the County. Courses that would be offered include student courses, distance education courses, courses for children that are incarcerated or hospitalized or for any other reason these children are not in school. Currently, this service is not available to these children because they would have to be on the current microwave system. Other programs offered would include trainings, GED, adult literacy, and English as a second language. Ms. Garcia pointed out that many adults lack literacy skills, but do not have the ability to attend a structured class due to lack of transportation, funds, etc. Also, many adults are embarrassed to admit that they have problems with literacy. For people that do not have televisions, they intend to work with Libraries and community schools to furnish tapes of their courses or provide accessibility to the programming. Ms. Garcia spoke at length about the other courses that they are planning to offer. A great many of the courses will be beneficial for shut-ins. Ms. Kupperman asked if public service announcements would be allowed on their channel. Ms. Garcia said that they could offer public service announcements that would be general in nature and available to all citizens in the County. 4 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida June 11, 2003 Ms. Garcia invited everyone to their inauguration and ribbon-cutting ceremonies scheduled for July 24th between 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. at 505 S. Congress Avenue. Ms. Garcia distributed to the members a copy of their station logo. Their station motto is the "Education Network for Lifelong Learning." Ms. Gar¢ia said that her facilities are open to everyone and encouraged members to stop in. Mr. Solomon inquired if they intended to expand programming via satellite. Ms. Garcia said that if she received the proper funding this would be possible. Mr. Mitchell asked if the Superintendent of Schools planned to cut back on the programming. Ms. Garcia said they operate under the auspices of the School District, and they are subject to the School Board, not the Superintendent of Schools. Ms. Dye inquired if this is something that might be cut by the School District. Ms. Garcia explained that their operation is barebones and presented a hard copy of a PowerPoint presentation that she gave awhile back that gives an overview of the general services that they provide. Ms. Garcia stressed that in times when money is scare and classes are being cut, I-TV is necessary more than ever. I-TV can reach students who were in small classes that were cut, thus eliminating the need for a teacher for a small number of students. They are capable of teaching a course that could go to every single school in the County. This addresses issues of economics and equity. It is not fair to children where one school may have enough children enrolled in a class that the course could be offered and another school does not. Thus the school with small enrollment would have to eliminate that class. Through programming, they will be able to bring the best teachers available into the classrooms. Mr. Mitchell inquired if I-TV was being de-emphasized because of classes being offered through the Internet. Ms. Garcia responded that I-TV has taken on a different set of characteristics and I-TV has evolved and video will always be a part of distance education, regardless of how it is delivered. Chairman Washam suggested that Ms. Garcia contact the City's Advisory Board on Children and Youth and the Education Advisory Board for assistance. He suggested that she make a presentation to these two Boards as well. Chairman Washam explained Youth in Government Day that this Board has been involved in for 31 years. He thought it would be a wonderful idea if all municipalities in the County offered Youth in Government Day, and he would like Boynton Beach to be the pioneer in this endeavor. He also thought it would be beneficial to offer a course on how municipal government works. Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida June 11,2003 Chairman Washam thanked Ms. Garcia for taking the time to speak to the Board and wished her success in all her undertakings. Chairman Washam recommended that Ms. Garcia contact Mr. DeCarlo for assistance. Ms. Garcia informed members that they would be receiving invitations to the ribbon-cutting ceremonies. (c) Neighborhood Meetings Discussion (addressed out of order) Mr. DeCarlo noted that there are many things going on in the Heart of Boynton area. The Section 108 loan for phase 1 has been approved for development of the apartments, and the CRA voted to proceed with the acquisition of property for commercial purposes. Currently, efforts are being focused on the Wilson Center, the pool and the park facility. A meeting is scheduled for Monday, July 14 at 7:00 p.m. in the Church of God in Christ. At that meeting the three designs for the Wilson Center will be looked at and one will be selected. Mr. DeCarlo recommended that Board members attend this meeting. Mr. DeCarlo said that he would be offering a monthly tour of the neighborhoods in the Heart of Boynton. There is a tour scheduled for Tuesday, June 17th at 3:00 p.m. and anyone wanting to take the tour should meet at St. John Baptist Church. Mr. DeCarlo pointed out that the City did not want to leave people out of the loop and everyone is welcomed to be part of the process. The two biggest projects coming on line this year are the Boynton Terrace redevelopment and the Wilson Center and Sam Sims Park. Mr. DeCarlo should have more information available at the Board's July 9th meeting. (b) September Meeting Mr. DeCarlo said that the Board needs to select a location for its September meeting since the Chambers are not available. Chairman Washam suggested taking the September meeting on the road and holding it in a community. He requested that Mr. DeCarlo locate a venue for the meeting, which all members agreed to. Ms. Girtman inquired about the Ridgewood neighborhood meeting schedule and Mr. DeCarlo said that he would furnish this information to Ms. Girtman. Ms. Kupperman said that she received an invitation to attend a Boynton Beach Sister City Meeting and asked what the Sister City of Boynton Beach was. Mr. DeCarlo informed Ms. Kupperman that the Sister City of Boynton Beach is Qufu, China and explained what is involved in being a Sister City. Qufu is planning to 6 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida June 11,2003 have a large delegation visit the City this Fall. They are very anxious to become involved in economic development projects. The Sister City Committee is very interested in looking at other countries in order to expand the vision of Boynton Beach, which is the mission of Sister City International that matches cities around the world. The City is a member of Sister City International, and they are always looking for members. Ms. Kupperman requested that Mr. DeCarlo send her information on this. Ms. Girtman was proud to announce that Sean Davis, a Boynton Beach resident and her next-door neighbor, graduated from the University of Florida on April 23rd. She stated that Mr. Davis is the first African/American from Boynton Beach to receive his M.D. Degree and will be doing his internship at Emory University to become an OB/GYN. Chairman Washam stated that the Community Relations Board salutes Mr. Davis. IX. Adjournment - Next Meeting will be Wednesday, July 9th in Commission Chambers There being no further business, the meeting properly adjourned at 8:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Barbara M. Madden Recording Secretary (June 12,2003) 7