Fwd: Neighborhood Advisory #39 - Friday, June 26, 2009

[Janice Tocher]

This week's advisory...

Be sure to follow the link below to check out the cool Neighborhoods map! 

Take a look @ SWNA's page here:

http://www.cityofknoxville.org/development/neighborhoods/hoodlist/southwoodlawn.asp

Calling SWNA photographers! we need a pict representing the neighborhood! Ideas?

Good info about the door-to-door scammers...

Knoxville Neighborhood Advisory #39 - Friday, June 26, 2009

1.  No Issue Next Week
2.  Citywide Map Shows Knoxville*s Neighborhoods  
3.  Incentives Proposed to Encourage Sustainable Development
4.  What You Should Know About Door-to-Door Scammers
5.  Neighborhood Events & Meetings
6.  Upcoming Government Meetings

** This Advisory is produced on most Fridays of the year.
** Ideas and contributions are welcome. Call 215-3232.
** Deadline for Next Issue: Thursday, July 9, 2009.
** May be copied and forwarded via neighborhood e-mail lists and
newsletters.
** See past issues at our Website:
www.cityofknoxville.org/neighborhoods
** Don*t have Internet access? Call 215-3232 if you need a copy of a
particular document.
** Published by Office of Neighborhoods, Community Development Dept.,
City of Knoxville.  

1.  NO ISSUE NEXT WEEK

The Knoxville Neighborhood Advisory will not be published next Friday,
July 3, due to the July 4 holiday. Our next issue will be Friday, July
10. Articles for that issue should be submitted no later than Thursday,
July 9.


2.  CITYWIDE MAP SHOWS KNOXVILLE*S NEIGHBORHOODS  

The Office of Neighborhoods has launched a Web-based, city-wide map
that shows the boundaries of Knoxville neighborhoods.

The interactive Google map allows residents to see where neighborhoods
are located and determine if they live within an organized neighborhood.
From the information and links provided, site visitors can contact the
neighborhood organization and use Google Street View to *visit*
neighborhoods at street level.

Visit www.cityofknoxville.org/neighborhoods to see the map and a list
of Knoxville*s organized neighborhoods.

The first 22 neighborhoods on the map are those which have 1)
registered with the Office of Neighborhoods and 2) provided the
information needed to complete a Web page for the organization. Our goal
is to create a Web page for every resident-led neighborhood group in the
city, including neighborhood associations, crime watch groups, homeowner
organizations, and tenant associations.

Whether your group has its own Website or not,  having your own page on
the City*s  Website makes it easier for interested persons - including
newcomers and potential new members -- to contact your organization.

In addition to the city-wide map, each neighborhood Web page includes a
link to a Google Map showing just that neighborhood*s boundaries.

If your group is not listed on the *Knoxville*s Neighborhoods*
page, please register your group. Find the registration form on the
Website or call David Massey at 215-3232.

If your neighborhood is listed but does not have an active link, that
means we need more information from you in order to complete your page.
We are requesting, if available, a mission statement, a brief write-up
about the neighborhood, and a copy of your by-laws.

We also request a photograph showing a house, a street scene, or
neighbors engaged in a neighborhood activity - an image that illustrates
your community. The picture will be cropped to a square ratio (260
pixels x 260 pixels). You may submit a digital image via e-mail, send a
photograph which we can scan and return to you, or arrange for us to
come take a photograph for you.

We already have the necessary contact information and boundaries for
most registered neighborhoods, but please help us keep this information
up to date.  Please contact Martha Howell at mho...@cityofknoxville.org
or 215-3456 to submit content or ask questions.


3.  INCENTIVES PROPOSED TO ENCOURAGE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

A proposed Sustainable Development Incentive Program would reward
development that minimizes environmental impact.

If approved by City Council and/or County Commission, the program would
provide incentives in the zoning ordinances to promote sustainable
development in residential, non-residential, and mixed use development.


City and county drafts  of the Sustainable Development Incentive
Program are available for review on the Metropolitan Planning Commission
Website at www.knoxmpc.org.

MPC staff will brief City Council, County Commission and Planning
Commission members on the plan in the Small Assembly Room at 5:30 p.m.
Monday, July 20.

A public meeting to address the program will begin at 6 p.m. Thursday,
July 30, in the Small Assembly Room. MPC Executive Director Mark
Donaldson anticipates bringing the plan before the planning commission
as soon as its Aug. 13 meeting.

The proposal aims to encourage development that preserves natural
riparian areas along streams and rivers, results in residential infill
and redevelopment instead of greenfield development, and minimizes
commuter vehicle miles traveled.
Qualifying developments would be residential projects with six or more
dwelling units, and certain non-residential and mixed-use structures.
They would need to be appropriately zoned.

To qualify, residential developments must be eligible for LEED
(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification.
Alternatively, they would need to comply with at least five of 10
specified site planning practices and one of two sustainable operations
practices (energy efficiency and recyling).

In return for meeting these qualifications and standards, developers
would receive *an expedited review process* in which Council or
Commission review could occur in the same month as the MPC review.
However, developers would have to conduct * a public,
properly-advertised, development-area meeting.*

Other incentives would include - for residential development within an
RP-1, RP-2 or RP-3 zone - *a bonus density of up to 30% of the
density, in addition to the density approved when creating the density
by ordinance.*

The draft of the program was developed by the Sustainable Development
Working Group, which was composed of City Council members Marilyn Roddy
and Joe Hultquist, County Commission members Tony Norman and Finnbar
Saunders, MPC members Trey Benefield and George Ewert, and developers
Jon Clark and John Huber.


4.  WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT DOOR-TO-DOOR SCAMMERS

Ward off door-to-door scammers - who appear more often in the summer -
by becoming familiar with techniques they use and defenses you can use
against them.

The following are based on tips from Officer Michele Goldsberry,
Knoxville Police Department:

** Post a *No Soliciting* sign that is visible near the main
entrance to your residence.

** Transient Vendors must apply for and be able to show a license if
selling a product on the spot and are only allowed to conduct business
between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. They are not allowed to solicit on Sundays and
State and National holidays.

** Licensed or not, never let peddlers in your home regardless of the
excuse.

** Never do business with a peddler until you can verify that they have
a local office.

** People who knock on your door asking for money are usually scammers.
Be very careful before giving money to someone who claims to need help
for a cab, a broken car, or medicine for a sick child.

** Do NOT do business on the spot.  Scammers are high pressure
salespeople who want to confuse you into signing a contract or giving
them money.

** Legitimate door-to-door sales people offering deals on products
generally don*t represent the products company directly but sell the
product through authorized dealers.

** Do not be afraid to say *no* or feel uncomfortable about walking
away or closing the door. Remember there is nothing so pressing that
cannot wait until tomorrow.

** Bottom Line*Trust your instincts!  If what they are offering is too
good to be true, then it really is too good to be true.

Scammers thrive on moving quickly through an area using illusion and
confusion to commit fraud, home repair scams, and burglaries. Be
prepared!


5.  NEIGHBORHOOD EVENTS AND MEETINGS

Include your neighborhood event or meeting in this space. Call
215-3232.

Thursday, July 2 - 6 p.m.
Partnership for Neighborhood Improvement (PNI)
Monthly Board Meeting (every first Thursday)
Cansler YMCA, Fifth Ave. & Jessamine St.
Contact Gwen Winfrey at 215-2120.

Monday, July 6 - 5:30 p.m.
COIN - Council of Involved Neighborhoods
Monthly Meeting (First Monday of the month)
CAC/Luke Ross Building, 2247 Western Avenue
http://www.councilofinvolvedneighborhoods.org/
Contact Ed Eckenrod at ed...@comcast.net or 361-2497.

Wednesday, July 8 - 11:30 a.m.
Community Forum (every second Wednesday)
Baptist Senior Health Center, 7009 Kingston Pike
Contact Sue Maurer at 690-0269.

Wednesday, August 12 - 4:30 p.m.
Neighborhood Advisory Council
(Every Second Wednesday except July and Dec.)
CAC/Luke Ross Building, 2247 Western Avenue
http://www.cityofknoxville.org/neighborhoods
Contact David Massey at 215-3232.


6.  UPCOMING GOVERNMENT MEETINGS

All meetings will be held in either the Large or Small Assembly Room
unless otherwise noted. For a complete list of meetings of various city
boards and commissions, visit http://www.cityofknoxville.org/calendar/.

If you are a person with a disability who requires an accommodation in
order to attend a public meeting, please contact Stephanie Brewer Cook
at 865-215-2034 or sc...@cityofknoxville.org no less than 48 hours prior
to the meeting you wish to attend.

Monday, June 29 and July 20 - 5 p.m.
Knox County School Board Work Session (every third Monday and
every
Monday before regular meeting)
Andrew Johnson Building, 912 South Gay Street

Tuesday, June 30 and July 14 - 7 p.m.
City Council (every other Tuesday)
http://www.cityofknoxville.org/citycouncil/
Agenda: http://www.cityofknoxville.org/citycouncil/agenda.pdf

Wednesday, July 1 - 5 p.m.
Knox County School Board (every first Wednesday)
http://board.knoxschools.org

Thursday, July 9 - 1:30 p.m.
Metropolitan Planning Commission (every second Thursday)
http://www.knoxmpc.org/
Agenda: http://agenda.knoxmpc.org/

Thursday, July 9, 2009 - 5 p.m.
City Council Workshop
Transit Development Plan (TDP)
[Update concerning Knoxville Area Transit (KAT) services]

Thursday, July 16 - 8:30 a.m.
Historic Zoning Commission (every third Thursday)
http://www.cityofknoxville.org/boards/historic.asp

Thursday, July 16 - 4 p.m.
Board of Zoning Appeals (every third Thursday)
http://www.cityofknoxville.org/boards/zoning.asp

Thursday, July 23 - 9 a.m.  
Special Events Community Meeting (every fourth Thursday)
(City services help groups plan events on city property.)
Third Floor, Knoxville Civic Coliseum Ballroom, 500 Howard Baker
Jr. Ave.
Free Parking available at Civic Coliseum Parking Garage

Monday, July 27 - 2 p.m.
Knox County Commission
               (Every fourth Monday, Jan.-Oct.) (Every third Monday,
Nov.-Dec.)
http://knoxcounty.org/commission
(Agenda can be downloaded. Click on Agenda Committee, then on
Agenda.)

Thursday, July 30 - 3:30 p.m.
Better Building Board (last Thursday, Jan.-Oct.)
(First Thursday, Dec.)
http://www.cityofknoxville.org/boards/betterbuilding.asp

Friday, September 25 - 8 a.m.
Advisory Committee, Ten Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
(Also meets Dec. 18, 2009.)
http://knoxtenyearplan.org/
Public Defender*s Community Law Office
1101 Liberty Street

Deadline for Next Issue: Thursday, July 9, 2009
Submit to: neighb...@cityofknoxville.org
Or call David Massey at 215-3232.

[ctsdu...@aol.com]

Janice, Great work. Very professional. I am thrilled to see the assoc. getting some advertisement. Only one thing I noticed wrong was our meetings every month. Maybe you meant every month including BOG meetings.
Great work. Thank you,
Marcia

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