Marion County Alliance of Neighborhood Associations Monthly Meeting – November 16, 2024
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Marion County Alliance of Neighborhood Associations Monthly Meeting – November 16, 2024
This meeting of the Marion County Alliance of Neighborhood Associations (MCANNA) was held on November 16, 2024, from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. at North United Methodist Church (38th and Meridian). President Kathy Burton welcomed members and the public, noting that the next meeting will be on January 18, 2025 (no meeting in December). The meeting featured two planned presentations: one on winter storm preparedness by Candace Tony (American Red Cross/Edna Martin Christian Center) and one on the mayor's neighborhood liaison program by Brittany Crone (mayor's office), who did not attend. The group then discussed several neighborhood issues, including billboard ordinance changes, city street/ally conditions, and the health department's role.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Several attendees asked questions during the Red Cross presentation, including: how to obtain extra medication for emergency kits (insurance limitations noted), outreach to homeless populations, availability of resources for generators or heating fuel, and the role of 211 (United Way) for shelter and warming center information. One member suggested neighbors check on elderly or disabled residents during winter weather.
- During the discussion period, members raised concerns about: the condition of the alley behind the Martindale Post Office (Brightwood area), lack of city maintenance on streets and sidewalks, insufficient warning for street closures, confusing Indigo bus line routes, and the need for a central calendar of city projects.
Discussion Items
- Winter Storm Preparedness (Candace Tony): Tony presented Red Cross guidelines for winter storms, including definitions of advisories, watches, and warnings; tips for staying safe at home, in vehicles, and outdoors; frostbite/hypothermia recognition; and importance of emergency kits. She distributed checklists and highlighted the Red Cross Emergency app and 211 for shelter information. Q&A covered pet safety, space heater dangers, and generator use.
- Washington Square Mall Update: Kathy Burton reported that the health department and code enforcement conducted inspections and issued multiple citations for health/safety violations (trash, mold, debris). A second set of warnings was issued after no correction in 30 days. The property has multiple owners, complicating enforcement.
- Billboard Ordinance Changes (Pat): The city has proposed changes to the sign ordinance, including raising allowable height from 40 to 60 feet and reducing the required distance between billboards on the same side of a freeway from 1,500 to 1,000 feet. The ordinance passed the Metropolitan Development Commission (MDC) and is scheduled for a hearing before the Metropolitan and Economic Development Committee on Monday, November 18, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. Pat noted that the changes are a compromise to preempt state legislation. Only about 12-20 new billboard locations are expected to be opened.
- Mayor's Neighborhood Liaisons: Members shared mixed experiences. Some praised the liaison (e.g., Susan Martinez, Delia) while others reported high turnover and lack of effectiveness. The group noted that these positions have evolved from the Goldsmith-era township administrators with more clout and budgets.
- Health Department Update (Jane): Jane highlighted the Health First Indiana funding applications, efforts to reduce maternal mortality (especially among women of color), and ongoing issues with the Meadows apartment complex (repeated sewage/trash violations). She confirmed that restaurant inspection reports are available online and that the health department handles bed bugs and roach complaints.
- Street Closures and Lack of Warning: Members complained about abrupt street closures for tree removal, construction, and events (e.g., Monumental Marathon) without adequate notice or detour signage. They called for a centralized calendar of city projects.
- Indigo Bus Line Issues: Several members reported confusion about route changes, discontinuation of lines on Capitol Avenue, and the difficulty for seniors and disabled persons to access the Red Line and Purple Line stops. The group agreed to invite Indigo representatives to a future meeting.
Key Outcomes
- The group will continue to monitor the Washington Square Mall situation and support enforcement actions.
- Members will attend the billboard ordinance hearing on November 18 to express support or concerns.
- The group plans to invite the city controller, Indigo transit representatives, and the health department director (Dr. Kane) to future meetings.
- MCANNA will follow up on the alley behind the Martindale Post Office by contacting the city councilor (Ron Gibson) and the MAC Center.
- No formal votes were taken; decisions were made to schedule future speakers and continue advocacy on identified issues.
Meeting Transcript
Okay, good morning. I would like to welcome everybody this morning to the monthly membership meeting for the Marion County Alliance of Neighborhood Associations. My name is Kathy Burton and I'm the current president for McCannna. For those of you who are viewing us on Channel 16 or who maybe with us for the first time this morning, I want to make a brief statement about who McCannna is and what we try to do. We were founded in 1990 as a not for profit neighborhood organization that takes in all of Marion County and any neighborhood association, homeowners association or other group that has a liked-minded idea of getting neighborhoods connected and empowered is welcome to join McCannon. Our meetings are open to the public. You do not have to be a member of McCannna to attend those meetings, nor do you have to be a member to bring an issue to McCanda that you would like to have addressed. However, if you would like to join McCana, our dues are $20 per year on it, they're paid on the calendar year. So this will be due in January. We have a general membership meeting on the third Saturday of every month, except we do not meet in December. So our next meeting will actually be on January the 18th. So I don't know where reading lessons once I switch. Our next meeting will be on January the 18th, and we are working to have a speaker lined up. We hope it's going to be someone from the Indianapolis Neighborhood Resource Center. But at our general membership meetings, we have a speaker or speakers that come and talk to us about issues that are important to neighborhoods and residents in Marion County. And during that time it's a variety of issues, but we also invite people to during our general membership meetings to bring with them announcements of events that may be coming up in their neighborhoods or that have issues that they would like to share with other neighborhoods or seek help from other neighborhoods to try and get resolved. As I said, we work to get neighborhoods all across Marion County connected so that we have the power of the neighborhoods to try and resolve issues, share information, and get familiar with each other across the county to recognize that while individuals and their neighborhoods may have specific issues that relate only to their neighborhood, there are also so many issues that affect us countywide, regardless of whether you live in the old city, the new suburbs, or somewhere on the borders in between. So we certainly have open arms and welcome anyone from the committee. Our meetings are held on, as I said, on the third Saturday of every month. We meet at North United Methodist Church at 38th and Meridian, so there is access by the Indigo bus line. Our meetings are from 9 to 11 a.m. during those meetings. We are also fortunate that Channel 16 tapes and records, I guess it's not taping anymore, but records our meetings and airspay on channels 16 and 28 throughout the month so that we have the ability to share information and reach neighborhoods all across the county, even if their schedules do not allow them to be in person at our meetings. So because of a conversation I had just a couple of days ago, I want to ensure people that participating in McCannna's issues and belonging to McCannna does not mean that you must attend the meetings on Saturday. Neighborhoods have a lot of things always going on, and Saturdays are always a busy day for neighborhoods. So while we would like to see people at our meetings so that we can meet each other in face and face to face and get to know each other, if you can't come to our meetings on Saturday, you can still participate in neighborhood issues. We do invite people who attend our meetings to bring with them a non-perishable food item to contribute to North United Methodist Church's food pantry. They have a lot of community outreach programs. And in return for helping us with our meeting space, we want to be sure and support those community outreach issues. We also want to make sure and thank channels 16 and 28. I have to get used to the idea that there's two. It's always been the government channel is channel 16, but you should also watch channel 28. But as I said, they have been recording our meetings for longer than I can remember. And that just further enables neighborhoods to have information in front of them. With that, as I said, we will not have a meeting in December. Our next meeting will be on January 18th. We do have a Facebook page where we try to post the information about those meetings. But you can find out about meetings there. We also do have an email blast list if you'd like to be added to that. You are welcome to contact me by email at CB7801 at AOL.com. Yes, I still have an AOL email address. You can contact me by phone at 317 847 9959. And as I said, you're all you also can reach us through our Facebook page. With that, I would like to ask if there's anybody that has an announcement of an upcoming event in their neighborhood that they would like to share with anybody. If not, I'm going to say, and I am from Franklin Township. We have Christmas in Wanamaker, which is a day-long celebration where we have craft vendors, we have a parade. Children will have a chance to visit with Santa or write letters to Santa. That is on the main street in Wanamaker, which is Southeastern Avenue. So when you if you're driving down Southeastern Avenue going out of town, you'll hit the barricades. That is from, I believe it is from 9 to 4, and it's on Saturday, December the 7th.
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