11-10-14 Redevelopment Commission Minutes

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South Bend Redevelopment Commission Regular Meeting — November 10, 2014 6. NEW BUSINESS (CONT.) A. Public Hearings (5) continued... going to do near my home? For me it's my aunt's home. City services. Now you talk about this Western Avenue thing and there's a terrible rumor going about. He mentioned "going by the book." We're not really sure we know what that means. "Going by the book." We thought that we don't want our streets to look like Prast St. And Diamond St. is fine over there off of Lincolnway, and we don't particularly care for that look, but that's OK, it's a good look and thank you very much for doing it over there. But I attended the meeting that you had when you came out and asked the folks what you want out here and we told you. And I attended the City Council meeting that had the map up there and all the city vision plans and heard from City Council as to what they thought they saw and wanted. But I didn't see a very good connection between what the people said at the meeting that we attended to tell you what we wanted. Now, some of the things we wanted were streets and sidewalks and lights, those city services. We haven't had those in a long time, so can we get a better understanding on exactly - - -you said twenty years doing this stuff? - -- Twenty years it's going to take you ... No. 1 question is how long is it going to take you? What phase of this are we starting at? Especially on Western Avenue, I didn't quite understand that? And then, for the businesses on Western Avenue, yes they've been vacant for a long time, but one thing about it, the people who built those buildings did an excellent job. It's too bad the people who can come in and say that they are still structurally available, like that Marycrest Building stuff. That would be an excellent housing project. I mean main street bus line service, that kind of thing. And then there's a building further down, going east towards the Cove, that's been vacant now since I would say at least fifty years. OK? Still looks like it's in good shape, but I don't know, it might crumble. But, anyway, getting back to the lights on both sides of Western Avenue, for continuity and safety. And then the bus shelters-- - we're going to get some because I went to one of the transportation meetings and they said, "Oh, yes, we're going to do this, as soon as we get around to what we're going to do with the streets." The first thing we asked for on the streets, Western Avenue, is to paint the lines, so we know what to do. Now we hear that you're going to have one direction going and one directing coming. Well if you went to that better block nice ordeal that weekend, you saw that that would not work. We didn't ask for that anyway. So, I don't know, you got the money, you passed it through, you're hearing a lot of interested people who have a dream. So, my question to you would be how are you going to go about answering some questions. So, what are you all going to do? What does the Redevelopment Commission do? You got the money passed on, you got to make sure it complies with the government, because otherwise, you're probably not going to get any more money forever. And then what about the people who live around these areas? All of these are valid questions. So will you all do something about it, or is it all on his shoulders ? - - -we got to run downtown, up to the what floor is that, and talk to them because we all don't have computers, or maybe the information doesn't get out to the centers or the churches, or however most of us get our communication, as far as what's going on around our property that we worked out lives for. So that was my four questions. 23