Meetings scheduled about Harding Place Extension

By ANDY HUMBLES ahumbles@tennessean.com 615-726-5939 – • September 25, 2008 A meeting concerning the Harding Place Extension road project will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30 at Hickman Elementary School, 112 Stewarts Ferry Pike, in Donelson. A meeting will also be held at 6-8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 2 at Una Elementary School, 2018 Murfreesboro Road. Both meetings will the same information. A brief presentation will be followed by a question and answer period. Representatives of the Tennessee Department of Transportation, Metro Public Works and Nashville Airport Authority are scheduled to be present.Call 741-4777 for information

NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING

TDOT sets Harding Place Extension Meetings TDOT wants Public Comments TDOT will conduct public meetings on Tuesday, September 30, 2008 and Thursday October 2, 2008 to discuss a proposed extension of SR-255 (Harding Place), from Donelson Pike/Ezell Pike to I-40 in Metropolitan Nashville-Davidson County, TN. * The meeting on Tuesday, September 30, 2008 will be held from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m., at Hickman Elementary School Gymnasium, 112 Stewarts Ferry Pike, Nashville, TN 37214. * The Thursday October 2, 2008 meeting will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Una Elementary School Cafeteria, 2018 Murfreesboro Road, Nashville, TN 37217. **The SAME materials will be presented at BOTH meetings.**

AARP Grief and Loss Group meets Aug. 3

By ANDY HUMBLES ahumbles@tennessean.com 615-726-5939 – • July 25, 2008 The AARP Grief and Loss Group will meet at 2 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 3 at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, 85 Fairway Drive in Donelson. The program will be on The Bowen-Campbell House and family located in Mansker’s Station. Following the program will be refreshments and the support group meeting. All those who have lost a spouse are welcome.For information call 889-3126 or 347-3126.

District 29 Great American Clean-up

Get on Your March, Get Ready, Get Set, GO! Saturday, May 24, 2008 is the District 29 Great American Clean-up. The Metro Council recognized by Council Resolution, the period of March 1 to May 31 as the Great American Clean-up with the month of May for when Davidson residents are to get with neighbors, watch groups, associations and various community organizations to clean-up, spruce up and clean out. Many Davidson county groups have started with one of the largest clean-up thus far occurring last Saturday at the Percy Priest Lake.

In the month of May, The Alliance of District 29 will host the District 29 Great American Clean-up on Saturday, May 24, 2008 from 9 am to 1 pm with Food Fun and Fellowship to be held from 1:30 pm - 3:30 pm in the parking lot of the Smith Springs Church of Christ, 2783 Smith Springs Road in Nashville. Neighborhood groups should contact Lawrence Jackson of Metro Beautification @ 862-8418 to get FREE gloves, trash bags, flower seeds, and T-shirts for your clean-up of eye sores in your immediate neighborhood.

Services that will be available at the Smith Springs Church of Christ are between

9:00 a.m and 1:00 p.m

Ø Donate your not-so-used clothing to Goodwill.Ø Shred all of your confidential documents for FREE.

Ø Throw away your large household items until the roll-off bins are full.

Ø Special containers to throw away old paint will also be available.

Ø Donate your old cell phones and chargers to domestic violence shelters. The shelter will give your old cell phone to victims to call for help.

Ø Donate your soda can tabs to help the Ronald McDonald House.

Ø Sign the District 29 Community Pledge to help keep our neighborhoods clean.

Ø Get a FREE T-shirt, gloves, trash bags and flower seeds.

Ø Get with neighbors to clean-up eye sores areas in your immediate neighborhood.

1:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Ø Bring a lawn chair for fun, fellowship and FREE food with your neighbors after the clean-up. "This is a great way to begin your spring and summer by cleaning up your community and neighborhood and visit with your neighbors," says Mr. Jackson.

In case of inclement weather, the rain date is Saturday, June 28, 2008 with times remaining the same.

District 29 residents/community organizations are asked to contact Juanita Veasy, Beautification Commissioner of District 29 @ 399-6746 or Lena Brown Prince at 366-3728 for District 29 Great American Clean-up day. Or contact Council member Vivian Wilhoite at http://www.vivian-29.blogspot.com/ or 589-2003 for detailed information.

Metro, state work to correct schools

Meeting addresses district's deficient status By NATALIA MIELCZAREK • Staff Writer (Tennessean) • May 4, 2008 How much will the Metro Nashville school district allocate next year to boost achievement among special education students? What will the system do about professional development for its 5,000-plus teachers and principals? Connie Smith, executive director of accountability for the state Department of Education, told the Metro school board and administrators Saturday that they must address these and other issues if they want to succeed. She suggested they use these questions as guidelines to tailor the district's proposed $614.1 million budget and target funding at areas of deficiency under a federal education law, including reading and math. The 75,000-student district's in terim director Chris Henson said he welcomed the state's help. "We're very open to the state's suggestions, and we've been working closely with the state," he said. "Changes have been made; we've totally reorganized our federal programs office. There's no hesitancy on our part. We're looking at things differently." Smith is scheduled to meet with the school board June 7 to go over the proposed budget allocations and see whether the district has taken into account her recommendations. Only then, Smith told the group, will the district get off an unflattering list of failing systems under the federal No Child Left Behind law. The school board is ex pected to present its proposed budget to Metro Council June 9. 'You can't have inertia' "We want to see targeted funds to meet the priorities that have been identified. That's what will get you off the list," Smith said. "My mission is to make this public school system competitive with any private school. This summer big plans need to be made for next year. You can't have inertia." Smith said she wasn't sure whether the sense of urgency about the seriousness of Metro's predicament under No Child Left Behind has been communicated across the district. She also said she expected some staff reassignments next academic year to ensure that competent people are in charge of appropriate duties. Metro and Robertson County last summer moved into so-called "corrective action" status under the No Child Left Behind law for not showing enough progress among pockets of students for four consecutive years. Some already speculate Metro will miss this year's achievement because the goals are higher than last year's expectations. If that happens, Metro would receive more directives from the state about its daily operations, including use of funding. It would also have to prepare a plan for alternative governance of the district and possibly face a state takeover. Board seeks direction Several school board members asked Smith specific questions regarding future im provement: how to effectively schedule professional development or how to ensure that the new superintendent — most likely to be selected this fall — will hit the ground running. "I agree with you, Dr. Smith, that principals create a climate for the school, and I'm glad you say we need that kind of professional development," board member Ed Kindall said. "The culture in our schools that comes down from principals is key, and that we're going to treat every child the same, that they all can learn. Some of these things are not about money. They're about how we think."

District 29 Crime Update Meeting Minutes

District 29 Crime Update Meeting Minutes Hermitage Police Precinct Thursday February 7, 2008 A very big thank you to the members of the Priest Lake Presbyterian Church for the opportunity to conduct the Crime Update Meeting at their church. Council Lady Vivian Wilhoite, presiding Opening of the Meeting –Prayer by Reverend Paul Burns Introduction of the of the Guest Speaker-Council Lady Vivian Wilhoite Discussed the continuous meetings to keep everyone abreast of the crime situation I District “29” and through the entire Nashville area. Thanked everyone from the community for attending the meeting. Introduced Chief Ronal Serpas Metropolitan Nashville Davidson Police Department- Chief Ronal Serpas 1) He states that they are only notified of about ½ the crimes that have been committed. • The department has stopped reading fiction about how to police people • Have a professional police attitude- every person should be helped by a police person no matter what the problem • The police have started to do things to help people better 2) Auto theft has not been lower then it is now (2007 reports) 3) Burglaries are lower now then they were in 1965 4) People that are releases from prisons are the ones causing most of the crimes 5) January 1, 2008 “Crooks with Guns” law is passed. Repeat offenders that are affected the most by this law. 6) Out of 70% of armed robberies, 40% of the crimes committed are by criminals that have been convicted on a felony charge. 30% have committed some type of crime. This is an ongoing, uphill battle. 7) Narcotic arrests higher now then ever before. Dealers are running a business and they are only concerned about making money. A drug arrest that takes place in a car where there is also a gun found carries a stiffer penalty. 8) Gangs- the idea of gangs has been going on for a long time. The differences with the gangs we have now are that members change to other gangs and they are not looking to make a lifetime commit to any one gang. 9) Some kids might dress like they are in gangs but they are not. The new dress code has helped this situation. 10) From August 2007 through October 2208 three days a week time are spent to monitor gangs and their activities. Extra money spent on overtime has been used to control gang problems. What is needed for the next four years have a stronger police department and be able to obtain more officers 1) Need to be able to offer better pay and benefits to be able to obtain more police 2) Better education for the community 3) More Precincts in Nashville 4) More Precinct Staffing 5) Need to have DNA lab- being able to use DNA samples would solve more crimes 6) Trying to get some Police Officers to patrol neighborhoods 7) Crimes against you are usually by some one you know Questions for Chief Ronal Serpas Q) What about the safety at Bicentennial Mall? A) Perhaps better lighting and different policing methods In general, Nashville has a higher % of crime reduction than other cities. Q) What does a Sheriff do? A) Not a law official, maintance of prisons and prisoners, serving warrants. The Police department has the criminal responsibility. Introduction of Commander Michelle Richter - Hermitage Precinct If you see a criminal try and get a good description of person, car, anything you can get to help. There was a 3% decrease in the crime rate in 2007. Questions of Michelle Richter Q) Man and woman that are homeless keep coming into Cablegate, what can we do? A) Nothing unless they are committing a crime or panhandling. Q) Nashboro Village – What about the high crime rate? A) Nashboro Village has been a roller coaster ride. Management has been working hard to correct issues. They have changed the Section 8 status. Met with management to try and get better lighting. Q) Are there many gangs around here? A) Not really, just a few. At one point there was a gang issue when they were living in vacant apartments. Q) In Cane Ridge there is a new High School is being built, have the police evaluated what will happen with the gangs between Antioch High School and the new one? A) They will have support there. The new dress code is making a large difference. Q) Vivian Wilhoite asked how we can obtain truancy reports? A) Looking to have a link added to this blog Q) Are the Police around when blasting is happen? A) NO, but if people think the vibrations are too much, make the police department aware and they can find someone to measure the blasting. If blasting is going to happen and you are within 300 feet you should be notified by the city. Q) The speeding around Antioch has gotten worse. Can you post a speed limit? A) It is a societal problem and is very difficult to change Q) I have been living in the condos in the Nashboro Village area for 7 years and feel the crime rate has drastically increased. A) Setup a Neighborhood Watch Closing by Vivian Wilhoite That is the crime update. These meetings are for the public to voice their concerns. We need to strengthen our relationship with the Police Department. Further updates will be posted, to keep the district up-to-date on all important issues. It is very important that more people start getting involved and attend the Crime Update Meetings. If you know people in your neighborhood that might not have access to a Computer please make them aware of the meetings. Spread the word and let’s strengthen “District 29” and make our neighborhoods a great place to live. Posted on the side of the blog are important phone numbers to keep on hand to report a crime or information concerning possible drug activity. Do not be afraid to use them. Crime Stoppers 74-CRIME (742-7463) Drug Activity 244-DOPE (244-3673) You do not have to give your name! Just make the call! Start a Neighborhood Watch Group. If you are interested in starting a Neighborhood Watch Group in your neighborhood please send an email to fullcircle148@aol and leave name, area you live and contact information. Have a great Weekend! Posted by MS