SNA Quarterly General Meeting Minutes - February 13, 2024

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Sedgefield Neighborhood Association Quarterly Meeting
Date: Tuesday, February 13, 2024
Location: Sedgefield United Methodist Church
Time: 7:00 p.m.

Attendance: 47 adults (inclusive guests, speakers, visitors, etc)

Current SNA President, Nicole Frambach - kicks off the meeting and introduces Pastor Tom

Pastor Tom - welcomes everyone and runs down upcoming events on the calendar

    • Tomorrow, 2/14, Ash Wednesday - the sanctuary will be open between 12:00 - 1:00, and again from 7:00 - 8:00 p.m. for quiet meditation time and imposition of ashes.

    • March 9, new date for the Sedgefield Neighborhood chili cook-off. Pastor Tom highlighted this as a great example of the productive partnership between SNA and Sedgefield UMC.

    • March 16, Easter activities and Egg hunt on the church grounds

    • All Wednesdays in March, lunch partnership with Woodlawn Community Fellowship. The schedule is as follows: March 6 and March 20: Sedgefield United Methodist Church March 13 and March 27: Woodlawn Community Fellowship.

    • More information about all of these events can be found on the Sedgefield UMC church website.

Matt Montgomery - Community Officer, CMPD

    • Crime report review, handout with all reported incidents (Download PDF).

    • More fraud than larceny

    • Fish tables / arcades issues, email officer Montgomery directly: mmontgomery@cmpd.org.

    • During Q&A, the subject arose of what the community could do to help the police with the problem of juvenile incidents / crime. It was suggested, while the issue is complicated, that the public could pressure the DA's office. Charlotte City Council Rep, Danté Anderson, joined the conversation and noted that:

      • It's perhaps less about pressuring DA, as they are understaffed / under budget.

      • Instead, pressure the general assembly, as they are the group respondible for allocating the money which could be used to support law enforcement / the DA's office locally.


Garden Club Update

    • No new business, just a note that the club is entering its 75th year, making it the oldest in NC

    • Garden club meets 4th Monday of the month. More information can be found on the group’s Facebook page.

Laura Heiser - Recycle Right (Mecklenburg County Reduction Educator)

    • Distributed handouts and made a presentation to the group on the dos / don'ts of recycling.

    • The biggest thing we all can do to help is keep plastic bags out of our recycling bins

    • More information can be found at: wipeoutwaste.com.

Jake Fingers, City of Charlotte Landscape Management

    • "Here to talk about trees"

    • Provided a handout with what trees they manage (Trees Near Your Residence)

    • If you want to plan a tree in areas they maintain, you can submit a request via 311

    • Charlotte achieved Bee City USA status. Another handout was provided with information on advocating for establishing pollinator gardens

Danté Anderson, Charlotte City Council Rep, Mayor Pro Tem - reviewed some of the business before the City Council recently (and into the future):

    • Just had a big vote (yesterday), to bring back on the books some quality of life drive ordinances. Conversation around this was focused uptown (public urination, defecation, masturbation). Brought 6 of 8 ordinances back on the books. These are not just uptown ordinances, they apply to the entire city of Charlotte.

    • All meetings (when 6 or more are gathered together) are public domain - available and accessible as a resource for citizens to stay informed.

    • Big year for Charlotte, as the city is in negotiations with the Panthers - for extension / lifecycle of Panthers staying in Charlotte. They are also retouching contracts with Charlotte Hornets.

    • Mobility very important to council, they feel it's critical to be able to navigate a city without depending on a car as first priority. Looking at micro-modal opportunities. Authority to tax to expand public transportation opportunities.

    • Just started budget season, had 1st workshop, continues for a couple months. The budget will ultimately be codified at the beginning of the summer.

    • Decided not to raise taxes last year, but that makes it a possibility to happen this year.

Carl Hedberg

    • Past Chairman of SNA

    • Spoke on the impact of the UDO, where a multi-unit building was being constructed on a lot where one home used to stand.

    • Encouraged the neighborhood to check out what's happening at 237 Marsh Rd.

Dan Kapfhammer

    • Introduced as prospective candidate for President of the SNA.

    • Outlined vision for a reinvigorated association. Key takeaways include:

      • Goal to get to 100 new members in the next month. Current membership stands at 14 households

      • Introduces draft of new bylaws to govern the association

    • An ad-hoc neighborhood association meeting was called and scheduled for 3/12 for the primary purpose of adopting updated bylaws.

    • If the new bylaws are adopted, that would trigger an immediate election of a new board, to be held at that meeting.

    • Full text of the bylaws will be posted - along with a summary of how they differ from the current version - on the SNA website.