ANNUAL MEETING 

The Annual Meeting for the Phelps Neighborhood Association was held Saturday September 29th 5:30 pm at 616 & 620 E Loren. Our thanks to hosts David & Vicky Trippe, Bob Shaw, and Janene Moser.

The turn out was less than expected, but those who attended enjoyed a wonderful evening. The food was great and the company even better! We had about 30 households represented. Dan Whisler with the Springfield Fire Department was present to answer questions about the Fire Station project on Grand. Councilman John Wylie was there to visit with neighbors. Jay Huff with the Police Department also attended. We got to know him well when he headed the SMSU Police Substation years ago and he continues to be a friend and advocate for our neighborhood.

The Board of Directors, Officers, and Executive Committee were elected for the 2001 - 2002 year. See the Box on page 2 for the listing. The elected Board of Directors then held a brief meeting to elect the Officers for the PNA. They are President - Renee Tyson, Vice-president - Terry Rowland, Secretary - Vicky Trippe, and Treasurer - Nancy Danielsen.

We are grateful to outgoing President Terry Rowland who was our president for 3 years. Many phone calls, letters, and meetings come with the position. Terry was an excellent spokesperson for the PNA with Planning & Zoning, City Council, SMSU, the media, as well as other venues. Terry was instrumental in several key projects. He helped design the Detention Basin at Grand & National and the Fire Station. With his help, both projects are assets to our neighborhood. He designed the plan and secured the grant for the Tree Planting on Dollison. He created and maintains the neighborhood web site. We deeply appreciate his Terry’s willingness to represent the PNA for those years.


"NIGHT WITH NEIGHBORS"

Wednesday December 5 from 5:00 - 6:30 pm
Springfield Art Museum - 1111 E Brookside

The Southeast Springfield Neighborhood Association (SESNA) is sponsoring the second "Night with Neighbors" event at the Springfield Art Museum. SESNA invites you to an evening of art, music, refreshments, and neighborliness at this special private event. Browse the galleries, including the Prints USA 2001 exhibit. Members of our city government will also be present, as well as local media.

If you have any questions, call the event coordinator Susan Hanson at 881-7843.

 

"Concerts in the Park" 
At the Phelps Grove Park

The PNA now has a Special Events Committee chaired by John Gregory. John started the "Night with Neighbors" event at the Art Museum last July. It was such a success that other neighborhood organizations are following our lead!

John is now coordinating our first "Concert in the Park", tentatively scheduled for June 22nd. It will be free to the public and feature the Kids Fine Arts Academy. We will keep you informed as the details emerge.

We are fortunate (or smart) to have the Art Museum and the Best Park in Springfield (ranked #1 in a City-wide poll) in our neighborhood. Events at the Park and Museum showcase our remarkable neighborhood!

Anyone interested in information or volunteering to help with Special Events - call John Gregory at 862-6145

From the President

I have been actively involved in the PNA for most of its existence. I am extremely proud of our accomplishments. With neighborhood support, hard work, tenacious PNA leaders, (and yes) a little luck, we have accomplished our biggest goals - the Conservation District and Neighborhood Plan and the City/University agreement that protects our neighborhood from further SMSU expansion.

I personally would like to thank our last two presidents Terry Rowland and Nancy Danielsen, for leading us through those victories. I hope that I can serve the PNA well with their continued guidance.

The last Newsletter included a questionnaire to help define priorities and identify desired projects for the PNA. Close to 200 were sent out and only 12 were returned. I hope the low number of returns is an indication that the PNA is already doing what our membership desires.

We have a unique neighborhood. Sometime it’s strengths are also it’s weaknesses. With a little TLC, our strengths will continue to outweigh the negatives. I firmly believe we can continue to protect our neighborhood by staying alert to actions by the City and SMSU. We will also continue to improve our quality of life in the neighborhood with the efforts of our hardworking volunteers.

Renee Tyson

Survey Results

Problems

#1 Housing Conditions
#2 Noise / Parties
#3 Overcrowding
#4 Yard maintenance
#5 Sidewalk Conditions

Project Rankings

#1 Minimum Maintenance
#2 Overcrowding Enforcement
#3 Neighborhood Beautification
#4 Yardwaste Clean Up Event
#5 Historic Registration
#6 PNA Social Events

Additional comments and suggestions were varied. They highlighted problems in specific parts of the neighborhood. While not listed, they will not be ignored. The PNA will continue to work on all problems.

Pooling Our Resources

Our Treasurer, Nancy Danielsen and committee member Mary Jo Stanton are investigating the possibility of the PNA developing a corporation for the purpose of buying properties in the neighborhood.

The idea is to buy properties that may need work, use PNA volunteers to help fix up the property, and either rent or sell the property. The goal would be to sell to someone who intended to live in the property, not to create another rental property with unknown landlords.

By pooling our resources, a small personal investment could have great returns for each person involved, and the neighborhood as a whole. This idea is in the preliminary stage. Anyone interested, please contact Nancy Danielsen 869-3685.

Fire Station is Finished !
Well, by the time you read this it should be.

The Fire Station is almost completed. It was scheduled to be open on Friday November 16, but that night work was still being done. We look forward to the opening. We will be getting good neighbors. They will be quiet (except for the sirens), they will keep up the property, and they will provide even faster emergency service to our neighborhood.

We intend to take advantage of the Community Room at the Station. We plan to have special meetings on specific topics that came up in the surveys. With single-topic meetings, we can get a better idea of the size of the problem and the amount of interest in solving the problem. The officers, Board, and committee members will help but cannot hope to solve all the problems in the neighborhood without you!


City Contacts

If you need to contact the City regarding a problem in the neighborhood, the following list may help. As always, the PNA officers and board are also willing to help you.

Zoning Violations: 864-1068
Tall Weeds (over 12 inches) 864-1666
Trash, Appliances, etc 864-1666
Inoperable Vehicles 864-1666
Parking in Front yard 864-1810
Gang/Graffiti hotline 864-1300
Stray Animals 864-1666
Parking Permits 864-1617
Dangerous Buildings 864-1068
Utility problems 863-9000
Not sure? Public Info 864-1011
Noise Violations 911 or
North of Loren, east of Kimbrough
Call SMSU Security 836-5327

City Council Listing
The Current Springfield City Council is:

Mayor Thomas J. Carlson

Zone Council Members:
Denny Whayne, Zone 1
Sheila O. Wright, Zone 2
Ralph K. Manley, Zone 3 **
John D. Wylie, Zone 4 **

General Council Members:
Mary Collette (A)
Gary W. Gibson (B)
Teri Hacker (C)
Bob Chancellor (D)

** Zones 3 & 4 are in our neighborhood

Contact at 840 Boonville 65802

 

City Contacts

If you need to contact the City regarding a problem in the neighborhood the following list may help. As always, the PNA officers and board are also willing to help you.

  • Zoning Violations: 864-1068

  • Tall Weeds (over 12 inches) 864-1666

  • Trash, Appliances, etc 864-1666

  • Inoperable Vehicles 864-1666

  • Parking in Front yard 864-1810

  • Gang/Graffiti hotline 864-1300

  • Not sure? Public Info 864-1011

  • Noise Violations 911 or

  • North of Loren, east of Kimbrough

  • Call SMSU Security 836-5327

New faces on City Council

The addition of John Wylie (zone 4) and Mary Collette (general) to City Council should be positive for our neighborhood and City. Councilman Wylie had a good record on the Planning & Zoning Commission as a neighborhood advocate. Councilwoman Collette has been a strong voice for Commercial Club.

The Current Springfield City Council is:

  • Mayor Thomas J. Carlson

  • Zone Council Members:

  • Denny Whayne, Zone 1

  • Sheila O. Wright, Zone 2

  • Ralph K. Manley, Zone 3 **

  • John D. Wylie, Zone 4 **

  • General Council Members:

  • Mary Collette (A)

  • Gary W. Gibson (B)

  • Teri Hacker (C)

  • Bob Chancellor (D)

  • ** Zones 3 & 4 are in our neighborhood

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Renee Tyson, President 863-0246
Terry Rowland, Vice-Pres 864-5756
Vicky Trippe, Secretary 865-6333
Nancy Danielsen * Treasurer 869-3685
Jo Cunningham * 831-1320
Edward DeLong * 831-5904

* Board of Directors
Donna Alrutz 
Bill Bultas
Greg Carlson 
Charles Daily
Jack Dunn 
Melinda Gallier
John Gregory 
Judy Hirsch
Kenny Knauer 
Mary Jo Stanton

Phelps Neighborhood Association
P.O. Box 1183
Springfield, MO 65807-1183

 

This edition of the "Neighbor to Neighbor" was written by Terry Rowland, Renee Tyson, and Nancy Danielsen.