tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87792033963502018192024-03-13T21:57:34.028-05:00ABetterShreveport BLOGA non-profit organization of citizens working to improve the quality of life in Shreveport. Join us!Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.comBlogger595125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-65701111857000774322017-07-31T11:05:00.001-05:002017-07-31T11:05:12.339-05:00Meeting Monday, July 31st!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Anyone who would like to can join us for an ABetterShreveport meeting Monday night. This will be our first one in a while. We start monthly meetings again, if there’s interest. </div>
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We'll be meeting this Monday, July 31st, from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m., at the Wright Math Building at Centenary College, on Woodlawn Ave. We've got a number of juicy issues to discuss. We'll be brief, moving through them all within an hour, and people can mix and mingle after. I'll post note<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">s of the meeting on this group page by the next day:</span></div>
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TOPICS:</div>
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<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dog Park success! Any issues to work through?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Bike Lanes exist! Issues there? Future locales for lanes & sharrows?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">How about a "Cyclovia" for Shreveport? Say on a Sunday, when half of a big, long road is cordoned off for bike/ped?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Does the Youree-Kings intersection need pedestrian advocacy? Will there be enough crosswalks?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">What is the future of the Coates-Bluff trail? How can this gem be preserved?</span></li>
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Post something here if there are other issues you'd like to see on the agenda, at least at some point.</div>
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Hope to see some newcomers Monday night! All are welcome!</div>
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- Dr. <a class="profileLink" data-hovercard-prefer-more-content-show="1" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=842970528&extragetparams=%7B%22fref%22%3A%22mentions%22%2C%22directed_target_id%22%3A106661463387%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/loren.demerath?fref=mentions" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;">Loren Demerath</a>, Director, ABetterShreveport</div>
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p.s. Gotta decide if we need this blog anymore. That Facebook page sure is active.</div>
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-7116476049458209682015-12-02T10:38:00.002-06:002015-12-02T10:38:47.155-06:00Yes, there's still a beautiful nature trail there!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 40.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">COMMUNITY
EVENT:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 36.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Coates Bluff <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 36.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Community Trail<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 36.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">OPENING<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 36.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Saturday, December 5<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 36.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">10 AM – 2PM<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">(anytime in
between)</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 28.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Trail Map & Historical
Info Available</span><span style="font-size: 28pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 28.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Hot Dogs & Lemonade Provided</span> </div>
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<b><u><span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">food</span></u></b><span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> & parking
at <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The
Montessori School for Shreveport -- 2605
CE Galloway Blvd.</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">OR</span></div>
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<span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">park and/or
walk from the <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #ff6600; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Valencia
Community Recreation Center -- 1800 Viking Dr.</span></b></div>
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-65875205132309873802015-10-25T13:27:00.002-05:002015-10-25T13:41:49.556-05:00Is I-49 Discourse Biased and Unfair?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">THIS WEEK: THE NEW HIGH SCHOOL </span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This Monday the group will discuss the new charter high school that is to be built off Clyde Fant near Magnet High School, as well as review the progress and plans for the dog park.</span></div>
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<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">LAST WEEK: I-49</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 20.24px;">In attendance: Kim Mitchell, John Perkins, Charlotte Crawley, Jennifer Hill, Maurice Loridans, Murray Lloyd, Feico Kempff, Lani Duke, Matthew Linn, Loren Demerath, Brain Salvatore, Alan Dyson, Kathryn Brandl</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This past week our meeting was devoted to discussing plans for I-49 cutting through the city via a parkway/boulevard, or an interstate. It was noted that while urban planning of fifty years ago was pro-interste, the current state of the art favors a more permeable city layout. Cities such as Oklahoma City and Chattanooga are now dismantling interstates that cut through their centers, or as Boston has done, putting them underground. The idea is that downtowns and inner city neighborhoods are better served by more permeable, multi-use routes such as boulevards and parkways. The areas of Shreveport around Herby-K’s or Fertitta’s Delicatessen are examples of how once vibrant areas can be destroyed by an interstate<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://geo2.ggpht.com/cbk?panoid=X8NCgy4XU76OOzWw2rQULA&output=thumbnail&cb_client=search.LOCAL_UNIVERSAL.gps&thumb=2&w=227&h=160&yaw=341.73975&pitch=0" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://geo2.ggpht.com/cbk?panoid=X8NCgy4XU76OOzWw2rQULA&output=thumbnail&cb_client=search.LOCAL_UNIVERSAL.gps&thumb=2&w=227&h=160&yaw=341.73975&pitch=0" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The once vibrant area by Fertitta's</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was also noted that every city is unique, and what works well in one site wouldn’t in another. (There’ll be no “Big Dig” in Shreveport copying what Boston did, for example; not with the height of our water table.) To best fit a city’s unique situation, community meetings are supposed to guide the planning process. </span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There was dismay expressed that what were supposed to be meetings for community input may have “therapeutic” sessions meant make citizens feel as their desires have been considered more than they were. This is a common problem in urban development, as Arnstein’s class “Ladder of Participation” shows. Following urban planning research, it’s been noted at ABetterShreveport meetings in the past that the strongest changes to city structure are those that have the support of the people, and that happens when they’re most involved.</span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There was also the concern expressed in the meeting that people are personally biased towards certain routes and may not be holding the interests of the city as the priority. That can go both ways, of course, and several of the attendees at this meeting acknowledged they’re emotionally invested in not cutting through Allendale with an interstate because of the relationships they’ve made with people there as they’ve tried to rebuild the area with the Fuller Center. But being invested in rebuilding communities that have suffered and helping disadvantaged populations within Shreveport would seem to be preferable to being financially invested for personal profit. It appears there are those who have bought up property on the speculation that the interstate will go through there, after which they will be able to sell their land at a profit. </span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.fullercenter.org/sites/default/files/image/newsallen43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.fullercenter.org/sites/default/files/image/newsallen43.jpg" height="153" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>A recent Allendale house built by the Fuller Center</i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But regardless of if one is socially or personally invested, one would think fair play should be the rule, and the interests of the city as a whole should the criteria for honestly assessing ideas. The charge was made during the meeting, for example, that one of the web pages devoted to discussing I-49, (the one first called “Through the Heart,” then later changed to, </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/961486693869321/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“I-49 Through the City”</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">), has taken down comments critical of the interstate cut-through model. It was also charged that the main sponsor of that page, who works for a P.R. firm, had not provided the source of a study he’d cited in favor of it of the interstate model. As an alternative, the facebook page</span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/LoopIt49?fref=ts" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> “LOOP It I-49”</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> has been formed. That group sees it self as a “learning community,” and encourages anyone to join them.</span></div>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Next week, on Monday, October 26th, we’ll meet again from 6:00 to 7:00 on the new high school being built by the Magnolia charter school, and get an update on the dog park, as well get briefings on the I-49 topic and anything else folks might bring to the table. We meet at the Wright Math Building on Centenary’s campus at 2907 Woodlawn, 71104. All are welcome!</span></div>
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-44308261222886851872015-04-30T13:12:00.003-05:002015-04-30T13:14:47.474-05:00Last Meeting Before Summer Hiatus Monday May 4th<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This documentary premiere shown below will be a topic for discussion at</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">our meeting on Monday. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This will be our last meeting before summer break. All are welcome!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">6:00-7:00 at the Wright Math Building on Centenary's campus on Woodlawn Ave.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ma9KW01jX3k/VUJwDL5k9RI/AAAAAAAACxk/eVvp1gMXUxQ/s1600/sos-poster_nosponsors.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ma9KW01jX3k/VUJwDL5k9RI/AAAAAAAACxk/eVvp1gMXUxQ/s1600/sos-poster_nosponsors.jpg" height="400" width="258" /></a></div>
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-55431536941790896612015-04-09T12:27:00.000-05:002015-04-09T12:27:03.213-05:00Meet Shreveport's Bicycle Planner at the Makers Fair this Saturday! <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bud Melton, one of the main bicycle transportation planners in country, has been hired by Caddo Parish and the city of Shreveport to draft a bicycle component to the transportation plan that's being developed. Bud will be at a table at the Makers Fair and he'd love to meet with people and hear their points of view on what Shreveport needs to make our city more bike-able.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So drop by and meet Bud, y'all! Tell him what you think!</span></div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-49816784476791813482015-03-02T14:27:00.000-06:002015-03-02T14:31:48.989-06:00Craft brewing and all local and small adding to our unique value!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"><i>Lani Duke just sent me this:</i></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">Here's a <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/small-bountiful-small-business-craft-beer">New Yorker article</a> discussing swell of small breweries.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-D2p3Xxyhy4k/VPTHO5J13cI/AAAAAAAACvo/ONiA331e6ms/s1600/beer_tasters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-D2p3Xxyhy4k/VPTHO5J13cI/AAAAAAAACvo/ONiA331e6ms/s1600/beer_tasters.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a>And there was an AP article recently covering how fast food chains are moving to smaller, "craft" specialty restaurants that do not carry their corporate logo.</div>
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<div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">
Shreveport has retained many small, unique businesses who thrive on their ties to the community, in spite of the clamor of corporate identities along the Youree Drive commerce zone. </div>
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Urban planners have been recognizing a desire to return to a less centralized, village -centered gathering place/marketplace lifestyle, probably an over-idealized one but one that is heavily impacted by modern communications that enable forming of interlinked "communities" that may be widely geographically dispersed. This is an interesting time in which to live.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">
<i>Indeed it is! Thanks Lani!</i></div>
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-43187183479568649192015-02-27T14:09:00.000-06:002015-02-27T14:09:10.145-06:00Bike-Ped Components of Transportation Master Plan on the Agenda for Monday's Meeting<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Caddo Commissioner Matthew Linn will be stopping by our meeting on Monday, March 2nd, to describe the upcoming opportunities to shape the bike-ped component of the new transportation plan for our area being done by NLCOG (Northwest Louisiana Council of Governments).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We'll meet at the Wright Math Building on Woodlawn Ave. on Centenary's campus, just up from the Gold Dome, starting at 6:00 p.m.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Want multi-use paths? Want bike lanes? Want sharrows and bike-ped boulevards? We do too! Join us!</span></div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-45451542283207866052014-11-28T15:29:00.004-06:002014-11-28T15:29:39.316-06:00Mayoral Candidate Provenza Interviewed on Improving Downtown and Walkability and Bikeability <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Loren Demerath interviewed Shreveport Mayoral Candidate Victoria Provenza on both downtown and bike-ped. Listen to the interview <a href="https://soundcloud.com/ldemerath/abettershreveport-interview-with-victoria-provenza">right here!</a></div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-24674470734429414922014-11-14T16:03:00.000-06:002014-11-14T16:08:50.355-06:00Reports on State Bike-Ped Summit, Cross Bayou, and First Bike Co-op at Next Meeting!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: #666666; color: white; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Monday's meeting of ABetterShreveport should be plenty interesting. Lots of stuff to report on, including:</span><br />
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<li><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">This week's state summit of bike-ped organizers in Baton Rouge last week, attended by Stephen Pederson and Loren Demerath</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Shreveport's first bike co-op debuted at the Makers Fair, set up and manned by Stephen and Maurice Loridans</span></li>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.crossbayoucorridor.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Crossbayoumap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white;"><img border="0" src="http://www.crossbayoucorridor.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Crossbayoumap.jpg" height="249" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At our next meeting we'll discuss the exciting progress of planning to </span></span></i><br />
<i><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">develop the Cross Bayou Corridor with greenspaces and paths</span> </span></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<li><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><a href="http://www.crossbayoucorridor.com/">Cross Bayou Corridor design</a> meeting at Shreve Memorial Library headed by David Wagonnerr and attended by Loren and his Urban Sociology class, Jon</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Soul, Feico Kempff, and a graduate class in architecture from Louisiana Tech.</span></span></li>
</ul>
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: #666666; color: white; display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Plus, after the meeting I'll be interviewing mayoral candidate Victoria Provenza for broadcast on KSCL and posting online right there in the meeting room. I don't think she'd mind if people listened in, but we'll defer to her. (Still waiting to hear back on our interview request to Ollie Tyler's campaign, by the way; we'll keep trying!) </span><br />
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white;"></span></span><br />
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white;">So, Monday at 6:00 at the Wright Math Building at Centenary, all are welcome!</span></span><br />
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-12697140195847481682014-11-05T10:22:00.000-06:002014-11-05T10:22:20.545-06:00Red River Cleanup and "We Grow Together" Discussed at Earlier Meeting<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I apologize for posting these notes so late, y’all! I vow to be better—if a bit more abbreviated! <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<i><span style="line-height: 18.399999618530273px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- Loren</span></span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In attendance: George Gehrig, Adam Willard, Lisa Willard, Lani
Duke, Maurice Loridans, Loren Demerath, Mary Dumars, Deborah Roberson.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">WATERSHED HEALTH A CAMPAIGN ISSUE<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We first discussed the appropriateness of the Bayou Chapter of
the Ozark Society and ABetterShreveport hosting Victoria Provenza and agreed
that it was an opportunity to hear someone speak to their interests from a
point of expertise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The group is not
advocating people vote for any particular candidate, but recommend that voters
attend to candidates’ knowledge on this kind of issue.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">RED RIVER CLEANUP NEEDS HELP<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For the past few years the local Bayou Chapter of the greater
regional Ozark Society has conducted a fairly large-scale “Red River Cleanup”
using many volunteers in boats on a Saturday in the fall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This year’s is coming up on Saturday,
November 8<sup>th</sup>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">George said the Red River Valley Association has expressed no
interest in supporting it, and neither has the Red River Waterway
Commission.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the Army Corps of
Engineers and Gary Hanson of the Red River Watershed Management Institute have
expressed interest.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qokXdHQ1o0s/VFpN2hnh67I/AAAAAAAACrE/EGEzIMxVxaI/s1600/2032409fe88080d17cd03983ecec957f.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qokXdHQ1o0s/VFpN2hnh67I/AAAAAAAACrE/EGEzIMxVxaI/s1600/2032409fe88080d17cd03983ecec957f.jpeg" height="400" width="202" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Folks coming together in past years'<br />cleanups have made a big difference</i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The new Bossier Sam’s Club has donated 25 cases of water, and
Jeff Wyatt of Diamond Reality has donated his services in towing a barge up and
down the river where boaters can deposit trash they’ve picked up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cadets from the Camp Minden Louisiana Youth
Challenge come and help too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jason’s
Deli will provide free lunch; and Buffalo Wild Wings will donate something too,
perhaps gift certificates--maybe for the weirdest trash find (they’ve found
speakers, boxer shorts, even a meth lab)--and they’ve dressed up before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Power Squadron has come out and helped
shuttle people up and down the river.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The biggest hurdle is getting funds for the t-shirts, banners,
printing of fliers and waivers (people sign waivers and get a wrist band to
show they’ve signed the waiver), a total of $2,500-$3,000 to hold it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Boardwalk hasn’t been a help in stopping the trash.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were run back and forth from Boardwalk offices
to Bass Pro, to the Corps, then back to Bass Pro.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mary mentioned that Chris Jay with the
Tourism Bureau might be of help.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Margaritaville has a look out that’s low enough that they might see the
benefit since they’ve got the view.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mary
said the Lowes on Mansfield has been a big help building a garden from start to
finish.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Adam said when he’s worked with the Tourism Bureau on cleanups,
the concern was about enforcement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
are fines for littering, but we don’t enforce them; the police officers
themselves are among the culprits by throwing cigarette butts in the river.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">George mentioned the possibility of student internships and
service-learning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps a student could
organize a watershed cleanup, connecting to government agencies and
organizations up and down the watershed to organize something much larger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Loren said next year that would be a real
possibility.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“WE GROW TOGETHER” DISCUSSED<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The group then discussed “We Grow Together” on the heels of
Grace Peterson having presented here at ABS earlier.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They now have about 15 community gardens, and
they’re teaching kids about where fruits and vegetables come from.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Law enforcement may need some help too,
given that one guy recently had his okra patch raided on suspicion of marijuana
growing.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“We Grow Together” pursues growing food regionally, though not
necessarily organically because of regulations that go with that label.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They look to provide neighborhood hubs for:
access to a central community setting, healthy food, exercise, nutrition
education, volunteer/mentor training, regular health screenings and health
education.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the Valencia Park community garden they started with kids
who’ve now grown into young adults and that garden sells produce now to the
Wine Country restaurant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They also host
a “We Grow Together Garden Series” that teaches gardening.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A backbone to the program is bringing to fruition some of the
goals in the Shreveport Caddo Master Plan, increasing access to food, providing
green space, an active living option, and health education.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’re voting on the ArkLaTex regional food
system master plan on whether it’ll be viable as a means to achieving those
goals. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Greens on the Red” will be in March and they’re just planning
that now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They encourage people to
champion a particular green of their choice!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ABetterShreveport has long loved Grace Peterson’s notion that
the Shreveport-Bossier area is actually the greens capital of the world!</span></div>
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-27863196964936840262014-11-03T15:28:00.001-06:002014-11-04T10:08:25.272-06:00Williams and Provenza respond to bike-ped questions<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Patrick Williams and Victoria Provenza responded to some questions I'd asked recently (much too recently, I'm afraid! my apologies! Also missed additional text Patrick Williams' team had sent the first time I published this. Sorry! - Loren).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Questions from ABetterShreveport:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. Many cities in the United States now have regular "Cyclovias," often on a weekend day. This is where an entire street, or one or two lanes of a street, is blocked from automobile use and reserved for pedestrians and cyclists. Could we look forward to enjoying Shreveport's first Cyclovia under your administration? And do you have any ideas on what street or streets might be good to use for the event?</span></div>
<div style="color: #141823; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Many cities have begun developing networks of multi-use paths that pedestrians, cyclists, and those using mobility aids can use for transportation, not just recreation. Paths have put alongside working railroads, drainage ditches, and atop levies. Would you be in favor of developing such a network using those kinds of resources in Shreveport? </span></div>
<div style="color: #141823; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. Assuming your answer above is yes, which of the following multi-use path opportunities would you want to see developed first, and why?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- connecting downtown to the north and the MLK neighborhood with a path along Cross Bayou</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- connecting southwest Shreveport to LSUS and the retail areas in southeast Shreveport using combinations of paths beside drainage ditches and streets</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- connecting the Southern Hills neighborhood to Cedar Grove and points north with a path along a drainage ditch</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- connecting the Anderson Island and Shreve Island neighborhoods by Shreveport Barksdale Highway to the retail areas around 70th Street with a path along the "duck pond" bayou.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Alternatively, are there other paths you would develop first instead?</span></div>
<div style="color: #141823; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Patrick Williams:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the interest of time, I want folks in Shreveport to know that I am committed to alternative modes of transportation wherever possible. Progressive, forward thinking cities and regions are looking to incorporate these plans into their overall transportation planning strategies. Sometimes that takes the form of paths and trailways and sometimes it is accomplished by building roads that are safe for pedestrians and cyclists. As someone who has walked all the way from Shreveport to Baton Rouge to promote awareness for childhood obesity and autism, I can speak firsthand to the need to keep pedestrians and cyclists safe. I also have a track record of promoting these types of plans having sponsored legislation in Baton Rouge called Safe Paths, Safe Streets in 2011 which ensured that cyclists and pedestrians had the right of way and were safer on the streets.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some years ago a prominent Shreveporter had the idea and
vision that the City eventually commissioned and developed called the “String
of Pearls” project that would link the different parks across the City.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This project was never implemented and would have
been good then and with recent enthusiasm for the healthcare and wellness
benefits from walking and cycling would be great today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As Mayor, this project will be taken off of
the shelf, dusted off and updated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our city has an Infrastructure Deficit and my goal is to get
that backlog of projects from planning to construction. We can incorporate the needs of pedestrians
and cyclists when we build these projects and I will seek to work with
community partners and other governmental bodies that make funds available for
these types of projects. With
Louisiana’s national rankings for obesity, access to park space and mobility
options, we ought to be poised for success in garnering these grants. By
working with community partners in healthcare and other industries we can
leverage their access to local funding to better compete for the national
dollars that are available while offering these local companies the opportunity
to sponsor an important resource for our citizens.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To be a true
progressive city and move Shreveport forward, we must develop projects and have
events that offer alternatives to our citizens.
Progress means working together for one goal and what is right for
Shreveport. A commitment to these types
of projects will also assist us in economic development efforts as we work to
recruit companies and employers from other parts of the country. As Mayor, I will work with all groups to do
what is right and build our economic status as a competitive City.<!--EndFragment-->
</span></div>
<div style="color: #141823; display: inline; line-height: 19px; margin-top: 6px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Victoria Provenza:</b><br />
Yes, being that a sustainable and prosperous 21st Century city is the center stone of my platform I have already addressed this issue publically via the numerous forums and published questionnaires on various sites throughout the Internet. In the event you missed any of my walkable and bikable city talks, I suggest you visit my website at <a href="http://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fvictoriaprovenza.com%2F&h=GAQFRZ9Y_&enc=AZPBDgIxNxBG-Rph3UPMvXEEimhKoUtq0-_b0GfccHldBFXIqI07lmrPpG_WX6THdti-H-d8TuuSM4UDuoTunl7FN49jcyLZR-8NXmoPHPNPObSo_RtHjhtxT07Kb3UjA4Q&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">victoriaprovenza.com</a> for more detailed information.</span></div>
</div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-82370467203773620022014-11-03T15:10:00.003-06:002014-11-03T15:10:36.839-06:00Centenary Students Interview Provenza<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Not sure who to vote for tomorrow? Students in Centenary's Urban Sociology class, Tierra Range and Celia Sobleman interviewed Victoria Provenza, as well as political science professor Dr. Chris Parker, in the first episode of their new KSCL show, "Centenary Students with the Facts" </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">You can listen here:</span><br style="color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /><a href="http://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fcentfacts.wix.com%2Fcentenarystudentswtf&h=2AQG_P5vn&enc=AZNduYFmjrUsWtlTkq6EpbPJA9hDdTHYLc5-tftSdWiMtpu7tSFfIWfaxU7Y-bcG5O1AWTr4Nk-jYJy4nXaghyVTh2i10mnuNW1dBZU5qQXOJJuiciwK-fRqhrazxHCKJDw&s=1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://centfacts.wix.com/centenarystudentswtf</a></div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-73409002320384464232014-08-25T11:15:00.001-05:002014-08-25T11:15:27.389-05:00Meeting with Media Panelists Tonight<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just a reminder of our meeting tonight on how to use media for advocacy. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This meeting is one outcome of the Advocacy Committee of HGIO coming together with ABetterShreveport as well as local bicycle and safety groups. The other outcome of our coming together is our new Bike-Ped advocacy group, WHICH WE COULD OFFICIALLY NAME TONIGHT! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But for our advocacy-using-media focus we'll have three panelists:</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XuVjDGaqoJ4/U_tgApt9s2I/AAAAAAAACnQ/v_o54Y7VgxM/s1600/5611133343_02551ba6dd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XuVjDGaqoJ4/U_tgApt9s2I/AAAAAAAACnQ/v_o54Y7VgxM/s1600/5611133343_02551ba6dd.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Nancy Learned with tonight's panelist Karen Wissing being <br />interviewed by Loren Demerath on <br />"Time for ABetterShreveport" on KSCL 91.3 fm</i></span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Feamula Bradley of the Louisiana Public Health Institute</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jan Elkins of KTBS News</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Karen Wissing head of social media for SciPort </span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As usual, we'll meet from 6:00-7:00 p.m. on Centenary's campus in the Wright Math Building, 2907 Woodlawn (that's just up from the Gold Dome and across the street from Centenary's Magale Library).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Join us!</span></div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-69772492625632604042014-08-15T13:51:00.001-05:002014-08-15T13:53:10.993-05:00Advocacy Tips and New Orleans Bike-Ped Highlights at Last Week's Big Meeting<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><i>What a meeting it was! And pictures to come! Promise! </i></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">In attendance: Lani Duke, Loren Demerath, Maurice Loridans,
Stephen Pederson, Garrett Johnson, Cynthia Keith, Marion Collins, Ila Broyles,
Dina Utter, Caryn Jenkins, Elka Anderson, Jim Broyles, Melisa Smith, Chris
Chandler, Emilie Harmeyer, Cathy Smith, Katherine Sailer, Patrick Furlong,
Matthew Ellis, Jonathan Toups, Victoria Provenza, Matthew Linn, Robert Trudeau,
Feamula Bradley, Jennifer Ruley (via speaker phone).</span><span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">GOVERNMENT
MEETING REVEALS BIG OPPORTUNITY</span><span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Loren kicked
things off with a description of the meeting he and Ila Broyles had last week
with government officials, and how tonight’s meeting could help us take
advantage of a significant opportunity. As co-chairs of the HGIO Advocacy
Committee, Loren and Ila met with Caddo Parish Commissioner Matthew Lin, NLCOG
Director Kent Rogers, Caddo Parish Administrator Woody Wilson, Caddo Parish
Engineer Ken Ward, and Metropolitan Planning Commission Interim Director
Stephen Jean. Kent Rogers gave us the welcome news that as part of
revising our region’s overall transportation master plan, a kind of bike-ped
plan would be created as well, and this could include a plan for a network of
multi-use paths.</span><span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">NLCOG has already selected the firm, Alliance Transportation Group,
that will create the overall transportation master plan. That firm has
the contract for doing the LA DOT plan as well, and a bike-ped advocate Loren
knows, David Levinger, said that those kinds of firms tend to be automobile
focused. In looking at the firm’s website they don’t appear to have the
background in bike-ped planning that other firms do that specialize in that.
But it was noted that citizens groups like ABS might be able to request
that the bike-ped component be sub-contracted out. The city has an
opportunity to create a better quality of life and a unique value that can lead
to economic development if it’s done well. A bike-ped master plan in
Shreveport could include an extensive network of paths, not to mention bike
lanes, and pedestrian safety components.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>All are those features are relatively inexpensive and could be developed
out of existing funds. A good plan will make it easy for create those
benefits for the city, but a bad one would make it hard, even impeding
improvements into the future. </span><span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">ADVOCACY TIPS
OUT OF THE LOUISIANA PUBLIC HEALTH INSTITUTE </span><span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Feamula Bradley</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">, of the Louisiana Public Health
Institute (LPHI) shared advice on how to be an effective advocacy group. Feamula
was one of the main people behind the smoke-free policies that have been
established in the state, not to mention the ordinance passed in Shreveport,
the first city in the state to pass one like it.</span><span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Feamula described how LPHI and the Louisiana Campaign for Tobacco
Free Living was able to get “boots on the ground,” and talk to decision makers
in local governments and businesses to point out to them that they were all on
the cusp of going tobacco-free, and would be able to do it if they all did it
together. Once the movement started, others joined too, not wanting to be
left out of it.</span><span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Feamula described the various ways <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">non-profit groups can advocate </b>for an issue. The point of
advocacy is to distribute information on an issue, and that can be done through
letters to editors of newspapers, articles and feature stories in news media,
and posting on social media. Calls to action are important to, where
people are asked to share their points of view by commenting on a webpage, or
by emailing decision makers. Feamula noted that effective advocacy groups
can end up shutting down the email accounts of decision makers that way, their
accounts becoming so overwhelmed with incoming email.</span><span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial;">Feamula pointed out that while <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">non-profits are not allowed to lobby</b>—where one requests that
government officials make certain decisions on legislative issues—they can give
officials information on the issues for which they advocate. She
described the effectiveness of sharing such information is facilitated by
referencing issues which they find important.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And so, Feamula noted, as an organization, it helps to research decision-makers,
and record what you find out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8779203396350201819" name="OLE_LINK4"></a><span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK4;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">But maybe the most important thing Feamula advised (at least
to this dimwit!) is that organizers need to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">set goals and timelines</b> at their meetings, and to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">distribute the duties</b> needed to reach
those goals according to those timelines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>(Got it!)</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial;">Another tip Feamula gave for advocacy groups is not to overlook
the small details and get distracted by the excitement of reaching the big goal
at the end.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Hmm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Might be guilty of that one too.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The more you tend to the details and little
to-do’s the faster you’ll get there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial;">Feamula noted how important <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">community
mobilization</b> was to the success of the Tobacco Free Living campaign.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When she’d give out t-shirts at festivals or
shopping centers, she pause to ask the person, “hey, if you’re really
interested in this, can I get your contact information?” and that info will
later let you ask them to show up at city council meetings (“You don’t have to
say anything, just your standing there will mean something,” she’d tell them),
or to email decision makers (TFL has been known to stimulate so much email that
officials’ accounts have crashed).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Helping community mobilization can be having a youth component, as well
as using focus groups to projects.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial;">Another of Feamula’s important points is looking at <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">who’s NOT “at your table.”</b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s certainly a point our largely white,
upper-middle class ABS should consider.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>(Talking with Feamula later after the meeting, she emphasized the
importance of diversifying our base.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This resonates with plans ABS had made before our summer break, to “take
our act on the road,” and meet in other neighborhoods, pointedly inviting <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">leaders of neighborhood associations </b>and
the like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The plan was that ABS would
learn neighborhoods different needs, interests and resources to see how they
might fit with ABS projects, and in turn, to share what ABS is working on to
see if they’d like to get involved and help us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And, because it can be intimidating to come on to Centenary’s campus to
meet, reaching out to the neighborhoods would involve meeting at various library
branches. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial;">Reaching out to decision-makers was another topic Feamula
addressed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She said it helps to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">develop profiles </b>of such people, to
research what it is they care about by attending to what they’ve spoken about,
proposed, posted in social media, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>One can then look to connect to them through those interests.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Last but not least, Feamula pointed
out there are <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">professional organizations</b>
out there ready to help, like LPHI.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Other organizations, like the Louisiana Association of Non-Profit
Organizations (LANO), are there for the offing as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the end, it’s all about partnerships. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And as an example of the advice and
expertise professionals can provide in such partnerships, next up was Jennifer
Ruley!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial;">PLANNER SHOWS OFF
NEW ORLEANS BIKE-PED ACHIEVEMENTS<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">To give us a taste for what’s possible, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Jennifer Ruley</b>, an urban planner with the
Louisiana Public Health Institute, then spoke to us over speaker phone, walking
us through a powerpoint showing what she’s helped to do in New Orleans.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">One of
the highlights has been <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">new bike lanes</b>;
they’ve gone from having 5 miles of bike lanes to 92 miles now in 8 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Shreveport has zero miles, as readers may
know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So far.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Caddo Parish recently installing some on
North Lakshore Drive. It’s a start!)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Another
has bike enhancement in New Orleans has been <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">bike parking</b>: they’re about to add 500 more to an already
substantial 4,000 spaces.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">They’ve
also added safety improvements like pedestrian refuge islands and crosswalks in
the French Quarter.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">And
there’s been programming, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“Cyclovia,” </b>(titled “Play Streets in
NOLA) was held recently, (where a street is temporarily blocked off from
automotive traffic).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Better Block Demonstrations </b>have shown on
one set day how you can transform a block.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Using just temporary paint, artificial turf and planters, spaces can be
provocatively repurposed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Theirs were
done by the Center for Planning Excellence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Bike to Work Day </b>was a
made into a party by organizing social events around it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Although
Louisiana now has a complete streets policy for state roadways (though it’s debatable
how strong it is), New Orleans has passed <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">a
Complete Street Ordinance</b> for the city “requiring that all transportation
improvements are planned, designed and constructed to encourage walking,
bicycling and transit use, while also promoting the full use of, and safe
operation for all uses of the City’s transportation network.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Not a bad model, eh, Shreveport?)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">As to
the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Shreveport </b>Bike Ped cause,
particular our interest in creating a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">network
of multi-use paths </b>out of our drainage ditches and levees, Jennifer said
that the first steps should include targeting some relatively easy early
successes (and heads nodded in the room).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Ila
Broyles asked Jennifer Ruley what we might expect from the planning process,
the kinds of early successes that can be done, and what communities have done this
well?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Jennifer
said often there are projects approaching on the horizon, such as <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">roadway projects </b>coming up that are in
the design process and might be amenable to accommodations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can do those projects sooner rather than
wait for the whole city wide plan to be completed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once done they help the community come to
expect such changes, even galvanize it to demand them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">As to
what communities have done it well, Jennifer suggested we look at <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Jefferson Parish</b>, which just completed
their bike plan; she noted that it was pretty expensive and that there was a national
expert that was part of that team;<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Lake Charles</b> has a good bike plan
too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Interestingly, Jennifer said <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Albuquerque </b>New Mexico is worth a look
for us in Shreveport, because it has a similar water layout with “arroyos” that
work much like our bayous.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Jeff
Welborne asked how Jennifer maps the information on bike ways and make it all available
to the public to see where all the bike ways are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How do you keep track of that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jennifer said they track paths and lanes with
Public Works in New Orleans and also refer people to the Master Plan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But she noted one can also use <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">GoogleMaps</b> to consider where they’d be
useful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Victoria Provenza noted that Jill
Mitchell at LA DOTD is a good resource for that.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">NEXT MEETING: AUGUST 25<sup>TH</sup> AT 6:00 TO
HEAR GUEST PANEL ON USING MEDIA & SOCIAL MEDIA<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><b>Jan Elkins and Clay Kirby of KTBS</b> will be our special
guests on August 25</span><sup style="font-family: Arial;">th</sup><span style="font-family: Arial;"> from 6:00 to 7:00 at the Wright Math
Building. Clay is head of social media at the station and Jan, a former news anchor, has been a longtime community media leisson there. </span><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial;">The topic will be how to use broadcast,
print, and social media for advocacy.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;">
</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: white;">Join us!</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-30819702845646350082014-08-13T15:32:00.002-05:002014-08-13T15:32:22.213-05:00What a meeting it was!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Summary to come... soon! But just briefly: about 30 folks attended, Loren gave great news from NLCOG, Feamula Bradley rocked with advocacy advice, as Jennifer Ruley direct from New Orleans with images of what they've done down-state and we can consider planning to do up here, including examples of bike-ped plans. But it's all coming! With pictures!</div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-21177968664930165662014-08-11T13:19:00.002-05:002014-08-11T13:23:22.618-05:00Meeting Tonight on Converting Drainage Ditches to a Bike-Ped Path Network!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="line-height: 19px;"><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Reminder of the meeting tonight on how to convert our drainage ditches into a network of bike-pedestrian paths! </span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 19px;"><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 19px;"><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">We'll be at the Wright Math Building on Centenary's campus, 2907 Woodlawn Ave. from 6:00-7:00. </span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 19px;"><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 19px;"><span style="background-color: #666666; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Join us!</span></span><br />
<span style="color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #666666; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span><span style="line-height: 19px;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; float: right; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-avnMXJ8P2aQ/U-kIezpOtXI/AAAAAAAACmY/CMZe68WptEE/s1600/Ballona-Creek-Bike-Way-Culver-City-Marina-Del-Rey-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-avnMXJ8P2aQ/U-kIezpOtXI/AAAAAAAACmY/CMZe68WptEE/s1600/Ballona-Creek-Bike-Way-Culver-City-Marina-Del-Rey-5.jpg" height="425" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Here's path along a drainage ditch in Los Angeles. </span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;">Looks like they started with the same thing we've got here in Shreveport.</span></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-69408429286907234942014-08-08T17:00:00.000-05:002014-08-13T15:33:10.632-05:00A Local History Education Organization with Global Aspirations is Off and Running!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In attendance: Maurice Loridans, Susan
Keith, Lani Duke, Feico Kempff, </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Loren Demerath, </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and Chris Chandler</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">GRATEFUL FOR GOVERNMENT PARKS <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Susan Keith reported on her recent travels to Mertyl Beach
and said it was bumper to bumper traffic everywhere all the time there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She didn’t like the board walks and souveneer
shops and crowds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two of the three days
they didn’t see the beach, since the coast is lined by hotels and condos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only when they found the state park could
they get access to a beach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was noted
that a good function of government is to provide the public with general access
to those things, as through parks.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On that note, Loren Demerath reported on how well Brown
County State Park in Indiana served as the site for his extended family’s recent
reunion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Loren noted that state parks
(and federal and city for that matter) are nice for the way you can be in a
place that isn’t pushing you to buy stuff and telling you how great everything
is since profit isn’t the point.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ADVOCACY TRAINING MEETING NEXT MONDAY!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Loren also announced that the advocacy training meeting will
be next week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hopefully all who are
interested in helping improve bike-ped facilities in Shreveport will
attend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The particular focus will be on
advocating for a network of multi-use paths.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">SITES FOR A YEAR-ROUND FARMER’S MARKET?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The group discussed possible locations of a year-round
farmer’s market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feico had the idea of
putting it right on the Waddel Truss Bridge (one of only two it’s kind left in
the U.S.),<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>while Maurice favored the
site under the Texas Street Bridge right next to free parking provided by two
casinos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The truss bridge sure would
have a great view and ought to be used for something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seems a great opportunity .<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Under the Texas St. bridge has two other
things going for it: parking (in the casino lots) and shade.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">{Speaking of Farmer’s Markets, no doubt the new one starting
up at Provenance will be a topic of conversation at coming meetings. The more the better?}<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">THE AMERICAN MILLENIUM PROJECT HAS STARTED... IN SHREVEPORT!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For the main attraction of the night’s meeting, longtime
ABetterShreveport attender Chris Chandler presented on his own non-profit
organization, <a href="http://americanmillenniumproject.org/">the American Millennium Project</a> (with <a href="https://www.facebook.com/AmericanMillenniumProject">their Facebook page</a>).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a project that offer students of various ages the opportunity to
learn history, geography, and culture through adventure travel and field trips,
while at the same time developing pride in their locality, and a capacity for
leadership.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/t31.0-8/r270/1921155_455665861200741_1555438888_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/t31.0-8/r270/1921155_455665861200741_1555438888_o.jpg" width="228" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Chris Chandler speaking at the Rotary<br />Club of South Shreveport earlier this year</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chris described how the idea started.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His college graduation gift from his
grandparents (who raised him, and were of modest means) was a Eur-Rail Pass and
a plane ticket to London in 1992.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Traveling
by train, he carried a backpack, stayed at hostels, and it was a life changing
experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he came back he used
the rest of his savings to do the same thing in the U.S. for another three
months, traveling by Amtrack.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said the
comparison was night and day: completely different worlds in terms of the quality
of facilities for travel; few youth hostels and disgraceful train service by
comparison.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chris later went to a leadership program entitled “Leadership
Shreveport-Boosier,” sponsored by his boss, Lee Hall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Chris also had a son around that time and
made a commitment that he’d work on a structure to travel for people like his
son by the time he reached high school (and he’s now a senior!).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In January of 2014 the program began.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The American Millenium Project has clubs with
teacher sponsors in middle schools, high schools, and colleges.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Chris works with the faculty sponsors to
organized field trips.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Chris is primarily using
the Rotary Club format as a model, though he's also drawing a bit on the greek social fraternity framework.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are no paid employees at this point.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The format of the field trips is the “adventure tour,” but
there’s service wrapped into it as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As part of the tour, students often teach what they’ve learned, in one
case to a local Rotary club.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">OH, THE TOURS! <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chris has already developed twenty two total tours! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Among the tours: the Caddo Indians, local
religions, “the Wild Wild West,” “Duck Pond and Beyond,” “Black Gold Rush,” “Cotton
is King,” “Royal Mile,” “Gone but Not Forgotton,” (centered around local
cemetaries), “Leaving a Legacy” (the Norton Art Gallery), <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>just to name a few!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">{Nobody asked at the meeting, but now that I’m writing this,
the thought occurs to me, couldn’t the rest of the city benefit from these
tours too?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Might these tours be enjoyed
by those of us not in school anymore?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Hmm.}<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">LOCAL IN, LOCAL OUT<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Based on wherever the school is, students are given a tour
within a three to five mile radius around the school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The idea, Chris said, is to try to break down
barriers with these tours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example,
a lot of the kids who go to Caddo Middle Magnet go through the Cedar Grove
neighborhood, but don’t know much about it’s history and culture.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Student members of the project have to complete 10 hours of
service each semester, and they pick where they do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They also sign a statement of shared
values.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And, each member pays dues of
$25 per year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The organization’s board members include Gary Joiner, Keven
Bryan, Ron Anderson, Mary Poteet, Jonathan Fox, Levette Fuller, and Jim
Huckabee.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The focus is on Caddo Parish, and then duplicating it from
there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BIG GOALS & EVEN
BIGGER ASPIRATIONS!<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chris said the organization has three goals:</span><br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Educate</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Inspire Local Pride</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Develop Leaders</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was noted that all three can be tied to together, in
that seeing what others have done in a locale inspires an appreciation for that
place, and can stimulate their own thinking as to how they might contribute to
it too.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Loren suggested<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the wording "Leaders" might be changed to "Community Leaders" or "Involved
Citizens" as leadership can mean directing people, like being a boss; or
leading in something competitive, like the business sense of leading in market
share. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many students we all want to
reach can’t necessarily imagine themselves ever being a leader or a boss, but
can imagine being a contributer to a community, in that everyone knows they
have something to offer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chris said he has a five year plan and a ten year plan, and
they’re both ambitious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Eventually, the
organization would… span North and South America!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The group agreed it was ambitious, but nobody
suggested Chris was wrong to think big!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">NOT REQUESTING GOVERNMENT
FUNDS! ...EVER?<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The group discussed the funding model, which is to rely
strictly on private donations and corporate support and individual
investors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Chris said it’s a
philosophical point of view where he thinks people tend to go to the government
too often to solve their problems. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Loren
said he agrees people can become dependent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>On the other hand, he also sees government as the appropriate
place people to go share resources (through taxes) which they ask that their elected representatives distribute on merit. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He, for one, would want his tax dollars used
on something like the American Millennium Project. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Loren said his dad once had a bumpersticker specially
made and put it on his car that read: “A Mind is a Terrible Thing to
Waste.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Raise Our Taxes Please!” The point being that some things are worth contributing money too, be they schools, roads, national defense, help for the poor, etc.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The group was generally very enthusiastic about Chris’
presentation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We support you, Chris!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">BIG</span> MEETING ON MONDAY!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ABetterShreveport is gathering all the bike-ped advocates in
the city to receive advocacy training this Monday, August 11, 6:00-7:00 p.m.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The specific goal we’re setting out sights on
is a multi-use trail network to make our city more walkable and bikeable. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Highlights of the meeting will include:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Advocacy training run by experienced community organizer Feamula
Bradley</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A skype session with successful New Orleans bike path planner
Janet Ruley</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We'll be sharing very good news based on this week’s meeting of ABS and government
leaders in regard to bike-ped facilities</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p><br /></span>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Consider joining us for what should be a great meeting!</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-627207763438235062014-06-01T10:50:00.002-05:002014-06-01T10:53:41.542-05:00Open to Public Brownfields Workshop on Tuesday an Opportunity to Find Funding for Bike Paths and More!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 0px;">At our last meeting before taking our summer hiatus (though they'll be a mid-July opportunity to engage in an exciting training opportunity described in a coming post) we met a new visiter, <b>Megan Davenport</b>, who coordinates a program at LSU Health Center. She's interested in creating a better Shreveport-Bossier to help her recruit fellows for her program, and she agrees that more bike paths would help.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Megan spotted </span></span><a href="https://www.ksutab.org/education/workshops/details?id=98" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 0px;"><b>this federally funded workshop</b></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> that's being held on Wednesday on how our city can get funding to use brownfields for economic development and revitalization. The </span>attendance<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> of ordinary citizens would show we expect our city to seize these opportunities!</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.visionlongisland.org/smart_talk/12-02-11/images/brownfields.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.visionlongisland.org/smart_talk/12-02-11/images/brownfields.jpg" height="170" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br />The EPA is funding this workshop, but a range of funding sources are available for actual projects.</i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>But what are brownfields? </i> </b>They're defined as "abandoned, idled, or underutilized properties ...the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presences of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant." Considering that, drainage ditches would likely be included.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">This is an opportunity.</span><i style="font-weight: bold;"> </i>Not only for creating our dreamed of network of bike paths for the city, but of revitalizing downtown or any neighborhood where properties lie in wait of better use.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Anyone can attend, including you, even if you're just a person who'd like to be citizen's voice in favor of creative use of our resources. <b>The more regular folks like us speak out</b> in favor if this sort of thing, the more government officials feel obligated to respond and go for it. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b>Here's hoping</b> a number of city officials from a range of agencies attend. We'd expect folks to be in attendance the Department of Operational Services, the Metropolitan Planning Commission, the Northwest Louisiana Council of Governments (NLCOG), as well as the Caddo Parrish Commission, and the City Council. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I left the Mayor's Office off that list since Mayor Glover will be out of office soon, but <b>any political candidate would be smart</b> to be well-schooled in specific funding possibilities for converting brownfields to community assets. (Come to think of it, it'd be likely folks would be asking candidates about their knowledge of those possibilities at our upcoming city </span>council and mayoral candidate forums in the fall, don't cha' think?)<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But regardless of what officials or candidates attend, the more we citizens do, the more we'll know of the possibilities, and the more <b>we can ask that government takes advantage</b> of them! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>It's free, </b>but the <b>registration deadline is tomorrow, Monday, June 2nd. </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>The workshop is Tuesday, June 3rd, </b>at Riverview Hall, from 9:30 to 3:30.</span></div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-73110903916078048282014-05-19T11:01:00.000-05:002014-05-19T11:01:45.067-05:00 Visits to Neighborhood Groups and a Green Bicycle Tour Discussed<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6" style="line-height: 1.15;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The following is an account of last Monday's meeting.</i></span></b><b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6"></b><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In attendance: Regan Horn, Feico Kempff, Stephen Pederson, Josh Fast, Loren Demerath, Katherine Brandl, Cynthia Keith, Maurice Loridans.</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Byrd High School Concerns</span></b></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Concerns were discussed about a change in policy at Byrd High School turning away ESL students. A number of ideas were discussed including the “Minority to Majority Transfer” rule, and the resources of the Catholic Charities on 72nd St. in Cedar Grove.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Velo Dendro Evolves </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How to make this year’s tree tour of the city “Velo Dendro” happen as good or better than before was discussed. It was noted that it takes a lot of promotion, and ABS never ended up with the email list that Matthew Linn and Haley Dozier developed. A to-do will be to try to get that. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://skeptic.smugmug.com/Nature/Texas-Wildflowers-2008/DSC8017/821968380_oonvc-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://skeptic.smugmug.com/Nature/Texas-Wildflowers-2008/DSC8017/821968380_oonvc-L.jpg" height="214" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>A "Cyclo Verde" could provide a chance to spread<br />the seed of MPC's big idea for nominating trail sites</i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One improvement to the tour might be to include other forms of notable plant growth, such as community gardens or wildflowers. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(I write this I’m now recalling that the MPC’s exciting <a href="http://abettershreveport.blogspot.com/search?q=wildflower+trailblazing+MPC">wildflower trailblazing project </a>should be happening just around that time--early November---and this would be a great opportunity to prod people’s thinking about it and to invite their participation.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">An improvement might be to change the name. It was noted “Velo Dendro” doesn’t communicate the nature of the event as well as it could. As the group brainstormed, the following names were developed as possibilities:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Tour de Greaux</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Velo Verde <i>The Green Cycle Tour</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cyclo Verde</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The group thought we might post those options on facebook and ask for feedback or other suggestions. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Speaking of Cycling...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In hosting two Baltimore cyclists who were touring through town, Maurice recalled how one of them blew through a traffic light and he pointed out to them that a problem here is that auto drivers aren’t used to cyclists and we need to behave in predictable ways. As people noted that various responses they’ve gotten from drivers around town when biking, Maurice noted that folks tend to be very accepting on the east side of town, but on the west, the car’s still a status symbol.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Speaking of Tours...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Several noted they attended edible wild plant walks: one on Clyde Fant, another in Highland and third in Bossier. Josh noted that </span><a href="https://www.ted.com/talks/pam_warhurst_how_we_can_eat_our_landscapes" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pam Warhorst</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> gives a ted talk on how we can design our landscapes to be eaten, as well as to educate children and raise awareness of gardening possibilities. Planting key areas can lead to veggie eco-tourism. Year ‘round, especially in our ArkLaTex part, there’s stuff to be eaten. Noting the time of the “Tour de Greaux” (or whatever it might be called), Josh noted there’s persimon, peach, kale, and other greens that would be ready for picking then.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTUNtpOpDsnEqETttxL3u7etLHrsZ14FrBfG6YTBL2zKkbTVE3EiQ" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTUNtpOpDsnEqETttxL3u7etLHrsZ14FrBfG6YTBL2zKkbTVE3EiQ" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The range of veggie-tourism sights that could <br />be created is endless, all healthy n' tasty!</i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Monthly Neighborhood Visits</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The group continued to discuss the idea of having a monthly visit to some neighborhood in Shreveport. The goal would be to empower Shreveport as a whole and that neighborhood in particular, by connecting it's concerns to other neighborhoods and the city overall. One group's concerns are often another group's too, and connecting ourselves to each other empowers us.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The purpose of the visits, then, would be to gather a neighborhood association's concerns, visions, and hopes, and to share ABS' simple model for advancing them: have meetings on public issues and publish the notes of those meetings.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was noted that there may be some projects that would be especially appealing to lower income areas. For example, ABS has periodically held meetings on education inequality which have been very well-attended. Other frequent ABS concerns, like the city's walkability, are relevant too: there have been a many pedestrian </span><b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6"></b><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">deaths due to crossing North Market St. in MLK area; there's a beauty shop that regularly sees them.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Miscellaneous Notes:</span><br />
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<div dir="ltr" style="display: inline !important; line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stephen noted that one skateboarder rode the whole 5 miles on his skateboard with the Sunday Cyclo Femme ride that Stephen organized to celebrate Mothers Day. (</span></b><b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6" style="line-height: 1.15;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Maurice noted that Stephen’s doing a great job of bringing local cycling awareness to his generation.)</span></b></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Red River District pub crawl is being held to promote pop-up businesses; each business will be judged by its success in two weeks; it's for a small business that has an idea in place; the space across from Cohab is used; the concept is like stalls in the middle of a mall; the idea is to have them at the riverfront.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Caddo Common Design Team is apparently in reference to the Shreveport Common art zone that has been renamed because of the parish’s new involvement.</span></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-6b0f2e88-14f4-144b-bd24-c0b3e9d5abd6" style="line-height: 1.15;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Speaking of the common, a bicycle cooperative could be situated there; could even be run out of a shipping container; all one needs is the ability to secure the tools under lock and key.</span></b></div>
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<b style="line-height: 1.15;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The next meeting is tonight! Join us!</i></span></b><b></b><br />
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-91501282880189127412014-05-12T10:36:00.003-05:002014-05-12T10:58:09.172-05:00Summer Plans Shaping Up to Engage More of Shreveport in Civic Engagement<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The last two open board meetings of ABS have been energizing. An idea starting with Chris Chandler's thoughts has been developing steam. It's that we'd have a summer team that would visit neighborhood associations and other groups to hear their concerns, share visions, connections, etc., with the goals being to increase the city's overall civic engagement, and to connect concerned citizens to each other.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's an election year, so the timing is good.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Speaking of which we also discussed the hope that we can have another candidate forum, as we did four years ago downtown at Cohabitat. We had live music and light refreshments during a mix and mingle period, then we pitched questions to the candidates that had been submitted by organizations and citizens. It was the brainchild of our former strategic director Steph Pedro, and it seemed to work well as a way of focusing attention on certain issues and allowing voters to get to know the candidates.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i>our first two "Velo Dendros" have been fun!</i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On another front, Robert Trudeau dropped by last week to say he's willing to head up another Velo Dendro biking tour of the city's trees come November. He'll need helpers, so stay tuned to this space if you're willing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And a new topic that'll likely be discussed tonight is an apparent change in the policy of Byrd High School for receiving ESL students. It may be a matter of confusion that could yet be resolved, but, there's concern.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We'll continue discussions on all these topics at our last two meetings before our summer hiatus, tonight and next Monday, May 19th. As usual, all are welcome, and we meet in the Wright Math Building on Centenary's campus, on Woodlawn Ave., two blocks up from the Gold Dome.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">,</span><br />
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-64973748913241853682014-04-06T16:36:00.003-05:002014-04-06T16:39:36.180-05:00Cyclist and Pedestrian Safety Campaign to be discussed Monday<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ctc.org.uk/sites/default/files/imagecache/Image_Large_Focus/media_library/users/Chris%20Peck/drivers-and-cyclists.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.ctc.org.uk/sites/default/files/imagecache/Image_Large_Focus/media_library/users/Chris%20Peck/drivers-and-cyclists.png" height="214" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Shown here are some examples of campaigns <br />used elsewhere.</span></i></td></tr>
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Caryn Jenkins will be our special guest at tomorrow night's meeting. She'll be updating us on ideas for the safety campaign she's begun to coordinate.<br />
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Many organizations are part of this, some of which are groups that are not typically active in any sort of activism.<br />
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<a href="http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/local_rural/pedcampaign/img/printpsa1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/local_rural/pedcampaign/img/printpsa1.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://supervisors.sonoma-county.org/images/park_the_phone_billboard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
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The campaign will be modeled on successful one's done elsewhere. It could be part of the overall trend in making our cities more bike-able and walk-able. Part of that is the way people are beginning to advocate for their right to bike and walk. Times are changing!<br />
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As usual, we meet 6:00-7:00, Monday evening at the Wright Math Building, 2907 Woodlawn Ave., two blocks up from the Gold Dome on Centenary's campus. Join us!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://lametthesource.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/13-1362_otd_bike_traffic_safety_30sheet_jl_lo1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://lametthesource.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/13-1362_otd_bike_traffic_safety_30sheet_jl_lo1.jpg" height="183" width="400" /></a><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/proxy/jFAanKCL-NoJZTMzdNrdnLEO4_iXUSvLqogrdkR6C-RJfAPTsH92q83vXOsEe8iJ_MRmfEDdmRnOcYLs3PcEV_kHdxg3Sfd3yxz8FgPvYSjh7At58kvPGwQwArs" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://supervisors.sonoma-county.org/images/park_the_phone_billboard.jpg" height="120" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">If you have thoughts on the best way to raise awareness for safety,<br />let us know at Monday's meeting, or through our facebook page.</span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No meeting Monday, March 31st, as a prospective faculty member for Centenary has some board members otherwise committed. See you online via the facebook page for dialogue! </span></div>
Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-15478264283694545092014-03-24T15:06:00.002-05:002014-03-24T15:06:55.520-05:00Greens on the Red, Permaculture Discussed at Last Meeting<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b id="docs-internal-guid-3db71b4c-f5ad-6967-6d20-d6c7452eebf3"></b><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-3db71b4c-f5ad-6967-6d20-d6c7452eebf3"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In attendance: Lani Duke, Feico Kempff, Loren Demerath, Maurice Loridans, Josh Fast, Katherine Brandl</span></b></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-3db71b4c-f5ad-6967-6d20-d6c7452eebf3"><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The group first discussed some of the topics raised during the radio show interviews, including Stephen Pederson’s social bike group, called SBC and which can be found on facebook. The plan is for the ride to be on the last Friday of every month, first gathering at 6:30 at Highland Park, before heading south to pick up more at 7:30 at Betty Virginia Park, then swinging by Centenary, then heading downtown, and returning to end back at Colombia.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">BIKE-PED SAFETY CONCERNS AT A PEAK</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Loren reported that Karen Jenkins is a member of the Shreveport road cycling club, and invited ABetterShreveport to join representatives of other groups and clubs for a meeting to discuss the possibility of mounting a campaign to raise driver awareness of cyclist and pedestrian safety concerns.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">{Loren attended the meeting the following day, and it well-attended, with about fifteen people representing a cross-section of interests and expertise, including Sheri Tally, former television news anchor for KTBS, Jeff Welburne, long-time activist and observer of city politics, and ** a decorated military combat veteran, now racing around the country in wheelchair divisions.}</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Maurice noted that a person in a motorized wheelchair was killed over the weekend. He also noted that the chair was misleadingly referred to as a “scooter” by the media. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">{That incident has provoked research by a local media outlet. Stay tuned.}</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">MAKING THE MAKERS FAIR PRODUCTIVE? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The group discussed how the table at Makers Fair on April 12</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 9px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: super; white-space: pre-wrap;">th</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> might work. We could have sign-up sheets for people interested in being informed about upcoming meetings or receiving information or announcements on particular themes, such as community gardening, biking, walking, wildflower trailblazing (doesn’t that sound fun?!), public art and performance, community supported agriculture, etc. It was noted that those lists could complement the lists of people already developing from groups that have formed on facebook. Victoria Provenza was mentioned as a possible helper in manning the table, since she sells maps there as well. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">CELEBRATING SMART LOCAL GARDENING (AND EATING) </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://20x49.shreveport-bossier.org/wp-content/themes/ezine/timthumb.php?src=http://20x49.shreveport-bossier.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/greens2.jpg&h=345&w=576&zc=1" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://20x49.shreveport-bossier.org/wp-content/themes/ezine/timthumb.php?src=http://20x49.shreveport-bossier.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/greens2.jpg&h=345&w=576&zc=1" height="191" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>from Chris Jay's account of the inaugural <br />"Greens on the Red" festival. mm-mm!</i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Josh, and fellow ABS member Jon Soul were at the inaugural Greens on the Red festival; Josh said he had some of Jon’s dock, an edible plant with spearmint shaped leaves (Josh looked outside the window to spot some, and didn’t see any, but did see henbit, a plant with purple flowers; both are weeds you can eat; deadnettle is another one; with a cleaver that has a whirled shape—can just eat that raw. Someone mentioned juicing, and Josh said a lot of foraging food shouldn’t be juiced, that it produces too much oxcilyc acid when you have that much all at once. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Also discussed was how permaculture is being used at restaurants like Carolyn Manning’s “Blue”. Any place that needs salad greens can do it; water spinach is the quickest growing green and higher in calcium and other nutrients but with less calories, lots of vitamin A.</span></div>
<br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The group also talked about “farmeries” which may increasingly be developed out of necessity. Josh told of one kind of system being developed is to have plants and fish both using the same recycled water and feeding off each other. It’s being done all over and is a step toward self-sustainability. Hugelkulture was also described.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">WATER AS FRIEND, NOT FOE</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Someone noted that this old philosophy of funneling storm water into the gulf as fast as possible isn’t always for the best. It leads to polluted bodies of water where the stormwater hasn’t be cleaned by the filter of the land; it causes wetlands to shrink on the coast of Louisiana; and it makes the crystaline waters of the gulf coast to lose their clarity, and red tide is on the rise too.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The night of the meeting there was a reception for John Berry, author of the book “Rising Tide” about coastal restoration.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Josh mentioned how Jeff Laughton is one of heads of the permaculture movement and he talks about subsidizing people’s housing costs with smart gardening. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One of the overarching ideas behind permaculture is an ecological truth: if you don’t deal with the waste product of a system you’re creating pollution; you identify patterns that are happening and study how to deal with the details of the patterns. The indigenous peoples of the Americas often did that. E.g., the three sisters: corn, beans, and squash, being complementary with companion planting: beans put the nitrogen back; Mexicans call it milpa.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Another fun meeting! Join us some time! All are welcome!</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-57641868035212335392014-03-23T10:05:00.002-05:002014-03-23T10:05:49.167-05:00Smart Gardening, Storytelling, Bike-Ped Bridges, Hamilton Terrace, Kings & Youree, Wildflower Trailblazing All Discussed at Recent Meeting with MPC Director In Attendance<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b id="docs-internal-guid-3f8878b9-ef70-7054-8589-1ab33f268713"></b><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-3f8878b9-ef70-7054-8589-1ab33f268713"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In attendance (I think; forgot to take note!): Maurice Loridans, Lani Duke, Josh Fast, Feico Kempff, Loren Demerath, Stephen Jean, Donna Curtis, Susan Keith, Cynthia Keith, Emily Harmeyer, Katherine Brandl</span></b></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-3f8878b9-ef70-7054-8589-1ab33f268713"><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">JOSH FAST A SOURCE OF SMART GARDENING EXPERTISE<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Because ABetterShreveport has long supported the best practice of using community gardening and urban farming to enhance quality of life in a city, the group was excited to welcome Josh Fast. Josh introduced himself. Originally from Michigan, Josh has moved to Shreveport recently with his partner, Lydia Thomas, and they’ve since helped people in town like Stephen Jean make their gardens into more productive and efficient systems. Stephen is on record as having changed his lifestyle to eat more healthily, and his wife has become an urban farmer as part of that change. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">{Later that week, Carolyn Manning invited Josh to be a guest on the radio show and to tell people about some of the cool garden techniques he knows about. Josh did just that the following Monday, and talked on the radio about such things as digging swales that reduce the need to water your garden.} </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was noted that Dr. Grace Peterson of the LSU Ag Center believes the ArkLaTex may just be the greens capital of the world, it being such optimal conditions for growing deliciously edible greens! </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">{And this was evidenced by the successful “Greens on the Red” festival later that week! Way to go all of you who organized and participated!}</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Community gardening came up again in the discussion of Hamilton Terrace, below.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">NEW MAKERS FAIR APPROACHING</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Makers Fair is approaching on April 12th, and we hear it’s now being run by SHRAC, and not by the originators, the Texas Avenue Community Association. Dan Keele is one person helping organize it, and reportedly he’d like ABetterShreveport to have a booth. That’d be a good chance to share information on our various projects and proposals, such as the bike routes map, the used-bike depot and coop, the paths network, and little free libraries. Getting materials and staffing the table will a topic at upcoming meetings.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">HEBERT AND JAY’S STORYTELLING NIGHT A SUCCESS</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The night of storytelling performances at Fairfield Studios recently was a real success, reported Loren and Katherine. This past night’s theme was “new in town.” The next one they’ll be having will be about “mistakes,” and possibly the next after that about “addiction and recovery.” Kudos to Sara Hebert and Chris Jay for producing such a rich evening that revealed how many interesting people and stories surround us here in Shreveport! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">KINGS AND YOUREE DISCUSSED</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stephen Jean, the Interim Director of the Metropolitan Planning Commission was in attendance, and Maurice took the opportunity to ask him about the intersection of Kings Highway and Youree Drive. Maurice said we’d heard for some time now that the rennovation planned will make it even worse for cyclists and pedestrians because it’s an outdated plan being used. Stephen said he wasn’t aware of when it’s occurring off the top of his head, but could find out from Robert Westerman; a Whataburger and other things is being planned there. Stephen noted that there’s a privately owned median that might be used for a car dealership; MPC would rather see only the Clark St. area used, and they’d be meticulous with how they approach access points. Nader’s Gallery has been sent drawings because they may be affected too. Donna said doesn’t want anything on that previously unclaimed property. Stephen said we can stay engaged in the process. Loren said he will send an email to Stephen asking to be kept informed of when it’s being addressed. He also said NLCOG will be the appropriate body to contact since Youree is a state highway. We noted that Stephanie Pedro submitted concerns on this a while ago.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">JIMMIE DAVIS BRIDGE A CONCERN</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Jimmie Davis bridge news that’s come out lately was mentioned as another concern. It’s feared that they may have taken away the means of connecting the two riverside bike paths in Shreveport and Bossier. There was concern over whether or not the money for the second span has been raised.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was noted that it will be a continuing embarrassment to our city is that our bridges aren’t more bikeable and walkable, some of which could be fixed with minimal cost of restriping. Bridge lanes could be put on diets as streets are, where their lanes are made slimmer; the result is both more space for bike lanes, and lower, safer automobile speeds. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">HAMILTON TERRACE: PRICE REDUCED, LOTS OF POTENTIAL, CRITICAL AREA</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Feico has been working on the possibility of Hamilton Terrace. It’s a former school, with nice old architecture and includes a gym, and spaces where there was a library and cafeteria. Elsewhere, lots of such places have been made into buildings of cool loft style apartments.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The asking price has been reduced to just $650,000, down from the initial price of 1.4 million.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was noted that area is at risk, with Doctor’s Hospital having closed. Donna said the area to the south was once planned as being a sort of restaurant row. There are a lot of good places there that produce quite a bit of revenue. It’s a tax base that should be maintained and protected.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As a veteran community gardener, Maurice commented that living close to one’s garden is optimal, and that could be a possibility for Hamilton Terrace. The pool has been filled in, and Josh mentioned that established techniques have been developed for converting former pools into highly productive gardens. One man has documented doing that at his house. He thought he’d be able to meet the entire fruit and vegetable needs of his family after three years, and it turns out he did in only six months.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was noted that Tom Arceneaux has shown interest in developing this idea, and as a member of the city’s first city council, he’s a good partner to have for something like this. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stephen Jean recommended that we look in the Master Plan for “community plans”. There’s a process that was laid out there for how to do a community plan. It describes even how a neighborhood can do it itself, as well as the process to use for getting adopted. Shreveport Common is an an example of a recent community plan that’s been adopted. We might consider whether or not we want to have one for the area around Hamilton Terrace. A group can do their own without paying for it. We can embark on it and along the way get MPC’s help in how to navigate the process. Other cities done the kind of purposeful development that we’re talking about here. They’re called, urban villages; enterprise zones, or planning districts. The idea is often to develop an ecosystem of residence, work, and leisure, with restaurants and retail developing out of that. Another potential area is the MLK area where Southern University is located nearby. Anywhere there’s a job center amid a neighborhood is a candidate for being planned to become an urban village. Kings Highway had developed a plan as an urban village but the merchants at the time rose up against it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">WILDFLOWER TRAILBLAZING IDEA TAKES SHAPE:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">MPC and ABS have reached out to Shreveport Green, and we were glad to have Donna with us again today. Donna said she was awed by the idea. As part of jumping in to work on it, she’s been thinking of the challenges we’d need to meet along the way: the cost, the rights and sensitivity of homeowners, etc.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stephen Jean said he gave a presentation to the city department heads today and circulated the handout he distributed to them, and that is a model of what might be distributed to residents to solicit their participation. The handout describes how the program is designed to get input from residents on where they want trails by surveying where people have put wildflower seed. Among the points made in the hand out:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">when: getting seeds out late fall or winter for visibility of spring flowers </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">where: along public streets, alleys, and other city property such as parks and medians</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">also:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">this opportunity comes only once a year</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">if on private streets, always get permission from the homeowners association</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">be careful on busy streets or avoid them all together -- we need to know how to connect to them</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">concentrate on where you’d LIKE to ride, run, or walk, instead of where you do now</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s a nice flier, with bright colors and the cheerful ending, “Thank you for participating and… Happy Trails!”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The department heads raised a lot of the same points raised by Donna in emails between this week.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mowing:</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> We’ll have to figure it out; Stephen gave the department heads two weeks for comments. The CAO made some practicial comments similar to Donna’s; Dale Sibley thought it could be good; getting the community involved in coming up with practical solutions; we’ve got open minds moving forward with this. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Once it’s going, we’ll have to understand the mowing schedules in these areas so we can survey and document somehow where the flowers are.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> It was noted that even it they’re there for a week, it makes a visual demonstration. Loren noted that it’s also a “push” medium where it’s pushed before you in the environment, as opposed to a “pull” medium where you have to go and pull it from some other place to see it, like from the internet, a newspaper article, etc.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Locations:</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> We’re asking that people do it on state highways, which are the domain of NLCOG. NLCOG is working on a bike-ped component to their new transportation plan, but it’s those connections within the city are what MPC can help with. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Homeowners:</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> although we’d only be asking that people use public right-of-ways, some property owners might welcome paths being installed along edges of their property. There are areas that need connections which residents would appreciate. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cost:</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> It’s going to be significant money because of the cost of seeds. If we can get a non-profit involved, like Shreveport Green, it would allow people to make donations. Donna noted that they already have a wildflower fund, and an account could be created out of that. Donna also said some people who’ve made significant donations in the past are realtors; instead of giving an address stamp to a buyer of a new property, they’ve donated to the wildflower fund in that buyer’s name.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Donna reviewed some of the characteristics and prices she’d researched on wildflower seeds. Beyond noting the price, it’s useful to look at the rate that seeds yield flowers, and whether they come back, since we may or may not want those that last beyond one year.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Poppies: sow them in november, won’t come back, $25 per pound</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cosmos: rarely come back, can seed any time (they’re at Fern and 70th), 80% yield rate </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Bachelor’s Buttons: don’t come back and are tall, but expensive</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Blue Bonnets: started on the parkway until we got a lot of water and they mowed them</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Texas Paint brush: $425/lb.; 40% survive</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Donna also noted that she has tons of daffodil bulbs; Maurice said they’re perfect because they’re not in mowing season, they come back; they’re bulbs to you plant them. The daffodils could be the permanent markers whereas some of the other wildflowers once cut won’t come back.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Status:</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> as the Interim Director of the Metropolitan Planning Commission, Stephen Jean was happy to report that the proposal was approved and this is now an official MPC project! That means they’ll be working on it with community organizations, such as ABetterShreveport and Shreveport Green. The group expressed it’s happiness!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Next steps:</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Stephen said he’ll be getting back to the office to figure out various details. Donna will be persuasive with her organization but was they won’t need much persuasion and will be behind it. ABetterShreveport and anyone else can begin to scout trails that we want, studying the map of street routes Stephen and Maurice have made, and finding where two routes would be connecting with a trail.</span></div>
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779203396350201819.post-15843877901345464922014-03-06T13:58:00.002-06:002014-03-07T09:12:15.605-06:00MPC Director Stephen Jean Pitches Beautiful Idea at Last Meeting!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In attendance: Stephen Jean, Dara Sanders, Loren Demerath, Maurice
Loridans, Cynthia Keith, Feico Kempff, Susan Perkins, Amanda Bertrand, Kathryn
Brandl, Helen Whitaker, Catherine McGuinn Sailor<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The group welcomed Stephen Jean, the director of the Metropolitan
Planning Commission, and Dara Sanders, planner for the MPC and coordinator of
Master Plan Implementation, as well as Stephen’s wife, Catherine McGuinn
Sailor, and friend, Helen Whitaker.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">MPC WORKING ON CONNECTIVITY<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Stephen talked about how he’s been aware of ABetterShreveport’s interest
in making Shreveport more walkable and bikeable, and the MPC has been proactive,
looking for ways to do that. It’s part
of the Master Plan, and that’s their guide for development and zoning. For example, they’ve recently been in
conversations with Wholefoods about their new building, looking for way to
facilitate bike-pedestrian mobility in that area. They’ve also been looking into a way of going
under 70<sup>th</sup>, and have talked with SPAR Director Shelly Ragle and city
engineer Robert Westerman about that.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ciclosfera.com/imagenes/noticias/IPV%20Delft2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.ciclosfera.com/imagenes/noticias/IPV%20Delft2.jpg" height="297" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Could this fill the "black hole" to let us finally walk to 70th & Youree? <br />(This "hovenring" is in Holland, wouldn't you know.)</span></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In addition to the Master Plan’s priorities, Stephen and Katherine described
how personal experience has led them to see the need first hand. On a recent
bicycle trip, trying to go from Regional Urology to the Krogers on Youree and
70<sup>th</sup>, they found the going very difficult, having to negotiate a
circuitous route. It shows the need to
find safer connections for those who want to walk and bike as transportation
around the city. Others noted people
don’t just want to do that for their own health, or the planet’s health, but
also because it’s fun.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Stephen said, though, that developers are often unhappy about
implementing the features mandated in the Master Plan. These developers are used to using a standard
model where a group of homes are isolated with but one entry and exit point,
making walking and biking difficult. It
was noted that we all need to continue to educate as to what people are
demanding in cities these days, and how it will actually be more profitable for
developers to build this way. It was
noted that it’s also safer, putting more people on the street and reducing
their vulnerability.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Stephen noted that if you talk to people who are older, they’ll remember
riding the trolley to a downtown that was a thriving place. And it’s happening again. Steven mentioned visiting his son in Austin
recently and how lives in a transitional neighborhood, but the amenities are
remarkable: right there is the bus stop, the bike lane, the “Yellow Bike” stop,
a little pocket park. But in terms of
properties the neighborhood wouldn’t be much that much different from
Queensboro or Caddo Heights. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT CAN DRIVE POLICY<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;">Bentonville, Arkansas, Stephen mentioned has done a lot. It has a large corporate presence in the city, so they’ve got people coming in and demanding things, and the demand drives the policy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As a way of facilitating that demand, Stephen said the MPC is going to
reconvene the Citizens Advisory Group (CAG) and get the citizens to advocate
for what would help the city. For
example, there’s a lot of people wanting to bike and ride, and doing things
like restriping streets and installing paths is low hanging fruit. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18px;">Stephen mentioned that the MPC’s mid-month meeting might be an opportunity to advocate and communicate what’s been done elsewhere and which now amount to “best practices” for city development. It was agreed that ABS would like to present to MPC, as it has to the City Council.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">COMMUNITY GARDENING </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; line-height: 18px;">MENTIONED</span><span style="font-family: Arial; line-height: 18px;"> TOO</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Grace Peterson also wants to have connections to different community
gardening hubs in a hundred mile radius, not to mention all those within the
city. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Cookie Coleman of the Red River Coalition of Community Gardens has
identified deficiencies in food; a local distribution center would help get
regionally grown foods out locally.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Having the local governing bodies adopt standards would help.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The Coalition wasn’t asking for financial
support but for policy and regulation.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The
Coalition helps work on food security.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">(Stephen mentioned the Arklatex is the greens capital of the world, and,
incidentally, he’s looking for a recipe for chicory; here it grows big.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">DEVELOPERS HAVE TO ENGAGE WITH THE MASTER PLAN<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Loren mentioned that he’s found developers can talk a good game, but
haven’t the training of an urban planner on what the best practices are for
quality of life. It’s more than just “a
look” as the failure of Villagio has shown locally.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Stephen said developers may not agree with the Master Plan but it can’t be
ignored. He said they have a lot of
support from their board, and that includes Lea DeMarteau, the current
Chair. MPC would now like to start going
out more and engaging the community and that it needs help from the
community. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In addition to the renewed
CAG, there’ll be an opportunity for community input through the Unified Development
Code, and we want to make sure the new code is implementing the Master Plan.
The Master Plan is not codified as it stands now; we have language in our
current ordinances but they're not design standards or very specific. A new UDC would also give predictability to
developers and make it easier for them to develop here, as well as improving
quality of life issues. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For example, the
code can require a grid; when new streets are constructed we can require
interconnectivity and you can use the public right of way for multiple
functions rather than avoiding it. Not
every street will have a bike lane, but they can be installed by putting streets
on “diets” to make lanes thinner; e.g., going from 15 feet to 11. That also slows down traffic and makes it
safer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A BEAUTIFUL IDEA PITCHED!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Stephen then pitched an idea.
Walking to church one day, he was looking at wildflowers, and had a
thought: how about we all throw wildflower seeds everywhere we want bike and
walking paths to be. Once bloomed, the
flowers show planners on MPC where the community wants paths. Arial photographs would show the flowers, and
if the tree canopy hides them, we’d see them when we’re driving down the road. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ecoseeds.com/jasper_path.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.ecoseeds.com/jasper_path.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Wildflower seed showing a suggested bike path locale? </i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Stephen has pitched it to some people in city hall and gotten nothing
but positive feedback. He said he wanted
to ABetterShreveport on board first before moving forward, since we’re among
the strongest advocates for multimodal transportation, and we have such a large
following on facebook. If ABS is interested,
we need to sit down and talk about how to get it started. Shreveport Green is a pivot point as
well. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The idea is that we could hand out a pamphlet laying out the rules that
people follow. Maybe we could even have
color codes for what kind of trail or path is intended. We’d want to be respectful of people’s property
of course, so there’d be rules about staying on public right-of-ways, more
likely.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Stephen’s talked to Bonnie Moore about the idea too. The notion would be
that every neighborhood could do this; we’d want people to see that anyone should
be able ride a bike to anywhere they want to.
Katherine noted that just doing errands are what she and Stephen have
tried to do, and it’s hard.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">WALKING AND BICYCLING HARD IN PLACES<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Others testified as to the difficulties.
Kathryn noted that she moved here from Eugene and found she couldn’t
walk around. Dara lives near the
shopping area but can’t get there on foot.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Maurice noted that, as a transportation cyclist, he refers to the area
around 70<sup>th</sup> and Youree as “the black hole.” Nonetheless, the recommended bike routes map
that he and Stephen Pederson have developed and that ABS is about to publish
and distribute should help.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Loren said he loves biking for transportation and manages o.k. on the
streets, but there’s always more danger being around cars than being on a bike
path away from them. Generally speaking,
those especially sensitive to that, and who won’t go biking otherwise, are elderly,
children, and women. Being an emboldened
with the power of a white, middle class male, may have something to do it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Helen Whitaker said it would completely change this community and make
our spaces more usable. Kathryn noted
that she’s from Minneapolis originally, and they have a beautiful parkway
system all connected with paths and bike lanes; it’s much more of a bikable
community there. What’s remarkable,
Kathryn said, is that we have far more days in the year when you’d want to be
outside than they do in Minneapolis, even if July and August are kind of tough.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Stephen also noted that a a significant percent of business improves and
crime goes down with a bike path installed.
Catherine attended the NLCOG workshop on bike-ped planning and they said
Shreveport has the architecture to be a world class bicycling and pedestrian
city. Loren echoed how LSU's Dr. Bruce Sharky
said the same after his visit to Shreveport—and he’s a world leader in designing greenways and bike paths! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">CHANGE NEEDED FOR THE GOOD OF OUR CITY<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Catherine noted that many of our kids leave Shreveport if they can, but
we want them to come back and live near us.
But there’s no reason for them to do that if we don’t build a cool city
to live in. Plus, Catherine noted, I’m a
taxpayer too, and when they haven’t given me a place to bike or walk,
well… <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Stephen said, as the Interim Director, the MPC is very committed to
implementing the Master Plan. Stephen
noted that he was surprised to be named Interim Director, and afterwards thought
people might want to know who he is, so he gave a presentation as a citizen at the
December 20<sup>th</sup> meeting of the City Council. In it, he describes how two things he’s
recently become passionate about are bicycling and eating right. Having watched <i>Forks Over Knives</i>, he’s now a vegan and his wife is basically an
urban farmer. He’s for everything that’s
in the Masterplan, not just the transportation stuff.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><i>Since last Monday's meeting, the MPC unanimously passed the "Wildflower Trailblazing" program described above. We'll meet with MPC Director Stephen Jean and Planner Dara Sanders again to discuss program details this Monday, March 10th, 6:00-7:00 p.m., at the Wright Math Building, Woodlawn Ave. That's on Centenary's campus, just up from the Gold Dome. All are welcome!</i></span></div>
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Loren Demerathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06256443481222860092noreply@blogger.com0