Monthly Archives: November 2019

Meeting Minutes

CHNA Meeting Minutes 11-7-19

Posted on by Center Hill Neighborhood Association
  1. Meeting Called to Order by President, Ms. Rolanda Powell at 6:38 PM. 
  2. Purpose and mission statement read by President Powell
  3. Reading of October meeting minutes by President Powell
  4. Minutes approved as read by President. 
  5. President’s Report was given by Ms. Powell 
    1. President Powell shared info about the “Fireside Chat” with Clifford “T.I.” Harris at Georgia Tech. Questions from the general audience were not allowed, as they were predetermined from APS school students. CHNA membership will continue exploring alternative ways to engage Mr. Harris in the development of Center Hill.
    2. President Powell shared an update to the October 15th meeting focused on addressing the DLH corridor and safety concerns as they relate to all communities along the route in advance of the November 19th meeting. The DLH Transportation Safety Pre-Community meeting was attended by residents from 6 NPU’s, Andre Dickinson, Sheila Jones and Senator Horacina Tate among others. A request was made during this meeting to have access to the data/reports in advance of GDOT/MARTA townhall scheduled for Nov 19th. During this update, several JBM Tower residents stated that Ms. Williams confirmed for them that a request for a traffic calming light had been approved, but the date of installation was unknown. CHNA leadership will work to get additional information regarding GDOT timeline and official results of pedestrian study.
  6. Report of the Committees:
    At this time, we are still in need of leadership for various committees. President Powell provided an overview of the committees as well as which ones have a vacant chair position.
    1. Zoning Committee
    2. Communications Committee
      1. The Center Hill Neighborhood Association logo, designed by our communications committee chair, was revealed to the general body. A brief explanation of the characteristics in the design were provided as context as well as news regarding the creation of a CHNA website.
    3. Education Committee
    4. Environmental Committee
    5. Public Safety Committee
    6. Finance Committee
      1. Treasurer, Erin Nickson, shared the status of the CHNA bank account. Balance to date after funds collected during November meeting is $345.
    7. Entertainment/Events Committee
    8. Beautification Committee
    9. New Business: 
      1. Due to the attendance at the November meeting, a motion was made and carried to postpone election of officers until the next general body meeting.
      2. Rolanda provided an introduction of the volunteer form as well as well as voting ballot  and how it will be used when appointing committee chairs.   
  7. Announcements: 
    1. President Powell made a plea for CHNA members to begin attending the NPU-J meetings. NPU-J Meeting: Fourth Tuesday of each month- 7:00 PM at Frederick Douglas High School
    2. Consultant, Chris Bartlett provided extensive information regarding the work he’s conducting on developing the CHNA business plan. This report included detailed information regarding parcels of land that should be of interest to CHNA as they are ripe for development, as well as information regarding our major revenue producers located with CHNA boundaries. Mr. Bartlett will continue to fine tune this plan and keep members of CHNA apprised of his findings and solicit feedback when needed.

Adjournment: 7:35 PM

Submitted by Erin Nickson
Treasurer

Donald Lee Hollowell

Could this be the answer to one of Atlanta’s most dangerous streets?

Posted on by Rolanda Powell
Center Hill Neighborhood with Atlanta Bicycle Coalition
02
Nov

Since the tragic crash on Donald Lee Hollowell (DLH) with 14-year old Jermaine “JJ” Wallace, it’s hard to drive the stretch without thinking about the loss of a community member. The events of the past few weeks have been incredibly difficult and challenging for the entire Center Hill Neighborhood community. My heart and prayers go out to the Wallace family as we mourn Jermaine’s life and the unrealized potential of what could have been.

While this is a heart-wrenchingly painful time for the entire Center Hill Neighborhood community, I am overwhelmed by the support I’ve received from leaders all over the city.

I was pleased to receive support from many organizations from outside of the Center Hill Neighborhood like the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition who were greatly saddened to hear of the crash that killed Jermaine and they wanted to do something to support my efforts to make Hollowell safer. I have also solicited input from a broad range of individuals and groups with various perspectives and will continue to do so.

Within the wake of Jermaine’s death, I’ve researched traffic calming measures that will make DLH a safer corridor for all residents of Center Hill but one solution has caught my eye- the “Imagine Memorial Drive” project. Similar to DLH, Memorial Drive functions more like a highway than a street that connects neighborhoods. At the time, Memoria Drive was a four-lane road, fast and hilly with no center turn lane. According to the Georgia Department of Transporation, there had been 1,000 crashes in the past five years on Memorial Drive. They had serious crashes almost every day somewhere on the corridor and people were getting fed up.

In 2017, two women were killed within 6 months of each other on a half-mile stretch. It took about two years, but neighbors came together and in 2019 they were able to convince GDOT to install a “road diet” which converted two inside lanes into a center turn lane, and adding some signalized crossings.

The Imagine Memorial Drive Project is a proven strategy that could be used on Hollowell so this tragedy doesn’t happen again. The biggest thing is slowing down cars and changing how the road is designed has the biggest effect. Lowering the speed limit can lower speeding as well. In light of this discussion, Center Hill’s name will be added to the list of speed limit speed limit reduction support.

Another positive component to the project’s success was the support from the adjacent neighborhoods who organized in support of changes. I want to encourage all neighbors in NPU-J to support the changes in the days and weeks to come.

I also think it’s important to remember that Atlanta’s Westside has its own unique set of challenges and we will explore all possible solutions to making our roads safe here. In addition to advocating for lower speed limits, it is also important that we have a presence in the city level as well. This fall, the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition is seeking to connect neighborhood leaders with GDOT to call for safer state routes and I will be there to share my thoughts during this meeting.

I have no doubt that we can continuously improve the neighborhood environment of our entire community for new to legacy residents, the young and beyond and I look forward to working together with you to do so! Together, we will get through this. We are one Atlanta.