Laurel Neighborhood News

by John Frando and Kathleen Rolinson

On the left, Kirsten Weirick of AMG looks on as neighbors (left to right: Ada Chan with LDA, Claire Antonetti with Maxwell Park NC, Bobbi Bond with Laurel NCPC, Charlie Pine) view design renderings oft he senior housing project on High and MacArthur. Phot

Laurel Village Association Events

A goal of the Laurel Village Association (LVA), a nonprofit, community improvement organization, is to bring topics, ideas, and people to the Laurel District to develop it into a community that better serves the needs of all. LVA has planned several events for its monthly general meetings in 2008. All are invited to attend and participate in the meetings, held the last Thursday of the month in the meeting room of World Ground Café, 3726 MacArthur Blvd. Meetings begin at 7 p.m. and usually end around 8:30 p.m.

On January 31, discussions will continue on developing a long-term strategic

plan document based on several focus group meetings held at Mills College in 2006. On February 28, LVA will convene a panel of city officials to discuss enforcement of city blight ordinances.

Tentatively set for March 27 is a "State of the District" dialogue with Councilmember Jean Quan. Quan's office has asked that the community submit a list of topics of concern in advance of the meeting. Please send your topics to LaurelVillage\@gmail.com before March 1. LVA will issue a confirmation of this meeting on its online Yahoo listserv before March 27. '

To subscribe to the Laurel Village listserv, please email your name and local street of residence or business to LaurelVillage\@gmail.com.

Laurel Park Meeting

Over many decades, several individuals and groups have pursued developing a public park in the Laurel. On November 29, 2007, the Laurel Village Association raised the issue once again by hosting a panel discussion to gauge community interest.

The panel included Oakland attorney and Oakland parks advocate David Stein, District Four Chief of Staff Richard Cowan, school board member Gary Yee, Friends of Oakland Parks Executive Director Kathy Raymond, and representatives of city agencies administering city parks. Each offered experience, ideas, and suggestions.

After the meeting it was clear that planning, financing, and creating a park would take many years. However, the consensus was that there is a definite need and that several approaches for realizing a park, or even several parks, exist.

High and MacArthur Project Revised

Nearly 50 residents and merchants gathered at St. Lawrence O'Toole school on January 15 to view design changes and provide input to developers of the senior housing project on High and MacArthur. As directed by the Design Review Committee at the December hearing, developer AMG presented a revised plan, including modifications to materials, additional set-backs along MacArthur Blvd., and a visual break in the MacArthur elevation, giving the illusion of two separate buildings. The number of apartment units, parking spaces and retail footprint remained unchanged.

'Attendees, although appearing generally pleased with the aesthetic changes, voiced the same concerns on traffic, air quality, and parking. Additional concerns regarding operational issues such as shuttle service, building maintenance, and parking allocations were raised. '

'The meeting was hosted by the Laurel District Association, Laurel Village Association and AMG. AMG was scheduled to go before the Design Review Committee again on January 23 at 5 p.m. to seek approval of the revised design.

Kathleen Rolinson can be reached at krolinson\@gmail.com, and John Frando at jfrando\@gmail.com.