FOREST PARK CIVIC ASSOCIATION MEETING

Date: 8 April 2025

Location: Epworth United Methodist Church

Meeting called to order @ 7:00 PM by Ed Vanasdale 

The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.

Attendance was taken via roll call.

OFFICER REPORTS

President Ed Vanasdale – ed1vanasdale@gmail.com

1. Ed will be stepping down from the role of president this year. He took on the role, for the second time, after the death of our late president, Scott Prigan. He will assume the role of past president in 2026.
2. Ed wanted to thank everyone for the great work on Saturday at the membership envelope stuffing.

Guest Speaker: None

Vice President  Mark Bell – MarkBellncc@insight.rr.com

Wanted to also thank everyone for the great job on Saturday.

Secretary Lou Bernard – loubernard3@gmail.com

1. Attendance:

• Officers/Committee Chairs Present: EV, MB, LB, CL, MSg, RW, DVM, KVM, SL, LH, EM, MSt, TS, KG, DP, SB
• Officers/Committee Chairs Absent: QM, AH
• Area Reps in Attendance: 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 13
• Area Reps Absent: 2, 6, 8, 10, 14
• Total meeting attendance: 30

1. Reviewed minutes from March; no changes or corrections needed, minutes have been approved and were entered into the official records.
2. Attendance Sheet thru April: online

Treasurer Cheryl Lutman – cllutman17@gmail.com

1. This is the last report for this fiscal year. We were 39 households shy of our target of 480.
2. Mulch sales have begun, and we did get a few online orders in March. 
3. We did get a few business memberships this year, but not the 10 we were shooting for.
4. Our two big expenses this month were the printing of envelopes and data sheets for the membership drive, printing the Forester, and paying for security patrols. We have renewed our post office box.
5. While we did end the year in the red, there were some extraordinary expenses that pushed us over. The Board has worked to trim expenses, the grant committee is working hard to find funds that way, but again, the biggest way to support us is with your household membership.

Public Relations Mary Sguerra –  marysguerra@howardhanna.com

Just a quick reminder that we have our Spring Forest Park Community Garage Sale on Saturday, May 17, 2025. Please turn in your garage sale entry form by Wednesday, May 15th.

Forester Editor Rita Woeste – forester_ed@fpcivic.org

1. Forester Articles for May Issue due to me by Friday, April 18.
2. Articles in May for the JUNE issue are due by Friday, May 16 (make sure Rita has info for Bikes/Trikes and any other details for the Northland 4th of July Parade).
3. Thanks to Mary for finding a new delivery person for Larkwood in FPE, and Lou for finding new delivery people, although they have not been assigned an area.
4. Area that need delivery folks for the Forester
   1. FPW – area 2, 1262-1324 Pegwood Ct. (23) & 1344-1387 Pegwood Dr. (13)
   2. FPE – area 11, 1655-1774 Pin Oak (29) 1608-1632 Sienna Ln. N (4) 4970-5029 Sienna Ln. (15) special instructions for 4975 Sienna Ln.
   3. FPE – Area 12,  2307-2425 Green Apple Ave. (29); 5262-5297 Blackgum Pl. (13); 5272-5301 Sweetgum Pl. (8) DO NOT Deliver to 5288 Sweetgum Pl.
   4. FPE – Still uncovered  1800-1868 Coghill Dr. (12), 1837-1872 Dandridge Dr. (9), 1841-1872 Judwick Dr.(8), 4901-4991 Lyle Rd. (16)

Supplemental Security Daryl Van Mercetta – dvanmercetta@gmail.com, Katie Van Mercetta – kvanmercetta@gmail.com, Dan Yandrich (CPD Liaison Officer) – dyandrich@columbuspolice.org 614.645.1418

1. Officer Yandrich was not able to be in attendance tonight (scheduled vacation) so we do not have a report from him for this month, but based on the crime map it looks like there has still been a lot of theft from vehicles and properties in the apartments north and south of us, but Forest Park itself has been quiet and safe.
2. Other than a few vacation request house checks (all secure), our security patrols have fortunately been uneventful with the exception of a deer that was hit by a car on Tamarack and reported by the patrol officer to Ohio Div. of Wildlife.
3. Remember to keep your house and vehicles locked up and do not have anything visible in your vehicle that would tempt a thief.

Business Representative Sheridan Landon – slandon52@gmail.com  No Report

Civic Action Officer  Position Vacant – 311 Meeting 6:30-7:00 before every FPCA general meeting.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Welcome Committee Chair Laura Hayes – hayeslaura2@gmail.com

1. Welcome new neighbors! It’s been a busy spring. 
2. Laura has been supporting the grant committee and our web administration team and will have an update on welcome folders shortly! 

Volunteer Coordinator Erin Materu – mmateru@hotmail.com

1. Thank you for approximately 30 volunteers that made the bulk mailing for the 2025 Membership.
2. We are now gearing up for the mulch sale in May. 
3. We still have 2 openings for delivery persons of the Forester. 
4. Also, we had over 20 people request a tree. We had overflow requests after the deadline, so we will definitely reapply in the next round.
5. Also the city is asking to meet with the New American Grant team to see where we are at before the five is the second installment of the money.

Membership Coordinator  Mike Stone – msto0103@yahoo.com

1. Thanks to the wonderful 30 volunteers that helped us, we tied the FPCA time record of two hours to get almost 3,000 envelopes processed. Andy Hunt and Mike successfully delivered them to the post office Monday and everybody should be receiving them soon. Mike personally appreciates everyone who invested the time to make the endeavor successful.
2. We can all help facilitate the success of the membership by keeping it a current topic with our neighbors and Forest Park friends. Please remind people about the membership campaign. You can even offer to collect their membership yourself and save them the stamp!! 

Social Activities Tiffany Smith – tsmith1599@yahoo.com

Looking for information on the 4th of July parade. Members of the civic association met with Tiffany after the meeting to get her up to speed on her role in the FPCA parade planning.

NCC Representatives Ken Gilbert – kgilbert78@att.net, Mark Bell – MarkBellncc@insight.rr.com

See full report in the Forester.

NCC Development Representative Ed Vanasdale – ed1vanasdale@gmail.com

NCC Development meeting – March 26, 2025

1 case was heard, see the report on the website under the “Development Reports” tab.

Grant Writing Committee Chair  Quentin Monden – q.monden@gmail.com  

1. The grant committee has submitted our first grant application this year for the Columbus Tree Assistance Program (TAP). The grant is issued by the Franklin County Soil and Water Conservation District. Our application asked for $2,100 in funding to plant 20 native trees, and 2 requests for mature tree maintenance, in our neighborhood on residential property. We were fortunate to receive a letter of support from our Ohio House Rep, and Forest Park resident, Munira Abdullahi. We should hear if we were selected for the grant by the end of the month. Contact Laura Hayes for questions.
2. We will be having a volunteer meeting to help implement the New American Grant.

Website Administrators Scott Biggs sbiggsmail@yahoo.com (Website/Facebook)   Dave Paul dwpaul@fpcivic.org (Website) Ashley Howard ahoward@ashleynicolecounseling.com (Instagram/Facebook)  

Our social media pages (website/Facebook/Instagram) are always – always being updated with new and upcoming info! Please check it out!! Please subscribe/follow/like us.

OLD BUSINESS

Mulch Sale Update: online orders are coming in and the order form is included in the April Forester. Deadline to order is April 18. Delivery day is Saturday, May 3 from 9 am until noon out of the Sequoia Pro Bowl parking lot. Fit volunteers are needed to lift bags of mulch! Order and pay online at fpcivic.org/mulch. ~ Scott Biggs, Area 5 Rep, The Mulch King

NEW BUSINESS/ANNOUNCEMENTS/IDEAS

1. Thank you 311! I’d like to remind our neighbors the importance of taking action, no matter how small. On my way to work last week I noticed a new city tree planted on Sandalwood and Cottonwood had been struck by a car and uprooted. I put in a 311 ticket, and alerted a neighbor to see if they could help. With the support of our neighbors, and 311 the tree was replanted and staked. It’s a small thing, but our actions have big impacts. Please be vigilant in protecting and caring for our neighborhood! ~Laura Hayes, Welcome Committee Chair
2. Our guest speaker from last month extended her thanks for hosting her. She gladly reported that 15 new sign-ups from residents came in and signed up for programs. ~Michael Cote
3. Woodwark Rec Center will be hosting Columbus’s Earth Day celebration and are looking for volunteers. You can register HERE! or at the rec center. ~Michael Cote

Meeting adjourned at 7:54 PM

Meeting minutes submitted by Lou Bernard, Secretary, FPCA