Looking Ahead for 2022

The start of a new year is always cause for hope and optimism. Here I share a few hopes and dreams for the coming year in Forest Park. You can add a few too.

  • We finally finished getting the 501c3 designation … Finally! … Really!! … Thus we become eligible to seek grants for community building and service activities. Your creative imagination and efforts will be a great help in such endeavors! We’ll also be able to get some 501c3 considerations that help us with another project: to move our technology infrastructure to association-owned accounts, to prevent catastrophe should Dave or yours truly suddenly no longer be available.
  • A break from the pandemic!!!! … I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for the pandemic to at least move to an endemic, preferably to disappear in the rear-view mirror. Please do everything you can to encourage everyone you know to do their part: vaccinations, masks, vaccinations, etc.
  • A Crew Supporters’ Shield +PLUS+ MLS Cup annus mirabilis. (Let’s throw in advancement in the World Cup for the red, white and blue! … and maybe for a few other favorites.)
  • More marching bands in the Northland Independence Day parade: … Northland, Beechcroft, DeSales, .. more!!! … Maybe since we are the only traditional 4th of July parade in the City of Columbus, we can invite every Columbus City Schools high school. Private schools and near suburbs are welcome too. Let’s party!

Consider how YOU can be involved in making Forest Park an even BETTER place to live.

See you soon! It’s so good to be sharing a place we can all call HOME.
Your president, Scott Prigan.
—
If you’d like to submit preferences for ways to get involved, you can visit the F.P.C.A. Volunteer Form, or just get in touch: Contact F.P.C.A.

Forest Park Civic Association Meeting Minutes: December 14, 2021

Forest Park Civic Association Meeting

14 December 2021 – Fiesta Jalisco – Officers and Board Meeting

Meeting called to order @ 6:40 PM by Scott Prigan

Attendance was taken via role call.

OFFICER REPORTS

President’s Report   Scott Prigan scottprigan+fpca@gmail.com

  1. Scott welcomed all to the meeting.
  2. It was explained that in order to qualify for 501(c)(3) the IRS wanted us to add language to  our Constitution in two areas: 1) the Activities of the FPCA, and 2) Provisions for Dissolution (see Below). The Amendments to the Constitution were read out loud to those present. A very thorough discussion was held concerning each of the two areas. The officers and board unanimously voted to approve the amendments. The amendments will now be brought to the full FPCA at the January meeting for review, discussion, and a vote to add them to the existing FPCA constitution.
  3. The official meeting was adjourned at the conclusion of the voting. No other reports were given.

Vice President’s Report  No Report – The position is now vacant. 

Secretary’s Report Lou Bernard loubernard3@gmail.com

  1. Attendance:
  • Officers/Committee Chairs Present: SP, LB, MS, RW, DVM, KVM, SL, SB, MS, KG, EV
  • Officers/Committee Chairs Absent: CL. FQ, AR, ER, LK-B, DP
  • Area Reps in Attendance: 2, 5, 9
  • Area Reps Absent: 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 (Areas 3, 13, and 14 remain vacant )

Treasurer’s Report  Cheryl Lutman cllutman17@gmail.com Absent

Public Relations Report Mary Sguerra Mary.Sguerra@HERrealtors.com

Forester Editor’s Report  Rita Woeste forester_ed@fpcivic.org

Supplemental Security Report  Daryl Van Mercetta dvanmercetta@gmail.com,  Katie Van Mercetta kvanmercetta@gmail.com

Business Representative  Sheridan Landin – sheridanlandon@yahoo.com,  Alan Ray – aray.bergahorn@gmail.com Absent

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Welcome Committee Chair Ellin Ray – eclaire1226@gmail.com Absent

Volunteer Coordinator Scott Biggs/Mike Stone

Social Activities Report Liz Kengeter-Bash  ekengeter@gmail.com Absent

NCC Representative  Ken Gilbert kgilbert78@att.net

NCC Development Representative Ed Vanasdale evanasdale@insight.rr.com,  Dave Paul dwpaul@fpcivic.org Absent

Website Administrator Scott Prigan scottprigan+fpca@gmail.com

Old Business

New Business/Announcements/Ideas

The next meeting will be held on January 22, 2022. Happy holidays to you all -Wishing you Peace in the new year.

Meeting adjourned at 7:10 PM

 

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Proposed Amendments to Forest Park Civic Association Constitution

Changes needed to clarify non-profit status per I.R.S. guidance for Federal 501(c)(3) recognition, to be voted on at the January 2022 general meeting.

We propose to add items C and D to Article II – Name and Purpose:

Article II – Name and Purpose

…

C. Activities of FPCA:

  1. The Forest Park Civic Association is organized exclusively for charitable, educational, and scientific purposes, including, for such purposes, the making of distributions to organizations that qualify as exempt organizations described under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code.
  2. No part of the net earnings of the corporation shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that the corporation shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes described in section 501(c)(3).
  3. No substantial part of the activities of the corporation shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the corporation shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for public office.

D. Dissolution Provisions:

Upon the dissolution of this organization, assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose.

Light Up Forest Park

The fall color of autumn leaves is rapidly fading, and the grey dread of Winter is descending. … But fear not, for we are going to Light Up Forest Park!

Usually around Thanksgiving I join many of you in putting up lights and holiday decorations. Since I happen to be Christian, I actually look at the start of Advent (preparing for Christmas), and the end of Epiphany (season of “light” following Christmas), as the time for the lights to be up — also the darkest part of the year.

Hanging the lights can be a challenge, especially if the weather turns rude. I’m not going to climb the extension ladder to the peak on the front of the house if it’s icy. I’ll just grumble while I do when it’s merely cold.

At the beginning of November, I noticed lights were on at a neighbor’s house. “Oh boy! They are eager beavers,” I thought. Then I thought again. The light went on! … My neighbors have Nepali heritage; they are celebrating Diwali! … Oh boy, another good reason for lights in the dark months! (Perhaps I should consider putting the lights up even sooner, in honor of my neighbors?!)

Diwali is a festival of light celebrated by our neighbors whose heritage is from a variety of places in Asia. It comes in mid-October to mid-November, in accordance with the traditional calendar, timed by a new moon (Nov. 4 this year). Diwali celebrates “victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.” Now that sounds worthy of celebration.

Enjoy the season of hanging lights, whether it be for Diwali, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, another holiday, or just plain enjoyment. I’ll also be enjoying your lights.

See you soon! It’s so good to be sharing a place we can all call HOME.

Your president, Scott Prigan.
—

Forest Park Civic Association Meeting Minutes: November 9, 2021

Forest Park Civic Association Meeting

9 November 2021 – Epworth United Methodist Church/Zoom

Meeting called to order and Pledge of Allegiance opened the meeting @ 7:03 PM by Scott Prigan

OFFICER REPORTS

President’s Report   Scott Prigan scottprigan+fpca@gmail.com  

  1. Ryan Finke unfortunately had to step out of our Vice President position. He says that since his family size doubled from two to four children with twins born in April, he’s realizing the need to be more present in his home. He thanks the civic association for accepting him to serve alongside you all since March and hopes he can serve again sometime in the future. 
  2. New Volunteer Coordinator: Scott Biggs, taking over from Mike Stone
  3. RE Supplemental Security–Things We Need to Remember
    1. House Checks! Our contract with the security company will allow them to do house/property checks if you need them to do so, especially if you are on vacation.
    2. They are a security Patrol, they are NOT the police. If you have police issues, DO NOT call the security company or Daryl Van Marcetta and expect them to arrest people or do police actions. That is not their job.
    3. Our coordinator does not personally do checks, patrol, etc. He is not the police, he will not be coming to your house to solve disputes with your neighbor. He does coordinate checks and patrolling with the security agency. He also keeps an ear open to know about community safety, and communicate with our liaison officer.

Vice President’s Report The position is now vacant. 

Secretary’s Report Lou Bernard loubernard3@gmail.com

  1. Attendance:
  • Officers Present: SP, LB, CL, RW, MS, SL, AR, ER, KG, EV, DVM
  • Officers Absent: SB, LKB
  • Area Reps in Attendance: 1, 2, 3, 9, 12
  • Area Reps Absent: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 13, 14 (Areas 13 & 14 are vacant)
  • 18 people present, 1 on Zoom
  1. Minutes from last month were reviewed and accepted. They are posted on the website as well as in the Forester.

Treasurer’s Report  Cheryl Lutman cllutman17@gmail.com

  1. Report delayed due to technical issues. See the budget in this month’s Forester.

Public Relations Report Mary Sguerra Mary.Sguerra@HERrealtors.com  

  1. There is no report

Forester Editor’s Report  Rita Woeste forester_ed@fpcivic.org

  1. December articles due Nov. 11, January articles are due Dec. 28.
  2. January Forester is an online issue–no delivering necessary.
  3. About 300 Foresters did not get delivered last month because we did not have enough volunteers to deliver. PLEASE, WE NEED MORE HELP/VOLUNTEERS.

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

  1. Officer Yandrich 
    1. Parking Issues: we are getting lots of complaints. Feel free to email the address and description of the vehicle. Flat tires, broken windows, and abandoned vehicles can be reported. Please note, the police impound lot is completely full; very little towing is happening in the city. Tractor trailers can only park for 1 hour. Longer than that, it is a violation and should be reported. Last Tuesday when it became very cold, 4 cars were stolen in the Northland area because their owners left them running/warming up in their driveway or street.
    2. Shooting on Karl Rd.: this was a problem with a person who lives on Karl Rd. There is a suspect.
    3. There is no suspect in the Doll House shooting.
    4. If you have speeders in your neighborhood, please call 311.
    5. If cars are parked over the sidewalk, this is a police issue–call 614.645.4545
    6. Be wary of the rise of burglaries around the holiday time.
    7. Gave free gun locks away to anyone who wanted one.

Business Representative  Sheridan Landin – sheridanlandon@yahoo.com Alan Ray – aray.bergahorn@gmail.com

Neither of the business reps have been out canvassing the area. We have no new business memberships.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Welcome Committee Chair Ellin Ray – eclaire1226@gmail.com

Ellin has all Welcome Folders for each area ready to be picked up! She has finally caught up! Area Reps need to attend the monthly meeting to pick up the folders for delivery.

 

Volunteer Coordinator Mike Stone   Absent 

  1. First, welcome Scott Biggs as our new Membership/ Volunteer coordinator.  I will be working with him  as I plan to stay active in FPCA where I can (but I won’t be able to come up for air until about late March).
  2. In other notes… we need a Vice President.      Seriously though, thank you Ryan for filling the role in 2021.  Recruiting new people is a great thing for area rep. positions but the VP role needs to be filled by a current board member.  
  3. If there are any additional area representatives who are looking to step down from their post, please let us know as we can use the time to fill it in the upcoming months.  

Social Activities Report Liz Kengeter-Bash  ekengeter@gmail.com Absent – No Report.

NCC Representative  Ken Gilbert kgilbert78@att.net (Absent)

  1. The July 4th Parade is on!! Planning has been taking place. They take place Karl Rd. Library on the 3rd Sat. of each month. Look on the NCC website for more info.
  2. Hotel Issues. The hotel on Mediterranean Ave. has ceased being a Covid homeless overflow site.. The hotel next to Popeyes, is a hotel set up for Covid positive homeless people. If you see people standing outside or in cleaning gear, that is appropriate. They deep clean the rooms when a client leaves.
  3. The City Atty, Sarah Pomeroy is working hard on the hotel issue, and is currently planning on filing formal complaints against some of them in the area.

NCC Development Representative Ed Vanasdale evanasdale@insight.rr.com Dave Paul dwpaul@fpcivic.org 

  1. Ohio Health on 5150 E. Dublin-Granville applied for a graphics plan to images on the bldg. The plan was not accurate, therefore it was not approved.
  2. 4048 Morse Rd. – The dermatology practice was approved for a variance to move closer to the road. The city then said that they would lose some of their parking. They came up with a plan with their neighbors to share space. The plan was approved.
  3. Surplus World on Morse Rd. wanted to put in a warehouse in the back of their property that would replace all or most of their parking. They had no plans to accommodate the parking. They tabled their idea.

Website Administrator Scott Prigan scottprigan+fpca@gmail.com (Absent)

FPCIVIC.ORG is our website. Make sure to sign up for updates.

Old Business

  1. Sign Committee update: Members of the Sign Committee (Ed, Daryl, and Lou) put up the 5 signs in the FP area on Sat., Nov. 6. See the article in this month’s Forester.
  2. We recently received a letter from the IRS after almost a year concerning the 501c3. They need more paperwork!!! Agggh, this is so frustrating.

New Business/Announcements/Ideas

Ed has been calling 311 on the trash that accumulates near the exit ramps at 161/I-71. So if you see city workers out there collecting it, you can thank Ed Vanasdale when you see him!! Thank you, Ed!

Meeting adjourned at 8:05 PM

The Trees of Forest Park

It’s time to enjoy a little fall color, and kids rolling in leaf piles. Of course, we here in Forest Park have been enjoying the phases of the trees since the first long-awaited leaves emerged in spring.

There are the Oak trees, in several varieties, reigning over Forest Park with specimens like my neighbor’s 100-foot plus queen that has me seeking shade-tolerant plants for my backyard garden. This beauty provides shade and saves on the cooling bills in mid-summer, It also rains acorns. In a “mast” year like this I may be able to break the record for barrels of acorns raked up. Every squirrel in north Columbus knows about this beauty!

Then we have the Maples, red and yellow fire in fall. Some stunners stand out on Sandalwood and other streets. I have one in my tree line, starting to push up the sidewalk. I am reluctant to call the city about the sidewalk (they will fix it when it gets bad enough), in case they decide the tree might have to go. (Maybe we do need some smaller trees in the tree line?)

Calvin's DogwoodSpeaking of smaller trees, I planted a Dogwood out back, in honor of our canine friends. This dogwood is a small native tree that stays small and ideally fits in the backyard garden.

Ninebark (“Little Devil,” actually a bush) is another Ohio native I found to replace the dreadful barberry that skewered me too many times while working in the garden. It has lovely foliage, covers the barberry’s red color in the fall, and the wild creatures just love the berries.

Black Walnut, another royal towering specimen, is not in my yard — but the nuts find their way to my yard! The squirrels love to leave husk fragments as they, which I must remove to prevent black stains on the driveway and sidewalks. If you decide to husk these, wear gloves, or be prepared for a few days of looking like you washed your hands with black ink.

Ash … 😢 Does anyone still have one?

The trees make Forest Park FOREST Park. What are your favorites? All the beautiful trees (and everything else) give us a great place to come home to, refreshing us and making us ready to improve the world through our work and Civic engagement.

See you soon! It’s so good to be sharing a place we can all call HOME.
Your president, Scott Prigan.

P.S. Here’s the Dogwood after the frost.Calvin's Dogwood 2

Forest Park Civic Association Meeting Minutes: October 12, 2021

Forest Park Civic Association Meeting

12 October 2021 – Epworth United Methodist Church

Meeting called to order and Pledge of Allegiance opened the meeting @ 7:02 PM by Scott Prigan

OFFICER REPORTS

President’s Report   Scott Prigan scottprigan+fpca@gmail.com  

  1. Spam phishing is still occurring: see Email and TEXT spam schemes https://www.fpcivic.org/2021/08/email-and-text-spam-schemes/
  2. Homeless update: see Ryan’s report
  3. Homeless /Panhandlers: 
    1. Compassion is advised
    2. donate to organization first
    3. not all panhandlers are homeless …
  4. Budget cycle pattern (see Cheryl’s comments)
  5. 501c3 …We have no info. Scott is ready to begin making phone calls to legislators to help us out.
  6. Outreach to new neighbors – all ambassadors, and I’d love to hear connections

Vice President’s Report Ryan Finke ryan.finke@gmail.com  Absent

  1. A concerned resident called a couple of weeks ago asking what was happening at the Americas Best Value Inn Columbus located at 1289 E Dublin Granville Rd, Columbus, OH 43229. The resident shared that they saw security personnel wearing face masks, many COVID-19 testing boxes on the ground, and many sickly looking people behind the inn.

After contacting our area’s City Liaison, Alfred Akainyah, Ryan was connected with Steve Skovensky, Director of Programs & Planning at Community Shelter Board. 

Steve gave Ryan a phone call and told him that this motel has been used during the pandemic by the Community Shelter Board with help from the YMCA and Lower Lights Christian Health Center to house people experiencing homelessness and quarantining due to COVID. He reassured him that the operations are very strict there. Guests are not allowed to leave their rooms except to go on the balcony at alternating times to other guests.

The Community Shelter Board has also shared and answered questions at the June 2021 Northland Community Council meeting. He welcomes any further questions or concerns. His contact information is: sskovensky@csb.org and (773) 597-5224.

  1. Ryan is continuing to work on creating promotional materials to help explain the value of the Forest Park Civic Association. If you would like to weigh in, please contact him.

Secretary’s Report Lou Bernard loubernard3@gmail.com

  1. Attendance:
  • Officers Present: SP, LB, CL, RW, MS, SL, AR, ER, KG, EV, DP
  • Officers Absent: RF, DVM, KVM, MS, LKB
  • Area Reps in Attendance: 2, 5, 7, 11
  • Area Reps Absent: 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14 (Areas 13 & 14 are vacant)
  1. Minutes from last month were reviewed and accepted. They are posted on the website as well as in the Forester.

Treasurer’s Report  Cheryl Lutman cllutman17@gmail.com

  1. Our budget is based on us having $14,125 in membership income (that’s just the $25 membership).  As you all know, we get the bulk of that in May/June/July.  With memberships slowing down, you will see that we should be at $13,650, and we are at $11,405.  We realize we still have about 6 months to go, so hopefully we catch up.
  2. Supplemental security is budgeted to be $6,500 for the year.  Again, with membership income slowing down, contributions to the security fund slow down.  We’ve received $1,750 in direct contributions to that fund – the remainder comes from the general membership dollars.
  3. The Forester has two income streams – one is the advertising revenue, and the other is people who donate to that fund.  We had budgeted $9,000 from those two income streams, with the expenses (printing, bags, etc.) to be $14,000.  Right now, we’re a bit ahead of our income target, but again, the remainder of the cost of the Forester comes from the membership dollars.
  4. A note to Lisa Dove (and Liz Kengeter-Bash, we had budgeted $750 for social activities.  We have not used any of that yet.

Public Relations Report Mary Sguerra Mary.Sguerra@HERrealtors.com  (Absent)

  1. There have not been a lot of phone calls about negative activity going on.
  2. The garage sale was a success. We had good weather and we had a great time.

Forester Editor’s Report  Rita Woeste forester_ed@fpcivic.org

  1. November articles due October 21st, December articles are due Nov. 11.
  2. We don’t know what streets are not getting served. This info needs to be documented.
  3. We also need people to help with deliveries. Please contact Rita if you are willing to help.
  4. The business reps are passing out Forester copies to have out in their establishments.
  5. We are down on advertising revenue.

Supplemental Security Report  Daryl Van Mercetta dvanmercetta@gmail.com, Katie Van Mercetta kvanmercetta@gmail.com (Absent) Officer Dan Yandrich (CPD Liaison Officer) dyandrich@columbuspolice.org 614.645.1418   No report-all were absent.

Business Representative  Sheridan Landin – sheridanlandon@yahoo.com Alan Ray – aray.bergahorn@gmail.com

  1. Stewart has been canvassing the area. He has visited about 30 businesses in the last few years. We have no new memberships this month.
  2. If you know any local business owners or are one yourself, contact Stewart or Alan to learn how FPCA can work with you.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Welcome Committee Chair Ellin Ray – eclaire1226@gmail.com

  1. Ellin has Welcome Folders for each area ready to be picked up! Area Reps need to attend the monthly meeting to pick up the folders for delivery.

Volunteer Coordinator Mike Stone msto0103@yahoo.com  Absent – No report 

Social Activities Report Liz Kengeter-Bash  ekengeter@gmail.com Absent – No Report.

NCC Representative  Ken Gilbert kgilbert78@att.net (Absent)

  1. Zach Klein spoke on police interactions with civilians; what they can do and not do. He said that people with previous records are not being released without jail time. This was debated and is still up for debate.
  2. The July 4th Parade is on!!
  3. The Karl Rd. library is open. If you haven’t been in to see it, we urge you to, it is awesome. There will soon be a Columbus Dispatch mobile office opening behind the library.
  4. Sarah Pomeroy, the Columbus city attorney, is working hard on the hotel/homeless issue.
  5. Discussed the 2018 Charter Amendment to the city constitution about the election of city council members and the “districting” of the city.

NCC Development Representative Ed Vanasdale evanasdale@insight.rr.com Dave Paul dwpaul@fpcivic.org 

  1. 5801 Karl Rd (old Long John Silver) was looking for a variance to have advertising on 3 sides of their building. They will take down the pole sign as a compromise. The variance was granted.
  2. 4848 Morse Rd. by Sam’s Club, Easton-looking for a variance to put up a sign for their dermatology office. Variance granted. They were also granted a variance from the setback allowance.
  3. The dog boarding site in front of Minerva Park, is under new owners and wanted a variance to keep the business open until all past paperwork is completed. Variance granted.
  4. IF you have any questions contact the NCC or any of the above people.

Website Administrator Scott Prigan scottprigan+fpca@gmail.com (Absent)

  1. FPCIVIC.ORG is our website. Make sure to sign up for updates.

Old Business

  1. Sign Committee update: Signs have been purchased and paid for, but have not yet been put up.

New Business/Announcements/Ideas

  1. Herb Crites, long time member of the FCPA, recently passed away.
  2. The new Carfagna’s is open. We are sad to see them leave, but the new store is nice. Resident Bob Hinebaugh has provided them with old time pictures of Italy that they are using in their restaurant.

Meeting adjourned at 8:20 PM