Block Club Newsletter

[marklingm]

From City Hall:

From: McEwen, Colin [mailto:Colin.McEwen@lakewoodoh.net]
Sent: Thursday, September 03, 2015 3:05 PM
To: McEwen, Colin <Colin.McEwen@lakewoodoh.net>
Subject: Block club newsletter

Hello, Block Club captains.

Summer is drawing to a close in Lakewood. Good news: Fall is a great time of year to live in Lakewood.

It’s back to school; that means we should all slow down and take notice of the students walking to and from school. After all, we pride ourselves on being an incredibly pedestrian friendly community.

Part of the role of Block Clubs includes looking out for each. This initiative also creates a greater sense of community among neighbors, first through the common goal of improving the neighborhood and second by bringing them together during Block Club meeting and events.

As we’ll continue doing on a regular basis, I wanted to follow up with you about some of the happenings in Lakewood. You might want to pass them along to fellow block club members.

Lakewood continues to be one of the most desirable places to live in Northeast Ohio: More good news for the strength of our housing market and community. The city of Lakewood recently received word that our property values have gone up by about 7.7 percent, according to the Cuyahoga County Fiscal Office. This is also indicative of our strong rental market: People want to live in Lakewood. “This good news is affirmation that our work to strengthen our housing stock through our Housing Forward initiative is paying off,” said Lakewood Mayor Michael Summers. “A stronger housing market means we have the ability to continue to attract families to our community, we can continue making investments in our neighborhoods and city, and that we have a more stable and stronger tax base.”

Parking too close to driveway aprons: We’re hearing reports that residents are parking too close to the aprons of driveways. Remember, the ordinance states that vehicles must be parked 3 feet away from the driveway aprons. The idea behind the ordinance in the first place was of safety concerns (visibility) and for homeowners’ ease of access. Please report this if you notice this, or other issues. You can easily let us know what’s happening in your neighborhood by submitting concerns the Report-a-Problem [http://www.onelakewood.com/report-a-problem-concern/] feature on onelakewood.com.

Changes to polling locations: The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections recently completed a precinct reduction plan for a number of municipalities in the county — including a few in Lakewood. As a result, some precinct-to-polling place assignments were revised. Board of Elections officials have said that the Lakewood High School reconstruction is part of the reason why the changes were made. Have a look at the map [http://boe.cuyahogacounty.us/pdf_boe/en-US/maps/Lakewood.pdf] to see if your voting location has changed. Primary voting (for Ward 3 only) takes place Sept. 8; the general election is slated for Nov. 3.

Want to know right away when there’s an emergency happening in Lakewood? Think evacuations, boil alerts and road closures. The City has partnered with Cuyahoga County to offer residents access to ReadyNotify, a mass notification system to issue emergency notifications to the public. Sign up here [https://cuyahogacountyoh.my.gov-i.com/signup]. Elect to receive messages by phone, cell phone, text and/or email. Elect to receive specific Lakewood message, countywide messages or both.

Work wrapping up on final phase of Madison Avenue resurfacing project: The first two phases of the multi-million-dollar project to resurface Madison Avenue are completed. Work on the third and final phase — from Bunts Road to W. 117th Street — is almost completed. The contractor, Shelly Construction, segmented the 2.6-mile resurfacing project into three phases, finishing each phase before moving on to the next one. The south side of the third phase could be completed soon. The entire project will be finished by mid-October — that means motorists will not be able to drive in the curb lane. For an interactive map of all of the construction projects around Lakewood, click here [no link in email]. “I think everyone in Lakewood agrees that this project is long overdue, so we’re looking forward to completing this work,” said Mayor Michael Summers. “We are grateful for our residents’ and business owners’ support and patience during this process.”

Solstice Steps at Lakewood Park: The $2 million project to reinvent Lakewood’s access to Lake Erie is almost complete. When finished, the Solstice Steps will feature an upper and lower promenade, extending from the existing park at the top of the slope, to the waterline with seating in between. The existing grass hill-slope will be transformed into cascading stone stairs with grass landings. The new solstice stairs will provide areas for residents to lie out and have a picnic or simply sit and enjoy a beautiful sunset. They have been coined solstice stairs because on the summer solstice, the sun will set directly upon the central node of the project. This marks the furthest north the sun sets each year.

Reminder from Chief Malley: Motorists are reminded NOT to use the bus lane on Clifton Boulevard going east between 7 and 9:30 a.m., and 4 to 6:30 p.m. going west. Officers have been out enforcing the rule.

We appreciate your continued leadership and valuable work in our community, and hope that we continue to keep these important lines of communication strong. We value your feedback and input.

I am available in the mayor’s office for any questions you may have; please feel free to email [mailto:colin.mcewen@lakewoodoh.net] or call me at anytime at 216-529-6602.

Thanks again for your continued support.

Colin McEwen
Public Information Officer, City of Lakewood

[Missy Limkemann]

Parking too close to driveway aprons: We’re hearing reports that residents are parking too close to the aprons of driveways. Remember, the ordinance states that vehicles must be parked 3 feet away from the driveway aprons. The idea behind the ordinance in the first place was of safety concerns (visibility) and for homeowners’ ease of access. Please report this if you notice this, or other issues. You can easily let us know what’s happening in your neighborhood by submitting concerns the Report-a-Problem [http://www.onelakewood.com/report-a-problem-concern/] feature on onelakewood.com.

I call the police at least 2-3 times a week because of this issue. I cannot tell you how many times I am blocked in my own driveway. I have even asked for a "do not block driveway" sign or a "no parking" (with an arrow) sign and was told over and over and over again the city will NOT give me a sign. To just keep calling the police. Well in the morning when my son's van has to pick him up and cannot get in the driveway I don't want to wait for police to come and just ticket (sometimes tow) the car. I want the cars to not block my driveway. I am also not using a damn app for this. I am going to start hitting the cars blocking my driveway!!!!
Why can't the city just give me a sign? I will install the damn thing myself. UGH.