Parkridge West

Neighborhood Improvement Program Grant Proposal - Part II

How this project will benefit the public:

This project will benefit the public by improving safety along the bike path by reducing the hazards that have developed through years of neglect. Crime should be reduced by the elimination of over grown hiding areas. Clearing drains should reduce the amount of standing water that is present in the spring and summer months that are breeding pools for mosquitoes.

Clearing these areas and opening up visibility should make people feel more comfortable in using the bike path for recreation. Improving this section of the bike path will continue the upgraded Kensington bike path to the conjunction of the railroad tracks and the bike path that leads east to Centennial Park.

Clearing these areas will make it possible for the Parks Department to maintain the area until future proposals can add grass that will eliminate the rapid growth of wild weeds.

Why this project is needed in our neighborhood:

This project is needed in the neighborhood to show the residents they can take charge of their own destiny and assist the city in making their neighborhood a better place to live.

When our neighborhood group first formed we complained about various problems. This grant proposal is about us as residents, doing something for our community that the residents and the city will benefit from on a long term basis. We believe the neighborhood sign will give the residents a sense of pride and unity that will foster greater participation in the neighborhood organization and prove that we can accomplish something by coming together as a group.

The flood holding areas along the bike path, north of 9th Ave., are overgrown with large weeds, brush and a number of dead, leaning, or broken trees. The brush and broken limbs and trees are a hazard to citizens that might venture into the area. They also make it impossible for this area to be maintained with power equipment. The overgrowth obscures visibility and conceals pocket clearings that are used for crime. Weeds and brush in the bottoms of these holding areas block the drains that should drain the mosquito infested stagnant ponds.

By cleaning and clearing the hazards listed above, we hope to increase public safety, reduce crime, and make an aesthetic pocket park that can be enjoyed by all comfortably.

Our plan to implement this project:

The sign committee will purchase a rock, have it engraved, delivered and set in a foundation previously prepared. They will mix concrete and build support for the sign until the foundation is cured.

A light will be set on the concrete pad to illuminate the sign at night and a trench dug to the closest utility pole. A wire will be run in the trench from the lamp to the pole and the utility contacted for termination. The trench will be back filled and the area returned to normal with all spoils and construction debris removed.

We will request the city spot three dump trucks on the bike path north of 9th Ave. on a Friday preceding a designated weekend. Neighbors will assemble with personal tools and equipment. We will have a safety briefing and get started removing trash that we will transport to the dump in private vehicles.

Tree limbs larger than four inches will be cut to a length no greater than four feet and loaded in to dump truck number one which could be dumped at the limb diversion center as fireplace fuel for needy families to come get. The last two trucks will be filled with the smaller brush and tree trimmings. These can be taken to the limb diversion center and mulched.

Additional weekends will be needed to completely groom the area. The additional weekends will be coordinated in the future.

We will use a private vehicle to move any tree worthy of transplanting to another area within the neighborhood that needs a tree, like the north eastern bike path. For a detailed plan, see the document titled “scope of work” that is attached to this application.