Croissant Park Meeting-- February 28, 2012

Hi All

Our February meeting started off with a crime report from FLPD Officers Jackson and Stevens of the Neighborhood Action Team assigned to our area. We had 4 auto burglaries, 3 residential burglaries and 2 auto thefts in the last month. The

auto burglaries occurred in the cemetery. Officer Jackson reminded us not to leave any valuables in plain sight in our cars, and that something as insignificant as suction cup marks on the windshield from a portable GPS could alert a would-be thief that a GPS is hidden in the car. Good info! We are told we are doing well at reducing crime in comparison to the neighborhoods in the area. If you see something, say something, write down license tag numbersif you see something suspicious. The non-emergency FLPD phone number is (954) 828-5700 ext. 4 to report a crime. And check your own license plates regularly to make sure the tag in the upper right is still there. There seems to be a rash of those type thefts going on in our area. The website www.raidsonline.com is a great tool if you are interested in tracking crime in our neighborhood.

Our next speaker was Gene Dempsey, the City Forester for Ft. Lauderdale. He gave us a thorough explanation of th

e NEW whitefly that is infesting our plants, and how to get rid of it. It is different from the whitefly that infested our Ficus trees & hedges.

This one is the Rugose Spiraling Whitefly that

infests banana plants, birds-of-paradise, gumbo limbo trees, palms, and assorted shrubs. It shows up as white spirals and a sooty mildew on the underside of leaves. You may also notice a sticky substance on cars, patio furniture, pool decks, etc that are under infested

trees. This will not damage paint, and once the insect is under control the sticky substance and mold will disappear. To get the infestation under control the following procedures and products are recommended: for small plants and shrubs, wash the leaves with a strong stream of water, then spray the leaves with an organic insecticidal soap or a spray containing Neem, a horticultural oil. For the large plants and trees Mr. Dempsey suggested using Bayer Advanced Protect and Feed (liquid) or Safari Green Light Tree and Shrub (granular). Push the mulch aside and apply the product directly to the dampened soil around the base of the plant or tree. These are both systemic remedies and it's best to alternate between the two products so that the whitefly doesn't build up a tolerance. Always follow the label directions. Mr. Dempsey recommends NOT spraying the leaves of large plants or the canopies of trees, as spraying will kill off the beneficial insects. The good news is that so far no trees in the city parks have died from this particular whitefly and that a natural pred

ator population is building up. If you find a source for our native Lady Bug (the all-black variety) you can introduce them to your own garden and start protecting the plants with this natural predator. For more on this go to the Ft. Lauderdale official website ci.ftlaud.fl.us, look under Announcements for Information about Whiteflies.

Our neighborhood entrance sign adjacent to My Market on 17th Street has been damaged again. That's a tricky curve with the nearby railroad tracks, and our sign seems to take its share of punishment in that vulnerable spot.

Other news:

1)DOT has allocated money for the Greenway project on 4th Avenue.

2) The No Parking area in the median at the Community Center will have new split rail fencing installed in April. 3) Our President Steve Cook is looking into having some of our streets repaved. On some streets, it's been 27 years since they were paved. 4)He will also look into whether they are putting in storm drains on 6th Avenue and 13th Street. That was the plan according to the engineer who surveyed the area recently.

We've had approximately 50 Croissant Park Civic Association memberships since the first of the year. It's never too late to mail in your membership.

On Wednesday, March 7th at 7pm at the Embassy Suites there will be a City Commissioners' Candidate Forum where you can hear from our two candidates for District IV, Jackie Scott and sitting Commissioner Romney Rogers. Find out what the candidates have to say so you can make an informed decision before you go out to vote on Tuesday, March 13th.

50/50 raffle drawing was won by Joe Russell, who raked in a whopping $9.00.

You could be the lucky winner at our next meeting on April 24th. See you then.

Virginia Dill Russell-Secretary

Commissioner Debates

Commission Seat Debate - Rogers & Scott

click above for flyer information

Community Appearance Awards

Press Release

For Immediate Release

February 13, 2012

Contact:

Monique J. Damiano, Public Information Specialist

Public Works Department

(954) 828-7808 / mdamiano@fortlauderdale.gov

Deadline Extended for City of Fort Lauderdale

Community Appearance and Neighborhood/Business Recognition Awards

New Application Deadline is Thursday, March 1

Fort Lauderdale - The City of Fort Lauderdale Community Appearance Board has extended the application deadline for the 34th Annual Community Appearance Awards and the 2nd Annual Neighborhood and Business Recognition Awards to Thursday, March 1, 2012 at 5 p.m. Applications are available on the City's website at www.fortlauderdale.gov/neighborhoods/. Applications may also be obtained by emailingcab@fortlauderdale.gov or calling (954) 828-7600.

About the Community Appearance Awards

The Community Appearance Awards are presented each year by the Fort Lauderdale City Commission and the Community Appearance Board to recognize homeowners, architects, developers, landscapers, and builders for projects that enhance the City's visual image and economic vitality. Neighborhood and civic associations are also recognized for projects that positively affect their communities.

Eligible projects may be submitted for an award in one of eight categories - commercial, institutional, landscape/garden, multifamily residence, municipal facilities/parks & recreation, single family residence, retail, or special projects. All projects must be located within the City of Fort Lauderdale's corporate limits and be visible from a public thoroughfare. New construction projects must have a Certificate of Occupancy or a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy issued by the City's Planning and Zoning Department between April 2010 and February 2012. Additional eligibility requirements are listed on the application.

The Community Appearance Board selects winning properties based on a site review of the project's exterior, the structure and outdoor space, as well as how the project visually enhances the surrounding community.

About the Neighborhood and Business Recognition Awards

The Neighborhood and Business Recognition Awards recognize and acknowledge collaborative projects that improve quality of life and revitalize Fort Lauderdale's communities. Fort Lauderdale businesses, civic and homeowners associations, and neighborhood groups may apply for an award for a variety of projects including, but not limited to:

- Neighborhood cleanups

- Waterway cleanups

- Green spaces

- Park improvements

- Litter control projects

- Graffiti cleanups

- "Adopt a neighbor" home improvement projects

Projects submitted for the 2012 Neighborhood and Business Recognition awards must be within the City's corporate boundaries and must have been developed and completed in 2011.

The CAB will judge submitted projects based on how well they generate positive change and neighborhood improvement through hands-on, grassroots, innovative, and creative activities that reflect social, physical, and collaborative efforts. In addition, the board will review actions such as project management and leadership, volunteer contributions, sustainability, and public-private partnerships.

For more information about the Community Appearance and Neighborhood and Business Recognition Awards, please e-mail cab@fortlauderdale.gov or call 954-828-7600. You may also visit the City's website at www.fortlauderdale.gov/neighborhoods/ .

###

Monique J. Damiano, MPA

Public Information Specialist

City of Fort Lauderdale Public Works Department

949 N.W. 38th Street

Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309

Ph: 954-828-7808

Email: mdamiano@fortlauderdale.gov

"Great opportunities to help others seldom come, but small ones surround us every day." - Sally Koch

The City of Fort Lauderdale is a public entity subject to Chapter 119 of the Florida Statutes concerning public records. E-mail messages are covered under Chapter 119 and are thus subject to public records disclosure. All e-mail messages sent and received are captured by our server and retained as public records.

New White Fly Infestation

White Fly - click here

River Oaks Green Yard Sale

Green Flyer - click here

Moldy Berries Tip

The key to preventing moldy berries...

Berries are delicious, but they're also kind of delicate. Raspberries in particular seem like they can mold before you even get them home from the market. There's nothing more tragic than paying $4 for a pint of local raspberries, only to look in the fridge the next day and find that fuzzy mold growing on their insides.

Well, with fresh berries just starting to hit farmers markets, we can tell you that how to keep them fresh! Here’s a tip I’m sharing on how to prevent them from getting there in the first place:

Wash them with vinegar.

When you get your berries home, prepare a mixture of one part vinegar (white or apple cider probably work best) and ten parts water. Dump the berries into the mixture and swirl around. Drain, rinse if you want (though the mixture is so diluted you can't taste the vinegar,) and pop in the fridge. The vinegar kills any mold spores and other bacteria that might be on the surface of the fruit, and voila! Raspberries will last a week or more, and strawberries go almost two weeks without getting moldy and soft. So go forth
and stock up on those pricey little gems, knowing they'll stay fresh as long as it takes you to eat them.

You're so berry velcome!

Minutes Croissant Park meeting 1/31/12

Happy New Year, Neighbors

We kicked off our first Croissant Park Civic Association meeting of the year at the Community Center on Tuesday night with a Pot Luck Supper that featured tons of tasty dishes, from appetizers to desserts, and everything in between.

Before digging in to all the mouth-watering morsels, we welcomed our first speakers, Capt. London from the FLPD and the five officers who make up the new Neighborhood Action Team. They will be actively collaborating with our neighborhood in a community partnership effort by attending our civic association meetings to report their findings, to listen to our concerns, and to step up their presence on our streets. Some suggestions they offer to help fight crime are 1) when you buy a TV, computer, or any big ticket item, don't put the cardboard box it came in out on the street for all to see. Instead, flatten it and discard it in your recycle bin, or the green dumpster in the northwest corner of the parking lot at Croissant Park Elem. School. 2) Keep your blinds closed when you are not at home so that would-be burglars cannot see into your home. 3) Don't be shy about reporting suspicious behavior to the FLPD non-emergency number (954) 828-5700. They would rather show up for a false alarm then not be called when a crime actually occurs. And of course, call 911 in an emergency.

After everyone had a plateful or two of food, we introduced Romney Rogers, our District IV Commissioner. He informed us that $18 million has been trimmed from the budget and yet there will still be public improvements made at Hall of Fame Swimming Pool, new streetscapes in some areas, among other improvements. He mentioned that Fort Lauderdale has the second lowest taxes in the state of Florida! Who knew?And an interesting statistic he shared: 6% of the population commit 60% of the crime here. Romney is running for re-election in the upcoming election. We also heard from Jacquelyn Scott who is running for the same commissioner seat. If you would like to learn more about these two candidates, there will be a Candidates' Forum on March 7th at 7pm at the Embassy Suites.

Our final speaker was Diana Alarcon, Transportation and Mobility Director for the City. Diana described the proposed plan for a Greenway on the east side of 4th Avenue. The Greenway will be a 12 foot wide paved path for pedestrians and cyclists. Between the path and the roadway there will be a 4 foot landscaped buffer, reducing the width of the automobile lane next to it to 11 feet. There is also a move afoot to reduce the speed limit on 4th Avenue. The project will be done is phases, probably over a period of 3 years at a cost of $2.8 million, hopefully funded by grants.

Diana informed us that FDOT will have an open house on February 2nd from 5:30 to 7:30pm at the Renaissance Hotel. The pre-construction project for 17th Street will be discussed and you are welcome to attend and voice your concerns.

The 50/50 raffle was a big success with lots of T-shirt winners. The cash prize went to Joe Shover. Congrats, Joe!

We had a great turnout tonight...Thanks to all who attended and to those who contributed to the Pot Luck. See you at the next meeting on February 28th.

Virginia Russell--Secretary