Happy Summer Croissant Park Neighbors!
Our meeting on Tuesday, June 27th was back in the Community Center after cleaning up extensive flood damage. The Board members in attendance were Pat Rathburn, Rhonda Kramer, Joe Russell, Heather Cunniff, and Virginia Russell. We had 37 CP neighbors attending.
FLPD Officers Hagerty, Graves, and Trujillo brought us the May/June crime report. There were 6 vehicle break-ins, five of which were in unlocked cars. We are reminded again to lock our cars and don’t leave anything of value in view. If your car is locked and there is something of value in plain view, your window could get smashed to break in for that tantalizing item sitting in plain view. Let’s get smart and not make it easy for the bad guys.
There was a car explosion early in the morning last week on SW 6th Ave near 12th Court. The car was from Miami and the details are not clear but the location of the explosion appears to have been random.
Kias and Hyundais are being stolen due to the manufacturers eliminating a vital anti-theft component. Ofc. Hagerty suggests using an Apple AirTag or similar device to locate your Kia or Hyundai if it has been stolen.
Lately, 100 tickets have been written for speeding on 4th Avenue! Let’s keep our roads safe…don’t speed! They’re watching.
Our guest speaker Alan Dodd is with the City of Fort Lauderdale Public Works. He spoke at length about the recent flood in May. We got 26 inches of rain in less than 24 hours, the southern side of the city experiencing the worst of the flooding, which included Edgewood, River Oaks, Melrose Park, and the airport.
We were informed about the stormwater program that will address sidewalk and road damages, potholes, etc. from the storm. There was much discussion about the increasing frequency of heavy rain events. There are plans to clean out storm drains more often, and clear debris from the river and waterways to increase the flow of rainwater in extreme rain events. It was alarming to learn there are only three trucks to clean drains for the entire City and two of them are broken!!
Water treatment and sewage issues were discussed. A neighbor voiced concern about the many high-rise buildings going up everywhere in the city, and will they be taxed for the burden they are putting on our infrastructure? How will the City manage with old pipes? Alan stated that they will re-line the pipes at a cost of $120 million over 5 years.
Regarding solid waste, there is no funding to hire more contractors and our own garbage trucks are constantly in need of expensive repairs.
New neighborhood signs are on the way at 17th Street, just west of the RR tracks, and on the north and south ends of 9th Avenue. Those three signs have been missing since before 2020 and the City tells us they are to be installed any day now! We are watching for them.
Along with new signs, we hope to get new signage to warn of the dangerous curve at 17th Street and the RR tracks.
New dedicated bike lanes from SW 9th Avenue to Andrews Avenue on the south side of 17th Street will improve visibility and the safety of bike riders.
Pickleball at Snyder Park - there will be an entrance off Perimeter Road expressly for the pickleball players. They will not be able to use the park entrance on 4th Avenue.
Along with our new entrance sign stating that Croissant Park was established in 1924, we will have a 100-year Anniversary party in 2024. If you are interested in joining in the planning of the event, we are happy to take suggestions, etc. Let a Board member know.
We hope you have received an email flyer announcing this meeting. The Board has been working on getting the word out via email.
Our next Croissant Park General meeting will be on Tuesday, September 26th at 7pm. Stay tuned for details in your email.
Minutes by Virginia-Sec’y
Pictures by Rhonda, Director
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