February 2017 CPCA Neighborhood Meeting

Hello Croissant Park Neighbors,

Our February meeting began at 7:10 with the Pledge of Allegiance. 

The crime report was brought to us by the FLPD Neighborhood Watch Team Officers Fernandez, Pekrol and Rodrigues.  Our neighborhood crime rates have fallen substantially in this period.  The only burglaries reported were of cars that were unlocked.  The speed limit on 4th Avenue has been lowered from 40 MPH to 35 MPH, hopefully resulting in fewer traffic accidents and fatalities. 

Virginia with Owl House

Our CPCA President, Pat, provided us with detailed information about Eastern Screech Owls that dwell in our neighborhood. Screech owl breeding season is from mid-March to June, usually producing 3 eggs, Male screech owls are smaller than the females and they mate for life.  They live in hollow trees and are active at night, but can be heard day or night. Because the owls prey on rats and mice, it is ill-advised to use rat poison as it could lead to the death of the owls that eat those rats. Fun fact: a group of owls is called a parliament. Board member Joe Russell built an owl house to be raffled tonight. The owl house should be mounted on a pole with a predator guard 10-30 feet from the ground, or hanging under a tree limb.  The bottom of the house should have 2-3 inches of wood shavings, and house should not be painted or stained. Fun fact #2: Owls will introduce blind snakes to the nest that eat insect larvae which help to keep the owlets healthy as they grow.

Michele, Jodi, Nicohle, Pat

Joe Russell with Crystal Aiken

Heather Cunnif with Virginia Russell

John Bertino, Community Liaison for Broward County Commission attended the meeting.  

The lucky winner of the Owl House raffle is Crystal Aiken.  

submitted by Virginia Russell, Secretary
pics by Rhonda

January 2017 CPCA Neighborhood Meeting

Happy New Year, Croissant Park Neighbors!

Our annual January Pot Luck Supper ushered in 2017 with 30 neighbors sharing a meal and conversation, greeting old friends and meeting new ones.  Thank you to all who showed up and shared favorite dishes.

Our meeting began with the Pledge of Allegiance and was followed up by our very own FLPD Neighborhood Action Team: Officers Fernandez, Rodrigues and Pekrol.  These gentlemen know our ‘hood, patrol it and report to us in detail at every meeting.  For the two months of December and January we had 5 residential burglaries, one business burglary and six auto break-ins.  No robberies were reported; a robbery is defined as a break-in when someone is at home.  

Drug sales are still prevalent on SR 84 and in the Davie Blvd/I-95 area, mostly around rehab facilities. The FLPD drug unit was dramatically downsized, creating an opening for dealers from Dania and elsewhere.  Heroin is the drug of choice these days; flakka is virtually gone from the streets.The “buddy effect” is in play, where the users get high on heroin then call 911, who arrive with Narcan, a drug that counteracts the heroin overdose.  Heroin overdoses are on the increase and the hope is that judges will toughen their rulings in order to prevent the revolving door that is happening with the users. 

Commissioner Romney Rogers joined us for a Pot luck dinner and a few questions and answers. 

—He addressed our infrastructure that is a big concern to many of us after seeing the sewer break in Tarpon River neighborhood last month.  We have aging pipes, seawater rising in some neighborhoods, flooding, etc.  There has been a “blue ribbon” committee appointed who will prioritize these issues.  There will be an opportunity  to sign up for this Task Force committee in the future. 

—Comm. Rogers reminded us that we now have new FLPD Chief of Police Rick Maglione, who replaced Frank Adderly., who is now working for Broward Sheriff Office.  

—Someone asked about the decorative pavers that line some of the intersections around the City.  Rogers agreed that they are in bad shape and would eventually be replaced. 

—Regarding sewer infrastructure, some but not all sewer mains will be replaced.  The infrastructure is sound but could blow at any time. 

—The City’s philosophy regarding  traffic is to put the density Downtown and to stay away from the residential neighborhoods.  There is a demand for rental housing and high rise development will be the answer to those needs.

 After chowing down on all the Pot Luck goodies, we got back to a little business. 

— Rhonda Kramer told us about the Neighborhood Support Night on February 8th, from 5:30-8pm in the City Hall Garage at 100 N.Andrews Ave.  It’s a block party featuring interactive displays, jazzy music, lots of give-aways and food trucks.  

—Beth Falkenhagen made a call for volunteers to man a booth at the Neighborhood Support Night to give away trees for GreenYourRoutine, and Jodi and Russell Perraud volunteered to work the booth. Beth works tirelessly for GYR, a volunteer organization that teaches us about sustainability and environmental responsibility. Joe Russell and Beth built bat houses and are now working on where to locate them.  Next project will be to build owl houses. Stay tuned for that—you may be a lucky raffle winner of an owl house.

--Joe Russell reminded us about the importance of supporting Croissant Park Civic Association by attending meetings and becoming dues-paying members.  “More members, more clout” sez Joe.  The issue of sober homes in our neighborhood fell on deaf ears for several years, but Croissant Park and other neighborhoods kept it as a main topic, and now finally they are listening at City Hall and  in Tallahassee.

Thanks to all the neighbors who decorated their homes for the holidays. Congratulations to the Arcieri family who won the popular vote on Nextdoor.com.  They were awarded a $50 check and certificate from the Croissant Park Civic Association.

We hope everyone received the 2017 CPCA newsletter.  Rhonda was at the helm and managed to pull it all together and get us to the printer on time.  

John McNamera won the 50/50 raffle and donated his winnings back to the Association.  Thanks, John.

Minutes by Virginia

Broward County Property Appraiser Lori Parrish Answers Your Questions…

“Low Income Senior Exemption Benefits Increase for 2017!”

Dear Lori:

My local newspaper reported our Senior Exemption benefits might increase next year?  Is this true and how do we apply?

P.K., Pompano Beach, FL (via email)

Broward County low income senior homeowners are in store for an added property tax break beginning in 2017 as the Broward County Commission recently approved up to an additional $25,000 Homestead Exemption for homeowners sixty-five years of age or older with a household income $28,482 a year or less (based on 2016 income limitation).  The increase will boost the maximum Low-Income Senior Additional Homestead Exemption from $25,000 to $50,000 for the Broward County Commission portion of the tax bill.

Approximately 22,000 Broward County seniors currently receive the Low-Income Senior Additional Homestead Exemption and some will qualify for the extra property tax reduction which carries an additional savings of up to $142 based upon the valuation of the property.  Please keep in mind this savings applies only to the Broward County Commission portion of your property tax bill.

If you currently qualify for and receive the Low Income Senior Additional Homestead Exemption all you will need to do is return your senior renewal notice postcard in 2017 which will be sent to you in late January 2017.  The Senior Low-Income Additional Homestead Exemption – which applies only to the county and city portion of the taxes – saves the average Broward senior nearly $300 each year.  This exemption must be renewed annually. For seniors who received this exemption in 2016, the renewal process simply requires them to sign and return the renewal post card to our office.  In order to qualify for a new 2017 Low-Income Senior Exemption, an applicant must be 65 years of age or older as of January 1, 2017 and have a combined household adjusted gross income for 2016 not exceeding $28,482  (This amount is based on the 2016 income limitation and will be adjusted for 2017). If you or anyone you know qualifies for this exemption, please follow the easy filing steps listed below:

If You File An Income Tax Return:

1.      Complete Part (1) of the Sworn Statement of Adjusted Gross Income of Household.

2.      Complete the Certification section of the Sworn Statement of Adjusted Gross Income of Household (located at the bottom of page 1).

3.      Submit the Sworn Statement of Adjusted Gross Income of Household to our office on or before the March 1, 2017 Deadline.

4.      Submit a copy of your 2016 Income Tax Return Form 1040 for all persons residing in your home (excluding renters and boarders) to our office no later than June 1, 2017.

If You Do Not File An Income Tax Return:

1.      Complete Parts (1) and (3) including the statement of income located on page 2 of the Sworn Statement of Adjusted Gross Income of Household.

2.      Complete the Certification section of the Sworn Statement of Adjusted Gross Income of Household (located at the bottom of page 1).

3.      Complete Lines 1 – 4 of the IRS Form 4506-T and sign the form.

4.      Submit the Sworn Statement of Adjusted Gross Income of Household, proof of age, and IRS Form 4506-T to our office on or before the March 1, 2017 Deadline.

5.      Submit a copy of your 2016 Social Security Statement (SSA 1099) to our office by June 1, 2017.

The cities of Miramar, Oakland Park, Pompano Beach, Sunrise, Dania Beach and Pembroke Pines have approved a Long-Term Residency Low-Income Senior Exemption which applies to the city portion of the ad valorem property tax bill for qualified seniors.  Other cities have until December 1^st to provide our office with an adopted ordinance if they choose to enact this for tax year 2017.  This exemption is only available to homeowners who qualify for the Senior Low-Income Exemption and (1) own a home with a market value less than $250,000, and (2) lived in the home for at least 25 years.  If your municipality is not on this list, you are not receiving the full savings allowed under this law.  Let them know of your strong support for the adoption of the Senior Homestead enabling ordinance for the taxpayers in your city.

Our office staff will be happy to help you obtain and complete the necessary forms.  For more information about the Low-Income Senior Exemption, and Long-Term Senior Exemption or to obtain the necessary forms, please visit our website at www.bcpa.net or contact our Customer Service Department at 954.357.6830.

Sincerely,

Lori Parrish, CFA  

If you have a question for Lori, please email her at lori@bcpa.net or write to her at the Broward County Property Appraiser’s Office, 115 South Andrews Avenue, Room 111, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301.  (11/16)

Robert L. Wolfe, Jr. CFE
Community Outreach Specialist II
954.357.6871 – office
954.357.8474 – fax
954.445.5732 – cell

rwolfe@bcpa.net

Follow our office at:  http://www.facebook.com/propertyappraiser and http://twitter.com/loriparrish

October 2016 CPCA Neighborhood Meeting

October 2016 CPCA Neighborhood Meeting

Hi Neighbors,

We kicked off our annual Pie in October meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance, then everyone grabbed a plate to sample all the scrumptious pies: several apple pies, a pumpkin pie, a mixed berry, and a peanut butter and chocolate chip pie (!).  Every single one was yummy.  

Our FLPD Neighborhood Action Team with Officers Fernandez, Rodriguez, Pekrol and Cuevas reported that we had 4 burglaries, all at night.  One was a business, one was a salon in a home, one bike stolen, and one where a neighbor recognized the burglar.  No one was hurt.  If anyone had been on the premises at the time or had been confronted by the intruder it would then have become a robbery instead of a burglary. The definition of robbery is “theft with force”. I make note of that because all of these burglaries were at night when people are usually at home.

There were 2 auto burglaries. Ofc. Cuevas reminded us that these kind of thefts are avoidable if you always lock your car and not leave purses, electronics, etc in plain sight. There were also 2 auto thefts.

When asked about the drug problem in our neighborhood Ofc. Fernandez reported that there is evidence of “elephant tranquilizers” but heroin is the most prevalent of all drugs now; Flakka seems to have taken a backseat to heroin.  All of this activity seems to centralize around SR 84.

One Neighbor asked what happens to violators who park on sidewalks: the answer is to “call it in” to the non-emergency number (954) 828-5700.  Another neighbor asked what the laws are regarding parking on the swale: the swale is City property but it is an ongoing issue when people park on “your” swale.  Call Code Enforcement and report it at (954) 828-5207. You can do this without giving your name as long as it is on City property.  By the way, the City has instructed FLPD not to write parking tickets about parking on swales.  Ofc. Rodriguez says he will look into this issue and report back to us at the next meeting.

The Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #31 (which our guys belong to) is holding a fundraiser called COPS for KIDS, at La Bamba Mexican Restaurant in the Harbor Shops (near Publix) on Cordova Rd. on November 10th at 6:30 pm.  $30 for 2 with preregistration or $40 for 2 at the door.  Call to RSVP at (954)828-6600.  This is a great cause, y’all.  It goes to help low income kids who could use a break.  You can also send a contribution to FOP, 735 NE 3rd AVE Ft. Lauderdale, 33304.  Our Cops are the greatest, let’s support their favorite cause.

A neighbor has mentioned that 4th Avenue is looking very shabby with trash and overgrown grass on the swales.  As mentioned above, these kind of issues can be reported anonymously to Code Enforcement at (954) 828-5207.  It has been suggested that we get a group of volunteers  to clean up our public roads.  Perhaps the school kids that need credit for volunteering can help us with that project.  If you know of any kids who need credit for community service please let us know on nextdoor.com.  We would be happy to put them to work.

Our Croissant Park neighbor, Jim Miller, has asked CPCA to consider whether we, the Association, would state that we don’t object to an exemption from the City’s registration ordinance for vacation rentals that are within a primary residence and the owners are directly supervising the guests.  These rentals would still be subject to the mandated Sales and Use Tax. CPCA would need to announce this matter for discussion to the Association members and schedule a vote at a meeting.  

The Holiday Lighting Contest: best decorated house wins $50!!  The winner  will be announced at our January meeting.

Steve Cook has been a long-time proponent of the bike lane on 4th Avenue.  Tonight he reported that there will have to be a re-do on a portion of the road to make it a proper bike lane.

New oak trees have been planted as promised by the developer on 15th Street at 6th Avenue.

We will be putting together the  2017 CPCA newsletter.  Feel free to submit an article, a recipe, tell us something about Croissant Park or buy an ad.  Send it to: fritzandrhonda@yahoo.com

Nicohle Kallio won the 50/50 raffle and gave her winnings back to the Association.  Thanks Nicohle!

Minutes by Virginia-Secretary

pics by Rhonda

September 2016 CPCA Neighborhood Meeting

Neighborhood Meeting-September 2016

Happy Fall Everyone!

The September meeting began with the Pledge of Allegiance at 7:10pm.

Our FLPD Neighborhood Action Team, Officers Fernandez, Cuevas and Rodrigues presented us with the August-September crime statistics for Croissant Park.  There were 4 residential burglaries and 9 auto burglaries.  August and September are notoriously peak crime months but the Team told us that we had exceptionally low crime in our neighborhood compared to all areas of the City for this time of year. Most residential burglars gain access through louvered bathroom windows, probably because those windows are often left open to allow air circulation after showers.  A word of caution about when a stranger knocks at your door: you do not have to open the door if you don’t recognize the person.  Try to find out who it is through a window or ask who it is before opening the door.  Our best defenses for our homes are burglar alarms, cameras, and large safes for valuables.  If you have a camera that takes pictures of someone you suspect doing something illegal, always call the police first before posting it on Nextdoor.  They don’t like seeing the photo evidence on Nextdoor before they have been notified because it compromises their ability to catch the bad guys. As we are often reminded, don’t leave valuables in sight in your car, and always lock the doors.  The cemetery is a favorite  area for thieves.

FLPD has invited us to a meeting at their sub station that will feature speakers about crime prevention, detectives and a marine unit. That will be at 7pm on Monday, October 10th at 1845 Cordova Road, Suite 207.  The sub station is located above Tropical Smoothies and  Coco Restaurant in the Harbor Shops, in the shopping area where Publix and Total Wine are located.

Our next speaker was Community Affairs Officer Bob LaMendola from the Florida Department of Health in Broward County.  There are 113 confirmed cases of the Zika virus from the Aedes aegypti mosquito in Broward County.  Those at the most risk are babies and pregnant women.  These mosquitos have been in this area for one and a half years. They live close to the ground in dark places near our houses. They breed in standing water like bird baths, any containers that hold rain or sprinkler water, pet dishes.  If you have these in your yard you can prevent the mosquito from laying eggs if you change the water every couple of days, or just empty a container that catches rainwater.  Moving water, as in a fountain is not attractive to the mosquito to lay eggs.  We have been aerially  and ground sprayed recently with VectoBac WDG, a larvicide that is reportedly used in a low enough concentration not to harm human or animals.  We are urged to Drain and Cover:  that means to drain any sitting water and to cover our exposed skin with clothing and/or DEET repellent (Cutter, Off!), Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus or Skin-so-Soft, for example.  Learn more at www.2.epa.gov/insect-repellents. Another site you might want to visit is www.cdc.gov/geatures/StopMosquitoes. 

We will announce our annual Holiday Lighting contest again this year on nextdoor.com and you can submit your vote for the best holiday lighting as we get closer to the holidays. The winner will receive a $50 cash prize.

We need volunteers to put out signs to announce the CPCA meetings we have 6 times a year.  Rhonda will give you a sign or two to put on a swale in Croissant Park, then she will email you a few days before a meeting to put them out to remind your neighbors of the upcoming meeting. It couldn’t get easier and its a huge help to get the word out.  Contact Rhonda at (954)294-3360 or at FritzandRhonda@yahoo.com.

Halloween is just around the corner and we will be participating at the Community Center Halloween Party as usual.  If you want to volunteer to help sell hot dogs and drinks, or to organize the adorable kiddies in costume for games, let us know.  It’s a hoot and a great way to spend an autumn afternoon outside.

We are putting together our 2017 newsletter and we will  add an “In Memoriam” column, so if you know of a CP neighbor who has passed away that you would like to commemorate, please submit that information. If you would like to submit any articles, recipes, buy an ad, tell us something about the history of Croissant Park, let us know and if we have room we will try to publish it. Send articles to FritzandRhonda@yahoo.com.

Our CPCA Board elections will be held at the October 25th Neighborhood meeting.  Our present Board members will stay on: Pat Rathburn- President, Michelle DiMaria-V.President, Virginia Dill Russell-Secretary, Joe Russell-Treasurer, Directors-Rhonda Kramer, Heather Cunniff, Beth Falkenhagen, Jodi Perraud, Nicohle Kallio.  We are seeking additional nominations, so step up at the next meeting. 

Thursday, October 6th there will be a meeting to discuss the new property being developed on 4th Ave and 12th Court.  The issue is about where to provide parking.  We have made it clear to the City how we feel about parking and they don’t seem to hear us.  If you are concerned please feel free to attend this meeting.The location to be announced.

Jack Timmins, our local Realtor was kind enough to bring some gigantic Swiss Lindt chocolate bars as our raffle prizes.  Charlie, Pat and Heather are the lucky winners and they are all in sugar comas today. 

Our next CPCA Neighborhood meeting will be on Tuesday, October 25th.  Hope to see you there…

Virginia-Sec’y
pics by Rhonda