by D Jeanne Kimber
The Highland Park Community Association held its annual General meeting on September 22. It was certainly a unique event in the history of the HPCA, combining both in-person and remote attendance via Zoom. I am very happy to announce that most of the previous year’s Board members have returned. They are:
President Jeanne Kimber
Director and Past President Elise Bieche
Vice President Anne Neumann
Secretary Dave Johnson
Treasurer Jill Kowalchuk
Director Rosalind Kohut
Director Darrell Nowosad
Director Leisa Northcott
Director Kathy Koehler
Director Gary Koehler
Director Donna Marzolf
Director Greg Miller
The pandemic has proven a challenging time for the Association. In mid-March, we were compiled to close the Preschool, and hall rentals ceased. Not only did that disrupt the lives and activities of our clients and renters, but it also had a significant impact on our finances. Fortunately, we were eligible to take advantage of various government subsidy and grant programs. Another benefit to the community was that the NEXT before and after school program was allowed to reopen in early summer to provide childcare for healthcare workers. Now that we are in Stage 2 of relaunch, the Preschool was able to start up for the fall and we are starting to receive hall rental inquiries.
The good news throughout all the turmoil was that the renovations to the main floor of the hall could proceed without disrupting any users. The renovations should be complete by November, but even though not-quite-finished, the halls and washrooms look fabulous. They have a clean, attractive, and more modern look. Big Kudos to Elise, Donna, and Jill who are piloting the whole renovation project!
You may have read the Planning and Development reports that I previously wrote for the newsletter. Board member Greg Miller has taken over the role as coordinator of our Planning and Development committee. Both of us have been engaged in the city’s processes to develop the new Guidebook for Great Communities and the North Hill Communities Local Area Plan. Both documents have gone through several reviews and revisions, with final reviews to be completed in November. Following that they will go to the Standing Policy Committee on Planning and Urban Development (SPC PUD) in January. Once approved there, they should go to Council in February. It has been a long process, and I would like to thank Greg for his work on these important documents, particularly on the North Hill Communities LAP.
On a final note, our thanks to the volunteers who participated at our latest casino. As expected, it was not as active as pre-COVID days, but we are thankful to AGLC for scheduling us early in Q4 2020. You may recall that we were originally scheduled to hold a casino just when the COVID lockdown happened.
