January 26th , 2012
I. Call to order
Doris Lafayette called to order the regular meeting of the WGNA at 7:04 p.m. on 1/26/12 at the North Texas Area Christian Church. The Pledge of Allegiance and the Lord’s Prayer were recited.
II. Roll call
Doris Lafayette conducted a roll call. The following persons were present: All officers, our Garland Police Dept. liaison Officer Franey and representative of the Office of Emergency Management, Don Hart.
III. Approval of minutes from last meeting
Minutes for the last quarterly meeting had been published on the WGNA website and motion was made for them to be approved and seconded by Dorothy McAllister. Treasurer Dianna Diaz noted the treasury balance was at $475.81.
IV. Old Business
There was no old business to discuss.
V. Open Issues/New Business
· Motion was made to nominate Lesley Henry as Board Secretary and was seconded by Ellen Fong.
· All attendees were encouraged to provide e-mail addresses to ensure thorough communication.
· Officer Franey provided that burglary statistics for January are down for our area to date. Also discussed were details of the Garland Citizen Police Academy Program and its benefits of educating citizens and sharing their views with other citizens about the reality of our police department’s routine operations and how participation is beneficial. The academy is a twelve week program, free of charge and awards are provided upon completion. Tips to note: Respond to visitors at your door even if you don’t answer, let them know someone is there. Keep records (make/model/serial) of big ticket items as they can be traced through interactive software called NexisLexis in the case items are pawned/sold. Additionally, information about the available Vacation Watch program which is provided by volunteers of the City of Garland Police Department was discussed.
· Next, Don Hart with the Office of Emergency Management spoke about the free and open to public Skywarn Severe Storm Program that will take place at the Granville Arts Center in Downtown Garland from 9a.m. to 4p.m. on Saturday February 18th, 2012. In the presentation, participants will learn information about how storms work and the visual clues you can identify when storms are in your area, severe weather safety tips and better preparedness for you and your family when storm threats are posed. An advanced class is also available to become an active storm spotter as a part of the severe weather warning system in your county. Don also disclosed the availability of CodeRED which is an auto delivery message via telephone to notify citizens of severe weather notifications issued by the National Weather Service. Everyone is encouraged to sign up using either landline or cell phone. Notifications included are: Silver/Amber Alerts in Garland, flooding in a specific area, utility outage, chemical spill or hazardous waste problem, gas leak or evacuation notice. You may register and/or opt-out on the city’s website www.garlandtx.gov . Furthermore, storm sirens, specifically the lack of, were discussed. The city’s storm sirens are currently inoperable and too old for replacement parts to be accommodated. It has been recommended by the Office of Emergency Management that implementation of sirens definitely needs to occur. Don will be attending a meeting with the infrastructure committee within the next two months. It’s proposed that they should definitely be installed in high-volume outdoor areas, i.e. active parks, ball fields, Firewheel mall. The completion may take up to 1-2 years. Finally, a weather radio is a good idea to have in the home that provides emergency alerts provided by the National Weather Service only. It’s a cost-efficient plug-in device with battery back-up that is sure to wake you up the event of an emergency. Don invited a trivia question and offered one lucky winner a weather radio during the meeting, which was awarded to Robert Vera. Trivia – On average, how many tornados are reported nation-wide in a 12 month period? Answer: 1,000
· Resident Fran Brown shared information of her attendance to the meeting with the water department and recommends high awareness of the importance of tending to leaky faucets, running toilets and spreading the word. Currently, we are no longer receiving water from Lake Texoma. Additional meetings will be held to explore surplus water sources for the metroplex as it’s severely warranted.
· Resident Fay Runnels commended our City Council Person, Lori Dodson for her active response resulting in a nearby vacant home being cleared of debris, brush, mowing and general maintenance. Runnels said it only took two days once she made the call.
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Garland Crime
Stoppers also hosts an annual fund raising event - 23rd Annual
Taste of Garland event to be held on April 28, 2012 at the GISD Event Center. Area restaurants participate in the event by showing off
their variety of delicious foods. All proceeds go to sponsor the Garland
Crimestoppers organization.
· Doris Lafayette made a recommendation to divide our district into four areas and gain volunteers to more closely focus in on getting neighbors involved, aware and up-to-date on local matters, issues and awareness.
I. Adjournment
Doris Lafayette adjourned the meeting at 8:04 p.m.
Minutes submitted by: Lesley Henry, Secretary
Minutes approved by: