NACA GENERAL MEETING
Thursday August 18, 2005 Lanier High School Library 1201 Peyton Gin Rd
Greetings & Introductions (7:00pm). The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Linda Moore.
Announcements:
Linda mentioned that a Recreation Center is being proposed for a bond package. Three potential sites are being considered; however, were not disclosed.
Linda asked for suggestions for Neighborhood Improvement Projects from the BFI funds that have accumulated in the NACA bank account.
Bob Baker spoke about the vote the City Council will make for rezoning the property on 9117 Northgate from Multifamily/Residential to Commercial to allow the construction of another convenience store. This will occur next Thursday at 4 pm at City Hall located at 301 West 2nd. The parking garage is located off of Lavaca. The NACA Neighborhood Plan opposes rezoning this property for the following reasons: because the convenience store plans on selling liquor; hours of operation between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. and an increase in traffic. Bob asked for residents to come to this meeting to speak against this zoning change. The City of Austin Zoning Committee has already approved the rezoning.
Gail Sampler, President of the Quail Run Homeowners Association, said the property in question does back up to homes in her association. She is opposed to the zoning change.
If you cannot attend, you can email the City Council members. Their email addresses are located the City of Austin website.
Brian Almon said the Fiskville Historical Marker is going to be dedicated on Thursday September 15th. Entertainment starts at 6:30pm and the program starts at 7:00pm. It will occur at Heron Hollow located the corner of Payton Gin and North Lamar. August 27th is the next scheduled cleanup for Heron Hollow. Brian asked for residents to come help with the cleanup.
Eddie Redmon, who has lived in the NACA area since 1983, spoke about traffic conditions on Mountain Quail. He has requested that speed bumps be constructed on that street to curb the speeding that has occurred between Mearns Meadow and Rundberg. He also complained about the number of occupants that live in one residence and the number of cars parked in the driveway and yards.
Call 974-6576 for code violations such as illegal businesses operating out of residences. Also, residences should not have more than two garage sales per year. Call Kay Vargas at 974-5722 for illegally parked cars in the yards. You can also mail a letter to NACA with specific information on the code violation. Linda Moore will compiles these letters to determine the biggest violators and she will approach the City Council in reference to these violators.
Susie Milam talked about the scheduled Clean Streets efforts for the rest of the year. The one who finds the most interesting piece of trash wins $5.00. These dates are listed in the August NACA newsletter.
Sgt. Will Beechnoir spoke about meeting with the new code inspectors and assisting them in their training. The City of Austin is also going to hire an Environmental Judge and Prosecutor to work on code violation cases only. He said this is a one to three year project to recruit and train the additional code inspectors. The Amanda Project will be a city database that shows the history of code violations at a residence. The Amanda Project is supposed to go online later this year.
Program: Detective Fowler Brown: Identity Theft
Identity Theft occurs when someone takes your private information without your permission to commit fraud or other crimes.
Items stolen include: Social Security number, date of birth, bank account numbers and driver license numbers.
Steps to take when victim: Contact one of three credit agencies or bureaus. Close accounts affected; file police report and a report with the Federal Trade Commission.
Under Penal Code 32.51, Identity Theft is a felony.
Identity is stolen from outgoing mail in the mailbox; from vehicle and residential burglaries; purse snatching; from someone rummaging through your trash. Therefore, it is not recommended to put outgoing mail in your mailbox. Do not write your Social Security number or drivers license number on checks. Do not carry your Social Security card in your purse or wallet.
Phishing occurs via the Internet and email. It appears to be a notice from the bank on authentic letterhead, which asks for private information. Do not respond to any email or literature requesting account information.
Skimming is a device that illegally scans the account information from the stripe on the back of the credit card. This stolen information is then sold to other parties.
The merchants are the ones that take a triple hit. They lose money from the sale, the merchandise and are charged a fee by the credit card company for the fraudulent sale.
Companies that provide fraud insurance will prevent you from having to make the calls to credit bureaus, banks, etc.
The Federal Trade Commission has a website to report fraudulent email. You can also contact the Attorney General.
If you suspect of a fraudulent email, put the cursor over the link and see where the actual email address is.
Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 8:22pm.