NEWS FROM PAGE 4 COUNCIL


overall ill-fated bottleneck effect. The I-163 Off-ramp Committee


was formed in October after HTC Steering Committee members wrote elected officials of the state and city about the problem. In No- vember, the 163 Off-ramp Commit- tee met with city officials, present- ing ideas about how to reconfigure the lanes to make the ramp both functional and aesthetically pleas- ing, which Gorin said was very pro- ductive.


“The City is reconsidering its plan to fix the intersection—a plan that would make it prettier but would perpetuate the dysfunctional traffic pattern,” Gorin said. A more verdant Hillcrest The Hillcrest Goes Greener Com- mittee was created last year and is the HTC’s newest committee. Over the past year over a dozen volunteers have come forward and started mak- ing changes. The committee has also made presentations regarding e- cycling, Smart Meters—which were installed at homes and businesses over the summer and explained by a SDG&E representative during HTC meetings, also covering the topics of water conservation, grey water sys- tems, green construction and energy efficiency. As part of the Neighborhood Committee (NIC), oldest


Improvement which


is the committee


in the HTC, the Hillcrest Clean T.E.A.M. cleans the streets four times a year, removes graffiti and trash. For the second year in a row committee members were spon- sored by San Diego Pride to clean up after Pride weekend. It donated $10 per volunteer hour to the HTC and ultimately raised over $1,000. “One of the nastiest items to clean up is the cigarette butts,” Tim Gahagan said, a member of NIC. “Just the other day, the Hillcrest Clean T.E.A.M. decided to make cigarette butts a priority in 2011. That same day, we found out that the Surf Rider Foundation, who is concerned about the butts flowing into the oceans, is making available low cost designer ash trays to affix outside businesses.” The Hillcrest Business Associa-


tion has recently taken interest in this idea and according to Gaha- gan, the HTC contributed money to help get the ash trays installed. “It’s really a very cool group


Into the future With 2011 already underway, the HTC has big plans for the Hill- crest community with more volun- teer opportunities and more atten- tion to safety, beautification and preservation. “My crystal ball says: Bigger, bet-


effort. In fact, it’s the motto of the Hillcrest Clean T.E.A.M.—Togeth- er Everyone Achieves More,” Ga- hagan said.


HOPE. HELP.


ter, stronger, more responsive and even more fun,” Ann Canavan said, founding member of the Hillcrest Goes Greener Committee in an e- mail interview. “I hope we can get a consortium going between the other neighborhood town councils so we can unite and share our energy and forces, and increase our influence.” According to Gorin, the HTC also plans to work with city officials concerning the fiscal crisis with up- dates about the county government from Supervisor Ron Roberts. “I hope that our experience in getting Filbert’s Tree designated historic will lead to a discussion on street trees in Hillcrest, and that we continue to move the planning process forward so we can see Hill- crest evolve in a way that preserves its quality of life,” Gorin said.


RESOURCES. FOR SAN DIEGO’S HIV COMMUNITY


Another exciting goal is to open a community garden. There is no set plan or location as of yet, but it has been heavily discussed, with volun- teers already being rounded up and a committee being put together. “What we would envision would be a space where it would be large enough for people to grow crops, come together, have their little sections and harvest them,” Haule said. “Older people could teach kids and have fresh produce.” She laughed as she continued,


“Maybe we’ll get Michelle Obama to come to our place once we get it up and running.”


The HTC is still growing and evolving, a “work in progress” ac- cording to Haule, and is continually trying to get in touch with what the community wants. Both Canavan and Gahagan agree that an in- crease in membership for the HTC is foreseeable in the future. “The most exciting thing to me about the Hillcrest Town Council in 2010 was the growing number of people who realized the significant impact that we can have in our com- munity,” Gahagan said. “The old saying, ‘you can’t fight city hall,’ it turns out it’s not true. Not only can you fight city hall and win, some- times city hall is just waiting for you to tell it what to do.”u


The HTC meets the second Tuesday of every month (ex- cept December) from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Meetings are held at the Joyce Beers Community Center at 3900 Vermont St. and are open to everyone and any topic. For more information visit hillcresttowncouncil.com.


FROM PAGE 5 HUNT


Orao said it gave the effort cred- ibility both with his Michigan do- nors and with those back in his hometown.


“When I told [the people in Mbita] what Engineers Without Borders was trying to do, they said, ‘But they don’t know us and they’ve never been here,’” he said. “And then when [the Engineers Without Borders team] came (in June) they were all young people. Again I heard, ‘How could these young people with no connection to our village leave the U.S. to do this?’ “This has done a lot for people in my village... And the young people now see that other young people can do great things and volunteer—do it from their heart and not get paid. It’s been a tre- mendous example of showing you can do a lot if you set your mind to it.” While Willemin acknowl- edged the good feelings the team had in helping the Mbita residents, he said it was they who learned some lessons about what it means to be happy with what one has. “I can’t overemphasize this— this is a poverty-stricken place from the standpoint of material items we would consider a nor- mal standard of living,” he said. “But there was an overflowing of goodwill and cheer. And a lot of smiles.” The Great North Park Hunt is one in a series of fundraisers En- gineers Without Borders is host- ing to raise the $60,000 needed to install the power system at the


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Behavioral Health Services & Counseling (English & Spanish). Counseling services for men and women living with HIV are available FREE at The Center. 619.692.2077 x208


Food Services First Tuesday of the month, 9–10:30am, Center parking lot. 619.692.2077 x116


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Acción Positiva Group 619.692.2077 x108


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San Diego.


San Diego Uptown News | Jan. 21-Feb. 3, 2011


9


North Park resident Chris Willemin, shown here, will be helping lead the first Great North Park Hunt to help benefit a community center in Kenya.


Mbita community center. To par- ticipate in the hunt, teams of two ($50) or four ($80) can register at ewb-sandiego.org/projects/pow- er-up-kenya. Teams should arrive at True North Tavern, 3815 30th St., by 1 p.m. on Feb. 5 and plan for a lot of walking, sightseeing in North Park and other surprises during the 3.5-hour scavenger


hunt, Willemin said. The organi- zation is also seeking North Park businesses at the $50 James Bond sponsorship level, which includes being a pit stop in the hunt. As of press time, sponsors included Ol- ive Branch Green Building Sup- ply, Queen Bee’s Art and Cultural Center, Sea Rocket Bistro and Claire de Lune Coffee Lounge.u


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