Oakmont’s Semimonthly Newspaper
Oakmonters, Police In Casual Meeting nStaff Report
It was coffee and conversation as a full house of Oakmont residents turned out for the Santa Rosa Police Department’s “Coffee with a Cop” program here. A dozen officers, including Chief Robert Schreeder, met casually with the more than 50 people who filled chairs around tables or stood talking in the Oakmont Golf Club’s dining room. The idea, Chief Schreeder said, is contact between the public and his officers in a nonemergency setting. That’s in contrast, he said, with the most common contact between the public and police in a 9-1-1 setting.
Oakmonters and SRPD officers talk at tables in the Quail Inn dining room. (Photos by Keith Sauer)
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New Redwoods at West Rec. Volunteer Drivers Needed for New Oakmont Project nStaff Report
Oakmont Volunteer Helpers is seeking drivers for a new program that will provide rides to non-medical events and services within Oakmont. Marianne Neufeld, one the organizers of the service that would assist residents who are normally confined to their homes, said the program will open up access to Sunday Symposium, Movies At Oakmont, the library, or even the Oakmont Market. “I would like to see more incoming younger people be our drivers,” Neufeld said. “It takes a while for newcomers to get to know the community and find out that Oakmont needs them. Oakmont depends on volunteers.” While details are still being finalized, Neufeld said Oakmont residents will be able to call a coordinator and ask for a ride within Oakmont. The coordinator will go through the list of volunteer drivers and find a driver to take the resident to the requested destination and return home. There will be a requirement of at least three-day advance notice when asking for a driver, and requests for rides will be limited to one per week in the beginning. Volunteers must have a valid driver’s license and insurance on their vehicle, although OVH does provide supplemental insurance. Contact Matt Zwerling (539-8996 or zwermd3@gmail.com) or Marianne Neufeld (528-0161 or mariantques@aol. com) for more information.
Berger Report a Focus of September 6 Workshop nJackie Reinhardt
Leah Frost and officer Andrew Van Gundy share a light moment as they talked at Coffee with a Cop. (More photos online at www.oakmontvillage.com/ oakmont-news)
The theme of the coffees is “No agenda or speeches, just a chance to ask questions, voice concerns and get to know the officers in your neighborhood.” The SRPD began the program a year-and-a-half ago, and is holding Coffee With a Cop in neighborhoods around the city about every month-and-a-half, the officer supervising the program, Sgt. Jeneane Kucker, said. Police volunteer for the coffees, and only some of those involved are on duty, Chief Schreeder said.
September 1, 2016 • Volume 54, Number 17
An interim report from the Central Project Committee (CPC) is slated for airing during the OVA Board Workshop Sept. 6 to assure sufficient time is allotted to the ongoing issue of whether to remodel or replace the Berger Center. The report, identified as Phase I, suggests the board’s decision should be made on criteria other than meeting and activity space which the CPC concluded is adequate into the future. It was scheduled for discussion at an Aug. 16 board meeting, but with the agenda running long was put over to the next board session. Originally charged with auditing current space utilization of the Central Area, including the Central Activities Center (CAC), the committee’s charter was expanded to include the East and West recreation See berger report on page 5 PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID SANTA ROSA, CA PERMIT NO. 323
These three new redwood trees have been planted alongside the West Recreation Center where three dead redwoods had to be removed this summer. The new trees are irrigated, to help insure their health. Arborist Dave Huppe told OVA the coastal redwoods belong in the area, as they are indigenous, and noted groves of them can be seen in nearby TrioneAnnadel State Park. Huppe said that properly cared for the redwoods should not become too large for the space. Mulch from the old trees was used to cover the dirt area nearby building. (Photo by Cassie Turner)
OVA Seeks New Path To Trione-Annadel Park nAl Haggerty
The Oakmont Village Association Board has taken the first step in what could be a lengthy process to create a new path for access to Trione-Annadel State Park. The need for the new path, which is subject to approval by the Santa Rosa City Council and Oakmont attorneys and insurers, was created when owner Brad Benson posted “no trespassing” signs on the paved road through his property which bicyclists and pedestrians long have used between the park and Stone Bridge Road. The OVA Board, sensitive to the fact that many residents consider access to Annadel an important perquisite to living in Oakmont, voted unanimously to work toward developing the proposed new path following a presentation by Hugh Helm, a former board member who has Hugh Helm been working with the city on the issue for several years. The action came at the board’s Aug. 16 meeting. The proposed path, which would require leveling a route through a bumpy, weed-strewn landscape, would run on OVA open space property west of the Benson RV parcel, from the area of the Community Garden on Stone Bridge Road to a gravel fire road that ties into the northeast corner of the city treatment plant. From there, people could reach the bridge leading into the park. Currently the only legal access for Oakmont residents to Annadel is through Wild Oak, a gated community open only to Wild Oak residents. Wild Oak bans bicyclists, but not pedestrians. See new path on page 5