Recently, neighbors in the 200 block of Palisade Avenue united to form the Washington Park Residents Association. This new community group is dedicated to keeping residents of the area informed about the issues of government that affect their local community. A letter has been circulated in the immediate area inviting neighbors to join. Tony Cunningham, a spokesperson for the Washington Park Residents Association, said last week, “The main issues are communication and the sharing of information. … The goal is to improve communication between residents and the city as well as amongst the residents.”
The group began when neighbors gathered informally and shared information about development, infrastructure concerns such as sewers, and parking. Eventually they recognized the need for a more formal structure. Variances granted by the Board of Adjustment are another major concern of the association, particularly the proposed development at 207-209 Manhattan Ave. In an open letter to neighbors, the WPRA stated, “Approval has been given for this monstrosity despite the fact that there are real adverse public safety issues including proper sewer access, impact on parking and size of structure/density issues.”
Cunningham stated, “I’m not against development or new ratables. I’m against poorly planned and thought-out projects that negatively impact the existing residents and homeowners.”
Cunningham also brought up a proposed public works garage: “The city is short on garage space. They’re looking at Fourth and Palisade.” As for the impact of so many municipal trucks and vehicle coming through the area, he said, “That would be horrible for the community.”
The organization’s open letter also states that they “do believe that [Mayor Brian Stack] has genuine concern for the safety and quality of our neighborhood, but he needs to hear from us so that he fully understand the positives and negatives of any development in the area.”
At the Board of Commissioners meeting on Sept. 17, Cunningham spoke out about his concerns and even requested that the Board and Mayor Brian Stack divulge their places of residence so that Cunningham could get an idea of how the different neighborhoods are represented, since Union City has a commissioners system, not a council system with districted representation.
Join in
According to Cunningham, the group is still in the recruitment phase at this point. The letter sent to those in the neighborhood invites everyone to “consider joining our neighborhood association which is being formed to protect our interests and keep us all informed of the goings and comings at City Hall that directly affect us.”
Non-profit papers have been filed with the state and a Board of Trustees set up, but now the focus is getting people involved. “The challenge is reaching out to the community and getting people involved because everyone is so busy,” Cunningham said. He added that he believes it’s a valuable service to get information out there. The group also has a web site on which they are posting information, contact numbers for the city, and news items like the minutes of Board of Adjustments meetings, for example.
Those interested in joining are invited to send an email to awccpa@yahoo.com. Include your name and address and you will be added to [the] online site. Those who don’t use e-mail or don’t have Internet access may also call Tony Cunningham at (201) 714-4878 and leave a message and phone number so that someone can get back to you.