Community

More than 130 people took advantage yesterday of the warmth and efficiency of Project Homeless Connect.

“People were here before we opened up and were pretty happy to get inside away from the cold weather,” Jessy Post says.

Post coordinated the annual event, similar to those held in cities across the U.S. this month. It brings together social and health care services to help those who are homeless, may be threatened by it, or just need a hand up.

Like Sandra Holmes, who’s glad to be back in Southeast after being homeless in Anchorage.

“I needed my birth certificate and my social security card. My purse got stolen so I don’t have my social security card, so they’re helping me here. I was living in Anchorage and became homeless up there. My family brought me back down to Southeast and they told me about this program today, so we came over,” Holmes says.

Most of those taking advantage of everything from free flu shots to haircuts to lunch were single adults. But Homeless Connect coordinator Post says a number of families came through. Some folks just grabbed warm clothes and blankets, while others got on housing lists and sought help filling out Medicaid and other government forms.

Jasmine Tanape and her partner were at the Permanent Fund Dividend table with their 13-month old. She says Juneau is a tough place to get settled.

“They’re helping me with housing and they gave me some clothing vouchers and they’re helping with my PFD and applying for my Medicaid again. So they’re helping a lot,” Tanape says.

Steven Littlefield moved to Juneau in 2008. He came to Project Homeless Connect to find housing and work. He says he found the right agencies for both.

“They helped me with applications for housing and where I can go to get help for housing. They helped set me up with DVR – Division of Vocational Rehabilitation,” Littlefield says.

This is the fourth year Juneau has offered Project Homeless Connect, but the first time Post has coordinated the event. Yesterday she was “floating around where needed.”

“And I’ve been able to kind of do everything from talking with people, taking surveys to helping them find what service they need here. And it’s just been a great experience to see all this coming together and all the collaboration,” Post says.

Participants also were asked to take the Point-In-Time survey to determine the size of Juneau’s homeless population. Post says Project Homeless Connect works with other agencies to determine the size of the capital city’s homeless population, estimated at 562 last year.

 

The public can comment Tuesday night on the draft Auke Lake Management Plan that recommends a 10-horsepower limit  – automatically prohibiting jet skis on the small lake.

The Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee, or PRAC, is taking testimony at its meeting at 6 p.m. in CBJ Assembly Chambers.  The proposal was released earlier this month.

It says Auke Lake’s size is not adequate for high horsepower watercraft and popular activities, including wake boarding and jet skiing. It also would prohibit towing.

The draft plan calls for the city to create a seasonal park ranger position to enforce regulations.

Email comments seem to be running about 50 – 50 for and against the recommendations that grew out of a CBJ Parks and Recreation study on lake traffic, after a teenager died in an accident on the lake last summer.

 

 

Capital City Fire and Rescue on Saturday honored its crew for their work in 2012.

At the annual CCFR banquet, awards went to several firefighters and dispatchers for their work the night of the Gastineau Apartment fire in downtown Juneau.

A citation for performance under extreme conditions at the fire, including the ladder rescue of a civilian, went to:  Brent Clancy, Jessie Echave, Travis Larson, PK (sic), John Adams, Todd Cameron, Nathan Young, and Shaun Rhea.

“These firefighters and officers all performed heroically under extreme fire conditions,” said Rich Etheridge, CCFR Fire Chief.

The Dispatch Unit also was honored for its professionalism the night of the fire.  Tonya Kurtz, Jason Van Sickle, Erann Kalwar, Celeste Lopez, Christy Smith, Joe Fox, and Lisa Haffner were recognized for their calm, cool demeanor, resourcefulness and attention to detail as they provided information to the rescue teams during the Nov. 5^th fire that displaced about 50 tenants.

Other CCFR awards included EMS Providers of the Year, which went to EMT volunteer Amanda Carlson, and career paramedic Bryon Young. Paramedic Joe Mishler is Instructor of the Year for 2012.

Lynn Canal District Captain is Ken Lawrenson is Volunteer CCFR Officer of the Year.   Captain and Paramedic Chad Cameron is Career Officer of the Year, while Firefighter of the Year is Noah Jenkins.  Kim Mahar is Special Teams Member of the Year and Jessie Echave is Rookie of the Year.

“Every member of our department performs wonderfully,” Etheridge said. “These were the people that were recognized by their peers as standing out and doing that little bit extra that makes Capital City Fire and Rescue a great place to work.”

Shaun Rhea received the Chief’s Award of Excellence.

 

 

Pick up your dog’s poop as soon as it’s dropped, or risk a fine.

After months of studying the problem, city officials Friday announced a zero-tolerance policy for dog waste and other dog-related problems in area parks.

CBJ Parks and Landscape Superintendent George Schaaf says the CBJ Dog Task Force looked at various solutions, including education, personal encouragement, and a media campaign, but the problems continue.

“And of course when the weather gets warmer, it becomes extremely obvious that there is a problem, especially in certain areas,” Schaaf says.  “So at this point, having exhausted all our other options, we’re  moving on to enforcement as a solution and we’re hopeful that we can avoid the need to actually close any parks to dogs if the problems still continue.”

Animal Control officers will no longer give warnings, but will issue citations immediately for anyone caught not cleaning up after their pets. Afterall, Schaaf says, dog waste is a public health issue, and the city has had pet laws on the books for years.

“It’s already required that you have a bag or another means of sanitary disposal with you whenever you’re in a leash law area and that includes most of the downtown business districts and other sites downtown, Schaff says. “And then it’s also illegal to allow your dog to relieve itself on any public or private property that doesn’t belong to you, without permission of the owner.

Those laws pertain throughout CBJ, whether on city, state or federal land, including Mendenhall Glacier and the Tongass National Forest. In the winter, the U.S. Forest Service helps maintain cross-country ski trails at the Mendenhall Glacier Campground.  Complaints last week of piles of dog feces sent the campground manager to inspect, says Ed Grossman of the Forest Service.

“The campground manager went out there and picked up a couple gallons of the nasty stuff around the gate area,” Grossman says. 

Like the city, the Forest Service  provides plastic bags at trail heads for picking up dog waste.  Grossman was a part of the city’s dog policy discussion last year.  He says the Forest Service will take its cue from the city, hoping the new enforcement will work.

“There’s little doubt that we are just as disgusted as the other land managers at the fact that we provide bags and receptacles and have jointly gone out with public notices, we have signs,” Grossman says. “So we share the concerns across ownerships, and have turned to the Grateful Dogs group to help us. They’ve done clean up days, they’ve done educational notices as well, but the problem persists at everyone of our sites and on everyone of our trails.” 

Leash laws are also on the books in downtown Juneau and many developed recreation areas throughout the borough, including the Mendenhall Glacier area.

Dogs must be on leash where noticed, and if they’re in an area where a leash is not required, they must be under competent voice control.  Schaff says that means never having to apologize for your dog’s behavior.

Enforcement is the key and that may be difficult.  Citizen complaints were the impetus for the CBJ Dog Task Force and the resulting zero-tolerance policy.

Schaaf says citizens should continue to report violators to Animal Control at 789-6997.

 

 

 

Those at risk of becoming homeless or who are already homeless are invited to attend the annual Project Homeless Connect event on Monday.

Health care, housing assistance, job placement and other services will be available at Centennial Hall, the Juneau Arts and Culture Center, and the Zach Gordon Youth Center.

“If you know of anyone experiencing homelessness, please encourage them to attend,” said Jessy Post of the Juneau Economic Development Council. She is also a coordinator for the Juneau Homeless Coalition which is organizing this year’s free event.

Participants can take part in blood pressure screenings, get foot care and hair cuts, talk to housing providers, and even apply for a replacement birth certificate.

“Those are just to name a few,” Post said.

Also on Monday, the participants will be asked to take part in the Point-In-Time survey to determine the size of Juneau’s homeless population. Post said that Project Homeless Connect only provides a portion of the count. The Juneau School District and other social services agencies also help with the surveys.

“They are also collecting information in these surveys to get the whole scope and whole snapshot of homeless numbers in our community,” Post said.

As many as 562 Juneau residents were identified as homeless in 2012 after a compilation of all the surveys.

Of the 187 people who received services at last year’s Project Homeless Connect, 41-percent reported at least one health issue. Most indicated that they were staying in shelters, with family or friends, in a motel, or in a place that was not meant for human habitation.

Project Homeless Connect runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday with social service and housing providers at Centennial Hall, and health care providers will be located at the JACC. Post says haircuts will be provided at the Zach Gordon Youth Center.

A march along the National Mall in Washington D.C. is planned for Saturday, Jan. 26th to advocate for gun control. Participants, some holding signs with the names of victims of gun-related violence, will quietly leave the area near the Capitol Reflecting Pool and walk down Constitution Avenue. The event will end with speeches and music at a corner of the Mall near the Washington Monument.

March organizer Molly Smith is a former Juneau resident who was moved by the recent tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut.

“We were both stunned by it. We were in shock,” said Smith as she recalled a conversation with her partner Suzanne Blue Star Boy in which they essentially decided to act before the tragedy faded from the public consciousness.

“And I just turned to her at one point and she said ‘Somebody has to do a march.’”

Smith is the artistic director for Arena Stage in Washington D.C. and is the founder of Juneau’s Perseverance Theatre.

“I’m a theater artist. Gun control is not my world,” Smith said. But she believes gun control is everybody’s issue, and she questions why civilians are allowed to possess assault weapons.

“The right to own a gun is not a right to own any gun,” Smith said.

“I think this is a moment that has to do with a moral and spiritual question: ‘How are we in this country defining the Second Amendment?'”

Smith recognizes that the overall discussion may have to include mental health and violence in films and videos, but Saturday’s event on the National Mall will be limited to just gun control.

Some of their prioriites, Smith said, include “reinstating the assault weapons ban, banning high-capacity ammunition magazines, requiring gun safety training, require background checks, and outlaw bullets that shatter in the body.”

Smith expects participants will include Newtown family members and Virginia Tech shooting survivor Colin Goddard. Also marching will be Mayor Vincent Gray and members of the D.C. Council, D.C. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and Maryland Congressman Chris Van Hollen, Shannon Watts who is the founder of One Million Moms for Gun Control, actress and activist Kathleen Turner, and several leaders of faith in D.C. including the Very Reverend Gary R. Hall of Washington National Cathedral.

March on Washington for Gun Control