The Washington Park East Neighborhood Association

The Washington Park East Neighborhood Association

The Washington Park East Neighborhood Associations new Board of Directors held its first meeting on Thursday, June 26, 2008 to elect officers and to define its priorities for the upcoming year. 

Biddie Labrot was chosen to serve as President, Joanne Asher is the Vice President, Treasurer is Gilbert Gonzales and Secretary is Marilyn Holmes. 

The Board decided to focus on increasing membership dramatically so that the critical issues facing our neighborhood can have more resident input. The Board feels it is important to prepare a Small Area Plan that would be submitted to the Community Planning and Development (CPD) department to present the  Washington Park communitys stance on the new zoning code. 

There is concern about the level of property crimes occurring in the neighborhood and a proposal was raised to begin a Neighborhood Crime Watch effort. 

The quality of the schools serving our neighborhood was also discussed and the Board has decided to reach out to our schools to determine how we might help them achieve the improvement they need. This issue is especially critical for our young families that have children entering school. It would be a good thing for these families to stay in Washington Park and not leave to seek higher quality education elsewhere. 

The Friends and Neighbors of Washington Park (FANS) is a volunteer organization whose mission it is to be stewards of the Park. The Board of Directors believe it is essential that WPENA supports the efforts of FANS to resolve critical issues that affect the future quality of the Park. 

A community outreach program will be launched to integrate WPENA with other organizations active in our broader community such as FANS, Washington Park Cares, the Old South Gaylord Business Association and other neighborhood associations. 

Finally, the Board decided to investigate possible methods to delineate the boundaries of our neighborhood. Washington Park is a unique neighborhood in Denver. The real estate values continue to rise and WPENA wants to see that continue. The Board wants the public to recognize exactly where Washington Park begins and ends and to establish markers to designate the limits of the neighborhood. 

For a neighborhood association to be effective it is critical to have resident participation. 

We will have committees addressing each of these issues. If you care and have an hour a month to contribute, we encourage you to participate.