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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-02-19 VAC MINUTES• VETERANS ADVISORY COMMISSION CITY OF CHULA VISTA MINUTES FEBRUARY 19, 2002 TUESDAY, 6:04 P.M. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 2. MEETING CALLED TO ORDER — 6:00 p.m. Human Resources Conference Room City Hall Building 3. ROLL CALL — Stephen} Arends P , Carmen Fedje P , Agustive Hermes, Jr. P , William Poindexter E , Robert White P , A.Y. Casillas E , Stephen Millikin P Guests: Trevor Angood 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - The minutes of January 15`h were corrected and approved. 5. ACTION ITEMS Unfinished Business a. Street Names Mr. Arends acknowledged and thanked Trevor for attending the meeting tonight. There was discussion of the August 7th letter sent to Andy Campbell, formerly with Parks and Recreation. Captain Dyke spoke with Jim Sandoval who recommended a meeting with the developers to keep in mind the additional naming of streets, as in Sunbow. More information to follow at the next meeting. Trevor Angood gave the commissioners an update on the continuing research of the Eastlake students regarding the street naming project. b. Veterans Memorial No action at this time. c. Chula Vista Veterans Home Support Foundation Update The next board meeting has been rescheduled to Thursday, March 28`h at noon, due to the ongoing inspection of the Department of Health Services which began on January 22nd. Glitches found in the architectural and structural design of the building have caused a delay in the approval process, even though the Veterans Home was approved for construction and was built according to the latest standards.. It is hoped that the process would be completed by the end of February. Mr. Arends also advised that Barstow has received a "conditional' approval from DHS. Plans are being made for the Second Annual Golf Classic in November. Co-chairs again this year will be Mike Mazlak from North Island Credit Unit and Scott Alvy from Pac Bell. 1 d. Veterans Home Update There are now 220 residents at the Veterans Home. As of February 15th, there were 129 pre-screened and qualified Skilled Nursing Facility residents on a waiting list The total capacity is 400. Tom Arnold, Director of the Veterans Home plans to fill 380 beds, leaving 20 open for those in Assisted Living who have medical problems and will need to go into skilled nursing. Because the facility is currently at capacity for Independent Living and Assisted Living, only dual -family veterans will be allowed to apply. The Veterans Home will no longer accept applications for non -veteran spouses. There was also a brief discussion of veterans organizations whi ch will be forming on the Veterans Home campus. e. Veteran of the Year Award An article was published in the latest Spotlight honoring Commissioner Steve Arends as Veteran of the Year. Kudos to Jeri Gulbransen in the Public Information Office for keeping veterans information in the newsletters. It was agreed that thank you letters would go -to those submitting the applications instead of the applicants. Copies of last year's thank -you notes were forwarded to Commissioner Poindexter at his request. Mr. Casillas and Mr. Poindexter did not attend the meeting tonight and this item will be tabled until the next meeting. f. Goals and Objectives 1) Continue to advise and make recommendations to the City Council regarding veterans concerns, and on matters which the Board has special knowledge and expertise. 2) Find a new commissioner to replace Mr. Arends. 3) Be alert to the end of your term for re-election so that new candidates can be solicited . 4) Continue to encourage veterans to apply for the Commission. g. Legislative Reports Mr. Arends has been working at the State and County levels regarding tuition -free education for active duty military and their families, retired military and their families, veterans and their families. Letters from various veterans organizations were sent to the Governor showing support for AB 1841. h. Oral History The Veterans Memorial Center in Balboa Park is also doing work with oral history, interviewing and videotaping veterans. Mr. Arends will forward information to Mr. Poindexter upon his return. The number to call for more information is 239-2300. COMMUNICATIONS Street naming project not completed. Commissioners discussed their understanding of the commitment previously discussed with Jim Sandoval. Captain Dyke will follow up with Jim Sandoval. CHAIR'S COMMENTS Mr. Arends reiterated his earlier comment about the VFW visit to the Veterans Home, and conducting a tour with Trevor showing them the streets named for deceased veterans. During the tour through the streets, Trevor displayed information on his laptop regarding that particular veteran. They were.,also taken to the proposed sight of the Veterans Park, and to the Olympic Training Center. 2 r Mr. Arends offered kudos to Deputy Mayor Padilla and Councilwoman Salas for stepping forward to assist in hosting this visit 6 from the VFW. Mr. Arends encouraged visits to the Olympic Training Center. Tours are provided daily. If you know anyone who is looking for a job, the VFW is hiring a Veterans Services Assistant (not official title) to work down at the VA Office in Mission Valley. Contact Scott Langhoff, retired Naval chief, who may be a contact. Only veterans are being considered for the position. . Nothing new from VA regarding Glen Abbey as satellite cemetery. Brief discussion on Community Outreach Program to involve veterans. March 91 begins the Annual Calvet Board meeting hosted by the Veterans Home. The public is welcome. Mayor Horton and Supervisor Greg Cox will kick off the meeting. Update from Ft. Rosecrans: No more room, and are now only accepting ashes. Urged everyone to vote. Received request from Dave Rowlands office (Diane Howell from the Office of Communications) to supply information to Sacramento regarding more information on the monument in Memorial Park, including the history of the street name project. COMMISSIONERS COMMENTS Mr. Millikin inquired about applications for a new commissioner, specifically Gene Pellerin, to replace Steve Arends. • The commissioners expressed their concerns about length of time to replace a commissioner. STAFF COMMENTS Captain Dyke reported that Anna Bravo from Wal-Mart called regarding the Grand ReOpening at the National City store and would like to honor veterans: Mr. Arends will contact Anna to find out what she is requesting. PUBLIC COMMENTS None 7. ADJOURNMENT — 7:27 p.m. Next regularly scheduled meeting at 6:00 p.m., on Tuesday, March 19, 2002 in the Human Resources Conference Room at City Hall, 276 Fourth Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 91910 I Xi . 6'�. Trudi W. Mayes Clerical Support 0 3