Good Works Columbus: June 24, 2024
SB 94 comments, Zone-In public comment, Comfest bike corral, Project Sidewalk, Bike Plus feedback
Intro
Hi everyone, happy Monday! We’re officially into summer now and while we got a bit of relief from the heat dome, don’t expect it to cool off any time soon. There are a couple volunteer options this week, Comfest bike corral and pocket park creation, if you don’t mind the temperatures. Otherwise, if you’d like to stay cool inside be sure to submit your comments for Bike Plus and check out the Project Sidewalk initiative you can help out with below.
If you have an upcoming event or a link you’d like to share for the newsletter, feel free to send suggestions.
Things you can do in person
Zone-In Columbus public comment - June 27, 2024 5:30pm-7:00pm
90 W Broad St, Columbus, Ohio
Join city council for an evaluation on the public feedback from the zone-in process. Event will be in-person and live streamed as well. There will be at least one more public comment meeting for zone-in.
If you would like to provide written or public testimony, email Kevin McCain at kbmccain@columbus.gov by 3:00 pm the day of the hearing. Written testimony should also be emailed to Kevin McCain at kbmccain@columbus.gov - please include “written testimony” in the subject line of your email.(Goodale Park: 120 W Goodale St, Columbus, OH 43215, June 28-30) 🚲
Comfest is still looking for volunteers for this weekend’s festival, including people at the bike corral. Sign up for a shift for Friday evening, Saturday evening, or Sunday afternoon and get a free t-shirt and food/drink token(s).(1970 Waldeck Ave, Columbus, OH June 10 - June 30) 🌳
Help create a pocket park with Green Columbus
Things you can do online
The OHTF is really the state’s only stable and consistent source of funding to address homelessness and create housing access to the lowest income Ohioans living in rural, suburban, and urban areas throughout the state. County recorders’ shift to digital and online document recording systems creates uncertainty for future OHTF revenues. Providing greater stability for funding the OHTF will reduce housing instability for vulnerable Ohioans – homeless families, women at risk of infant mortality, people with disabilities, and seniors who want to remain in their own homes.
Please reach out to members of the Ohio House of Representative and ASK:
Please amend Senate Bill 94 to ensure the Ohio Housing Trust Fund is not eroded. Please support an amendment that would modernize county recording fees while maintaining the traditional 50%-50% fee split between counties and the housing trust fund. Even with the optional fee language in the current SB 94, without this amendment, it would upset this 20+ year historic precedent by cutting the state’s most vulnerable residents out of possible increased fee revenue at a time when we are all very much aware that we’re experiencing a dramatic spike in housing insecurity.
To find out who your state representative is click here: https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/members/house-directory.
And to find out who your State Senator is click here:
https://www.ohiosenate.gov
[Project Sidewalk] 👩🏽🦽Help map out sidewalk accessibility issues in Columbus! Check out the link here to help map out the rest of Columbus.
What is Project Sidewalk?Roughly 30.6 million individuals in the US have physical disabilities that affect their ambulatory activities; nearly half of those individuals report using an assistive aid such as a wheelchair, cane, crutches, or walker. Despite comprehensive civil rights legislation for Americans with disabilities, many city streets, sidewalks, and businesses remain inaccessible. The problem is not just that street-level accessibility affects where and how people travel in cities but also that there are few, if any, mechanisms to determine accessible areas of a city a priori.
This project describes a two-pronged vision: first, to develop scalable data collection methods for acquiring sidewalk accessibility information using a combination of crowdsourcing, computer vision, and online map imagery, and second, to use this new data to design, develop, and evaluate a novel set of navigation and map tools for accessibility. Our overarching goal is to transform the ways in which accessibility information is collected and visualized for every sidewalk, street, and building façade in America.
Learn more about these projects at: bit.ly/CRPD-Capital-Improvement-Projects and click on Helsel Park or Big Walnut Trail Extension – Winchester Pike to Nafzger Park project tiles.
[National] Ask your U.S. Senator to support the EXPLORE Act.
This historic legislation will significantly improve and expand access to outdoor recreation opportunities across America’s public lands.
The EXPLORE Act will support and grow outdoor recreation opportunities across the country so all Americans can get outside and enjoy our public lands. The bill includes provisions to streamline permitting processes to support bike guides and outfitters, identify new long-distance bike trails, increase recreation access for underserved communities, and more.
Other Stuff
Bikes For All People (934 Parsons Ave. Columbus, OH 43206) are seeking bicycle trailers for their patrons that need to transport goods. If you have a child or pet trailer that you aren’t using please consider donating.
Save the Date
Nationwide and Ohio State 4-H Center, 2201 Fred Taylor Dr, Columbus, OH 43210
Tickets to the meeting MUST be purchased in advance. The deadline is July 10 at 2:00 pm.
Matter News Community Conversations: Caring for the Unhoused 🏠
(Thursday, July 18 8:00pm: Two Dollar Radio HQ 1124 Parson Ave Columbus, OH)
Join Matter News editor Andy Downing, celebrated author Hanif Abdurraqib and Heer to Serve founder Emily Myers at Two Dollar Radio HQ for a community conversation centered on Matter’s recent reporting related to the city’s unhoused residents. This is the first in a monthly series that will address rotating subjects on the third Thursday of each month.
In Case You Missed It
LinkUS Engagement Survey (2 minutes)
Mark up the Vision Zero Columbus map. Have a close call walking, biking, or getting around town? Do you know a dangerous intersection that can be improved? Help identify these spots on the Vision Zero map.
Have a great day everyone!