A letter to the neighborhood from the few current active members of the HRPNA - 07/02/2024

Hello neighbors!

You may have noticed that things within the Historic Randall Park Neighborhood have slowed down a bit over that last

month or so. Those of us that live here year-round know this to be a result of living in a neighborhood filled with college rentals.

While we know that the almost 90% rentals in our neighborhood aren’t all college renters, they make up enough of a

population to cause a welcome slow down when students head back to their hometowns June – August.

Another aspect of our neighborhood that is known to slow down in the summer months is our association, The

Historic Randall Park Neighborhood Association. This is a group of neighbors within the HRPN that meet monthly to discuss

upcoming happenings in our neighborhood, developmental plans, issues that may need addressing, and the overall needs of

our neighbors and the neighborhood. Historically, this group has been run by an elected president, with support from

representatives within each neighborhood district. Before 2020, and the events of that time, we had a robust and involved

association with representatives from all neighborhood districts. During the pandemic, meetings went virtual, and the

association did what they could to keep our neighborhood connected. Since the return to “normalcy”, our group has never

fully rebounded.

We had an association presidential switch in late 2022, which brought a refreshed excitement to the group. However,

even with many core members still in regular attendance, we continued to lose participation from the city of Eau Claire, UWEC

student residents, as well as many long-time residents, causing the association to continue to lose momentum. 2023 brought

us more open representative seats, and very few residents willing to step into those open seats. A neighborhood picnic

brought some renewed interest in the association and a positive monetary balance to the association’s account, but we were

soon in the same spot as before with dwindling participation and interest.

The current Steering Committee, as of July 2024, is listed below.

HRPNA Steering Committee

 Leadership positions

o President [Open Seat]

o Secretary [Open Seat]

o Treasurer Andrea A.

 District Representatives

o District 1 Nic A. and [Open Seat]

o District 2 Dani D. and [Open Seat]

o District 3 Annalisa D. and [Open Seat]

o District 4 Dave B. and Andrea A.

o District 5 [Open Seat] and [Open Seat]

o District 6 [Open Seat] and [Open Seat]

 At-Large Members

o Lauren L.

o [Open Seat]

o [Open Seat]

o [Open Seat]

o [Open Seat]

o [Open Seat]

Currently, 15 out of 21 of our leadership, representative, and at-large seats are considered vacant, including the

president role. That is over 70% of our association’s representation and it is simply not sustainable.

So where do we go from here? In late winter 2024, when it was established that, for the time being, we would need to

be running without a president, a handful of the remaining Steering Committee members offered to assist with running

meetings and holding the association together, until further leadership could be established. This was all while attendance

and participation in the HRPNA continued to dwindle. We have now reached a point where meetings rarely make quorum,

causing a lack of in-person voting capability, and often the only members in attendance are the meeting’s presenters and our

representative from the ECPD. As a result of this lack of interest by citizens within our neighborhood, the HRPNA will be

taking an extended break. Currently, the members that have been assisting with keeping the association running are no

longer able to dedicate themselves to more than a district representative commitment, meaning that we are in desperate

need of leadership and commitment from our fellow neighbors.

In a neighborhood where 10% of homes are owner-occupied, and of the 90% that are rentals, a good amount are only

school-year residents, neighborhood association participation is likely to always be a struggle. Even with some residents only

being with us for a year or two, we must find a way to bring in their voices and perspectives. As a neighborhood association, we

cannot function without enough individuals to highlight the different needs and views within our neighborhood community.

Each resident, whether part-time or full-time, holds a valid perspective and deserves neighborhood support. But how do we

bring them in? How do we drive interest in a group that exists solely for the betterment of a neighborhood with a high rate of

turnover? Who can help guide our association as we deal with updated city zoning standards, developer proposals, landlord

issues, and the general ebb and flow of business within this bustling neighborhood? As areas within the HRPN continue to be

improved, and new areas considered for addition to the association, who can help make sure that all these new voices are

heard and that residents, whether here for a year or a decade, feel the sense of community that many of us love about living

within the HRPN.

Are you that person that can help, or do you know an interested individual? Are you a leader that feels you could lend

your talents to ensuring a more active future for the HRPNA? This is a vibrant and diverse neighborhood and the HRPNA hopes

that we can continue to run as we have in the past, with even more representation throughout our community. For that to

happen, we must start with more community members showing an interest at being involved.

As mentioned above, the Historic Randall Park Neighborhood Association representation will be taking an

extended break from all neighborhood and city planning meetings. As October approaches, we will be assessing the

viability of continued monthly meetings.

 Are meetings the best way to reach residents?

 Would a monthly newsletter, with occasional meetings to meet specific needs be better?

 Who will be the leader of this organization?

 If we cannot increase participation, is the HRPNA still a valid entity in our neighborhood?

Those questions, and many more, will need to be address before we can continue with scheduling meetings for the

association. If you would like to be involved with this effort, please respond to this email. If there are specific ways you feel you

could help or roles that you would be interested in stepping into, please include that information as well. Thank you for your

time in reading this update. Hopefully, together we can bring a more productive and involved future to the HRPNA.

September 2023 -- We had such a great time at our first neighborhood party in many years.  Thank you to our many donors.  We raised over $1000 for the neighborhood association, built community, listened to wonderful live music and performances, and enjoyed fabulous weather.

Neighborhood Party!!!

Saturday, September 16, 2023 from 11am to 5pm

Randall Park, the namesake for our neighborhood

Family friendly event.  

We'll have:

• Food trucks!  Treats from The Fluff Co. and Josef's Cheesecake

• a silent auction and huge raffle, with donations from:

  • Lazy Monk, Wagner's, Growler Guys, The Goat, Valley Burger, Kwik Trip, Pizza Ranch, Randy’s Family Restaurant, Grand Ave Flowers, Johnny’s Pizza Shop, Red Robin, Slate Boutique, Famous Dave's, Riverside Bike and Skate, Momentum, The Yoga Room, Ray's, Sam’s Club, Nostalgic Bean, Milwaukee Burger, Atmosphere, Starr’s Sister, Bowl Winkles, Bare Body Waxing, Eau Claire Floral, Ramones, The Local Store, ECDC, Play it Again Sports, Massage Envy, 44 North, Dunkin’ Doughnuts, Scheels, Marie Gouda, The Plus, Cowboy Jacks, Menomonie Market Food Co-op, Dotters Book, Hello Adorn, Artisan Tattoo

• fun and games

• Live acts:   🎶 Music from The Unlikely Event and a special performance from the Chippewa Valley Theater Guild’s cast of Bright Star. 

Every resident of the neighborhood is welcome!  Students, families, lifelong residents.  Come one, come all!

July 2023 -- We're getting more and more excited for our Neighborhood Party, September 16, 2023!  Rain or shine, it's going to be a blast.  Jes has worked up a ton of goodies for a raffle / silent auction, plus we'll have two dessert trucks (Joseph's Cheesecake, and The Fluff Co.).

The whole family is invited, along with students and all neighborhood residents.  Come build community with us!!!

March 2023 -- Our neighborhood party will be Saturday, September 16, 2023 in Randall Park.  Planning is ongoing and our current major effort.  Planning is primarily being done by Jessica Drew and silviana amethyst.

December 1, 2022 -- New gazette released!  Our next meeting will be: Thursday Feb 2, 2023 at Grace Lutheran Church.  

November 28, 2022 -- Silviana added all the minutes from the Google Drive to this website, organized by year.  See the Minutes page.

November 4, 2022 -- New leadership!  Silviana Amethyst accepted the presidency, and Jessica Drew accepted Secretary.  Our treasurer is still Andrea Anderson.  Amy Juneau stepped up for a steering committee membership.  Current steering committee membership listed on the Contact and sign up page on this website.

August 2, 2022 -- We're working on our 2022 Annual Gazette.  Silviana is working with businesses to secure advertisers to support the publication.  We're hoping to publish and distribute it mid-September.

July 13, 2022 -- We made a new webpage!  Huzzah!  Lauren and Silviana worked to get a new domain name registered, and this google site up and running.  If you have suggestions, please bring them to a meeting, or use the Contact and sign up page to share your thoughts.