by Mark Ruddy, Eastside Hill Steering Committee President

At the October 19th meeting of the Steering Committee of the Eastside Hill Neighborhood Association there were two salient discussions. First, Lieutenant Ryan Dahlgren of EC police who has been in charge of our area for the past three years stated that he has not seen an increase in crime rates in our area this summer. Because of a change last year to conform to new federal standards, no direct comparison can be made from year to year that would give a statistical account of any rate changes. However, Dahlgren found some data that suggested no increase and it confirmed his own impression. He urged Neighbors to contact police asap when they are concerned. (per me, Neighbors can follow up with the police to get a case number for an incident or in other ways that show that the police responded in a desired way).

Second discussion: The Committee tabled a resolution until next month to make any statement about Restorative Justice to have an opportunity then to react to a specific resolution that may allow it to go beyond an “advisory motion” that had little teeth. The president of the Committee will bring such a resolution to the next meeting that would attempt to operationalize/put into practice any statement about the support of RJ or not. Contact the president of the Steering Committee if you want to help write such a statement.

The By-law of our Association state “The purpose of the organization is to preserve and enhance the quality of life in the area by responding to issues, concerns and opportunities that affect the area included in the Eastside Hill Neighborhood. In its activities, the Association will maintain a careful respect for the rights and prerogatives of Eastside Hill residents, and an appreciation for individual differences”.

The next meeting is November 16th (third Thursday), 6:30 PM; to have more room for Neighbors who are encouraged to attend, this meeting will be held at the Eau Claire Music School at 1620 Ohm Avenue.

Information on RJ can be found at the Eau Claire county site and the national site. On October 15 on Wisconsin Public Radio at 4 PM called University of the Air there is a discussion of RJ in a prison setting. On October 30th the Alumni of UW are having a program on RJ at UW-EC Davies Center in the evening; google them at their Chippewa chapter for details.

About a week before the November meeting the proposed draft resolution will be posted on our web site, eastsidehill.com.