John Keene

SUN Announces 2009 Board Elections

By Bryan Penny

Are you new to the neighborhood? Have you hoped that more voices from the community would be represented in development decisions? Want to help make Stapleton a better place to live and work? Do you have talents and skills that could be put to good use in planning future development in Stapleton? Are you a current resident who has been looking for an opportunity to get involved with neighborhood issues? If your answer is “yes” to any of these questions, please consider running for a leadership position in the Stapleton United Neighbors Board of Directors.

The first Board of Directors of SUN was elected in the spring of 2004. During the past five years, much has been accomplished. SUN developed By-laws and established non-profit status. Several community forums have been held and a neighborhood watch program has been started. SUN has also supported alternative transportation planning and active living in the community. SUN now hosts regular forums with Forest City representatives and officials from the City to help keep Stapleton residents up to date on the state of our neighborhood. SUN also organizes the annual Block Party Day and the Kickball Tournament, to help bring new neighbors together, and build the bonds that are critical to strong communities. Now it is time to make plans for another year of progress with the election of members of the SUN Board of Directors. Of the 15 seats on the SUN Board, seven are up for elected this year. As Stapleton is always growing, SUN is committed to including on the Board residents from all areas, including newly built homes.

A nominating committee has been formed to identify members of the Stapleton community who are interested in becoming more involved in the effort to organize the neighborhood. Please consider sharing your voice and experience by becoming a candidate for the SUN Board of Directors.

Stapleton United Neighbors Board Election FAQs

What is SUN, and what role does it play in the neighborhood?

The mission of SUN is to work for the betterment of the Stapleton neighborhood and the City and County of Denver by providing: (i) a forum for residents living within the boundaries of SUN to discuss and resolve issues; (ii) a network of communication; (iii) a means of acting on matters of importance to the community as a whole. Check out the SUN website at www.stapletonunitedneighbors.com for more information.

What do SUN Board members do?

SUN board members are responsible for helping bring the mission of SUN to life through work in the community. That entails at least the following responsibilities: Attendance at 9 or more of the 11 SUN board meetings each year (currently scheduled at 7:30pm on the fourth Monday of January through November). Chairing or serving on a SUN committee (transportation, education, outreach, safety and communication), serving as a SUN liaison on a Stapleton Citizens’ Advisory Board (CAB) or Stapleton Development Corporation (SDC) committee (parks advisory group, zoning and planning, housing diversity, community communications and design review) or serving as a SUN liaison to InterNeighborhood Cooperation (INC). Authoring at least one article per year for the SUN Spot section of the Front Porch and Tower Ledger. Attending and helping out with SUN sponsored community events and forums. Promoting the work of SUN and the ethos of SUN’s mission in the community.

What is the time commitment involved?

Monthly board meetings typically last an hour and a half to two hours. SUN, CAB and SDC committee meetings are usually once a month and run about an hour to an hour and a half and INC meetings are the second Saturday of the month for three hours. Beyond that, keeping up with voice mail, email, authoring a SUN Spot article and attending other events and meetings can add as little as a few minutes to as much as several hours per week. Board members should also monitor Grapevine posting on StapletonOnline.com weekly for issues relevant to the committees they are a part of or attend. As a general rule, SUN will involve about 10-15 hours a month of time March 2008 Stapleton Front Porch commitment, and potentially more depending on the calendar of events.

What do I need to do to run for the Board?

The application process entails submitting a 200 word statement of interest and bio to Bryan Penny (bryanpenny@gmail.com) by April 1, and attending the SUN Forum and Election on May 5th. The statement of interest and bio will run in the May issue of the Front Porch and Tower Ledger and be posted online on SUN”s website at www.StapletonUnitedNeighbors.com.

How are the elections determined?

In the past, there have been just enough candidates to fill each slot, but in the event of more candidates than slots, each voter has 7 votes and the top 7 vote gatherers are elected to the board.

Some pretty smart people at StimulusWatch.org have posted an interactive list of "shovel ready" projects as submitted by the US Conference of Mayors. They allow citizens can vote on which projects the feel are critical or not.

For example, you can vote on the proposed I-70/Central Park interchange or whether or not you think it's important for 56th Ave to connect between Quebec and Havana.

The point being, once the stimulus package is signed into law the Mayors will then apply for grants to pay for the most critical projects.

Yesterday, the Senate passed an amendment to the stimulus bill that would allow home buyers to take up to a $15,000 tax credit on the purchase of a home. What does that mean? Well, to the average American, that pays roughly 30% in taxes, they would get an additional $5,000 back.

What is really great about this amendment is that this money will not have to be paid back, unlike the current $7,500 credit being offered to first time home buyers. Another benefit of the proposed credit is, a home buyer will be allowed to claim this credit on their 2008 tax return, given they purchase the home prior to April 15th.

If this tax credit is included in the final bill, this could be a tremendous step in the right direction for the real estate market.

To show your support for this amendment to the stimulus bill contact your local Senator.

It has recently come to the attention of the Stapleton United Neighbors Board that the City of Denver is no longer filling the bag dispensers along the parks maintained by Parks and Rec. It is the City's position that keeping the dispensers full is the responsibility of the neighbors.

What is confusing to most residents, however, is the fact that the Master Community Association (MCA), who maintains many of the finger and pocket parks around Stapleton, is still providing bags in their dispensers.

The SUN Board is currently discussing ways to ensure that all bag dispensers remain stocked so as to encourage dog owners to continue picking up after their pets.

Anyone who would like to offer suggestions please contact the board at StapletonUnitedNeighbors@gmail.com