JHAA Committees

The JHAA maintains several committees or project teams to manage various neighborhood issues, improvements and events. Most of these committees meet only a few times a year.

Guidelines for All Committees

Anyone may post ideas on our Yahoo forum for any committee or team. You don’t have to be a member of a specific committee to make recommendations to that committee.
Conduct your discussions on the Yahoo forum as much as possible so that everyone can provide feedback. If you decide to meet in person now and then, post the ideas and proposals discussed in the meeting on the Yahoo forum afterwards so that everyone can stay in the loop.
The committee leader should give a short report (if you have any news) at the monthly meetings.
Any proposals which involve physical changes to the neighborhood must be brought to the JHAA membership for a vote before the proposal may be pursued.

Neighborhood Improvement Committee (NIC)

This group participates in creative brainstorming around neighborhood improvement issues. They propose solutions and work toward goals. The primary goals are to improve our quality of living and neighborhood standards, which help encourage other quality people to buy homes here.

Topics for discussion often include:

Cosmetic/aesthetics – Encouraging yard maintenance and observance of trash laws.
QOL (quality of life) issues – Reducing noise pollution, encouraging observance of leash laws.
Safety issues – Police patrols for security.
Infrastructure – Street paving, street lighting, maintenance of and upgrades to neighborhood markers.
Big Picture Projects – This group often bounces around ideas for possible large-scale projects for the future. Examples: Lobbying the city for upgrades such as burying overhead power lines, dead-ending some Airport Blvd access streets to reduce cut-throughs, perhaps even creating a gated community at some point.

At the meetings for this committee, or on the Yahoo forum, feel free to throw out all kinds of ideas for neighborhood improvements (no matter how big or outlandish or impossible they may seem), and then see what others come up with for pros/cons. We try not to shoot down others’ ideas immediately. We let the idea be discussed and considered so that everyone has a voice.

Hospitality / Welcome Committee

This group works to keep track of new residents as they move into the neighborhood and pay them a visit to welcome them. New residents are given a welcome packet with information about the JHAA.

Markers Maintenance Teams

This group helps to maintain the entry markers – keep the grass trimmed, make small repairs as needed. This teams alerts the Improvement Committee and the JHAA officers when major repairs are needed, such as a light that is out or bricks damaged from car accidents.

Neighbors in Need

This group keeps a list of those willing to help out our elderly or infirm residents with small tasks, such as change a lightbulb too high for them to reach, run to the store for them, bring in their garbage can from the street, help them put yard trash on the street for pickup, etc.

Street Captains

The job of Street Captain is vitally important to the health and well-being of our community. Their tasks:

Distribute special notice flyers and paper newsletters when we do neighborhood-wide distributions. (Most newsletters are electronic and emailed to all members on our Yahoo forum, but several times a year, we do paper distributions of special notices so that those not on the forum will be notified of important issues.)
Keep an eye on their designated streets for yards in need of maintenance and other eyesores, and report these to the JHAA NIC.
Try to be aware of new residents who have moved into a house on their designated streets, and welcome them to the neighborhood. Coordinate with the Welcome Committee to notify new residents of our JHAA.org website, the Yahoo email forum, and our monthly meetings at St. Mark's.

Neighborhood Watch

The members of this team coordinate voluntary walking or driving security patrols through the neighborhood.

Note: ALL residents should report suspicious persons or vehicles to the police (208-7211) and post sightings on our Yahoo forum. Do not leave this entirely up to the Neighborhood Watch group.

Jackson Heights Area Kids (JHAK)

This group plans kid-centric activities for neighborhood children.

Since kids are so over-scheduled these days with organized sports and other afterschool programs, this group plans just a few casual activities spread out over the year as fun bonding experiences for neighborhood families. Activities can easily be proposed, planned and announced via email, and usually do not require in-person meetings or extensive planning.

For example, in December 2008, we held a door-to-door Christmas caroling event. In 2009 and beyond, we are planning some stargazer nights, sponsored by the astronomy buffs (and telescope owners) in the neighborhood. These are two examples of simple activities which require almost no prior planning. They are coordinated via email, by asking families to participate and telling them when and where to meet.

We encourage creative moms and dads – and even some of the kids themselves! – to come up with other fun ideas for simple activities and propose them on the Yahoo forum.

Party Committee

This group plans and produces the Fall Festival and the Easter Egg Hunt, the two large-scale neighborhood events we hold each year. This group is active only during the months when the events are scheduled – October and Eastertime (March or April). This group also hosts a small mini-holiday party at the December JHAA meeting each year. This is a simple affair, with hot apple cider or hot chocolate and Christmas cookies being served after the regular meeting.

Garden Club

The Garden Club is a group where garden lovers can share information. The primary focus of this group is on gardening education and neighborhood beautification. The group meets once or twice each season for a tour of a neighbor’s garden, and an educational discussion on what types of plants grow best in this area, when to prune and more.

The original Jackson Heights Garden Club was formed in 1949 and still meets today. The Garden Club and the JHAA plan to partner on group gatherings/seminars, with a focus on gardening education and neighborhood beautification. The group will meet once or twice each season for a tour of a neighbor’s garden, and an educational discussion on what types of plants grow best in this area, when to prune and more. Click here for more information.

Covenants Revision Committee

This committee is formed, when needed, to update the neighborhood covenants, which have legal implications for the neighborhood as a whole, and affects all property owners, not just JHAA members.

By-Laws Committee

The by-laws define the governing structure and membership requirements of the JHAA. This committee works to keep our association by-laws up to date, adding new material as needed.

Other Ideas?

If you have other ideas for committees, please share them on the forum by sending an email to jhaamobile@yahoogroups.com.

You must be a member of the forum in order to post a message. Click here for details.