SWAT's Going On Tomorrow!

There will be a SWAT training exercise in Creekside at 2 p.m. tomorrow.

Anyone that wants to swing by the 4900 block of Winamac is welcome.

Kids who come will be given pencils, stickers, coloring books and will have the opportunity to take photos with the SWAT team and K-9 Dogs (and officers).

Folks are invited to stick around to watch the training after which tours of the Command Post Motor Home will be offered.

Hope to see you there!

Districts Puts Community Day School Plan On Hold

The Natomas Unified School District board of trustees last night voted unanimously to delay opening a community day school program in August.

The decision came after nearly two hours of discussion and public testimony about the June 18 decision to start a program for at-risk students and plans to place it temporarily on the H. Allen Hight Learning Center campus in the Creekside neighborhood.

About 30 people attended the meeting and at least a dozen testified during the public comment portion of the proceedings. Nearly all comments boiled down to the same thing: members of the community were not against starting a community day school but wanted to be involved in the process which should not be rushed to "meet some arbitrary deadline."

Trustees voted (Dwyer-Voss was absent from the meeting) to delay opening a community day school and to send those students who were slated for the program to one operated by the Sacramento County Office of Education.

The board also approved hiring a full-time employee responsible for keeping a school district connection with these students in an effort to transition them back to a program in Natomas in the future.

Also approved was holding community meetings seeking input when developing the community day school. The board of trustees asked to revisit the issue in three months.

Speak Up Now Or Forever Hold Your Peace: NUSD Officials To Revisit Community Day School Decision

Topic On School Board Meeting Set For Tonight

The controversial issue whether the Natomas Unified School District should locate a community day school on its newest K-8 campus is slated for further discussion tonight.

The board of trustees meeting 6:30 p.m. at 1901 Arena Blvd. is a follow-up to community forum held last week on the same topic. While THE BUZZ was not able to attend the proceedings, we did catch up with area residents afterward to get their feel for the meeting.

At issue is the school district's June 18 public hearing and subsequent action to approve placing a community day school on the H. Allen Hight Learning Center campus, located on the corner of North Park Drive and East Commerce. Several Creekside, Hamptons and Natomas Park residents protested once alerted to the decision by a group of concerned parents.

A meeting between Creekside neighborhood watch leader Sean Avalos and district officials, including Superintendent Steve Farrar, led to last week's community forum and the issue being revisited tonight by school trustees as an action item.

About 50 people attended the two-hour session last week which covered the plans to temporarily house a community day school for up to 22 students on the middle school section of Hight.

The district's failure to notify area residents beforehand of the plan, or seek their input, appears to be the major point of contention surrounding this issue. The urgency placed on the June 18 decision also has some calling foul, saying it is "too important to be too rushed."

Not only have neighborhood leaders voiced opposition to the plan, but sources tell THE BUZZ that the Natomas teacher's union will speak against the move tonight. More than one school board member has said those opposed to a community day school program at Hight should plan to comment at the meeting tonight if there is any hope their previous decision will be reversed.

Public comment at tonight's meeting related to the proposed day school, will be limited to three minutes per speaker, and will be heard during the time allotted only. Once the discussion has taken place the school board is expected to vote "yes" or "no" to the day school placement at Hight.

Other details gleaned from last week's community forum about the program:

• The day school is for middle school students.
• There are eight children currently enrolled to attend for this year (August 2008).
• They are students who have been removed from regular public school for various reasons.
• The students are selected for this program based on an inability to be successful in a regular middle school setting (Heron, NMS or Leroy Green).
• The students will have been suspended at least 19 days for multiple purposes (ex: fighting).
• The capacity for the program is 22 children.
• The staffing ratio is 1 to 11.
• The school district says they have nowhere else to house the program.
• The district says that Hight is a temporary location, but does not indicate for how long.
• One requirement from the State for a Day School requires that it is on a separate campus.

At last week's meeting, some parents of the 400+ children enrolled to start at Hight in August expressed concern about not being told about the community day school plans -- even though the district has means of contacting them. They also questioned whether a temporary setting would be best for "high risk" youth the program is intended to serve.

Some residents felt the program, and the children being served by the program, deserve a more thorough and permanent plan and that the district should forgo starting this year at Hight. They feel the eight students already enrolled should be placed in an existing classroom on another campus or be allowed to attend a day school program provided by the Sacramento County Office of Education until the district can prepare a place specific to their needs.

KJ Makes The Rounds In Natomas

First, mayoral candidate Kevin Johnson sat down with Creekside residents to talk turkey, then he attended the recent community forum at Inderkum H.S. and now he's scheduled to stop by the North Natomas Alliance meeting 7:30 p.m. Thursday at The Club, 2101 Club Center Drive.

KJ tells NNA leadership he'll be stopping by between 7:30 and 8:30 p.m. to chat and take questions and comments from North Natomas residents. Other topics on the NNA agenda include crime, empty lots and plans for new development.

"(Kevin Johnson) wants to hear what is on our minds, and what are our biggest concerns as we move forward," says Michael Brickner of NNA. "My hope is that you can give this time with Kevin a lot of thought so that he will leave with many points to ponder about North Natomas."

What follows is a summary from KJ and what he gleaned from the Creekside meeting:

I had the pleasure of attending the Creekside Natomas Neighborhood Association meeting on June 18, 2008. It was very clear from the comments, that many of the residents feel Natomas has not realized the lofty goals that drove its original conception and development. They were frustrated because:

1) They felt the community had been planned through isolated decision making. The result has been a community that currently has a lack of safe walking and biking paths and too little planning and funding of the regional park. To correct those missteps, they thought an important role of the next Mayor of Sacramento is to help plan the continued growth of Natomas in a collaborative manner that considers how decisions will affect the community as a whole.

2) There are a number of vacant buildings, stripmalls, foreclosed homes and unkept lots and yards that do not show the pride and vibrancy of the neighborhood.

3) Low-income housing is not distributed throughout the community; instead, developers have placed these units in certain pockets. The residents felt that that created an isolated dynamic that was not positive for the community.

4) The lack of technological jobs in Natomas, explaining that many Natomas residents have technology backgrounds that arenʼt being utilized.

5) They feel that public safety is not prioritized. There’s a lack of a Fire station on the west side of I-5, a police substation and of more officers to respond to property crimes. Though they were appreciative of the work of Dan Hahn, they stated that they needed the officer force necessary to investigate all of the crimes that were committed.

6) There are not enough meaningful programs and services for youth.

My Response:

When I asked residents why they decided to attend that nightʼs meeting they cited a strong commitment to the community and a specific interest in the growth of the neighborhood as it affects their family and friends. I understand the frustration Natomas residents feel about the disconnect from Sacramento, and I will help to foster the unrealized potential of this community by continuing these productive discussions and moving forward on critical actions. Natomas residents want the next Mayor of Sacramento to ensure that tax dollars will be appropriately spent on public safety, including police and fire protection. I will ensure that the community has access to their fair share of these important city resources.

Speaking Of Famous

Channel 13 visited the Creekside community yesterday as neighbors there came together to celebrate 4th of July.



The news angle? Natomas residents declaring their "independence" and not being scared indoors by criminals.




Woot! Raise the flag and strike up the band -- we live here and we will not live in fear!

Don't Forget: Community Day School Forum At Heron K-8 School Tonight!

Here is a copy of the Natomas Unified School District's Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) revised after meeting with representatives from Creekside.

District officials say the decision to place the proposed Community Day School at the H. Allen Hight campus will be on the agenda for the board of trustees' July 9 meeting -- as an action item.

Community Day School FAQ - Upload a Document to Scribd

Read this document on Scribd: Community Day School FAQ

Natomas Residents Respond To School District Officials' Plans For Community Day School

A seemingly innocuous item on the Natomas Unified School District board of trustees' agenda last week has since generated outcry by some area residents.

The item in question appeared on the school board's June 18 agenda as follows:

XIV. PUBLIC HEARINGS
a. Proposal to establish a Community Day School for grades six - eight within the Natomas Unified School District Time Certain: 06:50 PM

Residents in Creekside, Hamptons and Natomas Park tell THE BUZZ they weren't aware of the proposed community day school or that it had any bearing on their community -- being located at the brand-new H. Allen Hight Learning Center -- until a few days after trustees approved the proposal. There was no public comment.

That's when area resident Darryl White, also a member of the grassroots Natomas Parent Alliance Organization, started passing out these fliers at a neighborhood garage sale held over the weekend:

"It is clear the Natomas School District is trying to put one over on the Creekside and Hampton community regarding its placement of the Community Day School Program on the Hight campus," White tells THE BUZZ. "Placement of a program with negative community potential in any neighborhood one would think the district has enough respect for the community to ask first."

To say White's fliers ignited a firestorm is an understatement as a flurry of telephone calls and electronic messages were exchanged between community leaders, school district reps, and other entities.

"What I can tell you is that several board members (I specifically) voiced serious concern and disappointment in the fact that this proposal was not an information item and very unhappy that it was an action item," trustee Lisa Kaplan tells THE BUZZ. "It was expressed to the board that this item needed to be voted on so that it could be presented to the (California Department of Education) at its July hearing for review and approval."

Kaplan says she and the other trustees were told they could not delay voting on the proposed community day school if the district planned to open one this year. The reason, she says, is the state Department of Education meets in July and then again in September -- which would be too late for the school to open on August 11 as planned.

"The board's approval of the plan was conditioned on the fact that this was needed for California Department of Education review and approval only and if the board did not feel our questions and concerns about the success of this program were satisfactorily answered by the district we could pull the approval of opening the school," she adds.

But Creekside residents call into question both the timing of last week's vote and the district's failure to include the neighborhood in their planning process for a community day school.

"(They cannot) say they did not know us -- since obviously they do," says Angelique Ashby, president of the Creekside homeowner association. "(The district) asked us for help reaching out to get folks to the (H. Allen Hight) introduction meetings and registrations."

Kaplan confirmed the board asked the Natomas district to move toward establishing a community day school for middle school-age students about a year ago.

"The board has had several public discussions regarding the establishment a community day school for kids from our community since 2006," said board president Ron Dwyer-Voss. "The decision to locate it, for now, at H.Allen Hight was a recent development based on the availability of space."

Agenda documents show a committee was formed consisting of two middle school principals, the Discovery High School Principal, the middle grades Opportunity Teacher, the Assistant Superintendent for Facilities and Planning and representatives from Student Services and Special Education as a result of this action.

The committee reviewed several models provided by the California Department of Education, made recommendations and developed the proposal trustees later voted to approve. According to these same documents, reps on the state level have already reviewed the proposal and made recommendations to assure its approval at the State Board of Education's meeting on July 11.

Students expected to attend the new community day school are 11 to 14 year olds who live in Natomas. They will reportedly be in a closed campus environment, and not free to roam the neighborhood or elementary portion of the school.

"They are kids who have made a mistake or are not fitting into our traditional, large middle schools very well and need a more focused environment with a higher staff-student ratio," Dwyer-Voss says. "They are not children who pose a danger to the neighborhood or elementary students at the school."

Currently, Natomas students go to school community day school in another area. It's Dwyer-Voss' opinion, however, "schooling options provided by the county office of education or other districts for these students are not up to our community's standards, and therefore we do well by our kids to run our own community day school."

According to Dwyer-Voss, the Natomas district will be more effective -- educationally and financially -- running its own community day school.

The proposal presented to trustees last week indicates the district expects 16 students in the new program and that the district will receive an additional $5,485.53 per student in the program. The numbers also indicate the district could net more than $9,000 in revenue after school expenses.

Despite Dwyer-Voss' assurances the community day school would not impact on the surrounding neighborhood beyond the normal traffic that comes with a school, he agrees with area residents the district should have met with the community.

"What is most disconcerting to residents of Creekside and Natomas Park was the lack of notice and opportunity for public comment on such an important issue," Sean Avalos, Creekside Neighborhood Watch program coordinator said Thursday night. "I met with Board President Ron Dwyer-Ross and Superintendent Dr. Steve Farrar this evening. They both agreed that the community did not have an adequate opportunity to review and comment on the proposal prior to the NUSD Board approval of this action item."

The Natomas Unified School District has agreed to hold a public informational meeting on 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on July 1, at Heron School. At this meeting, area residents will have an opportunity to review the plan and ask questions about the community day school program.

According to Avalos, on trustees' July 9 meeting agenda the district will have an action item whether or not the community day school should be placed on the H. Allen Hight Learning Center campus.

"I do believe in the success of a CDS and that we can develop one that will meet the needs of our students who are having difficulty in school and their personal life," says Kaplan. "Now with that said, I do believe in making sure we start off on the right foot with a well thought out plan to optimize the success of a community day school."

NUSD Approves Community Day School For Hight Campus, Area Residents Voice Concern

Here is a FAQ sheet released today by the Natomas Unified School District to answer questions posed since the district's board of trustees approved placement of a Community Day School at H. Allen Hight.

THE BUZZ has been contacted by several parties, namely Creekside neighborhood leadership, dismayed by the NUSD trustee's actions last week.

NATOMAS BUZZ readers in Creekside and Natomas Park question why the community was not included in the decision-making process and the long-term implications of placing a Community Day School on the brand-new Hight Learning Center campus.

More reporting to come...

Why the children of the Natomas Unified School District need a Community Day School
source: Natomas Unified School District

June 25, 2008

What is the Natomas Community Day School?
The Natomas Community Day School is an alternative education program that will serve up to 22 students in grades 6-8 who will receive specialized services in a small-group setting with the goal of returning them to their regular schools. These students will receive academic, social and psychological services designed to help them be successful in school and in life.

Who are the prospective students of the Community Day School?
The students of the Natomas Community Day School are students from our middle schools who have been referred to this program because of low attendance and poor academic performance. Some but not all of the stu-dents may have been expelled from their regular school but are eligible to return to their regular schools upon successful completion of this program.

Why does the Natomas Unified School District need a Community Day School?
Normally students who have been expelled from their regular school or referred to an alternative education program are transferred to a county-operated Community Day School outside of the community. Our Board of Trustees’ preference is that we serve our students in our home community and return them as quickly as possible to their regular school. This keeps their education accountable to the community and to parents, which is not the case in a county-run school in another community.

Why was the H. Allen Hight Middle School chosen as the site?
After surveying existing facilities, the unused middle-school portion of the H. Allen Hight Learning Center was determined to be the most financially and educationally suitable location. Students will be located in a classroom on the west side of the school on the first floor.

How will the Community Day School impact the neighborhood?
Students will be either dropped off and picked up by their parents or by a district school bus. Students will re-main on-site for the entire school day.

What about the flier I received stating that this program will bring increased crime, gang activity and drug use to the area?
Our goal is to serve Natomas students in their home community. Students will be supervised at all times by staff members and will not be allowed off campus. Community Day Schools have a higher student-staff ratio than traditional schools. It is regrettable that “scare tactics” such as those used in the flier are being used against efforts to help our children.

How was this program approved?
The Natomas Unified School District Board of Trustees has been discussing a proposed Community Day School for more than a year. At the April 9, 2008, board meeting, trustees received for first reading a new Board Policy 6185 establishing a Community Day School and approval was given on May 14. At the June 11, 2008, board meeting, trustees approved the establishment of the Community Day School at the H. Allen Hight Learning Center.

What are the next steps?
The Natomas Community Day School is scheduled to open Monday, August 11, 2008 (the same day our modified traditional schools open), with an estimated 22 students in grades 6-8. We look forward to working with our community and parents to help them understand the need for the Natomas Community Day School.

How can I get more information about the Community Day School?
Please see our district website at http://www.natomas.k12.ca.us for program information and to download the official proposal for the Natomas Community Day School. We also plan to host a community Open House and look forward to working with our community, parents and neighbors in helping the students of the Natomas Community Day School be a success in school and in life. For further information on the Natomas Community Day School, please contact David Hunt, Coordinator of Educational Operations, at 567.5414 or email him at dhunt@natomas.k12.ca.us. If you’d like to be added to our contact list for the Natomas Community Day School, please email Public Information Officer Heidi Van Zant at hvanzant@natomas.k12.ca.us.

Keepin' Cool In Creekside

The first-ever Creekside neighborhood yard sale was a big hit yesterday!

More than a half dozen homes participated in the sale organized by the Creekside North Platte Neighborhood Watch Group. Sources tell THE BUZZ folks enjoyed mingling up and down the street, getting to know each other, and finding treasures along the way.

Despite the triple-digit temps, neighborhood kids, like the one pictured here, sold lemonade to help keep everyone cool.

"These types of get-togethers create a real sense of community pride and bring us all closer together -- excellent job North Platte Team!"

-Angelique Ashby,
president Creekside HOA

Happening In The Neighborhood

The Creekside North Platte Neighborhood Watch Team will hold a neighborhood garage sale starting at 8 a.m. tomorrow (Saturday) morning.

Several homes on North Platte and/or adjoining courts and streets will be participating in the community-wide sale.

Rumor has it some Creekside kiddos will be selling lemonade.

On Sunday, Natomas Middle School students are having a car wash to raise funds for a trip to Washington D.C. in 2009.

Bring your car down to the school, located on Del Paso Road across from Westlake, anytime between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. to support the cause.

KJ Meets With Creekside

Candidate-for-mayor Kevin Johnson was in Natomas tonight to attend the Creekside HOA meeting tonight.

KJ reportedly asked to attend the monthly Creekside Neighborhood Association meetings. The former NBA star spent about an hour having a very open conversation with Creekside neighbors and reps from neighboring homeowner groups.

Highlights:

• KJ's top priority citywide is public safety. He has some ideas about he wants to do to achieve that goal.
• Second priority is education. His mechanism for supporting education in Sacramento is to create partnerships with other entities (like school districts, after-school programs, etc.).
• Third priority is the business community. His focus is on small businesses and maintaining an environment conducive to growing business. He wants to keep the businesses we have and also recruit new ones.

Those at the meeting gave the mayoral candidate lots to think about: crime and safety, firehouses, more police, built out parks (particularly the Regional lot), vacant homes and businesses, code enforcement, taxes and finances allocated to Natomas, community centers, sub-stations, the master plan, inclusionary housing...

At the same time, those from the community pointed out our neighborhood's positives: wonderful neighbors, active grassroots community leadership, passionate efforts, open and widespread communication, and hope.

Sources tell THE BUZZ, KJ did not know a lot about North Natomas, but he seemed interested to learn.

Said one neighborhood leader who attended, "In all, the exchange was overdue but exciting and hopefully a start to more interest from the candidates in what is important to Natomas."

Police Investigate North Natomas Homocide

Update from Capt. Hahn as of 5/16: Homicide investigators are still making progress on this murder, but there is nothing new that I can report. Please keep in mind that on major cases we do not initially release a lot of information on the case because we do not want to jeopardize the investigation -- especially prior to clearing the case/making an arrest. I know that the community is very concerned about this incident (as are we), but rest assured I will provide updates as we go along and be able to give you more information when we solve this case. Also, we still do not believe this is random act of violence.

The Sacramento Police Department is investigating the death of woman at Homecoming Apartments this morning.

At 8:23 a.m., the Sacramento Fire Department arrived at 4800 Kokomo Drive in response to a call regarding an unresponsive female.

The victim was located in the common area of the apartment complex by a maintenance worker, near building 25. Medics pronounced the 27-year-old female dead on the scene at 8:27 a.m.

Sac PD's Homicide Unit, along with the Crime Scene Investigations Unit, responded to the scene and took over the investigation. At this time, detectives believe the victim was shot in the upper body.

It is believed the victim was a resident of the apartment complex. A motive for the shooting has yet to be determined.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to contact CRIME ALERT at (916) 443-HELP. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward up to $1,000.

Click here for Sac Bee coverage.

Creekside Gets a New Path

Now teenagers don't have to walk along Del Paso or through mud to get to school. Photo courtesy Angelique Ashby.








Our neighbors in Creekside are now connected to the Regional Park thanks to a new linear path that runs along Broadwater and connects to a path which leads straight to Inderkum High School.

Take Back The Park

Here at THE BUZZ we are hard pressed to think of any other post that has generated as much reader response in such a short period of time as the one about Kokomo Park.

Needless to say, this community park is at the heart of Creekside's success as a neighborhood.

Over coffee this morning, some mom-types were talking about Capt. Hahn's suggestion.

Wouldn't it be great if we could just take back the park from vandals and unruly youth, much in the same way we take back the night from sexual predators and other criminals?

Ideally, a group would be present at the park at the same time every day.

Interested in participating in such a movement? Send a message to THE BUZZ now!

Update: THE BUZZ has already received an offer from someone to be a "park mom" -- anyone else care to join in?

Creekside Clean Up A Success

The Creekside development had quite a turnout Sunday for its first-ever Creek Week cleanup.

Nearly 40 people showed up to participate. While the majority of participants were Creekside residents, neighbors from Westlake and Natomas Park also joined in.

Councilman Ray Tretheway as well as Sacramento police Capt. Daniel Hahn and his daughter stopped by to help out. Also, Rosemarie Ruggieri, from the Natomas Community Alliance, and her family pitched in.

Seven very full garbage bags of waste were picked up. It was a great morning!

-Submitted by Sean P. Avalos

Reminder: Creekside Clean-Up Sunday!

Join Creekside residents for their first "Earth Day" Creek Week Clean-Up 9 a.m. Sunday at 2921 North Platte.

The morning will start with donuts and coffee and then cleaning up the creek for about an hour.

This is a great way to help care for our environment, meet some neighbors and spend time with your family and friends...

What Can Be Done About Kokomo Park?

A North Natomas mom sent the following to area MOMS Club members after a recent visit to Kokomo Park in Creekside.

I just wanted to pass along a warning about Kokomo Park. Last week Nicholas and I had a horrible experience playing there:

1. Some kids stole his sand toys -- it was an obvious theft (they waited until we went to the car and took off with them).
2. I have strong reasons to believe there were drug deals going on while we were there.
3. Of the three times we've been there, there have been unattended/unsupervised young children playing there.

I will never go to that park again and highly recommend that you avoid it as well for your own safety.

Kokomo Park has been subject to vandalism almost since its opening. What do you think the community do to clean it up and make it safer?

Community leaders respond:

"I am very sorry to hear about the negative experience that this family had at Kokomo Park. Kokomo is the neighborhood park in Creekside. We have many families who actively participate in the ongoing effort to help our little community reach its potential.

This park is a beautiful place - no doubt the reason you originally took your little one there to play. We have worked diligently as a neighborhood association to keep the park maintained.

All of our equipment is nice and well kept. The sand box is cleaned regularly and the rolling grass fields are green as can be. We even have some unique artwork to be proud of in Kokomo Park.

However, we have also had our challenges with graffiti and vandalism. What I can tell you is that problems that have been reported to the City and/or the police have been promptly addressed.

I would encourage anyone who sees graffiti to contact code enforcement at 808-5948 and anyone who sees unattended children to report that to the police [the non-emergency number is 264-5471 and if the problem is an imminent danger or risk then please call 911].

Kokomo is a busy -- very busy park. The parks and recreation department has worked with our community to reduce the numbers of permits issued and increase the amount of maintenance because the park is over-used for its size and design.

The consensus of our community is that this little park is a substitute for the large regional park that is to come in North Natomas [just a block or two away].

Kokomo has so much to offer with the wide range of amenities and is very visible from the main streets of Del Paso and I-5, that is why we are challenged with so many visitors.

I want to apologize on behalf of the community for the negative experience you and your son encountered.

I also want to invite you back. I have a three year old son and at least two of our other Board members have children under the age of 4 as well.

We would love to arrange a play date and an opportunity to meet you and hopefully introduce you to the side of Kokomo that we have experienced and will continue to fight for - a family friendly environment open to everyone!"

-Angelique Ashby, President

Creekside Neighborhood Association
ashbyangelique@yahoo.com

"It is very unfortunate that a mom and her son had a bad experience in this park.

I would be very interested in getting more information (especially the drug dealing) about what happened/ happens in this park (ie times of drug dealing, area of the park, age etc.).

I am very concerned since this mother wants to essentially abandon the park, although very understandable in view of what happened to her.

Maybe the community can set up a way for several moms to go to the park at set times to discourage the bad element from being there... the more positive things we have there and the sooner we do it, the less a foot hold the bad element can have in the park.

We cannot let this park be taken over by bad folks. My contact is dhahn (at) pd (dot) cityofscramento (dog) org. "

-Captain Daniel Hahn

Principal Named For Hight School

Hervey A. Taylor, III has been named principal of the new H. Allen Hight School opening this fall in Creekside.

Taylor currently holds the Interim Principal post at American Lakes Elementary school.

Taylor previously worked at Natomas Middle School for six years. He started as a history teacher and later served as Vice Principal for three years.

In 2004-05, Taylor was selected as the Teacher of the Year for the Natomas Unified School District.

"My mission as principal is to be an instructional leader and to provide each student with the opportunity to learn in a safe, secure and nurturing environment," Taylor writes on the American Lakes Elementary School website.

A community meeting to be held 6 p.m. on April 24 at Natomas Park Elementary School to discuss Hight. Any of those who live in the district and have children who could potentially attend the new school should attend.


Other important details:

1. The first day of school is August 11, 2008.
2. Right now the plan is to start the school with grades K-5.
3. Children who are 5 years old on or before December 2nd are eligible to enroll in the Kindergarten class.

Another Creekside Clean-up In The Works

The Creekside Neighborhood Association would like to invite their neighbors to participate in the first Creekside Creek Week Clean-up.

The Creekside community clean-up after the mini-tornado in January was a HUGE success and the neighborhood wants to continue to keep Creekside safe and clean.

The City of Sacramento celebrates Creek Week from April 18 through April 26. Creekside will join in on Sunday, April 20.

Neighbors are asked to meet at 2921 N Platte Way at 9 a.m. for coffee and donuts.

Participants will then make their way to the linear park and clean up our "creek" for about an hour or so.

This is a great opportunity to meet your neighbors and build community pride.

Don't forget to bring the kids and make this a family event.

Gloves and trash bags will be provided.

If you have any questions, please contact Neighborhood Watch Leader Sean Avalos at 419-8612.

Neighborhood Security Beefed Up

Photos of BB gun damage by BUZZ reader Yves Bouyssounouse.

In light of the bicycle robberies and the window "shoot out" fest, Paladin has increased patrol service over the weekend.

There will be an additional officer out and about, dedicated to Natomas Park for 5 hours each night and another 5 hours in Regency Park and Natomas Park Apts.

Thanks to Paladin (again) for quickly responding to crime concerns in our community and generating a plan to assist.