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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/01/2012 CRC MinutesMINUTES COMMUNITY RELATIONS COMMISSION Community Center, Village Hall Thursday, November 1, 2012 I. CALL TO ORDER The Community Relations Commission (CRC) of the Village of Mount Prospect met Thursday, November 1, 2012, at 7:07 p.m. at Mount Prospect Village Hall located at 50 South Emerson Street, Mount Prospect, Illinois. II. ROLL CALL Present: Chairman Tolbert Commissioner Parikh Commissioner Ortiz Commissioner Schmalzer Absent: Commissioner Rose Also in Attendance: Mayor Irvana Wilks Deputy Chief John Wagner Allison Milld Clements, Director of Housing Initiatives at the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A motion was made by Commissioner Parikh and seconded by Commissioner Schmalzer to approve the minutes of the August 2, 2012, meeting. The minutes were unanimously approved by voice vote. IV. CITIZENS TO BE HEARD None Present V. NEW BUSINESS Presentation Ms. Allison Mild Clements, Director of Housing Initiatives at the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus, attended the meeting to give a power point presentation on Immigrant Integration in Chicago's Suburbs: A survev of Current Activities and Efforts Report (a copy of the power point is attached). At the conclusion of the presentation, Mayor Wilks began the discussion by asking the commission if anything stood out in the report. After a lengthy discussion, the consensus of the commission members on the problems faced by the immigrants was: communication issues, understanding laws and cultural differences. They also agreed the ethnicity of the majority of immigrants in Mount Prospect were of Hispanic, Asian and Eastern European (Polish, Russian). Mayor Wilks inquired if the police ask immigration status as a matter of practice and Deputy Chief Wagner advised the police do not ask. He explained the only instances of inquiry as to citizenship are after an arrest is made. During the booking process, there is a matter of consular notification. For some countries there is mandatory reporting of arrests and some are optional based on the arrestees desire to tell the consulate. Mayor Wilks requested a copy of the consular notification book for the commission's review. Deputy Chief Wagner provided Mayor Wilkes with a listing of those countries requiring mandatory notification of their arrested citizens. CRC Minutes 11101/12 Page 1 of 2 There was also a discussion on minority groupings in neighborhoods, which brought up the questions of why it occurs. Commissioners Ortiz and Parikh related from experience that the key to Mount Prospect is based on knowing someone that is already living in Mount Prospect. If they have family or friends already living in Mount Prospect, they feel safe as an extended family unit. Other key factors include available jobs, transportation, schools and readily available services. Speaker Allison Mild Clements suggested inviting Rob Paral to give a presentation on where immigrants are located based upon census data. Mayor Wilks knew of the speaker and suggested it would be good to invite Village Trustees to such a presentation should it occur. Commissioner Parikh mentioned having a History Month, where speakers from different countries could speak about their countries so there is a better understanding of different cultures and practices. Food Drive Commissioner Schmalzer reported the food drive netted $90 in donations including food collected this past weekend. Chairman Tolbert thanked Allison Mild Clements for her presentation. The next meeting will be held on December 6, 2012. VI. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 10:18 p.m. after a motion was made by Commissioner Ortiz and seconded by Commissioner Parikh. The motion was approved unanimously. Respectfully submitted, e - 4� ' � a r�� John agner Deputy Chief of Police CRC Minutes 11/01/12 Page 2 of 2