On the agenda for tonight's meeting of the Parks and Recreation Committee of the City Council is a presentation by area race coordinator George Regan of a proposal to take over the city's annual Turkey Trot event.

According to Committee Chair Gary Galuski, the city coordinator that used to run the event retired late last year, and as for now the city does not have a replacement. Regan has planned or had some level of involvement in Turkey Trot events in the past, as well as a number of other race events like the Freihofer's Run for Women.

The Parks and Recreation Committee meeting begins at 6 p.m. Galuski said he also hopes to get some answers about dogs parks in the city, particularly the closed dog park at Beman Park. For back story on this issue, here is a February article by Tom Caprood outlining the whole dog park drama. Check out tomorrow's issue of the Record for details on Regan's proposal for the Turkey Trot.

It's time to break out the bicycles. The Troy Bike Rescue has organized the Bike! Bike! Northeast event this weekend, April 24-25, complete with workshops, a bike rodeo, food, a film screening and even a dance party for good measure.

From the TBR website:

We are inviting bicycle organizers and volunteers of all kinds from not-so-far-off lands to converge on our post-industrial town for a meeting of the minds on all things bicycle culture in the Northeast US. Through discussions, skillsharing sessions, and bicycle fun, we will come together to learn, share, and build something awesome.

Workshops include Welding for Dummies, tips and rules for urban riding, "upcycling" (turning non-recyclable bike parts into fun & useful things), a presentation of the Albany Bike Master Plan and more. A complete listing of all the workshops is available here.

Registration for the weekend is on a sliding scale from $10-$30, and those interested in attending should register online here. There will also be a show Saturday night at 7 p.m. featuring Blisterpack and BEWARE! The Other Head of Science.

For more information on the event click here. Here is the complete press release.

The popular Social Media Breakfast - Tech Valley series is coming to Troy and will feature City Councilman Ken Zalewski speaking on the topic of social media and technology with respect to transparency in government. Noel Hidalgo, director of technology innovation for the New York State Senate will also speak at the free event, taking place this Friday, April 16 at 8 a.m. at the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center at RPI.

Zalewski, a graduate of RPI and self-described "computer geek" (at least according to his Twitter bio), recently was instrumental in the creation of a Technology Comittee for the City Council.

This is the 6th event in the series, which is free and open to the public with required registration. Tickets are still available for Friday's event, and breakfast (bagels, coffee and juice) is included. For those that can't make it, the event will also be live-streamed courtesy of MZA Multimedia.

Thursday's meeting of the Public Safety Committee is shaping up to be an interesting one, with the selection of a new police chief and a possible reduction in the Community Policing Unit up for discussion.

Committee Chairman Bill Dunne has asked that the City Council be allowed to interview police chief candidates, and said at this point he's trying to get a straight answer from the Mayor about the police chief appointment process. The Mayor's office has declined to comment on Dunne's request.

In an e-mail to Troy residents, Councilman Ken Zalewski, D-District 5, expressed distress over the potential reduction of the Community Policing Unit, writing:

It is my opinion that community policing is one of the most successful programs run by the Troy Police Department, and I - along with many neighborhood leaders - have been calling for additional staffing within CPU, in order to build upon the success of this program. Reducing staff in CPU runs completely counter to my contention that community-based policing is the most effective manner in which to address the issues that plague our neighborhoods.

The meeting will take place Thursday, April 15 at 6 p.m. in the 2nd floor conference room at City Hall on 1776 Sixth Ave. Following at 7 p.m. is the Planning Committee meeting, at which the administration will give an update of the downtown parking meter project.

On Saturday, April 10 beginning at 10 a.m. tenants from the Troy Housing Authority's Taylor Apartments and volunteers from the Alley Action project will be painting a mural by the basketball and picnic area under the Congress Street Bridge.

Sid Fleisher and Barbara Nelson have been working on the Alley Action program in Troy over the past few years, and completed a book in 2006 called "The Troy Alley Improvement Project". The project encourages people to take ownership of their neighborhoods through community action, and they have organized several of these paint-by-number style murals.

The wall has already been cleaned and primed with the help of the Rensselaer County Jail work release program, and the main part of the drawing was applied to the wall last night. More information is available at www.trolleyaction.org, or stop by tomorrow and see the painting in action for yourself. Below is a flier with more information.

Alley Action Project Taylor Apartments Mural Painting Event

Mayor Harry Tutunjian announced today his recommendations for the distribution of Community Development Block Grant funding, including $1.2 million towards reinvestment in South Troy and $165,942 towards the expansion of recreational facilities like Knickerbacker Pool and Frear Park.

The recommendations are part of the 2010 One Year Action Plan, up for vote before the City Council.

According to the Mayor's recommendations, it appears that this year's CDBG funding has increased by over $800,000 when compared to last year's CDBG recommendations. According to Deputy Director of Public Information Jeff Pirro, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development discovered internally last year that it was under-allocating funds to certain cities, like Troy, and as a result has given Troy more money this year to correct that.

Additionally, $250,000 of the extra money is a result of the city no longer having to make loan repayments to Vulcan Properties as part of the River Triangle Building Rehabilitation.

Councilman Mark McGrath, R-District 2, released a statement in support of the investment in Knickerbacker Pool, saying "I support this plan with the understanding that our kids are our most important asset."

Below is the full list of recommendations released by Tutunjian. What do you think? Are there areas that could use more CDBG funding? How do you feel about the reinvestment in South Troy?

Project	Applicant	Amount
Planning and Administration		$410,000
CDBG Program Administration	City of Troy (Housing)	$400,000
Homelessness Management Information Systems	Corporation for AIDS Research, Education, and Services, Inc.	$10,000
Neighborhood Livibility		$750,000
Street Improvements (Street Paving)	City of Troy (DPW/Engineering)	$300,000
Code Enforcement	City of Troy (Code Enforcement)	$300,000
Elevator for Wheelchair access to 15-17 3rd Street	Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley	$50,000
Vacant Building Demolitions	City of Troy (Code Enforcement/Public Works)	$100,000
Recreation		$165,942
Refurbish Kncikerbacker Pool Locker Room & Bathrooms	Recreation Dept.	$20,000
Frear Park Pavilion Restroom	Recreation Dept.	$40,000
Frear Park Tennis Court Resurfacing	Recreation Dept.	$40,000
Frear Park Fountain Repair	Recreation Dept.	$30,000
City-wide Park Fencing	Recreation Dept.	$35,942
South Troy Area Reinvestment		$1,200,000
South Troy Reinvestment Target Area	City of Troy Enginnering/ Housing	$1,200,000
Decent Housing		$100,000
Homeowner Housing & Energy Improvement Program	City of Troy (Housing)	$100,000
Public Service		$180,000
After School Child Care and Summer Camp Scholarships	Troy Youth Association, Inc.	$25,000
School Age Child Care Program Scholarship Fund	Lansingburgh Boys & Girls Club	$25,000
After School Program & Teen Program	Troy Boys & Girls Club	$25,000
Roarke Connections	Roarke Center (Catholic Charities)	$20,000
Daycare for Working Poor Families	Catholic Charities: Sunnyside Child Dev.	$20,000
Ready for Work Program	YWCA	$15,000
Joseph's House & Shelter	Joseph's House	$30,000
Unity House Domestic Violence Career Development	Unity House of Troy	$20,000
Homelessness		$90,498
Domestic Violence Shelter Operating Expenses	Unity House of Troy	$24,998
TAUM Furniture Program	Troy Area United Ministries	$13,000
Joseph's House & Shelter	Joseph's House	$32,500
Women In Transition Program	YWCA	$20,000
HOME		$755,942
HOME Administration	City of Troy (Housing)	$70,915
HOME Homebuyer Incentive Program	City of Troy (Housing)	$100,000
HOME Homebuyer Incentive Program (South Troy)		$200,000
Making Homeownership A Reality	THDC-THA	$350,027
THDC CHDO Operating Expenses	THDC-THA	$35,000