HAPPY NEW YEAR 2007!

January 2007

BHA PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

Gelukkige Nuwejaar!!! (Happy New Year) from South Africa. I hope everyone has recovered from the parties. I want to wish you all the best of health in the coming year (me too).

We have had a good year in 2006 with very successful events such as the Garden Tour, House Tour, and Flea Market. We have added a very active Membership Committee which has done many new things, not the least of which is having a table at every meeting with all kinds of Butchers Hill clothing and various other goodies. We have also have seen some great upgrades in our neighborhood such as new signs and the mural on Chester Street as well as changes to our website.

We have continued our outreach to our local schools and look forward to working closely with our Hispanic community. Also, we continue to see growth in our neighborhood with renovations and new homes being built. And we have added two new restaurants this year. Our Land Use Committee continues to do a great job of managing the many challenges of growth. Our Crime Committee has stayed on top of the goings-on. I am thankful for all the hours of volunteer work that makes a difference.

The outgoing Executive Committee can report that we have kept most everything in budget and added new revenue sources. We have also made assurances for future members to be secure in serving our community.

As I look forward to the New Year I see our challenge as being able to keep up this momentum. I hope that everyone considered Butchers Hill when you made your New Year's resolution. I look forward to working with our new Executive Committee, which has some new faces. This month is election month and we look forward to seeing all BHA members vote.

-Richard Hackett.

Let us begin the new year with a note of thanks and appreciation to all our reliable distributors who ensure, month after month, that this Newsletter reaches your home: Ann, Bev, Brandon & Hilary, Carol, Carolyn, Carter, Clint, Craig, Greg & Deb, Hal, Jack, Jen, Patty, Tammy, Tish, Tom & Beth, Toni, and Virgil; to Sandy Sales for her unfailingly cheerful and reliable help in production and distribution, and to Liz (as BHA Corresponding Secretary) for mailing the newsletter to our elected officials. And last but not least to Hal Laurent for posting the Newsletter on our website.

-Steve Young, Editor.

BHA COMMITTEES AND MONTHLY MEETINGS

• Crime Prevention/Block Representatives: Wednesday, January 17th, 7 P.M., 2105 E. Baltimore St. The committee meets monthly to share information from our block representatives and to coordinate action. New block representatives wanted; if interested e-mail or call Carolyn: 410-522-4991.
  • Police ask that residents call 410-666-DRUG to report repeated suspected drug activity, but always call 911 if you need immediate police response.
• Butchers Hill Citizens on Patrol (C.O.P.): Butchers Hill Citizens on Patrol (C.O.P.) has been regularly patrolling the neighborhood for over six years, and conducts its walk-arounds on the 2^nd and 4^th Wednesdays of the month. We meet at 7:30 p.m. at the intersection of Patterson Park Ave. and Lombard St. All are welcome. For more information, please contact Evan Helfrich at 410-342-2148 or by e-mail.
• Community Representative, School 27 School Improvement Team: Carolyn Boitnott, 410-522-4991.
• Education Committee: The Education Committee is in need of a committee chair. Please contact Tori Simms 410.675.4948 or Martha DelPizzo 410.522.6046 if interested. This is a strong committee which does most of the work; the chair's role is to organize.
• Flea Market Committee: The Committee met to discuss changes necessary for the next flea market. The date for the next flea market is Saturday, May 12, 2007. The committee will begin meeting in January 2007. If you are interested in participating, please contact Tori Simms at 410-675-4948.
• Membership Committee: Wednesday, January 10th, 7:30 PM, 2110 E. Baltimore St. Contact Kathy Hackett, 410-327-2447 or email. The Membership committee meets on the 2^nd Wednesday of every month. E-mail bhamember@gmail.com to
  • request a new neighbor packet
  • sign up for our monthly e-mail
  • order merchandise
  • nominate an outstanding neighbor for their service.
  NEW NEIGHBORS: See the Moving In link on our web site: www.butchershill.org. If you would like to receive our monthly e-mail with a preview copy of the newsletter, please e-mail bhamember@gmail.com.
• Book Club: Thursday, January 18th, 7:30 PM, 807 S. Montford. There are two selections for January: The Kite Runner, by Khled Hosseini, and Three Junes, by Julia Glass. Contact: Anne Puckett, 410-675-8765 (or email). New members welcome!
• Land Use: Monday, January 15th, 7:00 PM, at the White House, 27 South Patterson Park Ave. The Land Use Committee reminds homeowners in the 2100 and 2200 blocks of E. Baltimore St. and the 2200 block of E. Pratt St. that you live in a City historic district. All exterior work and painting must be submitted to CHAP and Butchers Hill. We are happy to help with any questions. Contact Virgil Bartram: 410-327-4964. CHAP's number is 410-396-4866.
• Events Committee: Monday, January 22nd, 7 PM, 2029 E. Pratt St. Contact Sue Noonan, 410-522-6773 (or e-mail).
• BHA Executive Committee: Tuesday, January 16th at 7:30 PM, 2110 E. Baltimore St. Contact Richard Hackett.
• Streetscape Committee: Streetscape is seeking a new chair; if interested, contact BHA President Rich Hackett.
• Newsletter: The deadline for the FEBRUARY issue is Saturday, Jan. 27th. Contact Steve Young.

JANUARY BUTCHERS HILL GENERAL MEETING

Wednesday, January 3rd. Coffee & cookies, 6:45 p.m. Meeting 7:00 p.m. St. Andrew's Church hall,
corner of Chester & Lombard Streets (entrance on Lombard). Contact Richard Hackett.

AGENDA: Election of Butchers Hill Association Officers for 2007 (see below).

Nominations for Butchers Hill Association Officers for 2007: The Nominating Committee will present the following slate at the January 3rd meeting of the Butchers Hill Association. Nominations from the floor may be made at that time, provided the nominee has consented to serve. You must be a Butchers Hill Association member to vote.

• President: Richard Hackett
• Vice President: Les DelPizzo
• Vice President: John Murphy
• Treasurer: Greg Matanoski
• Corresponding Secretary: Liz Elliott
• Recording Secretary: Jennifer Winslow
• Parliamentarian: Sarah Robaczewski
• Member at Large: Kathy Orr
• Member at Large: Terri Ehrenfeld
• Member at Large: Lynn Writsel

FYI: DUMPSTER VACATION - January and February

Why no Dumpster in January and February? The dumpster must be watched the entire time it is in the neighborhood so illegal dumping does not occur, causing us to lose the privilege of its use. Usually these months are too cold to ask a volunteer to do this job.

Why not have it delivered on a weekend, or Monday/Friday? The Department of Public Works sends the Association a schedule that has Mondays and Fridays blocked out as possible delivery days. Saturday delivery would require volunteers to monitor the dumpster continuously through Saturday night, all of Sunday and Sunday night to make sure there is no illegal dumping and that when it is full no additional trash is put in, causing it to crest over the top or overflow. In the past we have had the experience of weekend dumpsters not only filled with illegal items, but overflowing and trash left all around the dumpster, including the street and sidewalk. Not only does this make it so no one wants the dumpster placed by their house, but the City must then send an additional trash truck and crew to pick up all the trash, pull trash out of the dumpster until it does not stick above the rim. Only then can the dumpster driver, who had to wait while the crew came and did this, take the dumpster. This additional mess and expense can cause a community to be removed from the dumpster-eligible list.

WHAT TO DO WITH:

• Large appliances: Call Bulk Trash at 311 three of more working days before the scheduled date (second Wednesday of the month);
• Building materials: Take to Quarantine Road Sanitary Landfill;
• Wet Paint and Batteries: Wait for Household Hazardous Waste days, two per year, location announced in Newsletter;
• Tires (without rims): Take to Eastern Sanitation Yard, 6101 Bowleys Lane (entrance at Moravia Park Drive, just west of intersection with Moravia Road). Up to four tires (without rims) may be put out for bulk trash (call ahead: 311; see above);
• Automobile parts: Take to a commercial junkyard.

The city's sanitation yards are open from 9 to 5, Monday through Saturday, and are free to city residents bringing materials for disposal in their personal vehicle, including unmodified pickup trucks rated 3/4 ton or less. For more information, go to: http://www.baltimorecity.gov/government/dpw/waste.html#dump.

A reminder about recycling (see the calendar):

BOTTLES, CANS, and PLASTIC ("blue bag" for short) are collected on the 2nd and 4th Monday of the month: glass jars, glass bottles, aluminum cans, tin (steel) cans, all plastic small mouth containers with # 1 or # 2, empty aerosol cans. Rinse bottles and cans, and discard caps. Place in blue or clear plastic bags.

PAPER is collected (in our neighborhood) on the 2^nd and 4^th Friday of the month: newpapers, magazines, phone books, ad mail, cardboard/boxes, mixed paper, scrap paper. Place paper in paper bag, cardboard box or tie with string. (Large boxes should be broken down flat; please put your pizza boxes in the regular trash.)

COMMUNITY BULLETIN BOARD

The Parks & People Foundation is hosting an equipment & materials drive to benefit Baltimore City Recreation Centers! Most needed items are:

• Board games
• Sports equipment (or gift cards to sporting goods stores)
• Craft supplies
• Books

Parks & People Foundation
Stieff Silver Building
800 Wyman Park Drive,
Suite 010
Baltimore, MD 21211

What to do with those Christmas trees? There is citywide pick-up of Christmas trees on the second trash day of the week (ours is Friday), through the month of January.

You can also bring your tree to the parking lot of the Baltimore Polytechnic Institute (on Cold Spring Lane) to be mulched (you can keep the mulch if you bring a bag) on Saturday and Sunday, January 6^th (from 9 to 2) and 7^th (from 10 to 2).

Start off the New Year on the right foot!
The Resolution Run - 5K Run / 1 Mile Walk
Monday, January 1, 2007, 2 PM in Patterson Park.
For more information contact Kelly Dees at 410-308-1870 (or email).

June of this year marks the 30th anniversary of the construction of Halcott Square (Duncan Street Park), in the 100 block of S. Duncan Street. Here are two "before" photos: the seven row houses which stood on this site have been levelled and the area has been cleaned and graded, but the planters have not yet been built. The street in the background is Duncan Street.

Photos courtesy of Mary Halcott.

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