Greater Greenmount Community Association

Mr. Tony Jones began our June 14, 2011 community meeting with a follow-up of the presentation he gave at our May meeting. Due to fiscal constraints Baltimore City is planning to close or turn over to non-profit organizations approximately 18 Recreation Centers. Mr. Jones stressed that as part of the evaluation process community residents must to identify the services that they need at the Cecil Kirk and Greenmount Rec Centers.

Deputy Major Dan Lioi of the Eastern Police District gave an update of crime in the area. He also talked about four Day of Hope events that are happening in the Eastern District throughout the summer. The Day of Hope in our neighborhood is August 13th at Mund Park, at the corner of Greenmount Ave. and E. 24th St. Each Day of Hope will offer a hand up rather than just a hand out and will connect residents with resources available to them. Available services at each Day of Hope will include HIV, Dental and Blood Pressure screening, groceries, clothing, hair cuts and entertainment for all ages.

Rev. Terrance Brown and Ms. Qiana Brown gave a PowerPoint presentation describing the programs that Jane’s House of Inspiration have available at 802 E. North Ave for community residents. Services include:

• Faith-based counseling for individuals, families, and groups for substance abuse recovery
• Trainings and conferences are offered to learn more about substance abuse recovery and prevention
• Clothes closets are available on-site for women and children in need of season-specific clothing, and professional attire for job interviews and employment

More information about Jane’s House of Inspiration is available at www.jhofi.org

Ms. Cheryl Carmona and Ms. Aliza Sollins gave a slide presentation concerning the Boone St. Community Garden and Farm. Some of the pictures they shared with us are below. More information and pictures are available at www.baltimorediy.org. They had free tomato plants for residents who wish to plant them at the community garden or elsewhere. In addition they introduced Mr. Babatunde Salaam who will be working 20 hours per week this summer at the Boone St Garden and Farm.

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Our May 10, 2011 community meeting began with Ms. Sandra Coles reviewing old business that the association has been working on. This includes working with the Department of Transportation and Councilman Stokes concerning parking issues on Bonaparte Ave., in the 200 – 400 blocks of E. 23rd St and in the 1900 – 2200 blocks of Boone St.

Mr. Tony Jones gave us an update on Baltimore City’s plan to close approximately 10 Recreation Centers and turn others over to non-profit organizations to run. One, or both, of the two Centers in our community – Cecil-Kirk Center and Greenmount Center – could be affected by these plans. Mr. Jones emphasized the importance of working together to develop a strategy for preserving the recreation services that the community needs.

Ms. Pamela Tardy, an Inspector with Baltimore City Code Enforcement, and Mr. John Chalmers, Assistant Chief, Bureau of Solid Waste, discussed the roles of their respective City agencies in keeping our neighborhood clean. They answered neighbors questions and discussed the role that we each have in supporting the work that they do.

Police Officer Fred Allen and Major Melvin Russell gave us an update on crime statistics in our area. They also discussed the role of the First Responders team to help those in the Eastern District who have experienced tragedy. This program, initiated by Major Russell, trains teams of volunteers to work with government agencies to ensure that victims of tragedies get the help they need to deal with the consequences of the tragedy. Each team consists of three members; a resident, a police officer and a clergy member.

Ms. Regina Boyce, from City Council President Bernard Young’s office  and Mr. Robert Stokes, from 12th District Councilman Carl Stokes’ office each gave an update on the activities of and resources available from their respective offices.

Mr. William Russell, of Baltimore Neighborhood Energy Challenge, and Mr. Dan Whatley, of Project Lightbulb, described the resources available to residents to reduce energy consumption in the home and save money.

Ms. Aliza Sollins gave us an update on the status of the urban farm and neighborhood garden in the 2100 block of Boone St. They have already harvested some radishes that were planted in the early spring but it is not too late for residents to come out and add more plants to the garden.

Pastor Kelvin Roane, Chairman of the Beautification Committee, gave us an update on trees that will be planted later this month and also talked about the Day of Hope that will be held at Mund Park Saturday August 13, 2011.

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Our April 12, 2011 community meeting began with Ms. Sandra Coles, GGCA President, reviewing old business. She introduced board members who neighbors could talk to after the meeting about specific issues. Ms. Coles also announced that Miss. Monique Lewis, the youngest resident in attendance, has been accepted to the Baltimore Design School to study Fashion Design.

Catherine Stokes from Telesis showed drawings of plans for their current and future redevelopment in Barclay and Midway. Chris Wood and Robin Cary Williams discussed how Neighborhood Partners will be managing the day-to-day operations of the properties.

We were reminded by Ms. Melaine Harris about the program that Project Lightbulb has for the free installation of energy saving products in our homes. Mr. Will Russell, Jr. and Mr. Alex Haworth from Baltimore Neighborhood Energy Challenge discussed the benefits of taking the Energy Challenge Pledge. Pastor Roane, GGCA board member, talked from first hand experience about how compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) can reduce energy consumption.

Deputy Major Dan Lioi from the Eastern District gave an update on crime statistics for our neighborhood. He reminded people who have cars to not leave anything of value in the car. Even the trunk is not safe because a window can be broken and the trunk poped opened from inside.

Ms. Cheryl Carmona and Ms. Aliza Sollins from the Boone St. Community Garden and Urban Farm gave an update on the status of the seedlings that we planted during the Community Garden Seeding Workshop. Additionally, weather permitting mulch will be delivered Saturday April 23rd.

Ms. Clare Palmieri gave us an update on the status of the roll-off we requested from the City for use during the Spring Clean-up. Because of the large demand for roll-offs and the limited supply that the City has we are not going to get one. However, we will be requesting a roll-off as part of the allocation we can get from the City for Neighborhood Clean-ups. Location and date will be announced once the plans are finalized.

Greater Baltimore AHC  (GBAHC) owns a large number of properties in Barclay and Greenmount West. Ms. Rebecca Spence invited residents to join GBAHC for the Mayor’s Spring Clean-up Saturday April 16th from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm Saturday April 30th from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm (postponed due to inclement weather.) Meet at Barclay St. and E. Lanvale St. in Greenmount West. The first 125 volunteers get free T-shirts. At noon there will be a free BBQ for all volunteers (location to be announced.)

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On Thursday March 10, 2011 the Community Parking Task Force met to address parking concerns in the neighborhood. The committee is comprised of neighborhood residents and representatives from neighborhood organizations and City agencies. Thanks to the following who attended the meeting:

• Baltimore City Council President Bernard Young’s Office – Regina T. Boyce
• Baltimore City Department of Planning – Katie-Rose Imbriano
• Baltimore City Department of Transportation Traffic Division – Randall Scott
• Baltimore City Eastern Police District – Major Melvin Russell
• Baltimore Neighborhood Energy Challenge – Alex Haworth
• Greater Greenmount Community Association – Grace Willis, Linda Johnson, Lowell Larsson, Sandra Coles, William Smith
• Housing Authority of Baltimore City – Alastair Smith
• Mother Seton Academy – Sr. Charmaine Krohe
• New Good Samaritan Baptist Church – Pastor Donald Palmore
• P-B Health – Delano Bailey
• People’s Homesteading Group – Michael Mazepink
• St. Ann Church – Sr. Jeanne Barasha
• St. Matthews United Methodist Church – Pastor Eric King
• St. Paul’s Free Will Baptist Church – Loyd Hawkins, William Smith

In the meeting, lead by Ms. Grace Willis, we talked about parking problems in various locations. After discussing a number of alternatives we decided as a first step to request a traffic study to determine if it is feasible to institute angle parking in the 200 – 400 blocks of E. 23 St. and 1900 – 2100 blocks of Boone St.

We submitted the application to Mr. Scott from the Traffic Division on March 15th and Mr. Scott responded that the study will be completed by May 15th. If the traffic study determines that angle parking is feasible the next step will be to survey residents of each block to find out if they support the change.

Other areas of concern will be addressed in the future.

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Our March 8, 2011 community meeting had lots of information for residents. We heard from Project Lightbulb which makes home visits in our community to provide residents with FREE supplies and information to increase home energy efficiency. In each home, Project Lightbulb members will install up to 15 CFL bulbs, 2 low flow faucet aerators, 1 low flow shower head, 1 insulating hot water heater wrap and up to 6 feet of accompanying hot water pipe insulation, and 1 CO/Smoke Detector.

Representatives from Baltimore Neighborhood Energy Challenge (BNEC) returned to our community. They set up a display table and talked about their program to help neighborhood residents reduce energy consumption. Residents who take the Energy Challenge Pledge receive a FREE kit with energy-saving products and ideas.

Ms. Sara Johnson from Baltimore CASH Campaign, a non-profit organization, talked about FREE tax preparation by professionals for low- to moderate-income wage earners. More information is available at www.bmorefreetaxes.org. She also talked about Money Power Day which is a FREE annual event providing Baltimore area residents and workers with quality financial services including FREE tax preparation, FREE credit reports and credit counseling, FREE customized financial planning, FREE housing counseling, FREE screening for public benefits and FREE financial programs for youth. More information is available at www.moneypowerday.org or by calling 443-692-9488.

Ms. Catherine Stokes, Senior Project Manager for Telesis Corporation, gave an introduction to their redevelopment project in Barclay and East Baltimore/Midway which involves about 325 housing units. She and representatives from the management company will be back at our April meeting to provide more detail.

Deputy Major Dan Lioi of the Eastern Police District talked about The Transformation Team, a project of the Eastern District to provide resources to community residents. He gave information about Day of Hope, a series of Days in East Baltimore. The one in our neighborhood is August 13, 2011 at Mund Park in the 2400 block of Greenmount Ave. The purpose is: to honor and serve the resident of East Baltimore treating them as guests of honor; to connect the residents with the many ministries, services and resources available to them; and to offer a hand up rather than just a hand out. The Deputy Major ended by encouraging residents to have a good neighborhood walk in the community. We agreed our first walk in the spring will be a short walk from 5:30 – 6:00 PM on Tuesday April 12^th prior to our community meeting.

Speakers at our February meeting included Deputy Sheriff Theodore Haskins who spoke about gang awareness. He preceded his presentation with a skit on domestic abuse.

We also heard from a representative of Monarch Academy Public Charter Schools which are tuition-free public charter schools serving children K-8 in Anne Arundel County and Baltimore City. The Baltimore City school will start in the fall 2011 in a temporary location. The permanent location opening in fall 2012 will be in our community at 2525 Kirk Ave.

Our final speakers, Ms. Cheryl Carmona and Ms. Aliza Sollins, talked about their plans for a community garden located in the 2100 block of Boone St.

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