October 2008 - test-neighbhorhood@test.highlandparkpa.com

[Highland Park] Fall Planting continues the Pittsburgh Daffodil Project
by Laura Cook 20 Oct '08

20 Oct '08

Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy News Contact: Laura Cook 412-682-7275, ext 220 lcook(a)pittsburghparks.org Fall Planting continues the Pittsburgh Daffodil Project (Pittsburgh - October 20, 2008) - 7,500 new daffodils will be planted along Bartlett Street in Schenley Park as a result of a partnership between the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, Penn State University Cooperative Extension, the City of Pittsburgh, and volunteers from Giant Eagle. The groups plan to expand the daffodil planting this October throughout the city, particularly in all four regional parks-Frick, Highland, Riverview, and Schenley-and in areas involved in the City's Green-Up program, over the next several years in an effort termed "The Pittsburgh Daffodil Project." "The Pittsburgh Daffodil Project is a long term project with a goal to plant millions of bulbs, which will have a significant aesthetic impact when they bloom in the spring," says Phil Gruszka, Director of Parks Management and Maintenance at the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy. The Bartlett Street site was chosen as the pilot location for the daffodil-planting program because it is a highly visible section of parkland that also presents a large maintenance challenge. With a lengthy stretch of trees, turf, sidewalk, and fence posts all within a few feet of each other, the area is difficult to mow. To reduce the time and cost of maintaining the site, crews had converted part of the turf around the sidewalk to bare soil, which provided an ideal location for the daffodils. Once they are installed and mulched, the daffodils will provide a host of benefits. "The daffodils will reduce maintenance costs within the park, increase the park's overall biodiversity, and contribute to the health of the nearby trees through the mulch that covers them. All of these factors are in addition to being aesthetically pleasing for park users," says Gruszka. Funds and volunteers are needed to contribute to the continuation of the Pittsburgh Daffodil Project; to find out how you can help, contact the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy www.pittsburghparks.org <http://www.pittsburghparks.org/> or at 412-682-7275. This is an excellent way for local companies to help beautify the Pittsburgh landscape through the donation of both volunteer time to plant the daffodils and the funds to purchase the plants. The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, in partnership with the City of Pittsburgh, is working to improve quality of life for the people of by permanently restoring the park system to excellence in partnership with the City. Restoration efforts are conducted with environmental sensitivity and respect for the parks' historic landscape design and the recreational needs of modern users. For more information, please visit www.pittsburghparks.org. (more) DIRECTIONS TO BARTLETT PLAYGROUND FROM DOWNTOWN PITTSBURGH: - Take I-376 E toward Monroeville; get off at Exit 2A and merge onto Forbes Ave. - Turn right at Craft Ave. - Turn left at Boulevard of the Allies. - Stay on Boulevard of the Allies as it becomes Panther Hollow Road. - The Bartlett Playground is located at the intersection of Panther Hollow Road and Bartlett St. ### About The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, in partnership with the City of Pittsburgh, is working to improve quality of life for the people of by permanently restoring the park system to excellence in partnership with the City. Restoration efforts are conducted with environmental sensitivity and respect for the parks' historic landscape design and the recreational needs of modern users. For more information, please visit www.pittsburghparks.org. Laura Cook Marketing Communications Coordinator Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy 412-682-7275, ext. 220 www.pittsburghparks.org

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[Highland Park] Yard and other tasks help
by Michelle Butler 20 Oct '08

20 Oct '08

Hello all, My oldest son, who is 12, has decided that the years of leaf-raking and other yard tasks he's been forced to perform at home for the last few years qualifies him to hire himself out to assist others in the same tasks. His name is Paul, 412-363-4944. Cheers, Michelel

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[Highland Park] on a more lighthearted note
by Vijay Bakrania 20 Oct '08

20 Oct '08

Hi All, After I have been reading all these emails it reminds me of a story I heard about what some residents on the 15th street of Southside did about drunks who were peeing in the walkways leading to their yards. They hung out and waited for someone to come in their little alley to take a whiz. They would wait a few moments and then all of a sudden they would shine a bright spotlight and shout through a bullhorn(and scare the heck out of the person). While all this was happening, they had a camera taping everything. I think they sent the clips in to America's Funniest Home Videos. I'm not saying that this is the answer to all of our recent neighborhood woes; but I do think that some simple technology and cleverness can go a long way. Take Care, Vijay Bakrania N. Beatty St.

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Re: [Highland Park] night visitors on Farragut Street
by Nancy Levine-Arnold 20 Oct '08

20 Oct '08

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[Highland Park] Obama campaign headquarters request
by Lori Kasenter 19 Oct '08

19 Oct '08

Me again. If you have some paper towels and/or paper plates you could spare, could you please drop them off at headquarters at 127 Highland Avenue? (Please note: no plastic or styrofoam plates please, they melt in our microwave.) Thank you all so much, Lori Kasenter If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.

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[Highland Park] Antique Buffet for sale
by flamingoblue 19 Oct '08

19 Oct '08

Hello neighbors, I am selling an antique buffet from about 1920. It is heavily carved solid oak and in pristine condition. It has great storage with 3 top drawers, 2 side compartments and 3 center linen drawers. There is a key to lock the side compartments and one of the top drawers is a silverware drawer with dividers. The dimensions are 86" long (7 ft 2), 39" high and 24 " deep. Please see attached fotos. This is an excellent piece from it's time. I am asking $875. If you are interested, please call me at 412-661-2410 or 412-606-7974. Or email me. As of Thursday it will be at Time and Again Antiques since I have purchased a different piece and have no storage space for this one!!! Thank you, Marty Harkins

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[Highland Park] Hunting for a roommate....please pass along
by Katrina Struloeff 19 Oct '08

19 Oct '08

In search of a roommate . . .I am looking for a third person to share my four-bedroom house in East Liberty/Highland Park. Located just three blocks for six major bus lines on a neighborhood street, the house has shared living space of a dining room, living room, kitchen, laundry, two bathrooms, and backyard. The bedroom available can be furnished or unfurnished depending on your needs. Available bedroom is a large carpeted room on the second floor with two tall windows near the second floor bathroom. Flexible lease terms are available. Simply looking for someone who is reliable, friendly, doesn't mind cats, and relatively clean, to round out the house. The two of us who live in the house currently have been here for a year. We both work full time and are just around on the weekends and some evenings. Rent is $300 plus splitting utilities with other housemates. Located on Hays Ave. between Euclid and North St. Clair. Direct bus lines to downtown, CMU, University of Pitt, Oakland, Bloomfield, Stanton Heights, Friendship, Garfield, Strip District, and East Liberty bus station (the bus way). Within a mile of Eastside retail/restaurant area, Highland Avenue business district, and Bryant Street business district. Street parking is available and does not require a permit. Ideally someone would move in the beginning of November. email Katrina at kstruloeff(a)gmail.com or call 503-290-6669 -- Katrina Struloeff, M.A.M. Marketing and Development Coordinator Union Project 801 N. Negley Ave, Pgh, PA 15206 412-363-4550 x 37 412-363-1216 fax www.unionproject.org

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[Highland Park] Chop, WOK & Talk weekly menu selections for November
by Dorothy Tague 19 Oct '08

19 Oct '08

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[Highland Park] Re: Community Safety web resources
by David Passmore 18 Oct '08

18 Oct '08

Here is the site that houses the maps Lauren Byrne and Christie Berger refer to: http://www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/communitydevelopment The maps (crime and otherwise) are on the Data Resources page. Also, this is a good opportunity to make mention of the city's Legislation Information Center: http://legistar.city.pittsburgh.pa.us The LIC is a good resource for information about the workings of city government. Municipal code information is here: http://www.municode.com/resources/gateway.asp?pid=13525&sid=38 It should be stressed that *every* incident should be reported to the police via 911. The Bureau of Police needs this information in order to gain an understanding of what is happening in the neighborhood. Citizen Observer is a tool that provides alerts. Here is the page that has been established for Zone 5, where you can see the alert that have been posted for our neighborhood: http://citizenobserver.com/cov6/app/group.html?id=246 More information about signing up: http://www.citizenobserver.com/cov6/support/flyer_pittsburghpd_1.pdf The Bureau of Police posts an Incident Report for citizens to view and try to gain a broader understanding of what is happening in the city. That report is posted to Citizen Observer: http://citizenobserver.com/cov6/app/post.html?id=64 On Sat, Oct 18, 2008 at 10:31 AM, <neighborhood-request(a)highlandparkpa.com>wrote: > Send Neighborhood mailing list submissions to > neighborhood(a)highlandparkpa.com > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://lists.highlandparkpa.com/mailman/listinfo/neighborhood > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > neighborhood-request(a)highlandparkpa.com > > You can reach the person managing the list at > neighborhood-owner(a)highlandparkpa.com > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Neighborhood digest..." > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Summary of October HPCC meeting (Bob Staresinic) > > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: "Bob Staresinic" <bob.63(a)netzero.net> > To: <neighborhood(a)highlandparkpa.com> > Date: Sat, 18 Oct 2008 07:28:28 -0400 > Subject: [Highland Park] Summary of October HPCC meeting > Hello Neighbors > > I received several emails to the list asking about the HPCC meeting > Thursday, and what was discussed related to Public Safety. > > Present from the City were Officer Gay, the Community Relations Officer > from Zone 5, and from the Mayor's Office we had Lauren Byrne, Neighborhood > Initiatives Coordinator, and Christie Berger, Community Outreach > Coordinator. > Lauren and Christie brought maps of the neighborhood, which are available > on-line at the City's web site, www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us. These included > crime maps. Lauren also reported that the Nuisance Property legislation was > passed and will start being enforced with a hire in December. You can find > this legislation with this link: > http://legistar.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/detailreport/Reports/Temp/10182008623… > I was able to find the neighborhood maps, but I could not find the crime > maps on the site. Of course it is going on 7 am on Saturday when I am > writing this, and it is not a good time to call anyone for help, and I am > not that good at searching for things on the internet. > > The meeting was focused less on complaints and more on what solutions there > are. Here are some suggestions that came up from Lauren Byrne and Officer > Gay (and from residents): > Police Reports need to be filed for all activity. > Call 911 to report crimes and suspicious activity. > When you report a crime and are talking to the reporting officer, get the > CCR number that the Police use. > Sometimes it is better to not confront a criminal in the act. If you call > 911, the officers may be able to observe and catch an act going on. If you > yell at a person to stop what they are doing, and then call 911, that person > is usually gone by the time the police show up. > The Police would like to step up patrols, but there is limited time for > patrols with the shortage of officers. They can patrol when they are not > responding to calls. > Get out of your house and interact with your neighbors. > Turn your lights on, both inside and out, front and back. > Get motion-sensor lights for the exterior, so anyone approaching your home > is lit up. > Put your lights on timers. Vary the rooms and the times that the lights > come on. > Criminals will case your house, looking for patterns of activity, and > looking for folks not at home. Varying the times and rooms that lights turn > on can disrupt their ability to target you. > Write down nicknames if you overhear them. This information can help the > officers identify and track crimes. > Use the silent complaint forms for things that are not emergencies. This > information of dates, times, descriptions can help the police track > patterns. > Talk to the kids in the neighborhood, and learn who they are. If you are > friendly with the very young kids, when they grow up, you know who they > are. They also know that you know who they are. > Start Block Watches, and keep the activity up. Often, an increase in > crimes will cause residents to take action. But then as the crime > decreases, folks go back to old routines. Keep the watch activity up to > keep the crime down. > Sign up for the Citizen Observer at www.citizenobserver.com. This is a > tool that can alert you to what is happening in the neighborhood. > Drive and walk a different route; take different streets to learn the > neighborhood. > When there is no one walking, running, or driving down a street, and no one > on their porch or in their yard, and no lights on, it is very easy to sneak > around and not be seen. An audience is not desired when committing crimes. > > That is what my notes say, and my memory recalls at this early hour. We > can not rely on the City and the Police to make our neighborhood better, we > have to be involved. > The former commander of Zone 5 was active on this list, and often responded > to postings. The current commander does not seem to be as active on this. > But Officer Gay and Lauren Byrne, and others, are getting these postings, > and are aware of the issues we have brought up. So even though the > commander is not responding to our list, it is being monitored by folks in > the City and they are paying attention. > > I am sure there are things that I have left out, and many other good > suggestions that folks have. If you are interested in starting a block > watch on your street, now is as good a time to start as any. Invite your > neighbors over and have a discussion. See if they will help you rake your > leaves, or go help them with theirs. > > Bob > > > > -- > <http://lists.highlandparkpa.com/mailman/listinfo/neighborhood> >

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[Highland Park] Summary of October HPCC meeting
by Bob Staresinic 18 Oct '08

18 Oct '08

Hello Neighbors I received several emails to the list asking about the HPCC meeting Thursday, and what was discussed related to Public Safety. Present from the City were Officer Gay, the Community Relations Officer from Zone 5, and from the Mayor's Office we had Lauren Byrne, Neighborhood Initiatives Coordinator, and Christie Berger, Community Outreach Coordinator. Lauren and Christie brought maps of the neighborhood, which are available on-line at the City's web site, www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us. These included crime maps. Lauren also reported that the Nuisance Property legislation was passed and will start being enforced with a hire in December. You can find this legislation with this link: http://legistar.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/detailreport/Reports/Temp/10182008623… I was able to find the neighborhood maps, but I could not find the crime maps on the site. Of course it is going on 7 am on Saturday when I am writing this, and it is not a good time to call anyone for help, and I am not that good at searching for things on the internet. The meeting was focused less on complaints and more on what solutions there are. Here are some suggestions that came up from Lauren Byrne and Officer Gay (and from residents): Police Reports need to be filed for all activity. Call 911 to report crimes and suspicious activity. When you report a crime and are talking to the reporting officer, get the CCR number that the Police use. Sometimes it is better to not confront a criminal in the act. If you call 911, the officers may be able to observe and catch an act going on. If you yell at a person to stop what they are doing, and then call 911, that person is usually gone by the time the police show up. The Police would like to step up patrols, but there is limited time for patrols with the shortage of officers. They can patrol when they are not responding to calls. Get out of your house and interact with your neighbors. Turn your lights on, both inside and out, front and back. Get motion-sensor lights for the exterior, so anyone approaching your home is lit up. Put your lights on timers. Vary the rooms and the times that the lights come on. Criminals will case your house, looking for patterns of activity, and looking for folks not at home. Varying the times and rooms that lights turn on can disrupt their ability to target you. Write down nicknames if you overhear them. This information can help the officers identify and track crimes. Use the silent complaint forms for things that are not emergencies. This information of dates, times, descriptions can help the police track patterns. Talk to the kids in the neighborhood, and learn who they are. If you are friendly with the very young kids, when they grow up, you know who they are. They also know that you know who they are. Start Block Watches, and keep the activity up. Often, an increase in crimes will cause residents to take action. But then as the crime decreases, folks go back to old routines. Keep the watch activity up to keep the crime down. Sign up for the Citizen Observer at www.citizenobserver.com. This is a tool that can alert you to what is happening in the neighborhood. Drive and walk a different route; take different streets to learn the neighborhood. When there is no one walking, running, or driving down a street, and no one on their porch or in their yard, and no lights on, it is very easy to sneak around and not be seen. An audience is not desired when committing crimes. That is what my notes say, and my memory recalls at this early hour. We can not rely on the City and the Police to make our neighborhood better, we have to be involved. The former commander of Zone 5 was active on this list, and often responded to postings. The current commander does not seem to be as active on this. But Officer Gay and Lauren Byrne, and others, are getting these postings, and are aware of the issues we have brought up. So even though the commander is not responding to our list, it is being monitored by folks in the City and they are paying attention. I am sure there are things that I have left out, and many other good suggestions that folks have. If you are interested in starting a block watch on your street, now is as good a time to start as any. Invite your neighbors over and have a discussion. See if they will help you rake your leaves, or go help them with theirs. Bob

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