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January 2009 I sincerely hope everybody had an enjoyable holiday season and that the New Year will bring joy, happiness, and prosperity in these difficult times. I am certainly looking forward to another exciting year in Butchers Hill. Our January meeting will feature two elected officials, both of whom play important roles in determining what direction the City and the State will go. First up will be Peter Hammen, one of our representatives in the Maryland House of Delegates. Since being elected in 1995, Pete has become one of the leaders on the House side and commands tremendous respect from his colleagues. Having achieved “insider” status, he is well qualified to give us a snapshot of the upcoming 2009 session and all the many challenges the State Government will face. Jim Kraft, our First District Councilman is well known by many of us, both for his activist stance on our behalf and his willingness to meet with his constituents. I’ve asked Jim to bring us up to date on slots, the City budget, and pending initiatives for 2009. This meeting is a must for anyone who wants to be well informed. Parking was at the top of the agenda last month. We finally have angle parking on Collington, and we will see it installed on Fairmount and certain blocks of Chester in the early Spring. I’ve gotten very positive feedback on what a difference the extra spaces have made. A lot of people worked very hard to get us there and they deserve our thanks. On a much less positive note is Residential Permit Parking. There was terrible communication between myself and the Parking Authority regarding RPP. The biggest problem is that I was led to believe that there would be random verifications of signatures when in fact they now tell me that every signature has to be confirmed by phone or letter. This raises the needed percentage to much more than the 60% that is nominally required to petition for a parking study. They also refuse to accept our count of vacant houses which also raises the number of needed signatures. Finally, many of our petitions did not conform to their very exacting format. The bottom line is rather than fight them I’m going to start the whole petition process over based on the difficult lessons I’ve learned, even if I have to do every house myself. Of course, it would be nice to have some volunteers so if you’re willing, please contact me. Knowing what I do now, it’s not that difficult if it’s done right. As I said earlier, 2009 should be a great year for Butchers Hill and I hope all you will help make it so by being involved. -Barry Glassman CHAP Vote We have asked CHAP to extend the voting period until February 28th. This is because the voting is so close and we are hoping to see some stronger senti-ment either for or against this important issue. As of this writing, 850 ballots were sent and 218 (25.6%) homeowners responded. Of those 111 voted for making Butchers Hill a CHAP district and 107 voted against. Since it’s so close, we’re making one last appeal for you send in your ballot. If you need a new ballot and/or the informational package please email Andrea Houseman at Andrea.Houseman@baltimorecity.gov or call her on 410-396-4359. Feel free to call me with any questions. It’s particularly important that you vote. At the January meeting, the Executive Committee will determine a percentage that we feel represents enough of a majority to allow us to proceed or defer this process. Every vote counts!
NEW ADDITIONS TO RECYCLING The complete list now includes: Clean paper - all non-metallic colors and types, Cardboard and paper-board boxes (without waxed paper liners),Books (all types), Aerosol Cans (empty), Glass containers (jars and bottles), Metal food and beverage containers, Narrow-neck plastic containers (other than for motor oil) codes 1 through 7 on the bottom, *** and now: NEW TO SINGLE STREAM RECYCLING: wide-mouth plastic containers used for margarine, yogurt, cottage cheese, mayonnaise and sour cream; empty prescription bottles (lids and caps do not need to be removed) plastic drinking cups; aluminum foil and aluminum pie pans; clean milk and juice cartons. ALSO, starting in January, RIGID PLASTICS may be taken to citizen drop-off centers. Rigid plastics include items made of sturdier plastic: milk/soda crates, buckets, laundry baskets, lawn furniture, totes, drums, coolers, flower pots, water bottles, pallets, pet carriers, shelving, closet organizers, empty garbage/recycling bins. STILL UNACCEPTABLE FOR RECYCLING (and must go in with regular trash): Plastic bags, wire hangers, chemicals or paint, used paper napkins, towels, plates and tissues, dry cleaning bags, non-bottle/jar glass, deli or take-out cartons, foam or plastic packaging material, bottles and cans used for toxic substances. Please note that many grocery stores will recycle your plastic bag and the Friends of Patterson Park appreciate them for their “pooper scooper” containers.Butchers Hill continues to have a reputation as one of the best recycling neighborhoods in all of Baltimore. Let's continue to lead by example. (Also, one more reminder - DO NOT put bags of trash out the night before regular pickups. You're feeding the rodent population and you will be fined). Rob Steinberg, Chair, Streetscape Committee BHA COMMITTEES AND MONTHLY MEETINGS
BUTCHERS HILL GENERAL MEETING, JANUARY 7TH
Meeting: 7:00 PM St. Andrew’s Church Hall, Chester & Lombard. Contact Barry Glassman NOMINATIONS FOR BUTCHERS HILL ASSOCIATION OFFICERS FOR 2009: The Nominating Committee will present the following slate at the January 7th 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. See the membership form on page 4.
HELP US GET TO KNOW YOU
If you have answers to one or more of these questions or any ideas we’d love to talk to you. Bring your best and brightest ideas and join us on Tuesday, January 13th at 7:30 PM for a round table discussion over a glass of wine at 2110 E. Baltimore Street. Feel free to join us simply to help us come up with some ideas. MULCHING OF CHRISTMAS TREES 701 Reedbird Avenue, (410) 396-3367, Every Sat. in January, 9am – 4pm. Citizens may take trees to be mulched and bring their own bags or containers to scoop up mulch to be taken home. Trees collected curbside and any mulch left over after January will be incinerated at the waste-to-energy facility. Community groups are encouraged to bag up free mulch for community trees and gardens OUR UNIQUE ARCHITECTURAL DIVERSITY Butchers Hill is blessed with many architectural styles. History, geography, and capitalism are mostly responsible. Butchers settled atop the hill when Baltimore was still entirely west of Jones Falls. Consequently, there were lots, barns, workshops, and dwellings to establish land-use patterns here. We never had room for block upon block of rowhouse building, and so we grew in “hopscotch” mode — a single house here, a short row there, a duplex somewhere else. Many of our rows are just four or six units, and our longest rows aren’t that much longer: they’re on either side of the 2200 block of Baltimore Street. Geography also contributes to our architectural variety. Victorian architects might give a row of six or eight units an integrated façade to make it look like a single structure rather than identical units. This would give a horizontal feeling instead of the narrow, vertical aspect typical of row houses. But when you live on a hill, it’s hard to achieve such “horizontality.” And even if you build identical units side by side, geography may force “stairstep” construction that felicitously breaks up long cornices and repetitive facades. The 2200 block of Pratt has examples, and so do all our streets running downhill toward the harbor. Capitalism, exemplified by ground rents, has a large architectural legacy since they improved life for countless residents in the development years. William Patterson, for example, leased much of the area to Jacob Laudenslager without relinquishing ownership. Early butchers subleased from Jacob, and the area was called “Laudenslager’s Hill” for half a century. Yet Patterson’s heirs were still developing their property here during the 20th century. With ground rent providing a long-term revenue stream, developers could invest more in the actual house. Marble steps and detailing, stained-glass transoms and front windows, hand-assembled cornices — they all represent architectural detailing made possible by ground rents. And one last aspect of our architectural heritage should be noted: From the earliest of times, Baltimore prohibited wood construction, so as to limit the fire hazard. There’s a reason why everything we see is brick and masonry! — Rick Gilmour COMMUNITY BULLETIN BOARD SNOW REMOVAL (FROM 2009 LAW) “After any snowfall that results in an accumulation of snow on the ground: every person using or occupying a structure, having charge of any church or public building, owner of any unoccupied structure or unimproved lot – situated on any paved street, lane or alley – must remove and clear away, or cause to be removed, the snow from the foot pavement within 3 hours after the snow has stopped falling; or if the snow stopped between 3 p.m. and 6 a.m. then it must be removed by 11 a.m., in such a way as not to obstruct the passage of water in the gutters and to keep the gutters and pavements free from ice. Penalties: a misdemeanor subject to a fine per offense.” EDUCATION COMMITTEE: The Education committee in conjunction with the two elementary schools has determined how BHA can best support them with the funds designated in the BHA budget. Commodore John Rodgers would like to use the $1500 to support field trips for their students. Patterson Park Charter School would like to use the $1500 to support the start up of a basket ball team with uniforms and equipment. STREETSCAPE COMMITTEE REPORT: Next meeting – Thursday January 8 at 7pm at 2109 East Baltimore Street. Happy holidays to everyone! As you celebrate the season, please remember to put out your trash only on the morning of pickup. If you must put it out the night before, it has to be in a trash can with a tight fighting lid. The city is strictly enforcing this and is issuing citations. Curbside pickup for Christmas trees after the holiday season will be on Fridays ONLY. Place your tree out for Friday trash pickup. Lastly, let’s all pitch in and help keep Butchers Hill clean by keeping the front of your house free of trash, leaves and the occasional snow. A little effort will go a long way in keeping our neighborhood the jewel of the city. Rob Steinberg Bring your 2009 dues to the next meeting. You must be a member to be eligible to vote! Visit our website for complete General Meeting notes, newsletters, “moving in” information, Butchers Hill history, Butchers Hill Artists, and so much more at www.butchershill.org
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