Trash/Recycling Pickup Tomorrow

This Wednesday is a “Red Wednesday”, which means trash and recycling pickup. Ideally, rolling recycling containers are stored and deployed in the back alleys along with trash cans. Please make sure you pick up containers after pickup tomorrow night.

If you have not done so already, don’t forget to sign up for your Recycling Perks.
In order to take your recycling to the next level, read this: 10 ways to improve your recycling.

One good way to recycle is resell your usable items. A reminder that the deadline for registering as part of the upcoming April 8 neighborhood yard sale is this Friday, March 31.

OHNA Meeting Tomorrow Night

From email announcement:

Hello all,

We (Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association) are meeting tomorrow, Tuesday, March 28th, at 7 pm in the Little Chapel at St. Andrew’s.

On the agenda:

STOP Signs. Basket weaving options 1 and 2.

Presentation by 3North architects on the Laurel Street Event Venue (in Monroe Park). It will be going before the UDC on April 6th.

Note: these plans may be altered in the near future prior to being reviewed by the UDC on April 6, 2017.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/yv3aglpmtdi3ejw/LAU_EventVenueUDCBooklet_2017-03-16_REV.pdf?dl=0

Thanks
Jennifer

Flying Brick Library Moving To Gallery 5

From FaceBook event Flying Brick Library Housewarming:

GOOD NEWS everyone! After months,ahem, years of planning the Flying Brick Library is moving & we couldn’t be happier. After over a dozen years in a private residence in Oregon Hill we’ve decided to take the plunge & expand to a public location. We are joining forces with the fine folks at the Richmond Zine Library at Gallery 5 in Jackson Ward. Now not only can you dive into the ever growing zine collection, but now you are welcome to cozy up to the hundreds of books that the library will have on hand.
Help us celebrate, not just our new digs, but also Gallery Five’s twelve year anniversary that week. Performances by Jake Mayday & Andrew Alli will round out a very festive evening.

Thursday, April 6 at 7 PM – 10 PM

Bill Inge 1938-2017

From the obituary:

INGE, Vernon E. Sr., known as Bill, was born in Newport News, Va., on November 22, 1938 and passed away on March 17, 2017, after a prolonged illness and then cancer. Mr. Inge grew up in Oregon Hill in Richmond, attended Randolph-Macon College and received his law degree from the University of Richmond. Mr. Inge practiced law in Richmond for many years until he realized the dream of many lawyers and bought a fishing pier in the Outer Banks.

Solving The Middle East This Saturday

Well, that may be overselling it, but the Richmond Forum is hosting a program entitled “PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST: PROSPECTS AND ROADBLOCKS” this Saturday at the Altria Theater. It’s probably already sold out.

Ehud Barak has served as the Prime Minister of Israel and, more recently, as Defense Minister. Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei is a Nobel Peace Prize winner, the former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, and was a leading figure in the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. For the first time anywhere, these two respected voices will sit down together for a discussion of their differing views on Middle East peace prospects in a conversation moderated by longtime journalist, author, and foreign policy analyst Robin Wright.

Continue reading

The Status of The Fountain Fence

As the Monroe Park Conservancy continues to tighten its corporate control of Monroe Park, Oregon Hill residents are becoming increasingly discouraged and alarmed by how it is gradually stripping away its authentic, historic features. In addition to questionably removing healthy, old-growth trees, the fountain fence is no longer there. Supposedly, the 1920’s fencing is being stored offsite during park renovations and will be returned.

Laurel Street neighbor Charles Pool has used the Freedom of Information Act to gather more information. According to the Monroe Park drawings that he received, the fencing is being replaced and only the posts restored. This seems to conflict with specs provided where the decorative metal railings were to be repaired. It is doubtful that the City’s Urban Design Committee gave permission to replace this historic fencing. At 125 feet long, the fencing is substantial and curved to match the perimeter of the fountain.

Undoubtedly, low-grade hollow-core, easily damaged, pickets probably will replace the existing solid substantial fencing that could last hundreds of years if properly repaired and kept painted. The fencing is an important part of the historic fabric of Monroe Park, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Monroe Park fountain fencing pickets were dumped in outside storage at DPW storage at 810 Forest Lawn Drive. Photos from Charles Pool show that the pickets are all in excellent condition with practically no evidence of rust. (Many neighbors remember what happened to the stone balustrade that was removed at the Oregon Hill overlook- we were told that it was in “storage” but the stone later found a decade later in a heap behind the Carillon.)



It is important for the public to know that the authentic fencing is slated to be replaced without approval from the UDC.
It is the opinion of this community news site that the authentic, solid Monroe Park fencing should be fully restored, not replaced.