Clean Ups Scheduled

Posted on September 8, 2010 by Scott

With the Fall season coming soon, neighborhood groups are thankfully recognizing the need to clean up the neighborhood.

SynerGeo will be hosting a work day on Saturday, Sept. 11th at 10am. They will be having about 18 adults. They will split into two teams and one will pick up trash in Oregon Hill, and the other in Holly Street playground. Please get in touch with Bonnie Hofmeyer for more information, at bonniehofmeyer at synergeo.org or 804 648 2287.

The Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association‘s Holly Street playground committee has a volunteer workday scheduled for the Holly Street Playground on Saturday, September 18th from 10am to 1pm. They are looking for volunteers to help clear brush, pick up trash and just make the playground look better.

If you are available to help please email Sara Sitkiewicz at sara.sitkiewicz at gmail.com your name and phone number!

Along with the need of volunteers they need equipment. If you have shovels, rakes, brooms, garden shears, or anything you feel could be helpful to their efforts and that you wouldn’t mind loaning for the day it would be greatly appreciated. All equipment will be marked and returned to the owner.

VCU Will Test Sirens This Wednesday

Posted on September 6, 2010 by Scott

VCU communique:

A full test of the VCU emergency communications system will be conducted Wednesday, Sept. 8 at noon. Full tests of the VCU emergency communications system are conducted twice a year, near the beginning of each semester. These are different from the monthly checks of the siren system that are conducted at noon on the first Wednesday of each month.

The full test of the system will include 10 sirens on both the Monroe Park and MCV campuses along with text messages, digital signs, Alertus devices in classrooms and residence halls, Web site information and social media that are part of a multi-channel system for communicating emergency information to VCU students, employees, parents and neighbors.

The sirens will sound a fast, up-and-down wail for three minutes, and after a one-minute pause, sound a steady wail for one minute to signal “all clear” to end the test.

In a real emergency, sirens will be used when it is imperative to get the attention of everyone outside of VCU buildings because an immediate, life-threatening emergency has occurred or is imminent. People outside but on campus should go to the nearest university building and seek additional information about what is happening. People off-campus should not come to campus but should seek additional information.

Text messaging is a primary communications and information channel because it is fast and reliable. Text messages will be used for notifications about emergencies and closings and delays for inclement weather. There is no cost for enrolling, and you can sign up for text messaging now at www.vcu.edu/notify. Emergency information also is available on the VCU Alert Web site at www.vcu.edu/alert.

We hope you will find that our emergency communications are beneficial to you, and we will continue to work together to provide as safe an environment as possible. As always, we will communicate with our community neighbors when there is any enhancement or change about which you would want to know. And please, do not hesitate to forward this email to your neighbors, to help spread the word about the siren test.

Sincerely,

John M. Bennett
Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration
Virginia Commonwealth University

The Flying Brick Library Intro

Posted on September 5, 2010 by Scott

The Flying Brick put up a nice introduction on Craigslist for those who have not heard of it:

For those of you who don’t know, The Flying Brick Library is a radical lending library in Oregon Hill. We run out of the front room of a house at 506 S Pine Street, and have been around for almost 10 years. We just opened back up after almost 2 years this past November and have been seeing a steady amount of interest. We’d like to see more of you coming! If you are interested in radical and progressive politics, or just want to chat about things, please come see us! Our open hours are Mondays 9-4 and Thursdays 4-9, but with more interest in volunteering we’d really like to expand. We also hold potlucks, film showings, discussions, workshops, and provide a space for organizations to hold meetings. Come and check out a book and say hi!

– The Flying Brick Library

find us on Facebook and Myspace!

Speaking of library stuff, I understand Patty Parks (aka Laptop Librarian) has left the William Byrd Community House to take a position at the Main Library.

City Collection Schedule Changes For Labor Day Holiday -Plus Code On Refuse and Recycling

Posted on September 3, 2010 by Scott

From City press release:

Labor Day Schedule for
Refuse Collection

In observance of the Labor Day holiday, city offices will be closed Monday, September 6. Solid Waste Management Division also will be closed. Refuse collection will be delayed by one day and will resume on Tuesday, September 7 through Saturday, September 11.

East Richmond Road Convenience Center and the Hopkins Road Transfer Station also will be closed on Monday.

For more information on city services and schedules, please visit us on line at www.RichmondGov.com.

###

Garbage for Oregon Hill is usually on Wednesdays, so I guess garbage pickup will happen on Thursday this coming week due to holiday.

Recycling usually happens for Oregon Hill every other Wednesday. This coming week’s curbside recycling will happen on Thursday, the 9th, according to CVWMA schedule.

And, since we are at it, it seems like as good of time as any to remind residents of City code concerning refuse and recycling; here is a sample:

Sec. 86-44. Times and places of collection; bulk items; brush collection; collection of loose leaves.

(a) Refuse receptacles and recycling bins must be placed out for collection by 6:00 a.m. of the scheduled collection day but not earlier than 4:00 p.m. of the day preceding, except for any special times as deemed necessary by the director of public works. The refuse receptacles and recycling bins must be removed by 7:00 a.m. on the day following collection from city property and right-of-ways to include, but not be limited to, sidewalks, alleys and median strips between sidewalks and roadways. Refuse receptacles and recycling bins shall be placed for collection at a location designated by the director of public works. The public utility account holder of any property to which a refuse receptacle has been assigned shall be responsible for removing the refuse receptacle from city property by 7:00 a.m. on the day following collection. Any account holder who allows a refuse receptacle or recycling bin to remain on city property after 7:00 a.m. on the day following collection shall receive a notice from the Department of Public Works advising of the violation and allowing the account holder an opportunity to remove the refuse receptacle or recycling bin. If the refuse receptacle or recycling bin is not timely removed from city property, the Department of Public Works shall cause the account holder to be assessed a civil penalty in the amount of $50.00 for each and every calendar day that each and every refuse receptacle or recycling bin remains on city property beginning with the date of the most recent past scheduled pick up time from the Department of Public Works. Such civil penalty shall be included on the account holder’s monthly utility statement and shall be subject to collection in the same manner as other utility charges including delinquent charges for utilities.

Article: Finding the Balance Between VCU Student Renter and Oregon Hill Resident

Posted on September 1, 2010 by Scott

Last year multimedia journalism graduate student Jaclyn O’Laughlin created an article on neighborhood tensions between VCU students and longtime Oregon Hill residents. I have purposely waited to post it here until the semester started.

Here’s an excerpt:

“For many students that are here, they are away from home for the first time and they can go hog wild. It all comes down to the kids being young, which is not a problem, but they don’t have a lot of experience and some of this stuff hasn’t occurred to them,” said Jennifer Hancock, interim president of the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association. “The point of view for some of them is that they are only going to be here for four years and they don’t care.”

The residents of Oregon Hill are not trying to pick on or “dog pile” the students, Hancock said. She believes that students have a different perspective than the long-term residents that live in Oregon Hill, because most students know they will only live in the neighborhood for a few years and eventually move away.

Read the entire article and see online video by clicking here.

Monroe Park plans revealed

Posted on August 31, 2010 by Scott

NBC12 has a story on the $6 million in renovation/upgrade plans for Monroe Park, thanks to the hard work of the Monroe Park Advisory Council.

Monroe Park Plans

There will also be a story in Style Magazine published tomorrow.

WBCH Offers Artery Tour This Tuesday

Posted on August 27, 2010 by Scott

There is an atherosclerosis simulator that is touring our area from August 19th – 31st; it will be located at the Byrd House Market (Linden Street) on August 31, from 12 -6 pm. It shows a journey through the arteries with plaque build-up and blockages. It only takes about 5 minutes each session and can accommodate 10 people at a time. This is free. See flyer below for more information.

2010 UAA William Byrd Comm. House Flyer

St. Andrew’s Church to host a Ugandan photo exhibition

Posted on August 24, 2010 by Scott

You may have already seen the flyers in the neighborhood or maybe the Style magazine article or the newspaper article, but here’s information about an event happening this Friday:

Joanita Senoga, a single mother of two who fled her village in Uganda in 1996, came to America with virtually nothing, and is now an alumna and employee of University of Richmond. In 1994, two years before fleeing home, she started Circle of Peace School in Uganda for children who could not afford an education there (as education is not free there). The school is now 250 students strong.

St. Andrew’s Church will host a photo exhibition, “Images of Hope: What Would You Buy With $50?” on August 27 at 6:30 p.m. Proceeds benefit the Circle of Peace School development efforts – specifically, funding will go to a final payment to secure land for building classrooms and dormitories.

Students of the school in the village of Makindye, Uganda were asked what they would buy with $50, and these children responded by drawing what they would buy. None of these children have ever had $50 in their whole life.

The campaign needs help – it is trying to raise $18,000 by September 1 to make a final payment on land the school will be able to use to expand the campus to build classrooms and dormitories.

Here are a few photos:

OHNA Meets Tomorrow Night

Posted on August 23, 2010 by Scott

The Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association will be holding its monthly (every fourth Tuesday) meeting at the William Byrd Community House at 7 pm.

The agenda includes discussion of Holly Street Playground plans.

Byrd Market tomorrow and Cameroon cooking Saturday