President's Letter
October 2009
The MWIA is on a bit of a roll lately in terms of bringing direct benefit to our neighborhood. In the last few months we can point to four concrete examples of how we serve you and all of our neighbors.
- When paving contractors set up an un-permitted and environmentally damaging staging and storage lot in Northwest Park we fought aggressively to have it removed. This effort required contacts with the Mayor’s Office, the City Council, the Departments of Transportation and Recreation and Parks. It went on to involve the State Highway Administration and the Federal Highway Administration. Everyone said that nothing could be done to remove this eyesore and nuisance from our park, and still we managed to prevail.
- We rallied concerned residents to do something new and creative about crime. Rather than continue to pursue the failed citizen patrol strategies of the past, we started from scratch and created a new partnership with the Northern District to get better coverage of the neighborhood, faster response, and greater neighborhood awareness.
- With the help of City Councilwoman Rikki Spector, we finally succeeded in getting Enslow Road repaved. This provides safe and convenient access to the Mt. Washington Swim Club and Northwest Park. Look for big MWIA-coordinated volunteer effort aimed at clearing invasives and dead trees from along the road in an effort to make it more attractive to patrons of the park and less attractive to criminals.
- We were able to work with the Baltimore Office of Sustainability and the Baltimore Community Foundation on a pilot program called the Baltimore Neighborhood Energy Challenge. This brings neighbors together to share ideas and encouragement aimed at reducing energy use and cost as well as environmental impact.
All of this happened because of tireless effort on the part of dozens of volunteers working on your behalf. Now it’s your turn! Please show your support for these efforts by renewing your MWIA membership right now. (No, I am totally serious—RIGHT NOW!) Please take a second to renew your membership for calendar year 2010. It’s quick, it’s only forty bucks, and it makes all the difference in the world for all of us.
Aaron Meisner
MWIA President