Radnor-Winston Recycling Moves Into 3rd Place In Citywide Contest!

RecycleMORE Community Tonnage Competition Update

The latest update for the RecycleMORE Community Competition through January 30th shows the leaders holding on but being joined by the Radnor Winston Improvement Association in third place with 800 pounds of recycling.

Still leading the pack is the Cheswolde Neighborhood Association, which has recycled a half a ton of material since the start of the contest. Federal Hill is still in second place with 820 pounds. Riverside has slipped to fourth place with 780. Locust Point has slipped to sixth place with 700 pounds and Hampden has moved up to fifth place with 760 pounds.  All neighborhoods are encouraged to promote recycling in their communities in the hope of coming in first at the end of the competition.

Jointly sponsored by the Department of Public Works and the Initiative for a Cleaner Greener Baltimore, the contest tracks recycling tonnage from 39 participating communities from January 1 through March 26, 2010. The neighborhood that recycles the most will win an appreciation day block party. The winner will be announced at the Mayor’s Spring Cleanup Kickoff, April 17, 2010.

The goals of the competition are to increase community partnerships that promote a cleaner, greener City, increase household recycling through community outreach and education, and increase Baltimore’s overall recycling tonnage.
 
For further information, contact Celeste Amato at 410-545-6541, Celeste.Amato@baltimorecity.gov or Robert Murrow at 410-545-6189, Robert.Murrow@baltimorecity.gov

Celebrate Black History Month at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum this Saturday

This Saturday, Verizon is sponsoring an Open House at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African-American History and Culture. The event is free to the Citizens of Baltimore.

Open House Hours: 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Activity Hours: 12:30 PM to 4:30 PM

The program will celebrate African-American History/Culture and the use of Literacy as the means to learn about these topics, which is the underlying theme of the activity. Verizon is making this program possible by supporting the activity and bringing together partners to participate in ways that enable young people, and their parents, to learn about issues and examples of leaders in art, business, education, and government at the renowned Reginald F. Lewis Museum in the African-American cultural hub of Baltimore. Click on the flyer for additional details.

Mayor Gives "State of the City" Address

Earlier this afternoon, Mayor Rawlings-Blake addressed the City Council with the Mayor's annual "State of the City" address.

I was going to post the entire speech, but it's a little over 3,000 words.  So, if you'd like to read it in its entirety, click here...

4th District Snow Clearance Report - Monday's update

Zones 1, 2, and 9

These zones have been inspected and these roads are determined as "passable", meaning the street is able to be driven through, but is not necessarily plowed. According to DoT, every single street in each of these zones has been visually inspected by the Fire Department, who can judge the street’s accessibility for both personal and emergency vehicles.

To further define “not necessarily plowed”, I was told that if there are ruts or tire tracks or even just solid packed down snow, as long as it’s less than six inches off of the road, it’s considered passable. I was also told that a number of streets where residents “haven’t seen a plow” were streets where they’ve come by in the middle of the night and left the snow lower, because they are not trying to get down to asphalt in most places.
Currently working Northern Parkway, trying to clear it back to full operation, are twelve bobcats, five dump trucks, four loaders, and four pick-up trucks.

Zone 5

This zone was almost clear this morning; they do have four bobcats and two 5-ton dump trucks still finishing the area.

Zone 6

This is where most of our problems remain – the densest neighborhoods with the most cars on the tightest streets. Private contractors are working their way through the zone with three 1-ton pick-up trucks with plows, two backhoe/loaders, and a tractor w/ a commercial blower. As soon as the bobcats are done in zone 5 or along Northern Parkway, I am trying to get them detailed to assist in Zone 6.

As I've said before, these are the City’s official assessments, not mine personally. If your street has been deemed "passable" and you disagree with that assessment:

a) please call 311
b) state your concern to them
c) write down the tracking number they give you
d) email me at bill.henry@baltimorecity.gov with your address and the tracking number

All that being said, please try to be reasonable when you’re making your own assessments. Do not use your ordinary standards for post-snowstorm clearance – try to think more in terms of post-hurricane or some other sort of natural disaster. I know that this has been tough on all of us, but the men and women who are working twelve-hour shifts in the snow room and on the streets, trying to get us back to a semblance of normalcy, they deserve our thanks and praise, not our anger and frustration.
Please share this with your neighbors. Thanks!

P.S. Hold down the Ctrl button and click on the map to see it fullsize…

Trash & Recycling Collection Update

The City has announced that both trash and recycling collections will resume tomorrow – Tuesday, February 16, 2010. Please note the following particulars:

• Citizens are asked to place their regularly scheduled trash OR recycling at the end of the nearest street or alley or at an accessible central location determined by your community association president for pick up. (Streets that may have been deemed passable by the City for cars may not be safe for trash trucks. Since no one wants a trash truck sliding into their car, the hope is that communities will support this decision…)

• Community Association Presidents may call 311 with accessible central locations where regularly scheduled trash OR recycling will be placed for pick up.

• This week only trash and recycling may be placed in just bags; cans are temporarily optional, especially if you are taking your trash and recycling any distance to have it collected.

• As always, citizens should call 311 for missed pick ups. The Bureau will continue to collect in this manner until full access to regular pick up locations is possible. Care should be taken not to block sidewalks, streets and alleys for vehicles and pedestrians.

• Citizen Drop-Off Centers are open to the public at their regular operational hours. Citizens can go to http://www.baltimorecity.gov/ or http://www.cleanergreenerbaltimore.com/ to find the nearest drop off center.

• Bulk Trash pick up is cancelled for the week of February 15 through February 19, 2010.

As quickly and safely as you can, please clear your sidewalks and then help your elderly and disabled neighbors do the same.

It is also very important to clear areas around fire hydrants and storm drains to augment the continuing efforts of Public Works Water and Wastewater crews as they tackle the City’s 33,000 inlets. Daily thawing and melting snow can pool and freeze during the night causing large ice patches.

Most importantly, thanks to all for your patience and perseverance as we work together to meet the challenges presented by these historic and unprecedented back-to-back storm events.

PLEASE NOTE: Changing weather conditions expected for Monday, February 15 may alter planned sanitation operations. Citizens should continue to listen to and read local media for the latest updates and instructions from the Mayor and the Office of Emergency Management.

For more information, contact Celeste Amato: 410-545-6541/Celeste.Amato@baltimorecity.gov or Robert Murrow: 410-545-6189/Robert.Murrow@baltimorecity.gov

Snow Clearance Report from the Department of Transportation

As of 9pm, Sunday night:

Zones 1,2,9  - zones have been inspected and roads are determined "passable" meaning the street is able to be driven through but is not necessarily plowed...

Zones 5,6  - both zones still have a few blocks that need work

Also, they are finding that some roads [previously] deemed passable are now becoming slippery because of the drop in temperature during the evenings - they are trying to address those as well.

If your street has been deemed "passable" and you disagree with that assessment, please call 311, state your concern, and then email me at bill.henry@baltimorecity.gov with your address and the tracking number.  Thanks!

4th District Snow Zone Map

To the right is a map of the 4th District's primary snow zones - we are completely contained in zones 1, 2, 5, 6 and 9.  It'll get bigger if you click on it.


I have asked for an update/status report on the progress of snow clearance in our zones.  As I get that information from the Mayor's Office and/or the Department of Transportation, it will be posted here at http://friendsofbillhenry.blogspot.com/


There is a "snow page" on the City's website - available here - with a great deal of useful snow-emergency-related information.  It includes links to "snow removal progress maps" for "pass count" and "time since last pass", but neither link has worked for me yet, which is why I'm waiting for updates from actual humans.  (In all fairness, the maps are probably fine, but hundreds of thousands of people trying to check them all at once may have been a mite too much for our IT infrastructure...)

Baltimore City Solid Waste Service Resumes Tuesday, February 16, 2010

"The Department of Public Works, Bureau of Solid Waste, announced today that both trash and recycling collections will resume Tuesday, February 16, 2010. Citizens are asked to place their regularly scheduled trash OR recycling at the end of the nearest street or alley or at an accessible central location determined by your community association president for pick up. Care should be taken not to block sidewalks, streets and alleys for vehicles and pedestrians.


Community Association Presidents may call 311 with accessible central locations where regularly scheduled trash OR recycling will be placed for pick up. As always, citizens should call 311 for missed pick ups. The Bureau will continue to collect in this manner until full access to regular pick up locations is possible.


Citizen Drop-Off Centers are open to the public at their regular operational hours. Citizens can go to www.baltimorecity.gov or www.clearergreenbaltimore.com to find the nearest drop off center.


Bulk Trash pick up is cancelled for the week of February 15 through February 19, 2010.  As always, citizens are asked to properly contain trash in cans with tight-fitting lids to keep rats out and keep litter in its place.


PLEASE NOTE: Changing weather conditions expected for Monday, February 15 may alter planned sanitation operations. Citizens should continue to listen to and read local media for the latest updates and instructions from the Mayor and the Office of Emergency Management.


As citizens can safely do so, they should clear their sidewalks and then help their elderly and disabled neighbors do the same. It is also very important to clear areas around fire hydrants and storm drains to augment the continuing efforts of Public Works Water and Wastewater crews as they tackle the City’s 33,000 inlets. Daily thawing and melting snow can pool and freeze during the night causing large ice patches.


Most importantly, we thank Baltimore City’s citizens for their patience and perseverance as we work together to meet the challenges presented by these historic and unprecedented back-to-back storm events."


For further information, contact Celeste Amato at 410-545-6541, Celeste.Amato@baltimorecity.gov or Robert Murrow at 410-545-6189, Robert.Murrow@baltimorecity.gov

City Offices Closed Thursday

Due to implementation and continuation of Phase III of the Baltimore City Snow Plan, Mayor Rawlings-Blake has announced that city offices will be closed tomorrow, Thursday, February 11, 2010.

All essential personnel that are part of the snow storm recovery effort must report to work and remain at work as scheduled. This includes: fire and police protection and emergency medical services; snow removal operations and support of snow removal operations, water and waste water treatment and maintenance, building operations and maintenance, city wide payroll operations, parking management and towing, tree service and maintenance.

Dear 4th District residents and stakeholders

As of this evening, we are coming out of the “white out” portion of the blizzard. With Phase III of the Snow Emergency Plan still in effect, there should still be no vehicles on the street except emergency vehicles. Until this latest snow stops, even once plowing and clearing resumes, the City will only be trying to clear main roads and snow emergency routes. According to the City’s Emergency Operations folks, not until the snow stops completely will they even begin to attack the secondary roads…and most of our residential side streets do not even qualify as secondary roads.

If you or your neighbors have called or e-mailed my office at any time over the last few days, please know that Leslie, Nia, or I have been forwarding all of your requests – and complaints! – to the people coordinating the City’s plowing efforts. As I look out of my bedroom window at the expanse of snow, which no longer clearly shows a street between facing homes, trust me…I share your pain!

I know that conditions on most of our residential streets are still awful…and getting worse with this second snow. I ask for your patience and your understanding that this is not just another snowstorm. This is a natural disaster and we are all trying to get through it as safely as possible. The amount of snow we have received is literally unprecedented – as such, we are all coping with logistical challenges that we have never faced before.

Unless you're reading this on a PDA, you obviously have electricity, so please take a moment and be thankful; there are more than a few of our neighbors who don’t right now. If you are up to it, when the white-out conditions drop off, check on some of your neighbors, especially the seniors or anyone with a medical condition that might inhibit their ability to get around.

As I was on my way downtown for Monday’s City Council meeting, I saw many examples of side streets choked with snow. But I also saw lots of people digging themselves - and each other - out of the snow, working together to get through a common hardship. It made me proud and reminded me why I live in the City.

Over the last few days, neighbors who may have gone weeks between saying more than “Hi” from adjacent porches have laughed and complained together as they shoveled…and scraped...and pushed stuck vehicles. I just hope we don’t need another 4 feet of snow to keep working together like this in the days and weeks ahead. Stay warm and safe and keep taking care of each other!

- Bill

P.S.  I don't have a working digital camera right now, so thank you to Carolyn Hayes for taking a great photo of her block of our neighborhood :P

NO TRASH OR RECYCLING COLLECTION FOR THE REST OF THIS WEEK

Due to extreme weather conditions and the resulting difficulty in accessing collection points, the Department of Public Works, Bureau of Solid Waste, announced today that both trash and recycling collections will be cancelled for the remainder of the week. Citizens are asked to hold their trash and recycling until their next regularly scheduled collection day. As always, Citizens are asked to properly contain trash in cans with tight-fitting lids to keep rats out and keep litter in its place.


The safety of citizens and our Solid Waste workers is our top operational priority at this time. The Bureau will continue to utilize its resources to support the Department of Transportation in its snow removal efforts. Once roadways are reasonably clear, the Bureau will determine how to best restore full collection services next week.


Citizens are also reminded that Bulk Trash Collections have been cancelled throughout the remainder of the week. Although Citizen Drop-Off Centers are closed to the public now, they will be REOPENED on Friday, February 12th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Citizens can go to www.baltimorecity.gov or www.clearergreenbaltimore.com
to find the nearest drop off center.


We thank citizens for their patience as we work together to meet the challenges presented by these historic and unprecedented back-to-back storm events. 


For further information, contact Celeste Amato at 410-545-6541, Celeste.Amato@baltimorecity.gov or Robert Murrow at 410-545-6189, Robert.Murrow@baltimorecity.gov

City Offices CLOSED Wednesday for Exchanged Furlough Day

Due to the inclement weather the City is experiencing, it has been determined that Wednesday, February 10, 2010 will be substituted for Friday, May 28, 2010 as the 5th and final designated mandatory furlough day of the Fiscal 2010 Employee Furlough Plan.

This change in the designated mandatory furlough days will not apply to employees who work in trash and recycling collection, certain court operations, 24/7 operations, employees involved in snow removal operations or support of snow removal operations, or certain employees of the Fire and Police Departments.

The presidents of the City Union of Baltimore (CUB) and the Managerial and Professional Society of Baltimore, Inc. have agreed, to and will support the exchange.

Deborah F. Moore-Carter, Labor Commissioner

Trash and Recycling collection cancelled for both Tuesday the 9th and Wednesday the 10th

From DPW's Snow Impacts on Waste Collection Services media advisory:

"Due to the difficulty in accessing collection locations because of this historic snowfall, the Department of Public Works, Bureau of Solid Waste announced today that both trash and recycling collections for Tuesday, February 9th and Wednesday, February 10th are CANCELLED. Citizens should hold their trash and recycling until their next regularly scheduled collection day. As always, citizens are urged to properly contain trash in cans with tight-fitting lids to keep rats out and litter in its place.

The Bureau will reassess road conditions on Wednesday to determine the ability to access neighborhoods for waste collections. We ask that Citizens tune in to local news for updates on impacts to trash and recycling collections.

ADDITIONALLY, Citizen Drop Off Centers will be CLOSED to the public until further notice. The Drop Off Centers are being used as hubs of operation for snow removal equipment making them unsafe for residential and pedestrian traffic at this time.

The Bureau of Solid Waste continues to dedicate its drivers and equipment to support the Department of Transportation in its snow removal efforts. All Bureau of Solid Waste employees should continue to report to work at their assigned yards.

We thank Citizens for their patience as we work together to meet the challenge of this unprecedented snow event."

POSTPONED: York/Belvedere Small Area Master Plan Meeting

The York/Belvedere Small Area Plan Meeting scheduled for 6:30pm this Thursday the 11th at The Junior League's offices has been postponed.

The meeting will be rescheduled for early March. 

Oh Good Grief !!!

Issued by The National Weather Service
Baltimore/Washington, MD
3:04 pm EST, Mon., Feb. 8, 2010
... WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON TUESDAY TO 7 PM EST WEDNESDAY...
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STERLING VIRGINIA HAS ISSUED A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR... WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TUESDAY TO 7 PM EST WEDNESDAY. THE WINTER STORM WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT.
* PRECIPITATION TYPE... SNOW.
* ACCUMULATIONS... 10 TO 20 INCHES.
* TIMING... MID-AFTERNOON TUESDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY.
* TEMPERATURES... TEMPERATURES NEAR FREEZING AT THE ONSET TUESDAY AFTERNOON. TEMPERATURES WILL DROP INTO THE UPPER 20S TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY.
* WINDS... LIGHT SOUTHEASTERLY WINDS TUESDAY BECOMING NORTHWESTERLY 15 TO 25 MPH WEDNESDAY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A WINTER STORM WARNING MEANS SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW ARE EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. THE COMBINATION OF SNOW AND STRONG WINDS WILL MAKE TRAVEL VERY HAZARDOUS.

&&

Trash and Recycling Collection Cancelled for this Tuesday

Due to heavy snowfall resulting in many inaccessible streets and alleys, trash and recycling collections in Baltimore City are cancelled for Tuesday, February 9, 2010.

The Department of Public Works will continue to assess current conditions as to the ability of sanitation crews to resume regularly scheduled collections on Wednesday, February 10, 2010.

We ask that Citizens tune in to local news for updates on impacts to trash and recycling collections and urge citizens, as always, to properly contain trash in cans with tight-fitting lids, to keep rats out and to keep litter in its place.

For further information, contact Celeste Amato at 410-545-6541, Celeste.Amato@baltimorecity.gov or Robert Murrow at 410-545-6189, Robert.Murrow@baltimorecity.gov

Redhot JAZZ at Faith Presbyterian Church !!!

Argonne Drive Bridge to close for over a year

While the actual construction project is not in my district, for any of our neighbors who use this route, please be advised that the City's Department of Transportation will be starting the Argonne Drive Bridge Rehabilitation Project on February 15th, with an expected completion of sometime during the summer of 2011.

For more details, click on the letter to the right.

Come hear what's happening at our middle schools !!!

For those of you who were unable to make my district-wide community meeting last week, the Baltimore City Public School System has proposed “transforming” Chinquapin Middle School and closing Winston Middle School as part of this year’s “Expanding Great Options” program. There are town hall meetings scheduled at both schools - parents are being notified through various school/student-based methods, but the community at large is also encouraged to attend.

The Winston meeting is scheduled for this Wednesday and the Chinquapin meeting is scheduled for this Friday, both from 6pm to 7:30pm at the respective schools. Posted here are a flier for the community meetings and two pages of details on the BCPSS recommendations for each school, with the rationale behind each recommendation – click on them to make them big enough to read…

For anyone who’d like to see the entire "Expanding Great Options" report, it is available at http://www.bcps.k12.md.us/news/PDF/EGO_Report2010_11.pdf