Living in the Neighborhood, p. 2

NEW NEIGHBORHOOD INITIATIVE BY THE DAVIDSON POLICE DEPARTMENT

Exactly one year ago this month, Davidson Police Chief John Kearin met with residents to discuss establishing a Neighborhood Watch Program and what we as residents can do to prevent crime and maintain and improve safety. Neighborhood Watch is a common program in communities such as ours. It involves on organization and coordination of specific “captains” within the neighborhood and the good, common-sense awareness of all residents. Past results have been fair, but as Officer Ivan Brown pointed out in our Neighborhood Discussion Group in March, this approach has become all too common and ineffective in many communities. The Neighborhood Watch signs do little to discourage crime in today’s environment.

As a result of this growing concern, the Davidson Police Department has just launched a new initiative designed to improve the overall quality of life for its citizens. The new initiative involves creation of Community Action Teams (CAT) to work with citizens to prevent crime, increase police and community interaction, and identify and resolve community issues. By being more pro-active to potential problems, Ivan Brown, in his presentation in March, indicated that this initiative will become a better alternative to the reactive elements of the conventional Neighborhood Watch Program.

“CAT will provide the necessary tools to eliminate or reduce crime through educational programs and enforcement,” said John J. Kearin, chief of police. “Our officers are excited about the program and look forward to getting involved at the neighborhood level to make our community safer and our neighborhoods stronger.”

The CAT program will be comprised of officers and residents working together to identify issues of concern and determine what steps need to be taken to resolve these matters. Training sessions will be held to provide the skills needed, including selecting issues, conducting a community analysis, soliciting resources, achieving sustainable actions, executing a plan, and achieving long-term change. This program goes beyond crime and security. It also includes the elements of safety and good practice.

For more information or to understand how you can become involved directly, please call MPO Ivan Brown, Lt. Brian Fink, or Scott Meisenheimer at 704.892.5131 or visit the website at www.davidson.nc.us.

NEW NEIGHBORHOOD WEBSITE

Thanks to Stephen (Steve) F. Lee (O. Henry Avenue), New Neighborhood now has the beginnings of its own website at www.stalbanssq.org.

At this point, the site is very simple and in the planning stage. There is no neighborhood database information loaded and there is no individual security code (PIN number) required for the links now in place. The site currently includes community links, a Neighborhood map, the Neighborhood plan, and a Davidson area map. Steve has linked some great community sites, especially those frequently referenced in the newsletter.

There is much work to be done. Steve has indicated that the most difficult task at hand is entering the neighborhood database (directory) and creating security through PIN numbers so that some sections of the site can be entered only by residents. We should not expect completion of this task before mid-summer.

The website will allow storage of an updated directory. Other useful information will include a copy of the Covenant and other administrative documents. The monthly newsletter will be made available on the site and past copies can be archived for reference. Member lists of the Council of Stewards and neighborhood committees will be added to the site and can easily be updated. Important announcements and upcoming events can now be highlighted without everyone waiting once a month to receive the newsletter. Forms such as the “Request for Architectural Approval” will now be available on the site whenever needed.

It is recognized that not everyone has computer access to the website. Although the contents of the site will save printing costs for the Neighborhood Association, it is not anticipated that delivery of a newsletter in some form will be eliminated. Much planning and discussion regarding the eventual use of the website is yet to occur.

For now the best way to contact Steve with your suggestions and input is via e-mail to the webmaster@stalbanssq.org. Steve welcomes your questions about the site and suggestions for future development.

NOW is the time to provide input. We are in the early development phase of a great neighborhood tool! Visit the website today and e-mail the webmaster! We owe MANY THANKS to Steve for volunteering to take on this job.

THANKS FOR RECYCLING, BUT . . .

Please secure newspapers and other paper items so they will not blow around the neighborhood on windy recycle pick-up days.

A NEW NEIGHBORHOOD AMENITY

Have you noticed the wooden structure being built beside the creek in the wooded common area at Grey Road and Wolfe Street? By the time this newsletter goes to press, it should be nearly complete.

What is it? It is a play structure, a fort, a tree house, or whatever you want based on your imagination. Maybe it is a cabin in the wilderness on the side of a hill, next to a stream. You can climb into it, climb under it, hide inside or behind it.

For the older ones of us who spend less time accessing and acting on imagination, the way we did in our youth, it could provide a place to sit with nature and do something like read a good book. Remember when . . .

SPRING LANDSCAPING NEEDS

This is the time of year for single-family homeowners to place fresh pine needles or mulch around the base of the trees between the curb and the sidewalk in front of their homes. Trees need mulch to protect from water loss through evaporation during dry spells and summer heat. Leave a few inches between the mulch and trunk of the tree to avoid creating a habitat for pests that damage and destroy trees. If using pine needles, this should be done annually. Shredded wood mulch and pine bark nuggets usually do not need freshening as often.

Contemporary Landscapes of Charlotte, the Association lawn contractor, is responsible for landscaping on the outside of townhome buildings and all common areas. Once again, the contractor has already gotten off to a good start in the new growing season and mulch has already been replaced or freshened among the townhomes.

If you have questions or concerns about your landscaping, please contact Abbott Enterprises or a member of the Landscape & Grounds Committee. Single-family homeowners may need the names of good landscaping companies for their needs. We will try to provide tips in the newsletter as positive experiences are communicated.

NEWSLETTER DELIVERY VOLUNTEERS
THANK YOU!

Many thanks are due our newsletter delivery volunteers each month. The March newsletter was delivered by Barbara and Tom Doster, Tom Fischer, Norman Richards, Regina Schreiber, Dave Smith, and Chuck Womack.

NEWSLETTER DELIVERY BY MAIL

If you want Association information and the newsletter mailed instead of delivered to your door, please write to Abbott Enterprises, Inc. (5970 Fairview Rd., Suite 710, Charlotte, NC 28210) requesting the change. Association information is automatically mailed to all non-resident owners.

WHAT’S IN A NAME?
NEIGHBORHOOD STREETS AND BYWAYS
[INSTALLMENT 5]

We continue our discussion of the streets and byways of the New Neighborhood this month with a history behind the name given O. Henry Avenue. With the exception of Fairview and Caldwell Lanes, the primary streets and roads throughout the neighborhood are named after Southern authors and writers. The narrow “byways” are all named for local people who were in the chain of title for property purchased for the New Neighborhood.

O. HENRY AVENUE

O. Henry is actually the pen name of William Sydney Porter, born September 11, 1862 in Greensboro, North Carolina. His father was a physician and his mother died when he was only three years old. William was an avid reader, but dropped out of public schools when he was fifteen in order to go to work in a drug store. He moved to Texas for two years and worked on a ranch. He held a number of jobs in Texas, including bank clerk. Porter married in 1882 after moving to Austin. Two years later, he started a humorous weekly paper entitled The Rolling Stone (not likely related to the current paper, pop group, and culture). After the newspaper failed, he moved to Houston and became a columnist for the Houston Post.

In 1896, William Porter was charged with stealing funds from the bank and ordered to stand trial in Austin. There is debate over his guilt and most believe that he was more guilty of poor bookkeeping than criminal conduct. Although he might have been pardoned of all charges, he fled to Honduras. Porter was finally arrested when he returned to his wife’s deathbed, and was imprisoned for three years in 1898 in a penitentiary at Columbus, Ohio.

While in prison, Porter wrote short stories under various pen names to earn money for his daughter. His first work, “Whistling Dick’s Christmas Stocking,” was published in McClure’s Magazine. Upon leaving prison in 1901, Porter changed his name to O. Henry and almost immediately moved to New York City, where he wrote a story a week for the New York World. O. Henry’s sentimental short stories expose human weaknesses and have natural characters. His characteristic plot lines are developed around coincidence and fate and he became a master at the plot twist or “surprise ending.” Few of us could have completed school without encountering an O. Henry short story somewhere along the way. Several of his best known stories include “The Gift of the Magi,” The Ransom of Red Chief,” and The Last Leaf.” He published nearly 250 works of fiction in a total of 14 different collections, including three collections that were published after his death. O. Henry’s first collection, Cabbages and Kings, was written in 1904 and is a well known volume to just about any high school student. A two volume set (library binding) of the Complete Works of O. Henry is available from Amazon for $129.

Sadly, O. Henry’s last years were not good ones. He was taken with alcoholism, ill health, and financial problems and died of cirrhosis of the liver in 1910.

Next month, I hope to cover the byways named after members of either the Tuttle or Goodrum families. Please call Dave Smith at 704.987.1472 if you have information on one of these families. If I cannot get this information in April, I will cover Twain Avenue and Clemens Place. Unless you have forgotten all of your high school English literature education, these are one and the same.