Living in the Neighborhood

“In the Know in Our Neighborhood” is intended to provide important, useful, or interesting information that might not be known by all neighbors. I need topics that you feel appropriate. If you have ideas, call Dave Smith (704.987.1472) or e-mail davidbsmith@bellsouth.net.

Neighborhood Christmas Decorations

Hopefully everyone noticed the beautiful decorations that were placed at New Neighborhood entrances during the holidays. Garlands decorated the fences and St. Alban’s Square fountain, while wreaths adorned a number of lamp posts. Tom & Shirley Fischer and Hank & Donna Howell are to be thanked for putting up this beautiful holiday color. Donna and Shirley controlled the lower level decorations while Hank and Tom handled the wreath installation via ladder.

The decorations were bought by the Association and will be kept for use each year. Although it seems too early to be looking to Christmas 2007, I feel certain that the Fischers and Howells would welcome any volunteers for the coming year.

Winter Holiday Decorations Contest — Winners all

The First Annual Winter Holiday Decorating Contest results are complete! Members of the Landscape & Grounds Committee judged all homes on December 10th and 11th, concentrating on appearance both in the evening and during the daytime. Entries were evaluated for creativity, originality, thematic elements and overall design quality, and not just on quantity of lights. Winners were awarded a blue ribbon which is proudly displayed at the front of each home.

Congratulations go to Jo & Bob Herman of 186 Clemens Place as winners of the Best Overall for Single Family Homes. An attractive mix of garlands and wreathes accent the porches and bright red doors of the home. Even the garage was adorned with a wreath over each door. The white lights of the lamp post, trees, and deer add an eye-catching touch to anyone driving around the Clemens Place circle or just passing by along O. Henry.

Congratulations Jo & Bob Herman! Their home is beautiful during the daytime. Regrettably, the night shots did not copy well, and even this day shot does not do justice to the spectacular effect of the red doors.

Winner of Best Overall for Townhomes goes to Tamara & Dennis Dietzel of 167 Harper Lee Street. Again, both garlands and wreathes draw attention to the porches. Both white and colored lights were used to light up the unit and shrubs at night. And, of course, who could overlook Jolly Ole St. Nick seated on the porch rocker and waving to all who would pass down Harper Lee Street.

Congratulations Tamara & Dennis Dietzel! Again, the daytime shot says a lot, but the lighting at night accents this winning entry even more. Even in black & white, Santa has his wave and the blue ribbon can be seen to the left of the front steps.

Thanks should go to all residents for the effort put into decorations to make our neighborhood stand out among all others. The contest committee had a particularly difficult time deciding on the winners as there were numerous candidates. Special mention should go to the houses entering the curve on O. Henry Avenue. Just a little further up O. Henry, the Stallings home presented an awesome light display. Several homes along Caldwell Lane were close in the judging. The Swartz home on Fairview Lane should also receive special mention. Residents have come to expect stunning seasonal decorations from that home, be it Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Christmas! The Jennings’ home that faces the tee-intersection of North Faulkner Way and Fairview Lane was another stand out.

The townhomes also had a number of close competitors. The Bossie townhome and the Howard townhome, both neighbors to the Dietzels, made wonderful companions to the winning unit. The Howell townhome on Harper Lee Street was also gorgeous. Twain Avenue and O. Henry Avenue were not without special mention either. The entire neighborhood exhibited the true holiday spirit!

It’s not too early to begin planning the winning entry for 2007! If anyone has suggestions regarding the contest for next year, please contact a member of the Landscape & Grounds Committee.

Please Observe Parking Restrictions

Residents and owners have been reminded of New Neighborhood parking restrictions often. Although there has been little enforcement action taken to this point, residents should be aware that the Covenant Committee is nearing completion of Enforcement Policies and Procedures. Early in 2007, it is anticipated that emphasis will be placed on following these restrictions.

With the exception of guest vehicles (for limited time), parking is prohibited overnight on streets throughout the neighborhood. This restriction exists for a number of reasons, but most importantly is in place as a safety issue. Our streets and byways are narrow and, although they meet town and county standards, emergency vehicles could encounter problems in the event of an incident. Fire Department trucks already have limited access due to narrow lanes and parked vehicles add to the problem.

Some Thoughts about Stewardship and Global Warming
(Installment 5)

Vehicles

This is the fifth in a series of articles about saving energy, saving money, and reducing global warming. This month we will look at our vehicles.

Gallons Per Year

The most commonly used measure of fuel consumption is miles per gallon (mpg). In truth, the better measure is gallons per year which considers both miles per gallon and miles driven per year.

A car that gets 15 miles to the gallon and is driven 15,000 miles a year consumes 1,000 gallons of gasoline a year. Each gallon of gasoline burned produces 20 pounds of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO₂), so this car produces 20,000 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Vehicles are a major contributor to global warming.

Miles Per Gallon

Based on EPA data and observations, the typical fuel consumption, cost of fuel per year, and annual carbon dioxide production for different types of vehicles are as follows, based on driving 15,000 miles a year and $2.40 per gallon for gas.

Clearly the size and type of vehicle has a major impact on fuel consumption, costs, and global warming. Americans in general have a tendency to purchase larger vehicles than they really need. There are a lot of reasons, some good, some not so good. One of the reasons given is safety, but are large vehicles really safer?

(1) Government studies have shown that cars with ABS brakes have more accidents than cars without ABS. The reason given is that when people feel safer, they don’t drive as safely and have more accidents.

(2) Large vehicles are a hazard to smaller more fuel efficient vehicles in collisions. If we all downsized our vehicles we would all be safer.

(3) For a long time now we have been sending our sons and daughters to war to secure oil supplies so that we can be wasteful. War is dangerous. Our people die. Their people die. As individuals, we cannot stop war, but we can reduce the causes of war by conserving.

(4) If we don’t do something about pollution and global warming, we are all going to drown in our own waste or burn up in it.

In the big picture, larger vehicles are really more dangerous than smaller ones.

Miles Per Year

Reducing miles driven in a year has just as much impact as driving a more fuel efficient vehicle. It requires lifestyle changes – living closer to where we work, planning ahead and combining shopping trips, car pooling, public transportation, walking or riding a bicycle rather than driving. Our efforts will make a difference.

Our Personal Experiences

When we moved from Charlotte to Davidson, we commuted to Charlotte for everything. No more. Pat works in Cornelius now and I work at home. We shop locally. We walk to church. It saves us over 15,000 miles a year, which translates to a savings of 940 gallons of gas, $2,250 in fuel costs, and 18,800 pounds of carbon dioxide a year.

When we purchased a new car, we set a goal of at least 50% better gas mileage than the car we retired - a Jeep Cherokee getting 16 mpg. To date our Honda Accord V6 at 26 mpg overall is doing 64% better. This is saving us 360 gallons of gas, $850, and 7,200 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. And with a 6-speed manual transmission, the Accord is a surprisingly quick sports sedan and a ball to drive.

And speaking of fun, we do have a sports car with a 550 horsepower 427 cubic inch engine. Through careful design, it yields 18 mpg on the highway and 14 mpg overall, not bad for a car that will reach 100 mph in less than 7 seconds. But the real conservation is only driving it on special occasions, about 3,400 miles a year (240 gallons). We use our more fuel efficient cars for routine driving.

Mike Stenhouse
Concerned Resident of New Neighborhood

Mike Stenhouse discusses the causes and solutions to global warming. You may be surprised to hear what he has to say and the impact that we can all make as individuals. Next month he will will summarize this series of articles and discuss total savings.

Newsletter Delivery Volunteers

Many thanks are due our newsletter delivery volunteers.

December volunteers included Adria & Woody Appleby, Barbara Doster, Tom Fischer, Nick Macos, Norm Reid, Dave Smith, Norma Stewart, and John & Marcia Williamson.