Wide open spaces at the Morningside development

It's hard to imagine that this rural-like scene is less than three miles from downtown Charlotte.

Pictures tell the story better than words for an urban area that once housed Morningside Apartments, brick buildings from the World War II era, with hardwood floors, large rooms and a multicultural community.

The apartments were torn down in August 2007 to make way for new development, which has since stalled. The 33-acre parcel sits between Central Avenue and Commonwealth Avenue, with a small creek running through the eastern part of the property just before Morningside Avenue.

In the mean time, grass and weeds hold down the dirt. For a historical look, check out the Morningside Apartments website, which has some dead links but also holds some great glimpses of the past.

For more photos of the open fields (with captions), and photos of efforts to manage runoff into the small creek, see Flickr.

Aerial map snapshot from Google Maps.






Update: I shared the top photo in this post on Twitter, asking a guessing game of where it was, on May 31. Photographer James Willamor guessed the location correctly, and that's no surprise. He loves to study Charlotte buildings, the skyline, maps and development and write and shoot for CLTBlog. James has built a Google map of good vantage points to take photos of Charlotte's skyline.

Further historical links:
The developer's website, circa 2008:

Karen Shugart in Creative Loafing, talking with residents and nearby neighbors, March 1, 2006:

Hip Hoods on the development plans, Feb. 13, 2008:

Steve Lyttle from The Charlotte Observer, July 29, 2007.
(Note: This is the HTML version of a .pdf from The Charlotte Observer, not available directly from The Observer but available through the developer's website. If The Observer has any objections to this link, please let me know and I'll take it off.)

Doug Smith in The Next Big Thing, The Charlotte Observer,Feb. 13, 2008.
(Note: This is the HTML version of a .pdf from The Charlotte Observer, not available directly from The Observer but available through the developer's website. If The Observer has any objections to this link, please let me know and I'll take it off.)

J. Lee Howard in The Charlotte Business Journal, March 31, 2006.

Charlotte's guerrilla gardeners

Charlotte has a group of guerrilla gardeners, whose goal is “fighting filth with flowers. We adopt wasted urban land and plant fabulous gardens.”

The group has a Twitter account to spread the word about their efforts and to organize meetings to plant a little beauty in ugly areas of Charlotte.

The group also has plans for making seed bombs, globs of dirt packed with seeds that can be hurled or lobbed into waste areas and empty lots. (You can learn how to make your own seed bombs with a YouTube video here. For the South and Charlotte, our ubiquitous red clay would serve as a binding agent quite well.)

Since Merry Oaks has had a number of individual guerrilla gardeners over the years, here are a few unsolicited pieces of advice for members of this great new group:

• Seek perennials and natives for areas that are likely to remain growing for several years. Your extra money spent will pay off over years. Many gardeners also often have extras to dig up and donate to others: “ditch lilies,” (common day lilies), or ground covers like “green-and-gold.” You want hardy, spreading plants, but beware plants that are way too invasive that can threaten other plants (honeysuckle or wisteria.) My back yard has some maturing money plant seeds that will be perfect for a donation for seed bombs shortly.
  
• Beware schools and parks that could get mown down by workers who do not recognize your efforts at growing beauty. Many a heart has been broken by school volunteers over the years when trying to beautify an area, only to have their work trampled, bulldozed or sprayed with weed killer. If you suspect an area could face those kinds of challenges, use annuals or something cheap or free that won’t break your heart later.
  
• Check with community-conscious businesses like Park Seed out of Greenwood, South Carolina. They’ve made donations to PTAs and other groups in the past. They might be willing to help the cause.
  
• Be careful in “rescuing” plants from lots where houses have been torn down or moved. Check with owners to see whether they want their plants rescued. Obey property laws. And in some cases, plants, especially perennials, might be perfect to stay on the lot and beautify an empty space. Only move things if they are truly endangered.
  

Other ideas? Want to help?

The guerrilla gardeners meet next on Wednesday, at Amelie’s Bakery at 2424 N. Davidson St. in NoDa, to plant that evening. Follow them on Twitter as CLT_Guerrillas for details. (You don’t have to create a Twitter account to read what they’re doing.)

Photo information: Top photo by Dave Potts, showing the Guerrilla Gardeners efforts at 2700 Commonwealth Avenue. Bottom photo of money plant seed pods maturing in my back yard.

Holding property owners accountable for renters

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police representatives are pitching the idea of a new Charlotte city ordinance intended to help find absentee property owners and hold them accountable for actions of renters.

The initial plan requires property owners to register rental property with the police department, providing clear details on how the property owner can be reached if renters engage in illegal or disorderly activities.

The ordinance also allows the establishment of fees to pay for the registration costs and establishes a five-member unpaid board that reviews violations and has the power to revoke an owner's ability to rent property.

Police representatives are expecting strong opposition from property owners, and the ordinance review process will likely take several months, according to an email sent to community leaders from Ken Miller, deputy police chief. The first draft will be presented to a council committee on Thursday, May 21.

The ordinance could be welcome among some community leaders as a way to hold property owners accountable for criminal activity that happens on their property. A few questions, to generate discussion:

1. Why can't existing property records be used to find property owners instead of establishment of a separate registration process and database? Perhaps one answer: Often rental property is owned by absentee partnerships or companies where the tracing of responsibile parties is difficult. So would it be more efficient to fund or hire a forensic property tracker or enhance the existing property ownership database instead of creating a separate silo of information? Would it not be better long term for records at the city clerk's office to be made useful for this purpose and other purposes?
2. Will the fee for registration be so prohibitive that it penalizes small property owners in a bad economy who are just struggling to hold on to their properties instead of letting them lapse into foreclosure?
3. If determination of "disorderly" or "illegal" activities on a property happens before the renter goes to court and is convicted, is it right to penalize a property owner?
4. If it's difficult to staff unpaid city and county boards as it is, why establish another unpaid board to review complaints? Is there another way to use the time of existing city staff to handle the work, or is that a legal problem?
5. What are other cities and counties doing to control the problem of crime and disorder in rental properties with absentee owners who are difficult to reach? Has the proposed approach worked in other cities? Has it been challenged in courts elsewhere (leading to legal costs for cities)?

The proposed ordinance addresses a big problem in dealing with crime and safety in rental properties. Let's hope for a strong community discussion that leads to efficient, fair methods of fixing the problem.

First meeting details: Room 180 of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center, 600 E. Fourth St. at noon on Thursday, May 21. Here's a map.

Full Google document of the draft ordinance.

Eastside Charlotte mayoral forum

More than 75 people showed up for a Charlotte mayoral candidates' forum Tuesday night at Windsor Park Elementary School to hear John Lassiter and Anthony Foxx discuss issues near and dear to the east side of Charlotte.

The forum was sponsored by Charlotte East Political Action Committee and was set up as a moderated Q&A with the candidates, with time for questions from the audience.
Foxx, a Democrat, and Lassiter, a Republican, are both at-large city council members and the leading candidates for Charlotte mayor. The winner will replace Mayor Pat McCrory, a Republican, who is the longest-serving mayor in Charlotte history, according to Wikipedia.

Fred Clasen-Kelly did a fine job of reporting the event at The Charlotte Observer, (temporary link) focusing on low-income housing questions.

The following are raw notes from the meeting. My background is as an editor and designer, so I can't do as fine of a job as Fred, but I offer these notes up to flesh out areas that Fred couldn't address because of time or space constraints. If there's anything I left out or portrayed wrongly, let me know in comments.

In addition, CLTBlog plans a streaming video online town hall with Foxx at 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 17. Anyone can submit and vote on questions for that event by going to Google Moderator here.

The key topics (often overlapping) from Tuesday night:

Fixing Eastland Mall
Both candidates noted that zoning and overbuilding hurt the Eastland Mall and Albemarle Road areas. Both noted that the tough economy is making a fix difficult.
Lassiter: Plans for the mall land will succeed if zoning is mixed use. When the economy rebounds, the area will see folks coming in and buying up these properties. The city planning department will be key in making the rebound a success.
Foxx: Fixing Eastland will involve a number of efforts, including police, infrastructure and rebuilding trust between the neighborhoods and the city. "We cannot leave East Charlotte out."
One questioner pushed for housing on the property at a specific price point: $200,000 or so, not $110,000 to $150,000. Neither candidate promised such a price point in future zoning for the property. Lassiter noted that the east side faces a challenge because existing housing stock falls into a narrow price area, with no ability for residents to move up but stay within the area. Lassiter also said redevelopment of the 90-acre Eastland Mall site would not include subsidized housing.
Another questioner expressed concerns that existing city investment in a bus transit station at the mall site could impede future plans.
Foxx: "There have been alot of false starts." "I'm sorry that folks have felt the city hasn't been paying attention." "We need to rebuild that connection between the city of Charlotte and the east side."

Working for better public transit on the east side of Charlotte
Both candidates noted that the Independence Boulevard widening was a state project that failed to take local residents and business needs into consideration.
Foxx: "As mayor, I'd commit to taking a long hard look at rapid transit on Independence Boulevard." He also noted that he's pushing for a way that the city can move ahead with the trolley line from Beatties Ford Road all the way to Eastland Mall.
Lassiter: "The challenge of getting light rail money is meeting federal rules." He's also working for the trolley, trying to find a way to use mostly local money to fund the project.


Fixing Independence Boulevard
Foxx: Wants new money to pay for the finishing of I-485, preserving existing state money to finish Independence Boulevard. "The N.C. DOT has not historically been a good partner with us" for helping to support the businesses that depended on Independence Boulevard.
Lassiter: Independence Boulevard needs to be the back door for the neighborhoods, not the front door. "I think we can all agree that the state has made a mess of Independence Boulevard."

Maintaining safety and fighting crime
Both candidates acknowledge the strong work of the Charlotte police department (which had at least five representatives at the meeting) and that crime had gone down in the Eastway division. Both noted that the city would find responsible ways to pay for more police officers that would not raise taxes. Both pointed to fiscal responsibility from the city, contrasting it with financial difficulties the county faces.
Foxx: Went to Washington, D.C., on his own dime to talk with U.S. Senator Kay Hagan, D-N.C., and U.S. Rep. Mel Watt, D-N.C., about federal support for fighting crime. He has also talked with the state Administrative Office of the Courts, and is working in the community at West Charlotte High School, his alma mater, to help show young people different, positive paths.
Lassiter: "We have to get chronic offenders off the streets." Lassiter noted he served on the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board for many years, working to support young people and schools.


Low-income housing
Foxx: Noted a story by Fred Clasen-Kelly in The Charlotte Observer in 2006 that said roughly four of every five Section 8 residents are clustered in 10 ZIP codes in the Charlotte area. "I want to see this city deal with affordable housing in a real way," he said. He mentioned an "incentivized inclusi0onary zoning" fix. If he were mayor, he would establish a task force to handle low-income housing questions.
Lassiter: "I believe the east side of Charlotte has given enough." However, he emphasized a market-based approach to handling housing price points.

Code enforcement
Eastside residents have wrestled with the problem of code enforcement people working day hours Monday through Friday, with no one to verify and follow up code violations such as parking cars and trucks on lawns on weekends and evenings. Lassiter addressed the issue, saying the city was looking at innovative solutions such as split shifts for code enforcement workers. Foxx agreed: "We've got to have weekend code enforcement," he said, and he noted that the city workers must deal with three computer systems to input and track data about violations, with no easy computer interaction with police computers. He said the city needed to increase our investment in technology to address the challenge.


Small-area plans
Susan Lindsay, a long-time neighborhood activist for the east side of Charlotte, questioned why the city had not gone forward with small-area plans for the Milton Road-Plaza area and the Eastway-Plaza areas. Both candidates said they would look into that, with Lassiter noting that the planning staff should have some excess capacity at the moment because of a lack of rezoning cases.

Visit Evergreen Nature Preserve

View Larger Map

Less than a mile away from Merry Oaks is Evergreen Nature Preserve, 80 acres of creek and woodlands hidden between Central Avenue and Independence Boulevard in East Charlotte.

People are celebrating International Migratory Bird Day there from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 9. Activities will include Birding 101, bird hikes, crafts, games and bird-related merchandise for sale.
Get directions here.

Then on Tuesday, May 12, at 6 p.m., the Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation commissioners will consider the preserve's master plan for approval, at a meeting at the Mallard Creek Recreation Center, 2530 Johnston Oehler Road. Details: (704) 548-8234. The meeting is open to the public.
For photos, a PDF of the master plan and more information about the preserve, visit the Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation site.
For photos of cedar waxwings and more from the preserve, check out birderbarden1 on Flickr.
(Hat tip: Nancy Pierce from the Merry Oaks neighborhood Google group).

Call for artists and dog lovers

The North Mecklenburg Animal Rescue group is seeking artists and craftspeople who want to sell their work at a family fun day on May 3 at The Palmer Building at 2601 E. Seventh St. near the Elizabeth neighborhood.

All proceeds from sales remain with the artist. All proceeds from space rental benefit animal rescue.

The event includes a petting zoo, adoptable puppies, a Guitar Hero competition and a dog agility demonstration. Plus Lexington barbecue.

Several neighborhood artists are planning to participate, including Patty Perkins, who makes beaded jewelry and teaches friends how to do so at parties. Visit her site for pictures from The Girls Night Out at Cate's recently. Those are her princess pins at the top of this post.

Rebecca Jones, who fostered the feral German shepherds from our greenway, is donating several art pieces along with her husband, Alex.

Here's a list of artists and craft folk.

Kayla from this animal rescue group was the "dog whisperer" who helped Rebecca with the shepherds, so this event is the neighborhood's chance to give back to an organization that helped our greenway feel safer for dogs and people of all sizes.

Details on the event are here.
Information for artists is here.

Public art in progress

Merry Oaks artist Greg Scott was one of three artists to show their works in progress Monday night as part of a public art project for Central Avenue. One of his sketches is above.

The artists showed a small group of Merry Oaks residents their works at a gathering Monday at Café Central at the corner off Central Avenue and Arnold Drive.

The projects are funded by the Arts and Science Council. These images were taken of sketches displayed during the gathering at Café Central and will likely vary from the finished works.

Ceramic artist Amy Sanders is the lead artist, coordinating community meetings to involve residents and artists and working with business owners.

The visual art will be transferred to vinyl panels attached with grommets to walls of businesses on Central Avenue near the intersection with Arnold Drive. Informal word is that a long, thin wall at Dim Sum at 3000 Central Ave. will become home to one of the works, and the tall building at 2821 Central Ave. with a large white wall at the corner of Masonic Drive and Central Avenue will hold another. (That's the old Eastgate Masonic Lodge.) The third location remains to be determined.

Other artists who showed their work in progress:


Sharon Dowell, with one of her sketches above; and


Duy Huynh, with one of his sketches above.

Greg and Amy are also part of a local group of ceramic artists Circle of Eight.

Café Central provided hors d’oeuvres for the gathering, including a beautiful dish of quail eggs, soup and prosciutto (below).

Yard sales, a creek walk and a party

Saturday, April 18, is MONA Day for the Merry Oaks Neighborhood Association. Yard sales, a creek-cleaning walk along (and in) Briar Creek and a party are on the agenda.

Details, from the Google group:
8 a.m. Shopping locally. About 10 yard sales are going on through the neighborhood. Take a walk and visit your neighbors for some good deals.
2 p.m. Creek walk along Briar Creek. Meet at the bridge on the greenway. Wear old
shoes, waders or boots and clothes that you don't mind getting dirty. Bring gloves if you have them. Long sticks are helpful too. Neighbors will furnish garbage bags, some gloves and at least 1 trash-grabber tool. Even if you don't want to wade in the creek, you can come help pick up trash on the greenway. (If you can't make this date, try to remember to bring a trash bag every time you visit the greenway to pick up trash.)
6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Party at Cate's. (See the Google group for location). Bring an appetizer to share. BYOB.

Floodplain returns to green space

In August 2008, the remnants of Tropical Storm Fay dumped rain on Charlotte, sending upper Briar Creek out of its banks and into the 100-year flood zones.
Before that flood, Mecklenburg County had been buying out some homes in flood plains, but some residents remained in danger areas.

This time, the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners approved using $4 million in county stormwater reserve funds and up to $2 million of county park and recreation bonds to buy properties in flood zones. County residents pay a fee in their water bill to fund the stormwater program.

Two homes on Harbinger Court in Merry Oaks were bought out and torn down through the program, creating more open space quite near the neighborhood's existing greenway along Briar Creek. For homeowners, the process wasn't easy, giving up their homes filled with memories. But in the long run, the process showed a system that worked, in this case.

The pictures tell the story:



3007 Harbinger Court on Aug. 27, 2008



3000 Harbinger Court on Aug. 27, 2008



March 18, 3007 Harbinger Court



March 18, 3000 Harbinger Court



March 21, 3007 Harbinger Court



March 21, 3007 Harbinger Court



March 29, 3007 Harbinger Court



Demolition sign on Harbinger Court



Storm drain pipe over Briar Creek at the end of Harbinger Court.


Not all the homes affected by the flood have been bought out. Several homes along Masonic Drive on the other side of the Briar Creek greenway were affected. One property owner is raising the level of the house:



Further links:
County stormwater services
FEMA flood plain maps

Eastsiders turn out for Independence

About 30 people turned out Thursday to rally for redevelopment, light rail and strong planning for Independence Boulevard, an Eastside corridor lined by abandoned strip malls and big boxes after road widening.

Mayoral candidate and city councilman John Lassiter plus several television stations turned out as well.

Lassiter spoke with residents about the complicated mix of planning needed for transportation and the luring of business back to the corridor. His main point: The neighborhoods that line the road will likely turn their backs to the road over time as it continues to develop into a high-speed road to deliver commuters into Charlotte.

However, some businesses are planning to return to the area. WSOC reported Thursday that Walmart confirms a new store will be built on Independence Boulevard near Albemarle Road. The store could open in the fall of 2010.

More background:
Eastside Political Action Committee.
Independence Area Plan, from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Department.
Map, history and links on Underoak.

Rally for Independence Boulevard

The Eastside Political Action Committee is leading a rally from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 9, for the Independence Boulevard corridor.

The group has been working for more than a year to support redevelopment of the Independence Boulevard corridor: its neighborhoods, businesses and landowner rights.

Independence Boulevard from Eastway Boulevard to Sharon Amity Road was once a thriving retail corridor; many businesses moved or closed up shop when the road was widened five years ago and access was limited.

In March, Charlotte's Economic Development and Planning Committee proposed a change in land-use plans along the corridor that area residents say will make it harder for businesses to redevelop the area.

Details on the rally, from the Eastside political action committee:
How: Show up and bring a sign. (There will be signs provided if you don't have one).
Where: Independence Boulevard, both sides: The sidewalk of Coliseum Shopping Center just east of the Eastway/Wendover bridge, and between Norland Road and Woodland Drive (the former Shoney's parking lot).
Why:
- Support redevelopment of Independence Blvd.
- Support reduction of a 175-foot transitional setback
- Advocate for more information or funding for buyouts of undevelopable property.
- Advocate for an Eastside PAC meeting with the NC Department of Transportation and Charlotte Department of Transportation, as promised at the last rally for Independence a year ago
- Advocate for the support of businesses along the next part of the corridor widening, from Sharon Amity Road to Conference Drive.
- Push for light rail in the Independence Boulevard corridor.

Background links courtesy of the Eastside PAC:
WSOC story, March 2009.
WBTV story, March 2009.
History of the building of Independence Boulevard from historian Dan Morrill
Eastside PAC forum.

Top image from Google Maps. Bottom image from the Charlotte Economic Development and Planning Committee, looking west toward the Independence interchange with Wendover Road/Eastway Drive.

Merry Oaks art crawl: Shop really local

Merry Oaks is having its first ever neighborhood art sale on Saturday,
December 13, 2008, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. It's a great opportunity to visit and meet your artsy neighbors as well as support their efforts by shopping for the holidays truly locally.

A list of those participating with descriptions of their art and links when available:

Liz Primm Design and Vintage Fresh
3401 Draper Avenue 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Home accessories, fun kid's dress-up clothes, recycled fashions and handpainted furniture

Adrienne Dellinger and Greg Scott
Pots with Purpose
2109 Arnold Drive
Ceramics
Adrienne is studio manager for Charlotte's Clayworks, has studied at Penland and has fired pots and dug clay with the legendary Carolina potter Burlon Craig.

Meredith Hebden
the laughing earth
1911 Graybark Avenue
Photography
Meredith won a "Critic's Pick" as Best Local Artist from Creative Loafing's 2006 Best of Charlotte awards. She's also an amazing gardener.

Alex Clark and Rebecca Jones
3430 Draper Avenue
Paintings


Lucy Hazelhurst
1833 Graybark Ave
Pottery


Raed Al-rawi and Beth Brown
3540 Draper Ave
Paintings

And yet another opportunity to support local artists, if you're reading this in time: The Plaza Central business district is hosting its Holiday in the Hood gallery Krawl or crawl from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 6.

Photo credit: Meredith Hebden, by Meredith Hebden, of the laughing earth

Note to neighbors and participants: If you have art websites, visuals or biographical information you'd like to share, let me know in the comments or through email, and I'll continue to update this post.

Art and branding on Central Avenue

As mentioned earlier, the Arts and Science Council has a call to visual artists for public art on Central Avenue near the Merry Oaks neighborhood. It specifically asks for art to help brand the area as an international corridor and is seeking murals for the area, encouraging entries from Latino or Asian artists.

Neighborhood advocate Nancy Pierce has been asked to serve on the review/selection committee, which meets Nov. 10. Before that meeting, she's seeking ideas and answers to some key questions. From her note to the neighborhood Google group:

&ldquo While I support public art, I am concerned that some art, in time, just adds to visual clutter. I am also unconvinced that we should welcome certain branding unless we first decide exactly how we want to be branded, in consultation with adjacent neighborhoods. In fact, there is no formal city initiative to brand Central as the International Corridor. Do we want this?

&ldquo What about the &lsquo green’ branding some of us have discussed, building on the greenway, bridge art, ped/bike/transit focus of Merry Oaks? Could public art work support that?”

Merry Oaks has a developing greenway along Briar Creek, and over the years it has attracted people interested in bikes and short commutes as well as a diverse group of artists among its residents. Nearby neighborhoods have similar personalities and a stake in the discussions as well. I suspect most people in the area are very proud of our diverse businesses and population.

Are they separate brands? Can both internationalism and a &ldquo green” brand be sustained?

This particular call for artists is Part II of a project. Part I involved a team of young professionals with the Knight Creative Communities Initiative, who commissioned ceramic artist Amy Sanders for a residency at Garinger High School challenging students to explore visual imagery appropriate to the international flavor of Central Avenue, according to the Arts and Science Council. Sanders created ceramic designs for trash receptacles.

For ideas on Part II, visit the Merry Oaks Google group to let Nancy know what you think, or leave a comment here.

Some background:
Carlos Herrera Burgos received a grant earlier for a mural as part of the international corridor idea, but had difficulties finding a place to display the work. It appears that the art was part of the Central Krawl in June at Pura Vida; I'm not sure where it is now.

Chapel Hill has some excellent murals, but the town is more condensed than Central Avenue, with alleys and tall brick walls. They're working on freshening them up and preserving them.

Online Carolina and national election results

Go here.

Visit Flickr for Elizabeth pumpkin wall pictures

Want more pictures of the pumpkin wall in Elizabeth?
Go visit Flickr, a photo sharing service. This particular search at the link is for the words "pumpkin wall," and you'll see a few walls that are in other places too as an added bonus.
Do not miss the shots by the photographer called Doxieone. She did a great job capturing the pumpkins at night.

Pumpkin wall lighting on Wednesday

The Elizabeth neighborhood is building its annual pumpkin wall, and the official lighting ceremony is Wednesday at 7 p.m. (-ish, I suspect).
More photos soon from the wall on Sunday. There were plenty of pumpkins yet to be carved on Sunday afternoon. Pumpkins are free, but you're welcome to carve your own at home and bring it to the wall.
Note: I did not see any pi pumpkins as of Sunday. That was my favorite pun in the past.
Where: 537 Lamar Street.

A great story about a Merry Oaks teacher

Kansas City sports writer Joe Posnanski writes a lovely tribute to Merry Oaks Elementary teacher and Elizabeth resident Lolo Pendergrast.

His tribute is not about her teaching abilities now, but rather her teaching abilities for a young reporter.

Joe says Lolo taught him this:
"...We shouldn’t shoot low, we shouldn’t settle for the ordinary, we shouldn’t be limited by ceilings in our imagination. I don’t know that I ever thanked Lolo for teaching me those lessons; and I’m sure if I did she scoffed at the very idea of that I would thank her for sharing of herself. That’s what I mean by the Lolos in our lives. They don’t want thanks. They don’t want anything, I guess, except someone willing to listen."

We're lucky to have teachers like Lolo at Merry Oaks, and we're lucky to have writers like Joe who share the stories.

Pumpkin wall update

Under the Water Tower has the scoop on the Elizabeth pumpkin wall. Go check it out.
More pictures here.

Where to find election information

So you're looking to study up before voting? Want to go beyond the TV commercials?

The Charlotte Observer's vote guide is here.

The Raleigh News and Observer's election coverage is here.

Indyweek.com, the website for The Independent in The Triangle, has election information here.

The League of Women Voters has PDF documents covering state and local elections here.

The Mecklenburg Board of Elections has early voting information and other stuff here.

You can also check the links in the "Politics" sidebar about halfway down on the left of this blog.

MONA potluck and pitfire tonight

Last-minute reminder:

Tonight, Saturday, Oct. 18, is the Merry Oaks Neighborhood Association's fall potluck and pitfire gathering. Bring a side dish and hang out and visit with your neighbors. See the Google group for more details.

Merry Oaks cleans up Briar Creek

Trash and litter are like laundry: There's always more to be done.

Merry Oaks residents cleaned up areas of Briar Creek along the neighborhood greenway on Oct. 4 as part of The Big Sweep. But heavy undergrowth and continuing warm weather prevented volunteers from getting everything. As the weather cools and snakes and bad bugs go into hiding, we have great opportunities for getting more trash out of the creek and nearby greenway. It doesn't always take an organized event: Mindful visits with trash bags in hand work well too.

Here's part of the report from the official cleanup from the neighborhood Google message group:

"Merry Oaks volunteers did their part on Oct. 4 to clean up our section of Briar Creek at the greenway. Many thanks to Kate Mellnik and Ben Kubie who headed up a group of five who ended up with 15 bags of trash and about 5-7 bulky items. They lugged them to Arnold Drive for special pickup and reported results to Mecklenburg County. These were some of the more interesting items that were found: boxsprings, basketball backboard, thermos, baseball, lots of golf balls, cordless phone, tire, sofa cushions, phone card, and dentures."

Elizabeth's pumpkin wall

No matter your politics, you can't deny that the Elizabeth community's pumpkin wall has been a treat for the neighbors during recent years. Most of the photos here are from the 2007 wall, challenged by drought and then rains at carving time.

The photo second from the top is from the 2006 truth wall, which created a bit of political controversy.

Will there be a wall this year? What will it say? Let me know so I can share.

But one word of advice this Halloween: Let's hope all the nearby neighborhoods get a clue this year. Don't add to traffic and gas consumption by swarming Elizabeth and Plaza Midwood (and even Chapel Hill) for Halloween festivities. Let's try to make it work in our own neighborhoods. If we must visit the nearby sites, be mindful of people big and small on foot.

Call for artists

The Arts and Science Council of Mecklenburg County has released a call for artists for up to three $15,000 commissions for local painters to develop murals along the Central Avenue international corridor.

The project focuses on Central Avenue between Briar Creek Road and Eastway Drive, just next to the Merry Oaks neighborhood.

ASC encourages artists of diverse backgrounds – particularly Asian and Latino, reflecting the new immigrant communities – to apply. The application process involves qualifications only – no proposals.

From the prospectus:
"The goal of this project is to provide the corridor with a more colorful and cohesive visual identity....

"Ceramic artist Amy Sanders will continue as the lead artist. She'll have oversight of the artists hired, will coordinate community meetings to involve residents and artists in the project and will work with business owners as appropriate. The suggested locations for the murals are the Asian and Latino businesses near Briar Creek."

Application deadline is Oct. 30. Details: the Arts and Science Council.

Photos: Courtesy of the prospectus provided by the Arts and Science Council, showing a sample mural idea proposed in the UNCC Master Plan. The building is Cafe Central, at the corner of Central Avenue and Arnold Drive.

Finding gas using Twitter

(Edited December 2009: Embedded Twitter box no longer included, because #cltgas tag isn't being used at the moment.)

The box up above is a feed of notes people have posted on Twitter about gas availabilty in Charlotte. Posts with the keyword #cltgas will show up in the box, with a small bit of delay, human intervention and moderation using Google Reader.

It's not instantaneous, and it's not really high-tech. Someone with programming skills could do a better job than me, I'm sure. But it's working somewhat here in Charlotte, and definitely in other places like Atlanta. You can search Twitter at Twitter Search for the tag #atlgas and see an illustration.

What's so cool is that Twitter is easy to use from a cellphone, just the sort of thing you'll have with you while driving your dinosaur around town looking for fuel. And it's an illustration of how we can help each other quickly: Anyone in Charlotte for Hurricane Hugo or an ice storm can attest to the need for immediate information about basics like ice, gas, firewood, open restaurants and hotels. And sometimes, instant messages are the only communication method that works.

So check out Twitter. You might not need it now; in our neighborhood, many of us are lucky or smart enough to not be too dependent on gas. And walking and biking are certainly green alternatives. But live long enough and you will find a time when you need good local information from neighbors; Twitter can help.

Update Monday, Sept. 29: The Charlotte Observer added a link to Twitter Search on Monday for the #cltgas tag, and The Atlanta Constitution had a link up through the weekend for the tag #atlgas. Both used links directly to Twitter Search, so the results were real time. You can go there too for faster updates than you'll see here.

And Scott Dodd wrote about the shortage at Switchboard, a blog for the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Meet the other candidates

By now we all know Barack Obama is visiting Charlotte on Sunday, Sept. 21.

If you're into smaller crowds and finding out more about the other candidates, here's a great opportunity:

From noon to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Levine Museum of the New South, 200 East Seventh St., state and local candidates will be talking and meeting with voters.

From the event's Facebook page:

"Charlotte voters can ask questions of state and local candidates, receive state and local voter guides, register to vote, and gain a better understanding of what it means to participate in their local democracy from candidates themselves.

Several candidates and elected officials confirmed to speak include U.S. Senate candidate Kay Hagan, N.C. Gubernatorial candidates Pat McCrory and Bev Purdue, N.C. State Representatives Beverly Earle and Robert Pittinger, N.C. State Senator Malcolm Graham, Mecklenburg County Commission candidates Harold Cogdell, Hal Jordan, Dan Ramirez, Jennifer Roberts, and more. Panelists will include Charlotte Observer political video columnist Tonya Jameson and CNN and Fox News political contributor Lenny McAllister (The Hip-Hop Republican).

The event is sponsored by the Charlotte-area Association of Black Journalists, the Charlotte chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, Generation Engage and the Levine Museum of the New South."

County could buy homes damaged by floods

April Bethea write in The Charlotte Observer:

"Mecklenburg County could buy up to 50 homes that sustained serious flood damage in the past month under a deal approved unanimously by commissioners on Tuesday.

Under the plan, the county's Storm Water Services department would spend $4 million to buy up to 30 homes, mostly along Briar Creek. Also, Park and Recreation could purchase up to 20 more residences using money from greenway bonds approved last year.

The program would be limited to homes severely damaged in floods on Aug. 27 or Sept. 10, and most prone to future flooding.

Most of the targeted properties lie in the Briar Creek floodplain, and include homes on or near the following east Charlotte streets: Dunlavin Way, Harbinger Court, Dolphin Lane and Shannonhouse Drive.

(snip)

The program is voluntary."

(Note: I'd copy less here, but fear the link to story won't last more than two weeks. I recommend to any readers that they click on the link to read the full story at The Charlotte Observer and continue to visit charlotteobserver.com.)

FEMA flood plain maps

Here's a snippet of the official FEMA floodplain map for Briar Creek next to the Merry Oaks neighborhood.
Now that Hanna has blown through the Carolinas and Ike threatens other areas, it's a good chance to take the long view, study the maps and compare with the reality of how the water rose.
Anybody looking at real estate should check these maps before making purchases. They take a long time to maneuver around in at FEMA's website, but the information is valuable for informed choices.

And a fun update: Owners of the little Puffer sailboat that floated down the creek to the greenway have been located through the neighborhood Google group. Yay!

Whose missing a sailboat?

Briar Creek, swollen from the remnants of Hurricane Faye last week, captured a sailboat.

Then the creek spit it out into the undergrowth near the pedestrian bridge between Arnold Drive and Masonic Avenue next to the Merry Oaks neighborhood.

Workers with Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation hauled the boat out of the woods and took it off for safekeeping on Tuesday. They hauled a refrigerator out of the creek earlier.

Is the boat yours? Want it back? Call Susan Donnelly, greenway gardener, at 704.507.8950.

You might need it later this week as Storm Hanna heads up this way.

Briar Creek flooding

Pictures of the flooding of Briar Creek on Aug. 27 here.
This is the Flickr stream tagged with "flood" and "Briar Creek" so you might see some unrelated stuff as you go through the list, but it's a quick way to see photos from several people.

Tax revaluation ruh-roh

It's almost September 2008. A Mecklenburg County tax revaluation, with accompanying bills, is due in January 2009.

Do you know where your neighborhood stands?

Check The Charlotte Observer's comparison of recent home sale prices in 2006 and 2007 to tax values with an interactive map here.

The map above shows Merry Oaks. Red dots indicate home sales that were more than 50% higher than existing property tax values. Orange dots indicate sales that were 30% to 50% higher. Green dots indicate sales 10% to 30% higher.

Of course, prices in your neighborhood could have changed dramatically since 2007. If so, it might be worth your while to gather data on those price changes.

Briar Creek art dedication

Greensboro artist Jim Gallucci joined with neighbors and local officials Saturday to dedicate his mesh-and-metal sculpture lining the Briar Creek bridge on Central Avenue. Nearby restaurant Dim Sum provided some treats for those who attended, and La Onda Tropical provided shade and a gathering spot near the bridge.
Read more and see one view of the art here.

Dedicating the Briar Creek Bridge art

From the Merry Oaks Google group mailbag:

Residents of Merry Oaks, Plaza Midwood, Commonwealth, Morningside & Briar Creek Neighborhoods are invited to a public art dedication at the Briar Creek Bridge on Central Avenue, at 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 23. The bridge is near the intersection of Central Avenue and Masonic Drive.

City Council member Patsy Kinsey and artist Jim Gallucci of Greensboro will be there to celebrate the new public artwork for the Briar Creek Bridge. Gallucci worked with neighborhood representatives to design art railings on the newly renovated bridge that reflect the elements of water, plants and the natural stream environment.

Refreshments will be provided.

Questions? Contact Sarah Gay, Associate Vice President of Public Art for the Arts & Science Council, at 704-335-3036.

This public artwork was made possible by the City of Charlotte's 1 percent for Art
Ordinance, and the project was managed by ASC and the Public Art Commission
on behalf of the City.

Central Avenue updates

Check out "The Naked City" for a post about zoning and urban design. You'll have scroll down for the moment to "The Central Avenue Challenge." Direct hyperlinks don't seem to work as The Charlotte Observer blogs prepare for a site redesign.

And also check out CLT Blog for a wrapup of the Central Avenue International Corridor work through the Knight Creative Community Initiative. The post has links worth bookmarking to a new creative community Google group as well as news about Garinger High School's involvement in planning improvements along Central Avenue.

Taming the feral dogs

Rebecca Jones and others in the neighborhood have managed to reunite the mother and pup feral dogs who previously roamed the greenway off Masonic Avenue.

Great story, great happy ending, but it's not over yet. Rebecca's looking for a permanent home for the dogs, and hopes they can stay together. Cate Martin has helped by making phone calls and thinks she might have some help.

But if you know of a special home that could take both dogs, comment here. Mother dog is on heart worm medicine; the pup is scheduled to be treated for heart worm in August. Rebecca's walking the pup with her other dogs in the neighborhood. Say hi if you see them.

Save the date -- MONA turns 10

The Merry Oaks Neighborhood Association turns 10 this year, and the group plans a celebration on Saturday, Oct. 18.

So save the date. Get out and meet your neighbors. Many original group leaders would love to pass on the leadership opportunities to a new generation of neighbors, so think about the possibilities and how you can make a difference.

Act locally.

Charlotte East community meeting

Charlotte East Community Partners meet on Tuesday, July 15th from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Plaza United Methodist Church at 5600 The Plaza.

On the agenda:
Updates on Independendence Boulevard, Eastland Mall, Coventry Woods, the Novant Health project at I-485 and Albemarle Road, the Historic Hezekiah Alexander bed and breakfast at the corner of Shamrock and Sharon Amity and police reports.

Darrell Bonapart, president of the group, says in an email that he's concerned about strengthening media coverage of the area and strengthening ties to the real estate community.
"There has been a tremendous amount of news covering the Independence Blvd construction or destruction, the Eastland Mall site renovation, the dozens of empty big boxes in our area and crime," he said.
"Some of the media coverage is justified, but I feel that in a lot of cases the negativity towards East Charlotte has gone overboard."

Thoughts? Talk with him at the meeting.

Other planned events for the group:
Saturday, July 26: Eastside Community Cookout at the Sheffield Neighborhood Park from 11 am until 2 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 11: The East Charlotte Black Tie Gala, at the Charlotte Museum of History. The event is planned as a fundraiser for a nonprofit organization that counsels abused and neglected children. Details at the July 15 meeting.

Krawl for a cause

Plaza Midwood and nearby neighborhoods party for a cause this weekend. Don't miss it. Details at The Krawl.

Conventry Woodstock on Saturday

The Coventry Woods neighborhood puts on Coventry Woodstock from 3:30 to 8 p.m. Saturday at Steamer's on Independence Boulevard, with music by the alternative Matthews group Lucky Five and Sacha Barlow, assistant principal violist of the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra.
The event is to raise money for a lawsuit against a developer. Background here.

Free classical music in a beautiful space

Mark your calendars: Maureen Howell gives an organ music concert at the refurbished St. John's Baptist church at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 18.
She'll play Bach, Franck, Howells, Halley and a special piece commissioned for the event, written by Dan Locklair.
If you're awake in time for morning services, music includes Roewer, Rutter, and a special commissioned piece by Paul Halley.
The event marks church renovations and the organ installation. The renovations improved acoustics and added flexibility for music performances, giving musicians and the community another venue option to share beautiful music.
More details on the organ here. The church's website is here.

Unband your trees

From Under the Water Tower comes good timely advice: It's time to unband your trees, in the battle against cankerworms.

The worms crawl in

From the Merry Oaks neighborhood Google group:

Person One:
"I live on Cosby Place; We still have lots of worms in this neighborhood; we banded, then the spraying. Does anyone else still have
this problem???"


Person Two:
"Yes, but not as much as last year...Our street tree leaves are about 1/4
eaten instead of 3/4 eaten."

Person Three:
"Yes. I live in Commonwealth Park - they aren't nearly as bad as last year but I have noticed more and more each day. They are definitely in one of my huge oaks and now that the flowers have dropped off my dogwoods (2 very large dogwoods), I'll be keeping an eye on them too. I'm debating calling Barlett Tree to come spray but I just don't have the $$. I even double banded some of my trees. Stupid worms."

Person Four:
"Canker worms hatch in cycles for about 3 weeks to a month. The city's spray killed the worms that were actively feeding at the time, but since it isn't systemic, it would have washed off in the next rain. I still have my Bug Barrier bands on my trees and added a little Tanglefoot to catch any of the little paratroopers once they started climbing back up (you can still get Tanglefoot from Black Hawk Hardware at Park Road Shopping Center).
"I'm not a big proponent of using chemicals, but if the worms have totally invaded your bushes, a quick spray with Raid yard fogger (for mosquitoes) will drop them in their tracks. I discovered that during the huge invasion a couple of years ago..the worms were annihilating my front bushes and I used the yard fogger..I was able to take out about a thousand of them in under 15 minutes. For trees, Home Depot also sells a solution that you can attach to your hose, but be very careful of overspray, dress appropriately when using it, and watch out for children and pets using the yard for a bit.
"Another option is to get an arborist to inject a systemic treatment directly into each tree's root system. It will make each leaf deadly to the worms when they try to feed, and lasts about a month.
Hope that helps!"

Photo courtesy of Flickr user xxxtoff of Winnipeg, Canada (where the worms live too). Shared under a Creative Commons license.

Getting there - on a bike

Here are a few bicycle route resources, for those close to town who are ready to give up high gas prices in their commutes. Links will join those in the sidebar.
Bike Mentor.
Charlotte Bikes dot org.
Routeslip dot com. Routeslip lists 1,401 bike routes for North Carolina. It lists 749 in South Carolina and 243 in Charlotte.
Thanks to Scott Lundgren for the links. If anyone has other tips on commuting from Merry Oaks on a bike, feel free to share.

Update: The Vyne in pictures

Notes:
1. Photos were shot from Central Avenue and Briar Creek Road on April 12.
2. There are two car outlets, three lanes each. The one pictured comes out on Central Avenue.
3. The photo of two bulldozers has a teeny downtown building just above the horizon between the trees.
4. The largest tree had some leveling around it, reducing the original elevation of the property. Vines grow on that tree, perhaps suitable for the name of the property but not necessarily good for the tree.
5. A couple of willow oaks also remain on the property. They're slow to leaf out, probably because of last year's canker worm damage.

Neighborhoods unite to fight crime

From the Merry Oaks Google group comes word of a Thursday night meeting in Plaza Midwood with police. Edited slightly:

"From: Timothy Griffin

Two armed robberies -- at Fuel Pizza and Snug Harbor -- occurred in the last month here in the Plaza Central area. We need to address this issue with the police department and the city. I am holding a meeting with representatives from the Morningside Neighborhood Association board, Plaza Midwood's board, the merchants, Patsy Kinsey and the Eastway Police Department. We need more police presence in the business area immediately.

I am going to contact the PM Library at Central and Plaza and book the meeting room for an emergency safety meeting with the Police Department at 7pm for Thursday Evening.

Please let me know if you can attend.

Tim Griffin, president
Morningside Neighborhood Association
1508 Morningside Dr.
Charlotte, NC 28205
704-371-3025"