July 2008 Newsletter
12South Neighborhood Association
A neighborhood association serving the 12South Neighborhood between Wedgewood Avenue and Gale Lane
July 2008 Newsletter
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12South Neighborhood Association Meeting There will be no meeting for the month of July. We will resume again in August. See you then!
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Planning for Our Neighborhood’s Future By Ken Winter
Dozens of neighbors just finished a year of study with Metro officials on the 12th Avenue South Neighborhood Design Plan. The final draft soon goes to the Metro Planning Commission, then the Metro Council. ´ For me the most fascinating benefit of this work was in being forced to define and specify the 50-cent jargon (bold type below) that we all use. Here are some things I learned.
The whole or complete or sustainable neighborhood the planners are urging has been, in good times and poor, under their noses for 100 years. By 1915, three essential components of sustainability were in place: a street car line down 12th Ave., middle-class, walkable, front-porch subdivisions on both sides; and businesses, a school and a church to serve the growing community. Well into mid-century and beyond, this self-sufficient (more or less) neighborhood thrived.
The historic and traditional nature of the neighborhood, the threats to which we bemoan today, was nailed down. Progressive planners, owners and developers clearly recognized certain compelling landmarks: the Paris, Elmwood and Linden commercial buildings, the Lyon service station, the Hope Church and the Waverly-Belmont School; the Four-Squares, Bungalows, Folk Victorians and Tudor Revival homes; and the modest lots, footprints, setbacks and yards of the original subdivisions.
The civic, cultural and public benefit resources were belatedly inventoried. The result was to recognize the heroic contributions of the churches and Sevier Park grounds and staff, but also to document the generally low state of “cultural glue.” Specifically, Sevier Park, overused and tattered, has at least temporarily lost its Department of Parks priority for redevelopment; the school building and grounds property are woefully underutilized. Altogether missing are close-by education, after-school activities for children and adults, libraries, health and social services, among others.
Ten pages of Community Input were rescued from a premature burial in the Appendix. On analysis, this revealed five clearly stated visions of participating neighbors: safe and efficient multi-modal transit (driving, mass transit, biking, walking); diverse, boundaried small business and service community; the architecture and front-porch culture of original subdivisions; civic, cultural and recreational resources; and the socio-economic-age diversity of the population.
There is much more in this neighborhood plan, which is posted in local libraries and online at the planning commission’s Web site, http://www.nashville.gov/mc/boards/planning.htm. It is now time to tell your councilpersons your thoughts of your support and to plan to lobby builders, council and property owners to supplement their plans with the communities best efforts to enhance our “golden goose” neighborhood.
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Neighbor Shares Lessons Learned at Citizen Police Academy
By Bernadette Welch
Greetings! I’m so glad that it’s summer. This is my favorite time of year because of the opportunity to enjoy the many outside activities Nashville has to offer.
We live in one of Nashville’s historic neighborhoods where people have, in recent years, moved in and rehabilitated old homes that were falling into disrepair, often restoring them to original or near original condition. I am one of those “urban pioneers” who moved into our neighborhood well before it became hip and trendy.
I often brag about my three mile commute to work. Living this close to downtown has both its advantages and disadvantages. One of the big disadvantages has been the amount of crime, most of which is more annoying than dangerous, such as larceny. I often joke that if something isn’t tied down, it’s subject to disappearing. But, like most of my neighbors, I see that as a relatively small inconvenience that one tolerates in order to live in such a great location.
I have been the “victim” of two attempted break-ins during my 15-year tenure in 12South, the most recent being in September 2006. My alarm system and my dogs have been effective deterrents, but after the second attempt I resolved to become more knowledgeable about overall crime in our area. I decided to apply for the Citizen Police Academy offered twice a year by the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. I was accepted for the most recent session in April 2008. I enjoyed this program so much that I wanted to share with others just a small part of what I have learned. I plan for this to be my first in a series of columns about this interesting and informative program.
Our first session provided an overview of community policing activities and a presentation on the El Protector Program. Probably the best “take away” from the community policing part of the program was that there is a phone
number that people can call to report drug dealing. That number is 244-DOPE (3673).
The El Protector program began in California in 1987 and was implemented in Nashville in 2004. Overall, this program focuses on helping people with limited English speaking abilities and provides public education through dialogue with the Hispanic/Latino community, as opposed to focusing on enforcement measures as the primary method of education.
According to the U.S. Census, between 1980 and 2000, Nashville’s Hispanic/Latino population increased from 5,973 to 40,139, and is currently estimated at between 125,000 and 150,000. Thus, the need for such a program is great. This community outreach program has the following goals: To reduce the number of fatalities and infractions (DUI, seatbelt, etc).; to educate about dynamics of domestic violence and services available; to prevent crime and educate about robberies, burglaries, gang violence and domestic violence; to raise awareness to Metro Nashville Police Department of issues affecting the Hispanic/Latino community; to establish a liaison with community organizations and other community groups.
If you would like more details about this program, or to see videos and public service announcements in both Spanish and English, go to http://www.police.nashville.org/safety/el_protector.htm. In addition, Channel 9 periodically runs a documentary on the El Protector Program. During a later session, Judge Leon Ruben gave us an overview of the court system, with an emphasis on General Sessions Court and his courtroom in particular. I have always wondered how average citizens were selected for grand jury service and Judge Ruben answered this question. He said the grand jury is chosen at random from a pool made up of registered voters, people who have electric service in their names, and people who hold a valid driver’s license. Grand jurors serve a 3-month term and it generally takes 9-12 months for an indictment to be issued. The grand jury handles approximately 550,000 cases per year.
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Tax Tip
The Tennessee Department of Revenue sponsors free new business tax workshops. These sessions normally include business tax, sales and use tax and issues regarding tax enforcement from the TN Dept of Revenue, as well as a presentation from the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development on state unemployment tax.
These workshops are recommended primarily for new business owners, but may be beneficial to established business owners as well. People wanting to attend these free workshops may register for them on line.
For more information, go to http://tennessee.gov/revenue/seminars/ and click on the “New Business Tax Workshops” link.
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E-mail List, Website & Newsletter:
Join the Email List: 12SouthNeighborhoodAssociation-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
View the Website: www.12South.org
Get the Newsletter: Bill Compton/ Barbara Whiteman at 385-1990
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July Calendar
July: No 12South Neighborhood meeting this month
July 4: Independence Day
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Writers Wanted
Do you have a story about our neighborhood you would like to share? Tips for homeowners? News about interesting neighbors? Neighborhood history? Consider contributing to your neighborhood newsletter—even if it’s just a few paragraphs, we would love to share your work. Please e-mail your stories or ideas to Melanie Moran, melanie.moran@vanderbilt.edu. The deadline for the August newsletter is 5 p.m., Friday, July 18.
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Homes For Sale
By Alyssa Gilliam
911 Knox, $206.5K, 1842 sq. ft., 264-7100
2402 9th Ave. S, $242.9K, 1916 sq. ft., 333-7400
600 Inverness, $259K, 2129 sq. ft., 347-5800
2109 11th Ave, $282.5K, 1353 sq. ft., 538-1100
815 Horner, $288.9K, 3634 sq. ft., 463-8740
808 Halcyon, $298.5K, 1534 sq. ft., 298-9200
928 Kirkwood, $309.9K, 2079 sq. ft., 656-3000
952 Clayton $327K, 1300 sq. ft., 383-6964
2405 Vaulx, $329.9K, 2162 sq. ft., 333-7400
1001 Caldwell, $340K, 1510 sq. ft., 292-7300
2219 11th Ave S, $350K, 3339 sq. ft., 337-4347
1710 Gale, $350K, 1903 sq. ft., 263-4800
926 Waldkirch, $355K, 1770 sq. ft., 877-657-4298
1202 Clayton, $364.9K, 2157 sq. ft., 465-3700
932 Benton, $385K, 3210 sq. ft., 268-5033
901 Halcyon, $419.9K, 2054 sq. ft., 385-9010
2812 Vaulx, $439K, 1957 sq. ft., 292-7300
1005 Montrose, $439.9K, 3208 sq. ft., 771-3047
2803 9th Ave S, $449.9K, 2650 sq. ft., 385-9010
912 S. Douglas, $450K, 2673 sq. ft., 228-3723
828 Clayton, $459.9K, 2406 sq. ft., 383-7914
916 Gilmore, $499K, 3010 sq. ft., 292-3552
900 Montrose, $499.5, 2505 sq. ft., 383-6964
1513 Gale, $549K, 2829 sq. ft., 383-6964
1501 Paris, $559K, 2760 sq. ft., 569-1439
1006 Montrose $569.9K, 2900 sq. ft., 425-3600
820 Clayton, 579.9K, 2960 sq. ft., 376-4500
829 Clayton #D, $579.9K, 3269 sq. ft. 491-7355
2820 Sherbourne, $589K, 3297 sq. ft., 337-1254
815 Halcyon, $599.9K, 3358 sq. ft., 868-6393
1205 Cedar, $654.9K, 3036 sq. ft., 627-1490
1006 Gilmore, $679,878, 3801 sq. ft., 859-9522
824 Kirkwood, $699K, 4032 sq. ft., 406-3212
1507B Paris, $699.9K, 4447 sq. ft., 425-3600
1509 Paris, $699.9K, 3500 sq. ft., 425-3600
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3 is the Magic Number
It is very important that every incident of crime be reported to three phone numbers.
1) Police Non-emergency: 862-8600
2) Sgt. Connie Tripp: 862-7747, ctripp@police.nashville.org
3) 12South Neighborhood Association: 298-2144, 12southneighbors@bellsouth.net
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Clip & Save: Important Phone Numbers
Bulk-item pick up: 880-3897
Report illegal dumping, sewage, excessive vegetation & littered vacant lots to the Metro Health Dept. (Metro will investigate within 24 hours.): 340-5644
Police: Non-emergency: 862-8600
Larry Cole, Metro’s Vector Control (rodent problems): 340-5668
Abandoned Cars (on street/private property): 862-6590
Call-before-you-dig: 1-800-351-1111
Animal Control: 862-7928
Chipper Service: 862-8971
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Advertise With Us!
Make the most of your free, widely distributed, neighborhood newsletter! Business rates: $20 / month or $200 / year for a display ad; $10 / month or $100 / year for a three-lined classified ad. Resident rates: $5/month for a classified ad. Please send a jpeg of any artwork/business card, etc. you would like the ad to include. The deadline for the August newsletter is 5 p.m., Friday, July 18. The deadline for the September newsletter is 5 p.m., Friday, August 15. Send ads or questions to Melanie Moran at melanie.moran@12South.org or call her at 297-8204.
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The 12South Neighborhood Association is a Tennessee non-profit membership corporation governed by a board of directors. The board holds neighborhood meetings each second Tuesday of the month at 7 p.m. at locations published by newsletter and e-mail. Anyone living in or owning property or a business in the 12South Neighborhood (generally, areas adjacent to 12th Ave. South between Wedgewood Ave. and Gale Lane) may become a voting member of the Association by paying annual dues of $10 per person or $5 per person if 65 or older. The Association’s meetings, events, and e-mail list are open to everyone in the 12South Neighborhood regardless of membership. Contact Bernadette Welch at bernadettewelch@yahoo.com for more information. Send neighborhood news to Melanie Moran at melanie.moran@12South.org or 297-8204.
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Officers/Staff
President: Tarek El Gammal, tarek@queensquaregroup.com
Treasurer: Bernadette Welch, bernadettewelch@yahoo.com
Secretary: Caroline Duley, cvduley@yahoo.com
Membership: Katherine Moffat, katherinemoffat@yahoo.com
Newsletter Editor: Melanie Moran, 297-8204 or melanie.moran@12South.org
Newsletter Designer: Wendy Stamberger, stamco@bellsouth.net
