July 25 HEN Meeting Minutes

Historic Edgefield Neighbors met on Tuesday, July 25, at East Park Community Center. Approximately 35 neighbors attended the meeting. Lois Layne, board president, called the meeting to order at 7PM, and a recap of the conversations is as follows:
 
Announcements:

• Night Out Against Crime / Tuesday, Aug. 1 / 5PM to 8PM / East Park Community Center. HEN will have a table-top display at the event. We are going to hand out information about the association as well as glow-in-the-dark bracelets. Sherne Marie McMillan, Matthew Smith, and Barbra Deck are helping with the NOAC. All neighbors are encouraged to attend the event and stop by the HEN table to say hello.
• HEN Ice Cream Social and Board Elections / Tuesday, Aug. 29 / 7PM / Mission Pavilion in Shelby Park. Due to the success of the summer picnic, the ice cream social will also be held at the Mission Pavilion in Shelby Park. All neighbors are invited to attend and bring ice cream to share; toppings, water and bowls will be provided. The neighborhood will also elect its board members at this meeting. Lois Layne and Bob Acuff are current board members whose terms are expiring but plan to continue serving on the board. Also, five new members have been nominated to serve: Jim Damato, Teri Dorsey, Brandon Dyce, Phillip Hill, and Steve O’Laughlin. All neighbors are encouraged to attend the social and to vote. Membership dues will also be collected, and they are $25 per individual or $50 per household.

 
Crime Report:
Officer Amy Arnold offered a detailed crime report on the various incidents that have occurred in and around HEN during the month. Overall, her advice is for neighbors to be sure they are locking their doors at all times (both residences and vehicles) and to be aware of your surroundings. Also, there was one instance of burglary on the 800 block of Boscobel in which the owners had a security camera and filmed the perpetrator. Security cameras are excellent, and Officer Arnold encouraged neighbors to always share any videos they may have of crimes being committed.
 
Walk Bike Nashville:
Nora Kern, the executive director of Walk Bike Nashville (WNB), presented the organization’s work within the Nashville community. Not to be confused with Metro’s WalkNBike Nashville, WNB is committed to education, engagement, and advocacy. The group’s offices are on Woodland Street, and they provide a variety of resources and support to the city. Any neighbors wanting to learn more about this organization and its resources should check out their website.
 
WBN also advised on the WalkNBike Nashville plan, which is Metro’s initiative to make Nashville more pedestrian and bike friendly. WNBN is developing a master plan that’s still in the works, but one key component of it affecting HEN is the proposed “neighborhood calm-way” that’s being planned for Fatherland Street. This would mean that more traffic-calming solutions would be added to Fatherland to make it more accessible to walkers and bikers. This does not include dedicated bike lanes or the loss of parking, which is important to note. Brett Withers, HEN’s councilman, spoke on the plan and shared his insight into its development; he did note that such an initiative would likely cause property values to increase. The plan is still in the early stages, so any neighbor wanting to learn more or to voice his/her thoughts should contact Councilman Withers directly.
 
Neighborhoods Resource Center:
Jim Hawk, the executive director of Neighborhoods Resource Center (and HEN resident), discussed the organization’s mission and purpose. Whereas 10 years ago there were 200+ neighborhood associations, today there are between 60 and 65. NRC seeks to promote neighborhood engagement and encourage more neighborhoods to form associations. He called attention to the following upcoming events:

• Leadership event on August 12; NRC will invite two people from each association to participate; someone from Metro Codes will be the guest speaker.
• Nashville Neighborhoods Celebration on Saturday, September 30. This will be at Elizabeth Park in North Nashville, and it’s going to be day to bring all the associations together for networking and honoring the hard work of local leaders. It includes a “good neighbor” recognition, neighborhood showcases, and other events with $500 prizes: chili cook-off, games, and competitive showcase. All residents are encouraged to attend.

There was no further business to discuss, so the meeting adjourned at approximately 8:10PM.
 
HAVE QUESTIONS OR FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS?
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