Thanks to everyone who was able to tune in for the community meeting on November 8, 2021! Read on for more info on PPNA changes, committee happenings, and the upcoming election for Team 46.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
3rd Annual Hyperlocal Holiday Gift Guide (EconDev): Calling all small biz owners! We would love to feature you in the 3rd Annual Hyperlocal Holiday Gift Guide from PPNA. Submit through this form. Questions? Contact Megan: econdev@pattersonparkneigbors.org
PPNA Postcard Drop: Seeking volunteers! PPNA is dropping a postcard to every home in the neighborhood. Save the date to pick up the postcards and drop them for neighborhood homes on Saturday, January 8. We want everyone in the neighborhood to know about PPNA, and tune in for the PPNA Board Elections on Monday, January 10. Willing and able to volunteer to assist with postcard drop? Contact Danielle: vpwest@pattersonparkneighbors.org
Volunteer for youth mentoring with SEBPD: BPD is working on a program to connect with and mentor neighborhood youth throughout the southeast district. Want more information? Contact Raul Rivera (Raul.Rivera@baltimorepolice.org) or Morgan Clasing (Morgan.clasing@baltimorepolice.org)
Community All Star: Congratulations to Emily Hamsher Kindred for lighting up the 100 block of N Belnord! See recording below to hear Emily talk about her experience, or, click here to read more.
Patterson Park 5k & Homebrew Contest: The 10th annual Patterson Park 5k & Homebrew Contest, organized by B More Global is taking place on Saturday, December 4 and will be returning to an in-person format this year! The day's events (strollers and dogs welcome!) begin at 11:00am with a 1-mile fun run, followed by the Patterson Park 5k at 11:30. The after-party experience is truly a “can’t miss” event. From 12:00n - 5:00pm, we host one of the largest homebrew contests in Maryland with live music all day long. This event is B More Global’s flagship fundraising event to raise funds to provide a year of extracurricular global programming for Baltimore City students culminating in a fully subsidized trip abroad. Come join in on the fun--we hope to see you there! Contact Kimberly Coleman for more information: coleman.kimberly@gmail.com
William Paca Coat Drive: William Paca Elementary School is collecting donations of winter gear in all sizes for kids and adults: coats, jackets, gloves, mittens, scarves, hats, boots, everything! We want to have plenty of clothing items to give away to our students, families, and community members Contact Cheryl to arrange drop off at William Paca: cheryl@southeastcdc.org
GUESTS
Vince is a neighbor and community leader in Federal Hill. Vince is a candidate for Delegate on Team 46. Vince is a teacher by training, and now works as an attorney in the public health field for the University of Maryland Medical system.
Why is the Baltimore city narrative so negative? This could be a result of the racist and elitist history. Baltimore is historically underfunded by the state of Maryland.
Vince is seeking to fully fund education. Baltimore City is the only jurisdiction in Maryland where students take city busses and not school busses to school. We need to reinvest in community programming and rec centers to support youth, and the community around the school system.
Community-based interventions can save lives, improve opportunities for youth, and reduce costs to our healthcare system. We need to keep this in mind for addition services, trauma-related care, and violence prevention, for our youth.
Q&A
Q: Lots of people in Baltimore are concerned about crime. Vince, you want to address the root causes of crime with long-term solutions, but, what will you do in the short-term? A: Crime is the number-one issue. Actually, we are not catching the folks who do commit crimes in Baltimore City. About half of the folks who commit murders in Baltimore City go unsolved. 96% of property crimes in Baltimore City go unsolved.
Q: How will you work to rebuild trust between the community and the police? A: There is a breakdown here, between communities and the police department. In the 1990s-2000s, Baltimore had a broken-window policing model, which caused a complete disruption between BPD and the communities where BPD serves, even though folks in the community may know who is at fault for a crime. The broken-window policing model was brought to Baltimore City under the O’Malley administration. The theory is about stopping everybody in the street for even small issues, such as loitering. This led to profiling, and confrontations. This model of policing involves police fanning out in to the neighborhood, and stopping literally everybody. It often leads to unconstitutional confrontations. Now, we are constantly working to mend this relationship. We are working to rebuild communication between BPD and the communities where BPD can serve. We will create more spaces for community members and youth to have positive police interactions.
Q: How do you feel about Rank-choice voting? A: We need to get Annapolis to revisit Brooke Lierman’s bill form 2019. Rank-choice voting is a better representative sample of democracy.
Q: How do you feel about the Red Line? A: We need to have another shot at rebuilding the Red Line. The cancellation of Red Line took Baltimore City transit back 25 years. For Baltimore to stay relevant, we need to move more people more effectively, without just cars and roads.
Contact Vince: vince@vinceandrewsforbaltimore.com
PPNA Board Elections
PPNA Board Elections are coming up on Monday, January 10 during PPNA Community Meeting at 7:00p! Dave will not be re-running for President, and Taylor will not be re-running for Secretary. The VP North seat is currently vacant, and at least two of the Sector VPs will not re-run for their current seats. PPNA residents must be present to vote during the January 10 meeting. Stay tuned for more specific information forthcoming about PPNA Board Elections. Interested in running? Check out the PPNA bylaws for position descriptions and contact board@pattersonparkneighbors.org
Q&A
Q: What is the time commitment for serving on the PPNA Board? A: The time commitment is give-what-you-can. The impact of your role is what you make of it. Some neighbors volunteer 5-10 hours per month in their Board position. We donate our time on behalf of making our neighborhood a better place, and the Board members are very flexible and supportive with one another.
Q: What are you expected to do on the PPNA Board? A: PPNA Board members and neighbors have a lot of autonomy over what you wish to accomplish on the Board. Board meetings take place once per month, on the Wednesday in advance of a Monday Community Meeting.
Q: How does the PPNA Board connect with other neighborhood associations? A: Every neighborhood association is different, and we could really grow in the ways that PPNA connects with other neighborhood associations. Pre-pandemic, Councilman Zeke Cohen's office hosted quarterly meetings for neighborhood association leaders throughout District 1. The Southeast Baltimore Police District would also like to host gatherings to connect neighborhood associations across southeast Baltimore.
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