The meeting was called to order at 7:05PM. There were 22 participants in attendance.
MEMBERSHIP UPDATE
109 active members. 49 members renewed dues and 11 new sign-ups since January.
Membership dues renewal was due by April 1. 49 members still have not paid. Bylaws state that after 90 days from January, members who have not paid will become inactive members and removed from mailing lists.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Spring clean-up and dumpster day will happen together on Saturday, May 7, 2022. BHN is arranging to get flowers and plants to be disturbed to those who participate in the clean-up. The dumpster will be at the corner Dillion and Grundy Streets. Expected time of arrival between 8AM-9AM but an announcement will be posted when it arrives. The dumpster will be onsite for 4 hours or until filled. Bulk trash items only.
The Porch & Patio event is being planned for a fall event this year. More information will be available to share the June meeting.
Brant Fisher and Meghan McCorkell have been working on a grant application with BOPA for a neighborhood mural project. The murals will be on the wall of a garage unit on the 3900 block of Hudson, 3700 block of Hudson, and the back wall of Hucks. Grant response will be received by May 31, and if awarded, the artist will join the June meeting to discuss the project in more details and get community input.
Upcoming development of an apartment building is in the works in the large open parking lot in front of the Porter (where DiPasqulate's is). Developers have a UDAP hearing in May which may impact plans. Depending on that hearing, there may be a more detailed presentation at the June meeting.
The next meeting will be June 14, 2022.
A question was asked about the Nexus Vet at the Natty Boh Tower campus on Dillon. From a follow-up with the building owner, it was determined that the first phase is set to open in month or so, and it will be a small part of the overall project. There will be a few exam rooms, a surgery room, and waiting area. Over the remaining part of the year, they will be building out the balance of the space.
GUEST SPEAKERS
DPW about the Brewers Hill Neighbors Water Main Replacement Project Darron Waller, an engineer from DPW, spoke about the replacement project. Water mains will be excavated and replaced. Approximately a 9-12 month project to complete. During the process, there will be construction crews and temporary bypass pipes along the sidewalks. Parking disruption will occur, and they will provide notice of when that will happen. Darron recommended it’s a good idea to get the Home Serve Insurance in case there is any issues with water service during the work or after. Resident is responsible for service from meter to the home. A lot of times the water service has galvanized pipes and can create an issue. They will do their best to not have any issues.
Contact: Darron Waller, 410.215.2815, Darron.Waller@baltimorecity.gov
Q&A
Q: From first phase of the proeject, what there any lessons learned?
A: Yes. After every project there is a lesson learned session and that goes into future design. No specifics were mentioned.
Q: Will there be outages and how long?
A: 72-hour notice will be given. Normally it’s during the day and no more than 8 hours. May not be full 8 hours. Usually happens then they install the temp pipe and then to install the service to the temp line and then again when connected to the new main.
Q: Will there be brown water if there is a disruption?
A: When ever there is a water service disruption, it's best to turn sink on the lowest level to let run to allow for any brown water clear up.
Q: Is there a schedule of order of street?And will repaving be the entire street or just the dug-up areas?
A: April 18/19 is estimated start time with temporary bypass pipes. The idea is to do the whole neighborhood at one time because of the tight schedule. Once the temp bypass is laid, then they will start the excavation. Restoration of streets will be curb to curb, intersections, crosswalks and repainting of crosswalks if there prior.
Q: Will they be restrictions to alley for back of house parking?
A: No
Darron said that Haven Street portion is planned to do the work at night with the possibility of routing trucks up Dillon or Hudson. Regarding the Home Serve, the water bill also has info on how to sign up.
Volo Sports - Chip Watkins Chip gave a quick update about Volo – started out as a few folks playing bocce ball in Federal Hill that has grown into various different cities. He presented the plans for the Volo field on Haven that will have a filed, beach volleyball, and potential food and drink options.
Contact: chip@volosports.com
Q&A
Q: What are the anticipated hours? Will there be projecting lights that could impact the neighborhood?
A: Setup is toward the train tracks to point sound away from residential. The grading drops down a few feet which helps with the lighting not be as high as it normally would be. Chip mentioned they are on board with a light crossing point at O’Donnell and Haven especially since they expect a lot of walking, biking, and scooter traffic. This won’t be a party place even though activity will go into the evening.
Q: Will this take place of existing Volo fields at Coppermine.Will the field be open for the neighborhood?Is there parking?
A: No parking. Will be programed when open. A lot opportunities for kids to play for free. Will have free play, but it won’t be an open park. Will look to have corporate events and fundraising event. The idea is to have programed events not an open free park. Existing parks/fields will not be going away. This location is a new location.
Q: What is the timeline?
A:Final quotes are in process now.Chip wants to open by the end of summer but that is pushing it. But hopeful for September. And will figure out how to do World Cup in December.
Zeke Cohen, 1st District Councilperson Zeke was excited about the moral project and provided a letter of support.
- He mentioned that BHN and his office have been in conversations with DOT on handling Haven Street, a truck route and major drive for the port, to mitigate truck traffic into neighborhoods that is always a safety concern.
- The SE Public Safety task force is starting back up and invited everyone who is interested to join. There are some great initiatives that have been developed. The task force is community led.
- Really excited about the Greenway Trail continuing its development. Brewers Hill doesn’t have a ton of green space and the Greenway Trail can be an incredible addition to the community for walking, biking, and just some added green space. He wants to make sure it’s done right the first time around
- April 23 at 1PM is a big announcement at Holabird Academy. This announcement is regarding re-developing O’Donnell Heights, the only public housing in the SE.Key Point, mixed income housing, started a few years ago. After 140 units, the tax credits dried up and the project stalled. When Zeke got into office, this was something he wanted to help fix. This announcement will discuss the re-development and funding. He encouraged everyone to attend if available.
- A relationship has been developed with Patterson High School and the Port of Baltimore.PHS is the oldest school in Baltimore City. The idea is to figure out career pathways for students leaving high school – college or trade. One the trades they are interested in is transportation and logistics. The port is moving and expanded significantly both on the city and county side.
- The preliminary city budge it out. Mayor’s taxpayer night presents his budget agency by agency. Then there is City Council’s taxpayer night. Finally, there are budget hearings. Maggie, Zeke’s chief of staff, will send out dates for these, and he encourages everyone to come out and participate in these.
- Mentioned a lot of ARPA money when to public safety and public health.The mayor also invested a good portion to address vacant houses. A large amount have been set aside for nonprofits to receive through application.
Q&A
Q: Are there plans for ARPA funding to go into local libraries?
A: He believes that Enoch is getting a large chuck of ARPA around the work they are going with the digital divide.ARPA has to be pandemic related, which is broad, but couldn’t really be given for construction work as an example. Contact info: Zeke.Cohen@baltimorecity.gov
ADJOURNMENT
The next meeting will be June 14, 2022.