321 E. Bank St ~ Be a Part of the Restoration!

If you would like to play a vital part in the fabulous restoration of the J. W. Hamill House at 321 E. Bank St., now is your opportunity! The house is being whipped into shape for October Tour. With all of the structural restoration in place, the home now needs volunteers for painting and scraping and cleaning windows. We'll be organizing volunteer crews for weekend painting festivities but if you can pop by midweek that works too!

The house also needs guides for October Tour weekend, Saturday the 10th and Sunday the 11th of October. There are (5) 2.5 hour shifts:

Saturday 10:00AM-12:30PM / 12:30-3:00 / 3:00-5:30
Sunday 1:00PM-3:30PM / 3:30-5:30

If you are interested, get out your favorite grubby duds & paint brush and contact Sue McHugh at 704.577.9965 or smchugh@carolina.rr.com.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Fantastic Neighborhood Meeting Thursday Night

Hello Friends & Neighbors!

We had a very dynamic and energetic meeting this past Thursday night. Thank you to all who came by Sue McHugh's home at 910 N. Main St. to take part.

One of our most important and impassioned decisions was to change the name of our association formally. We've been known as the Old North Salisbury Association, Inc. since 1981. ONSA, as you will often see it referred to, has done amazing work over the years - most critically keeping the zoning here in the North Main St neighborhood residential and thus keeping the encroachment of commercialism at bay. Many neighbors and residents found however that we are calling ourselves the North Main neighborhood - or NOMA for short, the City of Salisbury refers to us as North Main neighborhood and/or NOMA, and the ONSA title did not appear relevant to either North Main or a neighborhood association. The new name was voted in by majority:

North Main Neighborhood Association

We believe the NOMA name is characteristic of the changing demographic here. Where there used to be a vast array of rental properties we now have a cultural influx of home owners who are artists and artisans. NOMA reflects the new direction the neighborhood is taking.

You will see us gradually turning over to this name in our documents and publications. Thanks for all who gave their input. We must never cease to realize the efforts that were accomplished under the Old North Salisbury Association name. We are grateful to our forerunners for their persistence and dedication to this neighborhood.

Here is a brief recap of some of our other topics from Thursday night's gathering:

The NOMA Spring Home & Garden Tour 2010: We have formed an action committee looking at a two-day tour one weekend in April or May for our own Home & Garden Tour. We will be incorporating an 'arts' theme with live music and featured artists in each home. If you would like your home to be on the tour, please let us know. If you know someone whose house should be on the tour, please let us know. More to come on this!

Historic House Plaques: We are adopting the historic house plaque design that Salisbury's Brooklyn South Square neighborhood uses the show the original owner or builder of the house's name and the year it was built. We believe this will increase the awareness of the value and history of the homes here and throughout the neighborhood. These will be AFFORDABLE - not like the fancy bronze plaques you see in some historic neighborhoods - and VISIBLE FROM THE ROAD - also unlike the fancy bronze plaques you see in some historic neighborhoods. If you are interested in getting a plaque for your home, please place an order with us at oldnorthsalisbury@gmail.com. If you do not know your house's history, we can look it up for you.

NOMA Stickers: similar to the oval OBX (Outer Banks) stickers, we will be distributing stickers in the near future.

NOMA T-Shirts: We will have NOMA T-shirts for sale in the very near future. Contact us at oldnorthsalisbury@gmail.com to place an order for one.

NOMA House Flags: We are in the process of designing small flags homeowners can hang from their porches to make a very nice visual impact in the neighborhood here. They will also be for purchase. You are encouraged to place an advance order for these as well. We'll know more about the exact price soon.

A Fall Party!!: Well all work and no play just ain't right, is it? We are planning a Fall Party at a private residence, rather than at City Park like we did last year. Save the Date: October 3rd!

There's more - we'll put it in another post!

Again, we had a wonderful turnout last night. It seems more people are tuning in to the neighborhood. The ideas were flowing and people are getting to know one another! The positive energy is simply amazing!

Our next NOMA meeting is scheduled for Thursday September 24th at 7:00PM - 910 N. Main St. See you then!

Thank you NOMA!

Neighborhood Meeting Tomorrow 7PM

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Hello Neighbors & Friends! The Old North Salisbury Association will be holding a neighborhood meeting tomorrow evening:

When: Thursday August 27th

Time: 7:00 PM

Where: 910 N. Main St.

Agenda:

• Vote: Vote on changing Old North Salisbury to relevant name structure. Residents refer to the area as NoMa (short for North Main in the style of NoLa for New Orleans and NoDa for North Davidson neighborhood in Charlotte). The City refers to us as North Main Neighborhood. Vote.
• Neighborhood Home & Garden Tour 2010: Select homes, date. Start firm planning. See additional organizational notes contributed by Cherie Turner.
• Neighborhood Social: Schedule next social event? October 3^rd? Christmas Party? Dec 13^th?
• Historic Plaque Program: Sue McHugh has had meetings with the other neighborhood associations, Historic Salisbury, and members of the HPC in order to see who is doing what, how to approach, compare designs/criteria, etc. Susan Hurt says we just agree on a design and submit to Appearance Commission. The Brooklyn Square format is most affordable. A sample will be provided.
• Walking Map: To be in conjunction with House Plaques to instill sense of value. Challenge will be printing costs. Could also be used with Home & Garden Tour.
• Miller St. Sidewalk Lighting: Decorative pedestrian level lighting estimated to run $78,000.00 for Miller St. from Main to Jackson alone. Discuss more fundraisers. One idea submitted – an animal/pet care workshop.
• Neighborhood T-Shirts: Fund raising idea?
• Neighborhood Quadrants: South Quadrant: Lafayette to Miller St.; Mid-South Quadrant: Miller to 12^th St.; Mid-North Quadrant: 12^th to 14^th; North Quadrant: 14^th to 17^th. Approx 3 blocks deep by 4 blocks wide each. Quadrant Captains?
• Police Involvement: We need to implement a plan of action to have more police involvement and patrolling in our neighborhood.
• Realtor Brochure: Printing still needed!! Any ideas?
• Membership Card: Contact local businesses that will offer discounts to members. Create list of these merchants for members.
• Welcoming Committee – letters to new people, birth/death, graduations, etc. Check visitor’s center for stuff. Basket?

Your additional ideas are ALWAYS welcome. Our meetings typically last about 2 hours but if you can't stay for the whole thing it's not a problem. Bring your friends! Meet your neighbors! Stay informed!

Possible Fund Raiser - NOMA T-Shirts!

Hello Neighbors & Friends!
Would you purchase a NOMA T-shirt if it they were available, especially if the price was right? This T-shirt design is open to edits, but it's just a starter idea for us to sell T-Shirts and raise some money for the Association to provide for events, newsletters, and those lighting fixtures down Miller St.!

Your thoughts?

Mums for October Tour ~ Extend the Tradition!

The Historic Salisbury Foundation's much celebrated Historic House Tour is nearing, October 10th and 11th. A long standing tradition here is to deck our porches and front-scapes with yellow mums to welcome the many visitor's we expect from neighboring towns. The Historic Salisbury Foundation is pre-selling mums to downtown merchants and neighborhoods. If you order now, you will have your mums in place by the Tour weekend. You can purchase your mums online via the HSF website (www.historicsalisbury.org) or by stopping by the HSF offices at the Historic Train Depot.

While yellow is typically the color for the October Tour, many other colors are available. Help us decorate our neighborhoods for this wonderful and popular weekend! Order your mums now!

More Miller St. Utility Pole Stuff . . .

Duke Power crews were on site today at Miller and Jackson Streets to move the utilities. We couldn't get the guys to pose for a portait, but anyway - the work is on it's way! North Main Small Area Improvement Plan ~ Hurray!!!!

Proposed Changes to W. Miller Street ~ Traffic Calming AND a New Sidewalk!

The Pole on Miller is Moving!

We have good news to report! It's finally begun! The work on our sidewalk project on Miller Street will happen here very soon. Why? Because the process of moving the utility pole from the island in the middle of the Jackson St/Miller St intersection has finally begun. Yesterday we found that the new pole is installed, but right now it is just that - a pole. The utilities that connect to the pole must still be moved. This translates to all the cables, etc. we see hanging from the poles. We additionally saw some paint markings in the road which is further evidence that our project groundbreaking day is near. More on this as the project progresses!

Maggie Blackwell's Advice to NOMA

Hi Neighbors & Friends!

We mentioned, in a long list of other activities, that Maggie Blackwell visited our neighborhood meeting this past July. Maggie is best known for (1) her work her work with the Fulton Heights neighborhood where she was the driving force behind the creation and installation of their Centennial Park, (2) her candidacy for City Council (election day Nov 3rd 2009), and (3) her writing ~ having authored many articles for the Salisbury Post and other publications.

We had not yet shared the many insights she gave us to help us here in the North Main Neighborhood. Here are some of the many items she discussed with us:

• Maggie said the Fulton Heights neighborhood is NOT an official non-profit agency holding 501 (c) (3) status. We were surprised because this has often been recommended to us. She said in obtaining their grants and contributions for the Centennial Park, that the checks were written directly to the City and earmarked for the Park.


• Fulton Heights sends copies, five to be exact, of their newsletter to City Council.


• Now folks, newsletters are perhaps our most expensive endeavor. We had one distributed last year very successfully, however we did not touch the Old North Salisbury coffers to do it. One person paid privately for postage and another did most of the printing and folding. With over 400 households here in the North Main community, postage alone becomes quite costly. The Fulton Heights neighborhood EMAILS most of their newsletter. They can do this because they have gathered quite a list of neighborhood email addresses. This is why we are now encouraging folks to send us their email information on this site. (see right top corner)


• Maggie says the Fulton Heights community uses their extensive email list to communicate to one another. Birth announcements travel this way, news of folks who are ill and may need community help travels this way, news of any undesireables in the neighborhood travels this way. They have created a wonderful way to communicate with one another! This is definitely something we can work on . . . . again the need to develop a list of email contacts here in NOMA.


• Maggie suggested we try to focus on one topic at a time for the neighborhood. . . . to perhaps address one emotional issue and cover it before we move on to something else.


• If illegal drug issues crop up in our neighborhood, as they do in nearly every neighborhood, Maggie suggested we meet regularly with the "head drug guy" at the Salisbury Police Dept. She said to REQUEST patrolling here. She also said asking for and getting NO PARKING signs to go in front of houses that perhaps have a lot of in-&-out traffic as a method to be able to contact police when cars are there. The NO PARKING acts as a deterrent.


• Maggie strongly suggested we get children involved and engage families with children. We've often talked about perhaps a Halloween Party or Christmas holiday event, and Easter Egg Hunt but we've thus far never gotten these off the ground. Maggie says that by engaging children and families with children we get to KNOW more of our neighbors, and know who should be in the neighborhood and who should not.


• Maggie reinforced something we've supported all along - the appearance of the neighborhood. She called out the "Broken Window Theory" where someone sees a broken window and then throws another rock to break yet another . . . the downward spiral begins. Appearance is important. She recommends getting Salisbury Code Enforcement involved, and perhaps even before that, appointing individuals in our neighborhood to keep an eye out for properties that are falling out of code. This could be as simple as overgrown lawns, cars in front lawns, backyard junkers with no tags . . . or could be more complex as in rentals that don't look up to code, empty houses that are being neglected, etc.


• Maggie's neighborhood, and several others here in Salisbury, have a Neighborhood Watch program in place. We had one here - the signs are out - but we do not meet regularly on the topic. Maggie suggested we find some local handymen who may put up security lights for us. We actually can recommend someone if you email us at oldnorthsalisbury@gmail.com, but this person is for hire. If we could find someone to donate the installation, while each individual purchases their own lights, this might be another way to give back to the neighborhood.


• Maggie recommended establishing relationships with the churches in our neighborhood. This may have been done in the past because several past social events were held in church yards and gardens, but we should perhaps get back on track with that.

Lastly - the most valued advice Maggie gave us: She offered to us that each of us is gifted in some way . . . that each of us brings our gift to the community. Our neighborhood is a diverse community of painters, photographers, teachers, doctors, chefs, musicians, shop owners, business people, gardeners, lawyers, accountants, students, tailors, landscapers, and so much more. While one may be a good blog writer, another is a good fund-raiser. While some may enjoy the camaraderie of meetings, another may prefer not to be involved publicly but may enjoy creating neighborhood flags or signs. Another may be the watchful eye on neglect or crime while another may be the event planner. Some can go to SNAG meetings and City Council meetings, while others may just enjoy to spread the work of the neighborhood association by word of mouth to their friends and next-door neighbors. Find these people and let them know we need and appreciate their gifts!

We can't thank Maggie enough for the gift of her time to our association. Thank you, Maggie Blackwell!

PS: Maggie gave us a nice plug talking about her visit with us in her Campaign blog on her website:
http://maggieblackwellforcouncil.com/thecampaign.html

No Sidewalk Yet!

Well Hey Neighbors! As you may well have noticed by now, we haven't seen the promised work begin on our much anticipated W. Miller Street sidewalk and planting strip that we were told would, by contract, begin on August 10th. We asked the City what the hold-up was!!!

We learned that Duke Power needs to move that utility pole that sits in the little 'landscaped' island that sits smack in the middle of the intersection of Jackson and Miller Streets. They were to have started moving the pole on Wednesday or Thursday of this past week, however the rain 'may' have held them up. (It rained one day last week, didn't it?) As of today, we don't see any evidence that they've visited the site. We're told it will take them about 3 days to move the pole ~ then the City will release the contract to Carolina Siteworks to start the excavation for the sidewalk.

We sure would like to see the work start on this long awaited improvement to our N. Main neighborhood . . . so it can one day be finished! Good thing we didn't have Mayor Susan Kluttz out there on August 10th with a beribboned shovel waiting for a ground-breaking ceremony! We'll just have to have a humdinger completion ceremony instead! We'll keep you posted!

Decorative Pedestrian Level Lighting on W Miller St

Hello Friends & Neighbors!

Here's an update on our potential new project! We got some pricing from the City on our proposed decorative lighting for Miller Street.

For those who did not attend the last neighborhood meeting, the Miller Street sidewalk project, taking the North Main neighborhood to the Parks, does not include any decorative pedestrian level lighting and we had SO hoped for this! They will be installing the conduit to provide for the lighting at a later date. It was suggested that perhaps getting the lighting is something our organization could do for ourselves. If we raised the funds, the City would purchase, install, and maintain the light fixtures. The lights are not cheap!! It looks like we might be looking at roughly $4,000.00 ~ $4,500.00 each! Ouch! And for Miller St alone we would need 6-8 per block or about 12 - 16 lights. This translates to about $80,000.00. That's a pretty ambitious fund raiser, but if the Fulton Heights neighborhood raised the funds for their Centennial Park on their own, perhaps its in our best interest to give it a try. Imagine how nice it would be to have this lighting down Miller Street to the Park! It might even set a precedent and the lighting could be continued on Jackson and up Lake Drive where the rest of the sidewalk project is planned! (By the way, we did the math for lighting that entire sidewalk project thinking we would get the Lake Dr residents involved and it comes out to be over $300,000!! - so just thought we'd concentrate on Miller St. for now!)

The City installed a recommended fixture on E. Council St. between Main and Long Streets so if you are out and about you can go by and see what they look like. They are also installed in the county-owned parking lot at Kerr and N. Main. The difference between regular street lights is that street lighting is much higher and intended to light the traffic way, not the sidewalks. The pedestrian level lighting is 12' high, spaced closer together, and usually far more attractive.

Our proposed Home & Garden Tour, Spring 2010, may be the perfect kick-off event for this. We can look into donations from other organizations too. If anyone is particularly talented at fund-raisers, grant-writing, or down-right begging - now is your chance to shine! Contact us here by commenting after this post, or email to oldnorthsalisbury@gmail.com.

You can also share your ideas and comments at the next Old North Salisbury Meeting, scheduled for Thursday August 27th at 7:00PM at 910 N. Main St. We hope to see you there!