January 16, 2010Volume 3, Issue 1

Alabama Hill

Special Interest Articles:

• February AnnualNeighboorhoodmeeting• Highland HeightsPark Update

Individual Highlights:

Our new webpageCity InfoAHA Membership Form

Association

Newsletter

Our Annual Meeting is once again upon us.As is our custom we will be holding theelection of our new Association leaders for2010, and attendance will be important sowe can get the best quorum possible.Some of the items on our agenda include,

•

Crime & Justice in our Neighborhood

•

Election of 2010 AHA Officers

•

Roosevelt Elementary School garden

•

Latest MNAC Report

•

Highland Heights Park Update

CRIME & JUSTICE

Time has changed Bellingham and thelevels of crime have increased as ourpopulation increases. As conscientiousneighbors we are often frustrated by anapparent lack of justice – the rights ofcriminals seem to be greater than those of thevictim. What has been found to make adifference, though, is the response to crime bythe folks living in the neighborhood. We canplay an important and essential role inkeeping our neighborhood what it is already – one of the safest neighborhoods in Bellingham(

see Police statistics below

)

WHAT CAN YOU DO?BE AWARE

– Keep your eyes and ears opento unusual or suspicious activities occurring inyour block. Write down license numbers,dates and times, details of what you saw.

REPORT

– If you see something that’s notright or a crime being committed – call 9-1-1right away. Time can make all the difference.Though not all calls generate arrests, they doprovide law enforcement with essentialstatistical data for monitoring crime activities.This can lead to increased surveillance andpolice presence. It’s surprising how manyfolks don’t bother to report a crime.

CONTINUED

– see ANNUAL MEETING on Page 2

Chairman:

Doug Bestle734-2272

Vice Chair:

Monem Salam419-4148

Secretary:

Larry Nicholas647-2315

Treasurer:

Jim McLeod734-5127

Past Chairman:

Richard Maneval671-9559

MNAC Rep:

Jimmy Kelsey715-3053

AHA Area A (NW) Rep

Brian Walker671-8258

AHA Area B (NE) Rep

Michael Eisenberg734-3615

AHA Area C (SW) Rep

Dean Haskins733-2800

AHA Area D (SE) Rep

Nancy Allen922-0256

Next AHA QtlyMeeting is TuesFebruary 2

7 PM Bloedel-Donovan Pavillion

Annual Neighborhood Quarterly Meeting

Tuesday – February 2

2010

Bloedel-Donovan Pavilion - 7PM

Main Office

Police Department505 Grand AvenueBellingham, WA98225

Phone: (360) 778-8800

Fax: (360) 778-8701

Email:police@cob.orgHours:8 a.m. - 5 p.m.Mon - Fri

http://www.cob.org/contact/police.aspx to access Tipline

Alabama Hill Association

•

¾ cup milk

•

1 cup Bisquick or Trader Joe’s Baking Mix

•

4 eggs

•

½ teaspoon salt

•

2 cans (4 oz.) diced chilies (Ortega)

•

¾ pound grated cheese (Cheddar, Jack ormixed)1. Mix milk, eggs and Bisquick with a rotarybeater.2. Add salt, chilies, and cheese mixing well.3. Grease an 8 inch square pan (9” x 13” ifdoubling the recipe). Fill with mixture andsmooth the top.4. Bake at 350° until firm about 35-40 minutes.ENJOY!

Page 2

MNAC News

Last Meeting held 1/20/10 – Jimmy Kelsey, our Rep

ANNUAL MEETING

Continued from Page 1

DON’T TAKE THE LAW INTO YOUR HANDS

– It’s veryimportant not to confront a criminal in the course of their crime.Notify the police immediately and let them take the action.Provide your witness account of what happened, to help thepolice make their case.

BLOCK WATCH

– Become involved in your block watch group – get to know who the Block Watch host is, and get incommunication with them. They receive data from police onpotential activities in the area that can be passed on to others. Ifyou don’t have a Block Watch host – step up and volunteer orconvince a neighbor to take on the role. Block Watch works!Read

Block Watcher

on the city site. For more info go to:http://www.cob.org/services/safety/police/blockwatch.aspx

TIPLINE

– You can provide tips, anonymously if you wish, to thepolice on drug or other crime activities occurring in your block.

Go to the website listed on page 1

We are planning to have our AHA assigned Police Officer onhand at our next meeting to provide further information on howwe can all make our neighborhood as safe as possible.Also, we are also going to have an update on the RooseveltElementary school garden project!Ted & Nancy Seifert & Pam Behee are working the project andhope the three neighborhoods that feed Roosevelt (AlabamaHill, Roosevelt & southwest Mt. Baker) might be interested insome kind of limited partnership where the garden is concerned

For more info call Doug Bestle or Jeff Braimes (733-3014)

Chili Relleno Casserole

(with thanks to Cindy Cole)

Februar

Reci e

1325 Meador Avenue, Suite 106

Bellingham, WA 98229-5807

www.garys-plumbing.com

License # GARYSPH940KP

Whenever you want recent information on City of Bellinghamnews or activities, the News website is a good place to look,at this URL:http://www.piersystem.com/go/site/1264/ Click on the links at right side of the page for various noticesincluding Planning and Police Activity.News from the most recent MNAC meetings included thatthe City of Bellingham and the Opportunity Council havebeen awarded $500,000 for energy efficiency creditenhancement through the Washington State Energy Programand the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Thesefunds will be combined with existing commitments of $750,000 to seed a loan program for energy efficiencyprojects as part of the localCommunity Energy Challenge.TheCommunity Energy Challengeis an initiative designedto create jobs, increase energy efficiency, and reduce utilitybills in homes and small business throughout WhatcomCounty. Essential to its success has been partnershipsformed among governments, non-profit organizations andutility providers.

Linda Stewart announced no additional requestsfor reimbursement of NA expenses wo

uld be accepted after

October1

, due to city budget cuts as revenues continue their fall.

City Of Bellingham’s proposed budget for 2010 has re-duced the maximum COB reimbursement to each Neighbor-hood

Association to $500 from the $1,000.

Check it out!!! We’ve now got a new AHAwebsite! GoTo….

http://alabamahillassociation.com/

Perfect for breakfast, lunch, dinner or as an appetizer,this casserole is easy to throw together at the lastminute. This doubles easily to feed a crowd. It can beserved hot or at room temperature – a perfect,YUMMY potluck dish!

Page 3 of 4

City+ Beat

Seeking Neighborhood Input for a forum to examine

"Perceptions and Views of the Relationship between Activists, Law Enforcement, and the Community at Large"

Sixteen neighborhood representatives are needed toparticipate, along with members of local government andthe activist community, in a facilitated discussion whichwill include:

•

Perceptions of activism and how they "color" theinteractions between activists, law enforcement,and the community.

•

Do these groups have more in common than theymight think?

•

Recognizing the natural (perhaps necessary)tension between roles and responsibilities, is itpossible to increase mutual respect andunderstanding?

This forum will be held Wednesday, February 17,5:30pm-8:00pm (refreshments served) in Belling-ham.

If you are interested in participating as a neighbor-hood representative, please contact BellinghamPolice Deputy Chief David Doll @ 778-8604.

Reservation for the event is required and a formalinvitation, listing the forum location, will be provided uponyour reservation

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

Bellingham City Council will hold a public hearing onFebruary 22, 2010 @ 7:00 PM in City CouncilChambers, City Hall, 210 Lottie St. for Consideration ofthe list of proposed 2010 Amendments to theBellingham Comprehensive Plan

for 6 neighborhoods.Contact: Greg Aucutt at 778-8344 or gaucutt@cob.org.

Highland Heights Park update:

by Brian WalkerGood News on the Highland Height Park renovation project.I heard from the City's Landscape Architect that the projecthas been advertised for contractor bids this week (1/5/10). Acontractor will be awarded the job at the end of January, and Iwould anticipate construction to begin this spring. I will keepyou all up to date on any further developments and a possibleconstruction start date. Contact Brian Walker- NW Area Rep