http://alabamahillasswwwociation.com/

April 21, 2010Volume 3, Issue 2

Alabama Hill

Special Interest Articles:

• May Neighborhoodmeeting• Highland HeightsPark Update

Individual Highlights:

MNAC ReportCity InfoAHA Membership Form

Association

Newsletter

Our Annual Meeting is coming up soon.Our new

Chairman, Larry Nicholas

, hasselected a timely topic for this month’smeeting –

Rental Licensing forBellingham

. Our speaker is JD Merris,of Keller Williams Realty, former Presidentof Whatcom County Association ofRealtors. Landlords and renters alike arequite interested in the outcome of thiscitywide licensingOther items on our agenda include,

•

Roosevelt Elementary School gardenupdate

•

Latest MNAC Report

•

Highland Heights Park Update & GrandOpening Planning

LAST MEETING NOTES (2/2/10)CRIME & JUSTICE

We had almost more representatives from citylaw enforcement at the meeting thanneighbors. Officers from BPD spoke aboutthe efforts they are making to keep our areasafe. Though the officers were both bike copsworking the downtown beat, they spoke of thebenefits of having an active Block Watch effortunderway on your block. Gang activity wasdiscussed – primarily in the eastern part ofRoosevelt neighborhood – with taggingactivity a real problem. Reporting suspiciousactivity by 9-1-1 is the best way to alert lawenforcement to patterns in crime.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS FOR 2010Our Annual Election

took place, and we nowhave a new Chairman – Larry Nicholas.Steve Potvin (Roosevelt Neighborhood)offered to take the Vice-Chair spot, but it waslater confirmed that our officers must be fromour neighborhood. Dean Haskins, at a laterboard meeting, stepped up to take the Vice-Chair spot.

We are actively seeking

aSecretary. If you can help us by filling thatspot, please let Larry know right away.

Chairman:

Larry Nicholas647-2315

Vice Chair:

Dean Haskins733-2800

Secretary:

- vacant -

Treasurer:

Jim McLeod734-5127

Past Chairman:

Doug Bestle734-2272

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

Steve Potvin734-5384

AHA Area D (SE) Rep

Nancy Allen922-0256

Next AHA QtlyMeeting is TuesMay 4

7 PM Bloedel-Donovan Pavilion

Annual Neighborhood Quarterly Meeting

Tuesday – May 4

2010

Bloedel-Donovan Pavilion - 7PM

alabamahillassociation.com

Constructionis finallyUnderway!Look for theGrandOpeningCelebrationof the newHighlandHeights ParkPlaygroundin Early June

It’s lookin’Good!

Alabama Hill Association

•

1 cup whole salted, roasted cashews

•

6 to 7 ounces good

semisweet

chocolate,chopped.

•

6 to 7 ounces good

bittersweet

chocolate,chopped.(I used Trader Joe’s Pound Plus bars.)

•

¼ cup dried crystallized ginger, ½ inch diced

•

½ cup dried cherries

•

½ cup dried apricots, ½ inch diced

•

¼ cup golden raisins

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Using apencil, draw a 9 x 10 inch rectangle on a pieceof parchment paper placed on a sheet pan, thenturn the parchment paper over.

Spread the cashews in one layer on anothersheet pan and bake for 8 minutes. Set aside tocool.

Page 2

Place the semisweet chocolate and half thebittersweet chocolate in a glass bowl and microwaveon high power for 20 to 30 seconds. (Don’t trust your microwave timer; time it with your watch.) Stirwith a rubber spatula. Continue to heat and stir in30-second increments until the chocolate is

just

melted.4.

Immediately add the remaining bittersweet chocolateand allow it to sit at room temperature, stirring often,until it’s completely smooth. Stir vigorously until thechocolate is smooth and slightly cooled; stirring makes itglossier.5.

Pour the melted chocolate onto the parchment paper andspread it lightly into the drawn rectangle. Sprinkle thetop evenly in the following order: first the ginger, thenthe cooled whole cashews, the cherries, apricots, andraisins.6.

Set aside for 1 to 2 hours until firm. Cut or break thebark in 18 to 20 pieces and serve at room temperature.

French Chocolate Bark

(From Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics by Ina Garten)

May Recipe

Some more Park photos

In the U.S, chocolate bark is made by mixing raisinsand nuts into warm chocolate. In France, the raisinsand nuts are embedded on top, which looks so muchmore delicious. Enjoy!

Page 3 of 4

City+ Beat

Work to move a quarter-mile of MountBaker Highway begins

If you’re headed to the mountain or just out for a joy ride, be prepared for some construction workand delays about four miles east of Glacier. We’llspend the better part of this yearshifting a quarter-mile stretch of the highwaynear E ChurchMountain Road away from the Nooksack River.Crews are moving equipment into place now andexpect to start work in earnest on March 22. That’swhen they’ll stop traffic for up to 30 minutes at atime during daylight hours, Monday throughSaturday, to clear trees along what will becomethe new path for the highway.Heads up for hikers: The Forest Service will closeaccess to Church Mountain Road (Forest ServiceRoad 3040) and the trailhead March 17 throughApril 22. Call the Mt. Baker Ranger District at 360-856-5700 orvisit their Web sitefor updated trailand road information.

MNAC News Last Meeting held 3/10/10 – Jimmy Kelsey, our Rep

The City of Bellingham (COB) budget has been cut back as taxrevenues declined over the recent past. You may feel thatdirectly by reduced staffing and changes at City Hall, althoughthe city is working hard to maintain nearly all services. Your AHAis feeling it by a reduction of 50% in the amount of associationexpenses the COB will reimburse from $1,000 for 2009 to $500for current year expenses. Association expenses such as printingand distributing this newsletter and conducting other AHAbusiness are eligible for reimbursement up to that $500 per yearlimit.There has been continuing discussion among severalneighborhood associations and at the two most recent MNACmeetings of a program for licensing and inspection of residentialrental property for safety and health conditions. A presentationon one such proposal for the approximately 17,000 rental units inBellingham was made at the MNAC meeting on March 17th by aresident of the Sunnyland neighborhood. MNAC members votedin favor of this motion:

"The Mayor’s Neighborhood AdvisoryCommission recommends to Mayor Dan Pike that a rentalhousing licensing and inspection ordinance be drawn up forreview and discussion in 2010 in a public process."

I wasone of 4 votes opposing the motion.As you may already have noted, such proposals involve manyissues and details to be discussed in public forums and amongCOB departments that would likely be involved. Costs andstaffing are certainly concerns and even the basic idea ofwhether such licensing is appropriate here will require carefuland thorough consideration. There may be discussion of thegeneral concept at our coming quarterly membership meeting.Whether certain exceptions, such as for a single family homewhere the owner occupies the property but rents a room, will beallowed is another among many relevant details forconsideration.Other MNAC news includes a report from City staff on a FountainDistrict Urban Village proposal and an announcement aboutformation of a Task Force to review financial management.Several Public Hearings are being held in April about prospectivechanges in other neighborhoods such as division of the MountBaker neighborhood into two parts, Iron Gate to the north andBarkley to the south. Anyone interested in these hearings orothers coming in the future can see a list of scheduled meetingdetails at this COB website:

http://www.cob.org/cob/Pubnot.nsf/Public%20Notices?OpenForm

On April 12

the city begins the annual water main flushing forselected areas. Flushing in our neighborhood between April 12

and April 30

will affect the area described in the City bulletin as:“Tweed Twenty area, north and south of Alabama Street from St.Clair Street to Ellis Street.”Public Works describes discoloration you may see in yourhousehold water as non-toxic but it may stain laundry.Announcements of areas where flushing is scheduled are postedin The Bellingham Herald and on radio. For more information youmay contact City of Bellingham Public Works Department at 778-7700 or e-mail tomgray@cob.org