WELCOME to all new arrivals/residents in the Tenney-Lapham neighborhood. I'm your alderperson, your representative on the City Council. I want you to feel free to contact me about anything which you'd like to bring to my attention, positive or negative, looking at individual, neighborhood, or city-wide issues. I certainly hope that you enjoy your new home; again, welcome!

ALCOHOL BAN IN TENNEY PARK: By the end of the summer, drinking alcohol in the park most probably will be restricted to groups with a permit, similar to what already exists at James Madison and Brittingham Parks. The police is asking for this measure because they are spending large resources on a handful of chronic alcoholics who are making neighbors and other park users extremely uncomfortable. Because of overwhelming neighborhood support, I'm agreeing to the measure. I'd already requested a neighborhood survey from police, and also organized a neighborhood meeting on the issue to receive input and foster discussion. Both the survey and meeting were successful but didn't produce a concept able to compete with the simplicity and the efficacy of a ban, at least for an immediate solution. I'd like to avoid future bans and seek a more holistic and citizen friendly approach for this problem which wouldn't exclude casual, responsible drinking in parks. But the reality is that the mechanism to facilitate that creative process doesn't exist and I'm not finding City Hall very receptive in creating one. By the time you read this letter, a Parks department public hearing for September 9 probably will have happened, although there will be a few more opportunities at city committees and at the Council to voice your opinion. As always, please let me know what you think. 249-8428.

REYNOLDS PROPERTY At the August 17 common Council meeting, the council voted unanimously to support the Mayor's final recommendations for the Reynolds property. The nine lot area will be put up to bid for developers for housing while one vacant lot separated from the rest of the area will be leased to an organization for community gardens. The bids will be scrutinized by the Reynolds Criteria Committee, using their approved guidelines and point system. The gardens will be for production of fruit and vegetables for household consumption with preference given to neighborhood residents for use of plots.

PEDESTRIAN SAFETY Concerned about the neighborhood's quality of life, the Dudgeon-Monroe Neighborhood Association joined forces with the city to make Monroe street more pedestrian-friendly. Mayor Bauman has declared Monroe street a Pedestrian Zone and proclaimed the week of August 31 to September 4 as "Pedestrian Safety Week." Additionally, a very limited number of experimental "Yield to Pedestrians" signs were installed in July at certain crosswalks, a location where signs are not typically placed. When the experiment ends and is evaluated in the fall, I'd be very interested in doing something in the Tenney-Lapham area. Please call the neighborhood association and me for any recommendations on strategic locations. Also, don't forget that school has just begun so keep a careful lookout for our children crossing the streets! -Alder Barbara Vedder


Back to the September/October Table of Contents