Goodwill drive

Maya Packard writes:

Dear Neighbors,
Clean out those closets! The Elizabeth Goodwill Drive is coming! As a 5th Street neighbor says, "It's the time of year to pass along some  of our past blessings to get ready for new ones this holiday season."

When: Saturday, December 6, 9-12 noon
Where: Goodwill truck stationed at 2125 Greenway Ave. (empty lot)
What: furniture, clothes, baby items, home goods, small appliances  in working order, books, etc.
Who: We welcome any Elizabeth neighbors, friends and families
Why: Goodwill needs our donations more than ever.
What else: Goodwill attendants will be on site with receipts.
Hungry?  Morning snacks and coffee for all donors!
Questions?  beth.haenni@gmail.com
Let's fill up the truck!

BB makes the All Star list

I was remiss by not drawing attention to longtime Elizabethan Byron Baldwin when he was featured as one of the All-Stars of the Arts in the Observer. If you see him, congratulate him on recently becoming a grandfather.

Janet on the economy

There's Elizabeth's own Janet Woodson on the Observer's Business page, featured in a story about how companies are cutting back on parties. Woodson's business, La-tea-da's, is -- like most businesses -- being hit by the economic downturn. "Woodson has been in the business 12 years and has never seen scaling back on this level, she said."

Centers, corridors and wedges

Dana Inge writes:

There’s an "emergency" ECA meeting next week. Note from our ECA president Melanie Sizemore: We will have a community-wide meeting Nov. 10 at 6:30 p.m. at Hawthorne Lane United Methodist Church to discuss a very important planning document which is being proposed by the planning office. The plan is on a fast track approval process so we need to make our comments heard as soon as possible. You can go to this link to read more about this proposed plan. In addition, the city has a survey at this link which will only be available online until Nov. 7. We need as many people as possible to attend this meeting so we can discuss this plan and how we will respond as a community.

The City of Charlotte's Office of Planning is updating their "Centers, Corridors and Wedges." Per the planning website:

"The 'Centers and Corridors' development framework was originally introduced in 1994 and is the City of Charlotte's adopted overarching policy for organizing and guiding growth and development within the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. The framework is currently being updated and is expected to be adopted by the Charlotte City Council in the spring of 2009. The updated framework – referred to as the Centers, Corridors and Wedges Growth Framework - broadens the original transportation oriented focus to include other aspects of planning and development, such as public facility needs and environmental concerns. The update also provides more specific definitions and guidance for Centers and Corridors and expands the concept to provide recommendations for Wedges, as well."

Carving commenced

The carving at the Elizabeth Pumpkin Wall has more than commenced -- it's almost done, as you can see ahead of the official lighting on Wednesday. Among the carvers Monday night were Hughes (left) and McLean Maddrey of East 8th Street, who fashioned a scary one.

Pumpkin wall returns

The Elizabeth Pumpkin Wall returns to 537 Lamar Ave. this year, site of the original wall in 2004. (The above photo is from two years ago, on Clement.) Carving starts Oct. 24 and the official lighting is Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. The project is put on by the Woodpeckers, a group of mostly Elizabethans who like to work with wood. And pumpkins. My guess is that, like past years, there will be a political component to the wall. In the past that has rubbed some people the wrong way. The wall is on private property, and the ECA has nothing to do with it. All are welcome to attend.

Don't forget to vote

Yes, that's Elizabethan Donna Bise with James Taylor at his concert at Ovens today for Barack Obama. No matter who you support, don't forget to vote. In Elizabeth, you can vote early at CPCC:

CPCC Central Campus Facilities Building
Located at 1325 E. 7th St., Charlotte
October 16 – 31 (Weekdays) 8:00 AM - 7:00 PM
October 25 (Saturday) 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
October 26 (Sunday) 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
November 1 (Saturday) 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM (Final Day)

Charlotte on 60 Minutes

Ok, it's got nothing to do with Elizabeth specifically, but it's fun to see 60 Minutes' Lesley Stahl walking down Tryon Street with Bank of America's Ken Lewis and hear her say things like "B of A seems to own Charlotte" and hear him say things like "We need to cut back compensation in this industry." Elizabeth is home to lots of BofA employees, so there you go.

Minor at Burning Man

Hope you got to see Elizabethan Hardin Minor's take on the Burning Man festival in The Observer.

TJ and HT

I'd never been to a Trader Joe's before ours opened in Midtown, so I thought it was going to be like a regular grocery store, one that could replace a Harris Teeter. And it could, I suppose, but it's not really a regular grocery store. JT veterans already knew that, but I didn't. I love the stuff at Trader Joe's, stuff I didn't know I could get. But I'll still wander over to Central and The Plaza, although probably not as often as I used to, for more commonplace items.

Midtown grocery

I've been a loyal Harris Teeter customer for years but I have to admit I'm looking forward to the new Trader Joe's opening at Midtown on Oct. 10. Choice is good, right? I got my postcard offering a free reusable Trader Joe's shopping bag if I show up before Oct. 24. If you check it out on Friday, let me know how the crowds are. I may wait for Saturday morning before I go.

Have you seen Lefty?

Elizabethans: Be on the look-out for Lefty, a black-and-white cutie. If you find him, call Karen at 704-307-8288.

What do you want the park to be?

So you're walking through lower Independence Park and there it is: A parking lot. In the park. Maybe it made sense to have a place for cars in our park when there was a building there, but seems like they should have torn out the blacktop when they tore down the building. But that's just me. What do you think should be done to lower  Independence Park over the next 10 years?

The rose garden is lovely. The fountain, when it's not ruined by vandals or drought, is ok. But should we add a big ole gazebo like the one in Latta Park? More walkways or other "pedestrian connectivity"? What about a playground? Now is your chance to tell Park and Rec about your ideas. There's no money for improvements to the park, mind you. But if money becomes available, we better be ready to tell them how we want it spent.

Cool bridge on Central Avenue

Have you seen the cool addition to the Briar Creek bridge on Central Avenue? Greensboro sculptor Jim Gallucci used galvanized steel for the artwork. We were remiss in not reminding folks of the dedication of the bridge held Saturday. Hope you had a chance to check it out. 

City saves neighborhood from falling into hole

As soon as I proclaim the city won't "drop everything" to come fix our hole they do exactly that, saving our street from certain doom less than 24 hours after my post. The repair job (above) was professional and clean. That's a paperback book at lower right to give you an idea of how big the patch is. I'd say it's about 6 feet by 5 feet. I wasn't around when they did the repair, so I don't know how deep they had to dig and if they carefully cleaned the cavity or just poured in the macadam. However, in response to the polite wag who wanted a photo, Elizabeth Maddrey supplied the picture below. A brave yardstick measures exactly what we had to fear: About 31 inches of street-devouring depth. Brrrr. Thank goodness the city saved us before things got out of hand. 

Come see the E. 8th St. sinkhole

We got us a sinkhole. Ok, it's not a town-eating sinkhole, like the one in East Texas. Ours is only few inches wide and a few feet deep. So far. But hey, with a few more days of rain and a few more honking Cadieu trucks hauling out fallen trees (one fell on Fred Holder's house the other day; Cadieu dealt with it this evening), who knows how cavernous it may grow. It's not like the city is going to drop everything to fill our petit pit. Several folks have already called 311, among them Elizabeth Maddrey, whose home lies mere feet  from the aspiring abyss. Elizabeth says she was told it would be fixed... yesterday. She's promised to keep us posted. Stay tuned.

Elizabeth green home

Hope you enjoyed the article on the eco-friendly Scott-Tylman home in Charlotte Magazine's Home and Garden summer issue. The work Elaine and Jerry did on their Kenmore home is very inspiring. Perhaps you spent some time in their backyard, having a drink before starting this year's progressive dinner. (Can't seem to find the article on the Web site.) 

Who cooks for you

We had a visitor in our backyard tonight. He cut a striking figure, high in the pecan tree. He was worried for some time by a mockingbird, but outlasted the smaller bird and settled in for a good sit. Last time I checked, he was still there. But it got way dark, so I can't be sure.

Veggie oil power

Hope you caught Dannye Romine Powell's column on Elizabethan Bob Teixeira, who converted his 1981 Mercedes to run on vegetable oil.

Fabulous Fourth

As usual, the shy and retiring Hardin Minor (top) was MC and host of the annual ECA 4th of July parade. The 15th annual celebration of America's birthday started shortly after 10:30 a.m. in front of Hardin's Clement Avenue chateau. In keeping with parade tradition, the temperature and humidity were as high as the spirits. After the parade, folks gathered in the Minors' back yard to eat, sing and perspire. EC Grill King Mike Watson tended three fires and, for the first time, served turkey dogs along with the traditional beef. It was a fine affair, and big thanks are due to the Minors and the Watsons for their generous hospitality. One little firecracker (right) enjoyed her first parade peacefully. She is the granddaughter of the Baldwins on Lamar (I apologize for not remembering her name!).



Update: Check out Linda Minor's excellent photos from the event.