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Halcyon Neighborhood Association E-News 8/1/11

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Items appearing in the HNA E-News are deemed to be of general interest to neighbors but do not necessarily reflect the views of Halcyon Neighborhood Association (HNA), its Steering Committee, or the Editor. The Editor’s introductory comments express her personal viewpoint.

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Contents

1. National Night Out Against Crime, Tuesday 8/2, Community Potluck & Safety Walk, 6-8:30 p.m.

2. Work Party in Halcyon Commons & Surrounding Neighborhood, Tuesday 8/23, 1:30–5 p.m.

3. Crime Watch Update: Ice Cream Truck Turns Out to Be Legitimate

4. Crime Watch Report: Someone Casing Neighborhood on Fulton Street

5. Crime Watch Report: Theft at Yellow Emperor Acupuncture Clinic on Shattuck

6. Crime Watch Alert: Robbery Suspects Focusing on Smartphones

7. Next Drop-In Progress Meeting at Whole Foods Market, Weds. 8/10, 8:30-9 a.m., Plus Store Announcements

8. Multi-Household Yard Sale Planned for Saturday, September 17

9. City of Berkeley Redistricting Packets Now Available

10. Link about How a Park Helped a Community Weather the Recession

11. Neighbor’s Sister Looking for a Rental in Larger Neighborhood

12. Supervisor Keith Carson’s Summer 2011 Newsletter Online

 

 

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1. National Night Out Against Crime, Tuesday 8/2, Community Potluck & Safety Walk, 6-8:30 p.m.

 

HNA is once again participating in National Night Out Against Crime. Please join us. Your participation in this fun evening is crucial to our efforts to create a safer, healthier, and friendlier neighborhood!

 

Tuesday, August 2, Halcyon Commons (Halcyon at Prince)

6:00-7:30 p.m.: Community Potluck in the park, with visits from the Police Department, Fire Department, and City officials (including an invitation to our Council representatives to stop by)

7:30-8:30 p.m.: Neighborhood Safety Walk to include the Oakland border and Ed Roberts campus area and identify any problem spots or issues

 

Delicious Mediterranean appetizers courtesy of Whole Foods Market!

 

Bring a dish to share for 8-10 (plus a beverage to share too if possible)

Potluck suggestions: Salad: R–Z * Main Dish: I–Q * Dessert: A–H

(If not obvious, kindly attach a label with ingredients for your dish to alert those with vegetarian and other diets. It’s really helpful if some of you also bring a beverage to share. Children welcome!)

 

This event is a great chance to ask questions and introduce yourselves and your children to police officers and firefighters. It’s also an opportunity to show representatives from the City that we’re concerned about crime and willing to work in partnership to help address it.

 

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2. Work Party in Halcyon Commons & Surrounding Neighborhood, Tuesday 8/23, 1:30–5 p.m.

 

Editor’s note: On the afternoon of Tuesday, August 23, we’ll be holding one of our rare weekday work parties with the help of student volunteers from UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health, which has been featuring a volunteer component as part of its student orientation the past few years. Are you at home on that Tuesday afternoon and willing to coordinate one of the weeding teams, or to guide a graffiti removal team out into the larger neighborhood? Over the years I’ve learned that our student volunteers are much more productive if we have neighbors working alongside them, allowing them to feel comfortable with the tasks at hand. It would be especially helpful to have a neighbor (or two) willing to take a graffiti removal team out for one or two hours (you don’t even have to do the removal yourself; the students provide the labor and mostly just need someone familiar with the streets, which means they end up covering more of the neighborhood). We weren’t able to get to graffiti removal during our May neighbor-only work party, so there’s been some buildup, and we’ll only get it removed now if one or two of you come forward to guide a crew or crews. Please email halcyon92@gmail.com if you’re available on 8/23. Delicious refreshments from Whole Foods Market plus a cleaner, better cared-for neighborhood will be your reward!

 

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3. Crime Watch Update: Ice Cream Truck Turns Out to Be Legitimate

 

Editor’s note: In the July HNA E-News, I passed on a report from a neighbor who remembered a warning from the prior year about a pink ice cream that some in the Bateman neighborhood believed to be casing the neighborhood; this neighbor had seen a similar truck this summer and wanted to encourage us to keep an eye on it. After I posted that report, I received the note below from another Bateman neighbor letting me know that the ice cream truck turned out to be legitimate (I promptly posted that update on our Halcyon Neighborhood website, as well as posting the update to our Facebook group and crime watch listserv). And soon after that, one of my immediate neighbors let me know that her son has purchased ice cream from the truck too. So the truck is legitimate and really does sell ice cream. I regret that the report I passed on in good faith (and which was made in good faith) led to unnecessary concern. At the same time, at our crime watch meetings the police always tell us to report anything that seems suspicious. If something turns out not to be a problem, all the better, and in my experience the Berkeley Police do a good job of handling such reports with sensitivity and discernment. So please don’t hesitate to call the Police if you find someone’s behavior suspicious or to share your concerns with your neighbors. And let’s also do our best to spread the word when it turns out to be nothing to worry about! Thank you to the neighbors who helped clarify the matter in this case, as well as to those who were tracking past reports.

 

Here’s the update that was sent by a Bateman neighbor: “I live just east of you in Bateman and wanted to give you a quick update on #6 [in the July E-News]. The ice cream truck should not be seen as a threat. He comes through our neighborhood at least a few nights a week and we have bought ice cream from him and have seen numerous other neighbors doing the same. There are no signs that he is casing the neighborhood and I think that original email thread got way out of control before people realized what they were talking about. None of the thefts that had occurred could be remotely linked to the truck, and I think we need to be careful about making assumptions.” [Bateman Neighborhood Crime Watch Coordinator Marcy McGaugh has confirmed this neighbor’s statement.]

 

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4. Crime Watch Report: Someone Casing Neighborhood on Fulton Street

 

Editor’s note: A Fulton Street neighbor reported the following.

 

“I'm a resident [on Fulton Street], and I wanted to report some suspicious activity of a man who may have been casing the neighborhood around 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 5.  He stopped at my neighbor's house as I was getting in my car, and I overheard him asking for money to go to UCLA. He seemed suspicious and seemed to be looking into the house as my neighbor opened the door (my neighbor also found it suspect). I’ve never seen someone going door-to-door to raise money to go to college. He was black, maybe around 30, give or take 5 years. I don’t think he had much facial hair. He was pretty slender. Maybe 170lbs. Maybe 5'10 to 6'. I just wanted to alert the neighborhood watch group and get on your email listserv myself. Next time I’ll be sure to call the police nonemergency number right away, which is what some police officers recommended I do if I see this in the future.”

 

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5. Crime Watch Report: Theft at Yellow Emperor Acupuncture Clinic on Shattuck

 

Editor’s note: One of the staff members at the Yellow Emperor Acupuncture Clinic on Shattuck reported the following. As a regular client of this wonderful community resource, which offers sliding-scale acupuncture treatments designed to make acupuncture affordable, I’m sorry to hear about this incident.

 

“Hey neighbors, just wanted to notify you all that there was a theft at around 5:30 p.m. on Monday, August 1, at the Yellow Emperor Acupuncture Clinic on Shattuck. A middle-aged man of medium stature with a tan complexion and short brown (or graying?) hair came in, grabbed a “new patient” clipboard, told me he was waiting for a friend to join him, and then emptied our payment box and left while I was busy treating a client. Please be wary in case he’s traveling the neighborhood looking for more opportunities.”

 

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6. Crime Watch Alert: Robbery Suspects Focusing on Smartphones

 

Editor’s note: Councilmember Max Anderson’s office passed on the following community crime alert. While it applies to the City of Berkeley as a whole and not just our neighborhood, it offers practical tips to keep yourself from becoming a victim of this increasingly common crime.

 

Berkeley Police Department

2100 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Berkeley, CA 94704

(510) 981-5900, TDD: (510) 981-5799, police@ci.berkeley.ca.us

 

Community Crime Prevention Alert: Robbery Suspects Focusing on Smartphones

Berkeley, California (Thursday, July 14, 2011)

 

As was the trend when walkmans and CD players, then MP3 players and iPods, became popular in the City of Berkeley community, crime suspects are now focusing increased attention on smartphones, especially during street robberies, the iPhone emerging as the most popular. This crime trend is not unique to Berkeley, as most metropolitan areas throughout the U.S. have seen an uptrend in the numbers of smartphone and iPhones stolen. They are taken during robberies, auto burglaries, burglaries, theft, and when left unattended.

 

The City of Berkeley Police Department (BPD) would like to remind and encourage community members to employ a few crime prevention measures, simple lifestyle changes that can help reduce your risk as well as discourage those who commit these crimes.

- Be alert to your surroundings and people around you.

- Do not lend your phone to anyone you do not know or take it out of your purse, pocket, or bag to give someone the time, if asked.

- Whenever feasible, walk, jog, or travel with a friend or friends.

- Walk confidently and at a steady pace.

- Don’t talk on cell phones or listen to iPods when alone, as they significantly limit awareness.

- Be aware of locations and situations that make you more vulnerable to crime such as alleys, doorways, parking lots, and stairwells.

- Call BPD to report suspicious persons or activity.

- If you are the victim of a robbery, immediately call the police. An immediate report, including the suspect description, direction of flight, any associated vehicles, and vehicle license plate # gives responding officers the best possible chance of locating the suspect, and ultimately making a successful case.

 

BPD is urging anyone who may know anything about this type of crime to call the BPD Investigations Division - Robbery Detail at (510) 981-5742 or the 24-hour BPD Non Emergency number of (510) 981-5900. If a community member wishes to remain anonymous, he/she is encouraged to call the Bay Area Crimes Stoppers (BACS) at (800)-222-TIPS (8477). All calls to BACS are completely confidential. Any information may be critical to solving this type of crime. Sometimes the smallest or seemingly insignificant detail can be the key to arresting the suspect or suspects in any crime.

 

Media Contact: Sgt. Kusmiss S6

Public Information Officer (PIO)

(510) 981-5780

Chief of Police Michael K. Meehan

City of Berkeley

Main Line (510) 981-CITY

 

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7. Next Drop-In Progress Meeting at Whole Foods Market, Weds. 8/10, 8:30-9 a.m., Plus Store Announcements

 

Editor’s note: Marketing Team Leader Jim Hallock at Whole Foods Market let us know that Whole Foods Market will be holding a drop-in progress meeting open to the community on Wednesday 8/10.

 

Progress Meetings

These meetings are held at the Community Table at the front of the store, and the purpose is to share our plans for noise abatement, the store remodel project [now rescheduled for 2012], street litter control, and progress on any of the ongoing issues we discuss [with HNA reps and nearby neighbors] quarterly. Mel and I will meet, and anyone is welcome to join us. Of course there will be complimentary coffee, tea, and snacks. Our goal is to follow up immediately on any issues that we hear about, and to hear how the store can be a better neighbor. This month’s meeting is scheduled from 8:30 to 9 a.m. on Wednesday 8/10.

Noise

Note that Mel has asked that anyone who had noise complaints to please call the store immediately, at 649-1333, and ask for the Shift Manager, so we can identify and stop the noise. Shift Managers are available from around 7:30 a.m. to midnight. If the noise is before 7:30 a.m., please ask for the Receiving Dock. If you can’t reach anyone, please make a note of the time and date, and call a Shift Manager after 7:30 a.m. You can also email me so we can follow up.

Store Announcements

Hot Summer Sunday, Sunday, August 7, 1-5 p.m.

Stop by for free live music, ice cream, lemonade, and balloons as we celebrate the dog days of summer. It’ll be a great day to just hang out!

 

Whole Kids Campaign Kickoff, Wednesday, August 17

The new Whole Kids Foundation is dedicated to funding projects for local schools, including improved lunches and school gardens. Help us raise money for this very worthwhile focus during our fund drive August 17-September 13. You can donate at check stands or at our upcoming events. Thanks for your help!

Wellness for Life

Every Tuesday at 5:30 at the Alta Bates Medical Center (across Webster Street). Please call 510-869-6737 to register.

 

Fruitopia! Summer Produce Tasting

August 30

What fruit is perfectly ripe? What is in season right now? Spend an hour with the produce experts from Whole Foods Market as they guide you through what’s ripe, what’s great, and what you just can’t miss. Since this is one of our most popular classes, we will move chairs to allow extra folks to join us, but reserve your spot early! We’re very sorry we missed July’s class—we’ll make it up to you on August 30!

Jim Hallock
Marketing Team Leader

Whole Foods Market Berkeley

3000 Telegraph Ave.

Berkeley, CA 94705

510.649.1333 ext. 261

Jim.Hallock@wholefoods.com

 

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8. Multi-Household Yard Sale Planned for Saturday, September 17

 

Editor’s note: Halcyon neighborhood (and HNA Treasurer) Susan Hunter and a couple of interested neighbors have settled on the date of Saturday, September 17 for their next multi-household yard sale. Whether it expands beyond the Webster/Halcyon/Prince triangle will depend on your interest.

 

We’ve set a date for a fall multi-family sale: Saturday, September 17. I still have some valuable items to sell, and I’d welcome company. (We get bigger turnouts if we sell together.) If we get at least ten households to participate, it will be another HNA sale ($5 to cover costs from each participating household plus help posting flyers/signs). Or we’ll do it as a smaller group. Email halcyon92@gmail.com to let me know if you’d like to be included!

 

Susan Hunter

 

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9. City of Berkeley Redistricting Packets Now Available

 

Editor’s note: Every ten years, Council district lines are tweaked to keep district population levels roughly equivalent. Any citizen can submit a plan for redrawn lines by September 30. Even if you don’t want to get involved to the extent of submitting a proposal, it’s worth paying attention since the changes could affect what district you’re in. The following announcement is from the Mayor’s Bates Update.

 

Residents who wish to submit a plan for new Berkeley City Council district boundaries are now able to pick up or download them at http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/PressReleaseMain.aspx?id=71848. Every 10 years, the City of Berkeley reviews its Council district boundaries to account for shifts and changes in the population. The redistricting process is based on the population figures provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. According to the 2010 Census, Berkeley's population is 112,580, an increase of almost 10,000 people (visit About Berkeley a for summary of Census data). The population shifts within each district are significant enough to require new district boundaries.

 

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10. Link about How a Park Helped a Community Weather the Recession

 

Editor’s note: HNA Co-Chair John Steere recommends the following link, which describes how the creation of a park helped the community of Greenville, South Carolina weather the recession. http://www.npr.org/2011/07/29/138716091/how-a-park-helped-one-town-weather-the-recession?sc=emaf

 

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11. Neighbor’s Sister Looking for a Rental in Larger Neighborhood

 

Editor’s note: A Wheeler Street neighbor submitted the following item.

 

SEEKING SHORT-TERM HOUSING: Wheeler Street neighbor Ros Harder is seeking a house-sit or rental in Berkeley for her sister Lisa Rhode, starting August 28 (flexible).  From Lisa: “I am a professional woman with two children in the process of relocating to Berkeley. We need a place to stay for 1-3 months until I can arrange a more permanent situation. I am responsible, mature, and flexible. No smoking, no substances, no drama. Excellent references. Please email lisarhode@gmail.com.”

 

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12. Supervisor Keith Carson’s Summer 2011 Newsletter Online

 

Editor’s note: Our county supervisor, Keith Carson, sent a link to his summer newsletter. You can download the pdf at http://www.keithcarson.org/2011_Summer.pdf or sign up to be on the notification list at http://www.acgov.org/board/district5/involved.htm. The newsletter contains emergency preparedness tips, information about increasing access to health care for low-income uninsured residents of Alameda County, community events, and more.

 

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