Neighborhood Conservation Planning Workshop!

When: Friday, February 20 7PM to 8:30PM – Evening Introduction to Neighborhood Conservation Planning
Saturday, February 21 9AM to 12:30PM - A morning segment for orientation to the neighborhood and review of study areas. 1:30PM to 5:30PM - review of sustainable applications. Attendees can elect to attend both sessions or for those that have limited time, they may wish to only attend the afternoon session
Where: Two different locations
Agenda:
Friday - Lori Gaurisco's house at 1504 Oldfield Road (Last house on the left before Memorial Dr.)
Saturday - Columbia Presbyterian Church, 711 Columbia Drive
Theme: With the advent of rising energy and food costs, water shortages, loss of green space and wildlife habitat it is timely for neighborhoods to be involved with conservation planning at the neighborhood level. This level of planning is often overlooked in lieu of individual house planning and planning at the scale of the city or the county. All three of these scales of planning are necessary to create a high quality of life and to prepare us for upcoming environmental challenges.

Topics:
- Neighborhood food production – CSA farms, community gardens, etc.
- Neighborhood walkability and opportunities for community interaction
- Traffic calming and reducing automobile use
- Water management strategies and rain water harvesting at a neighborhood scale
- Neighborhood based work opportunities: identifying networking possibilities for neighborhood residents to exchange local resources to increase the amount of residents working at home or in the neighborhood.

Facilitator: Greg Ramsey of Village Habitat Design, award winning projects include East Lake Commons, Lake Claire Co-housing, and Chattahoochee Hill Country. Please email Greg if you have a specific planning project in mind in the neighborhood, can help gather neighborhood information (maps, previous studies and general demographic information) , if you are interested in helping facilitate a break-out group or if you can help document the workshop e-mail (gramsey@villagehabi tat.com) 404-992-4399

Please RSVP if you can attend the Workshop and pass this information on to anybody from the neighborhood or adjacent neighborhoods that might be interested in attending the workshop.

Midway Woods Canned Food Drive

We are hosting a canned food drive to collect much needed food for needy families in and around the Decatur area. Help a hungry family today and bring your canned donation to the next neighborhood association meeting on Wednesday, December 3 Columbia Presbyterian Church 7:30 pm.

Free Electronics Recycling Day - Saturday Nov. 22!

Please take advantage of this opportunity to recycle all of your old electronics items--for FREE!

This is the best, most responsible way you can get rid of old, unused electronics.

Where: Turner Field

When:9am-4pm

For those of you concerned about where your stuff will end up: "Both Sony and Waste Management are signatories to the Basel Action Network's Manufacturers' Commitment to Responsible E-Waste Recycling. The actions signify the companies' agreement to conduct their electronics recycling programs transparently and in accord with rigorous environmental and worker safety standards, and adhere to measures to prevent the export of hazardous e-waste to developing countries."

For more info click here >>>

Park Renewal Day a Success

Park Renewal Day was a major success for 11 teams of over 150 volunteers who dedicated their time on Saturday November 15th to rescue a public park from invasives that were threatening to destroy it, and for Dekalb County, the City of Decatur and Renewal Construction, who sponsored and supported the event.

Zenner Enterprises architectural photography and philzenner.com nature photography are proud to tell the story of your accomplishment in the pictures shown below. If you were one of the participants, we'd like to give you free 4x6 prints (up to a maximum of four) of yourself and your friends in action. Write down the image numbers of the prints you want, as shown in the lower left of each picture. Then order your free prints (no charge for 4x6 prints or for shipping; larger prints are also available) at our nature photography site, www.philzenner.com

Click here to view photos and complete information from the day.

Upcoming Local Events

A Season of Giving/Christmas Decatur
October-December 2008 Decatur Service Project
A program providing holiday gifts for Decatur's low-income children and senior citizens through the help of individuals, families, neighborhood associations, civic groups, places of worship, and businesses.
>Click for more information.

Terrific Thursdays
Nov. 6, 13, 20 and Dec. 4, 11, 18
Participating shops and restaurants stay open late and offer discounts, special holiday open houses and receptions. Park in one place and walk to most destinations. In December, Santa joins the fun and a shuttle provides transportation. Free.

Decatur Holiday Candlelight Tour of Homes
Friday-Saturday, Dec. 5-6 • 5:30-9:30 p.m.
Tour beautiful Decatur homes and points of interest. This year's theme is "Living Green" and will focus on energy efficient homes and homes that have green features such as eco-friendly gardening, formaldehyde free cabinets and composite siding. Tickets are $20 in advance; $25 at the door. Proceeds benefit the Decatur Youth Fund and Decatur Preservation Alliance.

>www.decaturtourofhomes.com

Welcome to the New Midway Blog

Here is a great way to have a site and allow information to flow with in the MWAN and surrounding areas.