Below is a copy of my article as president of our local community association. I received several cudos for a well written article from a few neighbors.
By now, you should have received a community directory, courtesy of the Board of Governors. This year, the BOG wanted all community members to receive a directory. Previously, only dues paying PVVWCA members received the annual publication. The Board would like to thank all of you who responded by re-joining the association. In addition, thanks to all of you who also came by the dumpster day and renewed your membership. As a reminder, the by-laws require that membership be renewed every October through September, and that dues can not be prorated if late.
In my dues reminder letter, I wrote that the PVVWCA is more than a children’s Fourth of July Parade, a Halloween Parade or Christmas Party and dumpsters for spring clean outs. We are a very active neighborhood association, with many community activists and community and business leaders who live here. We have testified at community hearings, attended other community meetings and have aggressively pursued relationships with our elected officials to ensure a higher quality of life for our neighborhood. But there is more to be done.
In attending GTCC (Greater Timonium Community Council…made up of 50+ other neighborhood associations like ours), we have found that there is a disjointing of the Timonium community that occurred at the last legislative redistricting. Essentially, our beloved Timonium is split between two legislative districts, which occurred due to political malfeasance. In trying to research some issues, I had to talk to our representatives in the House of Delegates in district 11. One of them wasn’t even initially aware that they represented our neighborhood! The rest of Timonium is in Legislative District 42. I bring this up because during the next gubernatorial “reign”, redistricting of legislative district is due to occur. Although, as officers of the PVVWCA, we are prohibited by our by-laws from endorsing candidates or parties, the person in the Governor’s Mansion will determine these districts. It is important to realize this during the process of your voting decision. We have begun to voice our concern that we want to be unified with the rest of the Timonium communities, as we have very few property, zoning and representative issues in common with Owings Mills, Greenspring Valley and Pikesville.
In addition, we have become largely dissatisfied with responses and results of our conversations with any of the current members of the County Council. I personally believe that a complete overhaul and a better balance (between parties) of the County Council is in order, given our experience during the CZMP process that occurred in 2008. Concerns over the rezoning of the Fairgrounds essentially went on deaf ears. This can be a huge issue in the future of property values and quality of life for our community, and I feel it is my duty to provide you with this information and insight. Please also be aware that councilmatic redistricting may also take place, based on the balance of the parties on a new County Council. Please let your friends around the county know this, as it could affect additional zoning issues in the future. Zoning issues essentially affect YOUR property values and quality of life. For the record, we are in Council District 3.
Schools will soon be out and vacations will be on many people’s minds. With burglaries up in the Lutherville area (fortunately not our community), please be vigilant and proactive in preventing and discouraging crime. The Police tell us that unlocked windows and doors are the main entry points for break-ins and house robberies. So keep them locked. Use light timers in the house and have one of your trusted neighbors check in on your home if you will be away for any length of time. Let your neighbor know you will be away so they can keep an extra eye on your property. Please be mindful of unusual activity in the neighborhood, and verify anyone that tells you they are doing home improvement work at your neighbor’s home. That’s just another reason why we all need to stay away from unlicensed contractors and only deal with legitimate, MHIC licensed ones. MHIC licensed
contractors are required to have their vehicles lettered with their license number on them. Question or report them if the vehicles are missing the MHIC numbers.
Living at the entrance to our community, I get to witness a few things that cause me to reflect on the safety of our neighbors. First, I’ve seen and heard several ambulances and fire engines as they travel down Pine Valley Dr and I say a small prayer for the well being of a neighbor. I think of the neighbors who have spent decades here, caring for their families and their homes. I think of those who have retired, those who have moved on and those who have moved in. The ambulances remind me that there are things of far greater value than property values, zoning codes, neighbor disputes, dumpster days and adherence to community covenants. Accidents have happened, spouses, family members and friends have had medical emergencies, and sadly, some have lost their loved ones. The ambulances remind me of the great services we have as residents of this wonderful community; of its close proximity to hospitals, doctors, pharmacies, well constructed roads and highways. Life long friendships, that can potentially span generations, also come to mind. We live in a special neighborhood, with nice people and (hopefully) good neighbors.
I’ve been given advice on developing friends from a mentor who has since passed on. Please allow me tweak it a bit as it relates to being neighborly. “If you want good neighbors, be one yourself, first.”
Be sure to say Hi to your neighbors!
Ken Anderson
President, PVVWCA 2009-2011
