EACA Newsletter for February 9, 2009

This week's newsletter includes information on LEAP's monthly meeting which is tomorrow night (see below), City of Atlanta recycling details, and the January wrap-up on crime reporting numbers for Beat 610 (East Atlanta).

In next week's newsletter, look for an article on our very own NPU-W as well as details on a March Southeast Atlanta Community Town Hall meeting on public safety hosted by City Council President Lisa Borders.

If you did not attend January's EACA meeting, you can read the meeting minutes HERE or in the latest issue of the Porch Press.

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LEAP (Linking Education and the Public) will be holding its next monthly meeting on Tuesday, February 17th from 7:00 - 8:00 p.m. at the Burgess-Peterson Academy media center. LEAP is another name for EACA's Education Committee. In addition to educating the community about our area schools and daycare options, LEAP also sponsors activities for children. It is part of our ongoing mission to bring families together and build the relationships necessary to support the changes needed in area schools.

Our agenda for our next meeting will focus on feedback and communication between APS and the community. We have two major efforts underway on this front, with the largest being an upcoming survey of East Atlanta parents regarding education. We're also beginning to organize an event that will allow parents in East Atlanta to provide direct feedback to Dr. Hall and APS on the type of information APS needs to be providing to the community. We'll have several other topics to discuss, including fundraising at Burgess-Peterson Academy, and volunteer opportunities related to LEAP's goals for the year. Parents are welcome to bring their children to our meetings

If you would like to be on the LEAP e-mail list, you can join by clicking on the Update Profile/Email Address link at the bottom of this newsletter. Simply choose the Education and Children box to receive regular updates from LEAP.

City of Atlanta - Recycling Information

Our recyclables are now picked up every other week (see garbage and recycling pick-up schedule HERE). If you would like to be mailed a sticker to put on an additional container you use for recyclables, please e-mail City of Atlanta Recycling Program Manager Mary Harrington - mharrington@atlantaga.gov. Also, Ms. Harrington recently responded to a neighbor's questions and concerns regarding Atlanta's recycling program. Her helpful and insightful e-mailed response can be found HERE.

All your recyclables are placed together in the bin and are then separated for recycling at the processing facility. The below items are accepted for recycling: Recycling Image

Paper: all paper products (except boxes/paper with food contamination)
Shredded paper in a clear plastic bag
Glass: all bottles and jars (rinse; remove the lids)
Aluminum cans
Steel (tin) cans
Plastic: all food containers and plastic bottles(please rinse out) - NO PLASTIC BAGS, HOSES, PIPES or FURNITURE
Cardboard, broken down or cut to fit in the bin (Keep it Dry) (NO STYROFOAM)

Additionally, To find recycling drop-off sites near your home of office go to www.earth911.com.

Burgess Peterson / EAV Farmer's Market Garden Project - Get Involved!

The Burgess Peterson Academy garden project is moving forward for our work day on February 21st at 10:00 a.m. Please contact us at info@farmeav.com if you are able to help with any of the following:

For the sides - 2x4 or larger at least 10 feet long. We need 8 of these and similarly-sized wood 4' and over in length
Supports - 1x1 or 1x2's that are at least a foot long
3 Truck loads of Composted Manure to be collected from the Environmental Education Center (free) - 2390 Wildcat Dr, Decatur, GA 30034
Fill dirt
Mulch mulch mulch for the area around the garden.
Cardboard and/or newspaper to line the bottoms of the beds with before filling.
Tools: cordless drills shovels, wheelbarrows, string, measuring tape, level (already have 2 circular saws)
Rain water barrels

Also, if you can assist the day of the garden build (this Saturday from 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.), please contact the school's community liasion, Azia Alexandria at 404-802-3400 or via e-mail at aalexan8@yahoo.com. Volunteers should bring gloves and any tools that they can. A Light lunch will be provided along with refreshments. This project will take place rain or shine so you'll need to dress accordingly.

Upcoming East Atlanta Area Meetings

LEAP (Linking Education & the Public) Meeting

Tuesday, February 17th - 7:00 p.m.

Location: Burgess Peterson Academy

For more information, contact education@eaca.net

Grant Park Neighborhood Association Monthly Meeting
Tuesday, February 17th - 7:30 p.m.
Location: Zoo Atlanta ARC Building

Branan Bingo

Tuesday, February 19th - 6:00 p.m.

Location: Branan Towers

For more information, contact Dennis Madsen at dmadsen@urbancollage.com

NPU-W Transportation Committee Meeting
Thursday, February 19th - 7:00 p.m.
Location: Martha Brown United Methodist Church
For more information, contact NPU Transportation Chair Russell Baggett at inspired_by_design@hotmail.com

NPU-W Monthly Meeting
Wednesday, February 25th - 7:30 p.m.
Location: Martha Brown United Methodist Church
For more information, contact Ed Gilgor at npuw.chair@comcast.net

Beltline Quarterly Update Meeting
Thursday, February 26h - 6:00 p.m.
Location: Atlanta Public Schools, Auditorium
For more information, click HERE.

EABA - Business Briefs

Thursday, February 19th, 7:00 p.m. - Book Club
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers

The book club selection for February is A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius (Vintage, 2001, 496 pp., pbk., reg. $14.95; sale $11.96) by Dave Eggers. Checklist Image

The literary sensation of the year, a book that redefines both family and narrative for the twenty-first century. A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is the moving memoir of a college senior who, in the space of five weeks, loses both of his parents to cancer and inherits his eight-year-old brother. Here is an exhilarating debut that manages to be simultaneously hilarious and wildly inventive as well as a deeply heartfelt story of the love that holds a family together.

Dave Eggers is the author of four books, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, You Shall Know Our Velocity!, How We Are Hungry, and What Is the What. He is the editor of McSweeney's, a quarterly magazine and book-publishing company, and is cofounder of 826 Valencia, a network of nonprofit writing and tutoring centers for young people. His interest in oral history led to his 2004 cofounding of Voice of Witness, a nonprofit series of books that use oral history to illuminate human rights crises around the world. As a journalist, his work has appeared in The New Yorker, Esquire, and The Believer. He lives in the San Francisco Bay area with his wife and daughter.

Friday, February 20th, 7:00 p.m. - Synastry: The Astrology of Relationships
Facilitated by Layli Phillips

Layli Phillips explains how you can use astrology to enhance your relationships. Learn more about this ancient science, and how it can improve your life in 2009. Free discussion.

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Sunday, February 22-May 17th, 3:00 p.m. - Walking in This World Creative Cluster

Our study group meets Sunday, February 22nd to discuss "Week One: A Sense of Origin" from Walking in This World: The Practical Art of Creativity by Julia Cameron (Tarcher, 2003, 304 pp., pbk., $15.95). The creative cluster will meet every week, except Easter Sunday (April 12th), through May 17th.

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Have interest in $5 dance classes (salsa, yoga, etc.), a fitness camp, or self-defense classes? For more information on offerings available in these areas by organizations close to East Atlanta, click HERE.

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Offering Healthcare Directives at Special Rates in February

An Advanced Healthcare Directive can easily allow a person to avoid stressful family situations in determining what happens to you when you are no longer able to communicate your wishes pertaining to medical treatment.

Larsen & Teusink, PC is excited to announce that during February 2 through February 20, its attorneys are offering the residents of East Atlanta Advance Healthcare Directives for the low cost of $50.00 per person. Plus, if you and your spouse or partner purchase the drafting of an Advance Healthcare Directive, the total cost is only $75.00!

For further information, continue reading HERE.

EACA Public Safety - January Crime Summary Reports & Week 6 Crime Report

January's Crime Summary reports:

The weekly detailed crime report for February 1st - 7th, 2009:

Week 6 Crime Report

East Atlanta Security Patrol News & Information

Car break-ins have been starting to increase again, so we're reviewing the trends to see if any patterns are emerging. We'll provide more information next week.

We received some unfortunate news that notorious auto larcenist Cedrick Jackson of 1493 Glenwood will be returning to the outside world on February 20th. This is not good for East Atlanta, and we do need to be extra vigilant when he returns to the area.

Burglaries have been down a bit in the last week, with only one reported in the seven days leading up to 2/13. Considering that we've been experiencing an average of 4-5 per week, that's a pleasant improvement. There were recent burglary arrests impacting a pair of areas that have been on high alert (Stokeswood and Monument), so perhaps some of those in custody were perpetrating other burglaries.

To learn more about the East Atlanta Security Patrol or to enroll, visit the EASP website (http://patrol.eaca.net). The cost to join the patrol is $50 per quarter, with a 50% discount for longtime residents and those 65+. To qualify, you must have lived at the same address for 20 years or be over age 65. We also have a 20% discount for members of an APD-sanctioned Neighborhood Watch. Please contact us if you're interested in setting up a Neighborhood Watch on your street.

If you have additional questions, please direct them to securitypatrol@eaca.net, or call EACA Public Safety Chair Myron Polster at 404-429-8815.

Local School Open Houses & Enrollment Information

Atlanta Charter Middle School
Registration began Monday, February 2, 2009 and concludes on Monday, February 23, 2009 at 4:00 PM.

You must attend a mandatory Information Session if you wish to register your child. Information Sessions are currently scheduled at the school on the following dates and times (RSVP to Maria Larson at mlarson@atlantachartermiddle.com or 678-904-0051):

Tuesday, February 17, 2009 from 7:00 to 8:30 PM
Saturday, March 7, 2009 from 10:00 to 11:30 AM

For registration details and applications, visit http://atlantachartermiddle.com/content/enrollment.php

Neighborhood Charter School
NCS is a free, public school serving children in grades kindergarten through fifth grade and is located at 688 Grant Street in the Grant Park neighborhood.

The Second Registration Period is open to all families from the City of Atlanta Planning Unit W (NPU-W):

Begins: Monday, March 2
Ends: Monday, March 16

Lottery: Thursday, March 19 at 6:30 pm (Rosswurm Hall)

Information sessions: