President's Message
Winter Doldrums?
I don't know about you, but I have been ready for Winter to end since the start of the New Year. In even a normal Winter, I get tired of the cold weather and snow very quickly. Along comes the Winter of 2009-10, and we get record amounts of snowfall, with temperatures below normal for almost the entire month of February. Yes I have a bad case of cabin fever, and the only remedy is the heat and humidity of a Baltimore August. I guess I will just have to patiently wait this Winter out.
One of the redeeming features of these heavy snowfalls has been to see neighbor helping neighbor dig out of the mess. On many streets throughout the area, the neighbor with a snow blower helped those without one. Here in Lutherville, one neighbor with a snow plow cleaned out several of his neighbors driveways and did not receive anything in return other than a heartfelt "Thank you". Younger residents looked out for the seniors by lending a hand at the shoveling. If you wanted to see a tangible demonstration of community spirit, the help one another attitude, you could find it as we dug out of this record snowfall of February 2010.
Recently, I have attended two planning sessions for the "Western Baltimore County Regional Pedestrian and Bicycle Access Plan", sponsored by the Office of Planning. Walking and bicycling are often afterthoughts in developing the transportation network for a community or a region, but some jurisdictions throughout the nation, including cities such as Portland and Seattle, have recognized that the pedestrian and the cyclist should be given more awareness. Should our roadways include a dedicated bike lane for cyclists? Although many streets already have sidewalks, a large number do not. Does this absence of sidewalks impact the walking environment and discourage a very convenient way for many people to achieve better levels of fitness? Should the County provide more opportunities for off-street, multi-user trails for joggers, runners and off road cycling? Here in the Timonium area we have many opportunities associated with Loch Raven Reservoir, but do the communities adjacent to Loch Raven want some greater interconnection for walkers and cyclists? The Office of Planning will be holding several workshops/hearings to generate discussions and hear opinions about this topic. The workshop for our area is tentatively scheduled for the evening of April 21 at either Loch Raven High School or Lutherville Elementary School. As of this writing, the final location had not been established. We will post the final location on our website, when announced.
Finally, I wanted to highlight two events aimed at raising money to fight cancer. The Maryland Half Marathon will be held on Sunday, May 23rd and the event starts and finishes at the Timonium Fairgrounds. One hundred percent of the net proceeds from this event goes to the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center. If you are a runner, think about participating and raising money for the University of Maryland. Even if you are not a runner, there is a wonderful after-race festival held at the Fairgrounds that is open to the public. The festival includes two bands, vendor supplied food and ceremonies to honor the runners and many cancer survivors. Even if you cannot attend the post race festival, you can support the event by donating to the Cancer Center or by cheering the runners along the race course. For more information, including registration information and a course description, go to mdhalfmarathon.com.
The second event is the Cool Kids 5K Run and 1 Mile Walk through Historic Lutherville on June 12. The Cool Kids Campaign is a charitable organization aimed at assisting pediatric oncology patients and their families. For more information on this event, contact Nadia Peel or Monica Enoch at coolkids5k@verizon.net.
Eric Rockel, President