Eagle Eyes (Forest Hills Grid 18)

September 2011

September, 2011 with the Eagle Eyes

Labor Day . . . the last holiday of summer. School has been back in session for 2 weeks, and we are preparing for fall activities and the upcoming holidays. To all of you who joined us in decorating for the summer patriotic holidays with a splash of red-white-blue, thank you! There weren’t a lot of displays, but what there was looked real nice and sort of tied the neighborhood together. Hopefully next summer we can have an even bigger turn-out.

The upcoming holidays are a couple of months away, but if anyone wants to put together a group effort to display lumenarias for Christmass Eve, you might want to get organized early. For only 20 cents  per bag with a 6 hour tea light candle inside, it’s a beautiful sight to behold. That’s 20 cents per bag/candle if they are bulk ordered. Our block had about 33% participation on Christmass Eve 2010, plus we gathered for a “Light Desert” party as we watched the lumenarias burn, rekindling old friendships and making new friends with our neighbors and exchanging holiday greetings. It was great! The kids who moved to Hidden Oaks in 1978 now have kids of their own to bring out for the candlelight displays that they enjoyed when the subdivision was new! Contact the web site administrator for lumenaria details; we have some left from 2010 or can recommend to you the company we ordered from.

Special Guest for our September Meeting

Our next NHW meeting is September 29^th @ 7pm in Larrick Hall @ Forest Hills Presbyterian Church. Our special guest will be Lisa Montelione, City Councilwoman for our District 7. Bring a friend or two and join us as we receive updates from the TPD officers who patrol our area, and discuss community concerns with our city council representative. Don’t be shy . . . bring along questions and concerns to discuss; that’s why we’re meeting!

Refreshments will be served. And if you’d like to contribute to the availablity of refreshments, we’d welcome the help. Please contact the web master for details, to avoid duplications.

Roll Call

TPD is getting back into holding roll calls for each shift out in the community. If you’d like to have a roll call on your block, please contact the web site administrator or Lisa Timmer (Lisa.Timmer@ci.tampa.fl.us).

Street Lights Malfunctioning? Or blocked by the trees?

If you see a street light malfunctioning or not working at all, you can report it to TECO for repair by either calling 238-0000 or by going on-line to TampaElectric.com. Please provide the number that is on the light pole when you make the report to TECO; if you can’t read the ID # at least provide the address of the pole location.

If you see a street light which is hindered or obscured by a tree or some other object so that it does not cast the maximum light for safety, please report this to the City of Tampa Parks Department/Clean City Division or on-line thru TampaGov.net/Parks Department/Clean City. Again, please provide the pole ID # or address where the pole is located.

Need more recycling bins??

You can acquire additional or replacement recycling bins by contacting the water department. The number to call is on your water bill. You can also make this request on-line.

Thank you for recycling!

Practice safety during fall activities outdoors!!

While doing yard maintenance, be careful not to leave your house accessable to criminals. If you can’t view your open garage door from the spot you’re working on outdoor potjects, keep the door closed/locked. If you’re letting some fresh fall air into your house, keep an eye on open windows. Don’t let yourself become a victim of crime!

And as always, keep your automobiles locked with the windows closed with no valuables in sight. Try to park in well-lighted locations. Step outside or look out the window occasionally to be sure no undesirable activity is taking place. Criminals who see that you are watching will not hang around to commit a crime. And if you do happen to see something suspicious going on . . . call TPD and report it. The more reports TPD gets from a neighborhood, the more patrols that neighborhood receives to keep an eye on things.

Please remember that not everybody has internet access to view this web site or this newsletter, so if you know that your neighbor doesn’t have a way to access the web, walk over and let him/her know about the information you have about the goings-on in our neighborhood. While you’re there, exchange contact information with that neighbor.

 Have a safe and enjoyable Labor Day Holiday.

See you on the sidewalk . . . . . .