New Year's Eve Celebration

The annual Historic Germantown New Year's Eve Celebration will start at 11:00PM. Meet all your neighbors in the street at the intersection of 6th & Monroe for music, champagne, and the falling of the Giant Kielbasa!

It's one of our neighborhood's biggest parties of the year, so don't be late!

Christmas Eve Communion Service

Monroe Street United Methodist Church
700 Monroe Street, Germantown

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December 24th 5:30 pm

The neighborhood is invited to a brief 'come as you are' Christmas Eve communion service at Monroe Street United Methodist. All are welcome to commune at Monroe Street, regardless of your church affiliations.

Monroe Street United Methodist Church
Open Hearts - Open Minds - Open Doors

Assumption Catholic Church
1227 7th Avenue North, Germantown

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December 24th Midnight

Found Bicycle

Rich Boyd discovered a lost item by his house:

Saturday afternoon, a bicycle was abandoned on the sidewalk across from my house, next to Lauren's back fence on Sixth Avenue, near the alley.

I retrieved it and left a note and my phone number to call and claim. Sunday morning the sign had disappeared.
Rich Boyd
600 Monroe Street
259-0750

New Year's Eve Celebration

The annual Historic Germantown New Year's Eve Celebration will start at 11:00PM. Meet all your neighbors in the street at the intersection of 6th & Monroe for music, champagne, and the dropping of the Giant Kielbasa!

It's one of our neighborhood's biggest parties of the year, so don't be late (and keep your fingers crossed for good weather)!

Neighborhood Photos Online

More photos are online, but we've lost some of the information about who submitted the photos! So, if you see photos you sent in, please remind us!

Photos from Germantown on the Web

Sheila Weinberger wrote to let us know that a photo taken out of the window of her home on Taylor has been included in Andrew Sullivan's (a writer fort Time magazine) blog.
A photo from ealier this year also appeared in the same blog.

Sheila post her own photos at Flickr.

Neighborhood Receives Big (Early) Christmas Present

Our neighborhood is richer by about thirty-five fine, large assorted trees.

Many of you are well aware of this because you were part of the working crew that planted them on Nov 16 Tree Planting Day sponsored by Tree Foundation. The assortment includes Yoshino Cherry, Chinese Dogwood, Crepe Myrtle, Red Buckeye and Amur Maple [small variety]. This wealth of trees added to our Arboretum inventory was made possible by a partnership of the Tree Foundation, HGN, and NES as a demonstration of a neighborhood planting trees specifically chosen as suitable plantings under/near utility lines.

When spring comes we will all be aware of the new trees, with 12 to 14 new Yoshinos blooming along with some Chinese Dogwoods, budding Maples and Buckeye. The Crepe Myrtles will come into their show in summer.

Your HGN Tree Committee expresses sincere thanks to the Tree Foundation and to NES. Please express your appreciation also.

From your Tree Committee: Berdelle Campbell, Bill Hollings, Jeanece Seals

Neighbor Suggests Gift Idea

Michael Darling wrote in to suggest this Christmas gift idea:

Looking for a unique holiday gift for a loved one or colleague? Consider a gift certificate to one of Tennessee's Bed & Breakfast Inns. You won't want to pass up this great holiday offering from the Bed and Breakfast Association of Tennessee (BnBTN) .

To learn more, go to: www.tennessee-inns.com or contact our office toll free at (800) 820-8144.

Happy Holidays!

Michael Darling
409 Taylor Street

7th and Taylor Proposed Development

The proposed development at 7th & Taylor (just south of Werthan Mills), will be on the Nashville Planning Commission agenda for Dec 14th [PDF] (this Thursday). The Staff Reports for Dec 14th [PDF] are available now. It is Case 2006SP-075U-08. The plan is to build five (5) single-family homes on 0.18 acre.

The Neighborhood Board has taken a position opposing this development in line with its ongoing position against zoning changes which have not received approval from the Phillips-Jackson Design Review Board.

You can help by writing to the Planning Commission and/or our Councilman (ludye.wallace@nashville.gov).

We are bringing this case to your attention for a few reasons:

• the plans have not been approved by the Design Review board
• the plans have been unanimously disapproved once before by the Planning Commission and have not been updated
• neighbors who have reviewed the plans, including residents of 7th Ave, oppose the development because it is not in keeping with the rest of the neighborhood

We encourage you to express your opinion on this matter. Urban development in our neighborhood affects all neighbors and deserves our continued attention. You can do this in several ways, including

• Sending a message to the Planning Commission
• Sending a message to our Councilman
• Attending the meeting
  Dec 14th 2006, 4:00 PM
  Howard Office Building Auditorium
  700 Second Avenue South
• Writing to
  Metroplitan Planning Commission
  800 Second Avenue South
  Nashville, TN 37210
• Calling the Planning Commission at (615) 862-7150

If you do send a message to the Planning Commission on this topic, it will be forwarded on to the planner to be included in the file. Your comments will also be included in a package of public comments to be given to the Planning Commission at its meeting next Thursday.

If you do attend this Planning Comiccion meeting and intend to voice your opinion, be sure to fill out a Consent to Speak form at 4 P.M. next Thursday so that the staff knows that you wish to speak on this item. The commision provides a tip sheet on speaking before the Commission [PDF].

If you are interested in activities of the Planning Commission now or in the future, you can view their calendar and the 2006 agenda.

November Minutes Posted

The minutes from the November Board meeting have been posted on the HGN Board meeting minutes page.

State of Crime report to the Council's Public Safety Committee

The chief of police has let us know of his recent State of Crime report:

Last Tuesday, November 21, 2006, I presented an update on crime in Nashville to the Council’s Public Safety Committee, at the request of the chair, Councilmember Ginger Hausser. It was an honor and pleasure to present the results of another outstanding year of collaboration and cooperation between the members of the MNPD, the public, and the Criminal Justice System.

- MNPD Chief of Police

The Powerpoint presentation [PPT] is online at the MNPD website.

The chief summarized with these points:

1) The hard working members of the MNPD, over the last three years we have been together, have improved their performance in every way imaginable and I am very proud of their efforts!

2) The relationships built between the MNPD and the community have led to clearance rates of crimes committed (a clear example of police and the community working together to solve crimes) that far and away outpace comparative cities of 500,000-999,999 in population

3) The relationships between the MNPD, the community and General Johnson’s Office have led to conviction rates that average 85% for the major crimes in our community

4) But, the data is equally clear – our officers are arresting more of the worst criminals, our community is participating in the prosecution process and we are experiencing incredibly high conviction rates, HOWEVER, despite these convictions, we are arresting the same criminals, over and over and over again.

5) A real debate about those criminals who shun rehabilitation measures, how long they are actually serving their prison sentences, and how are they seemingly so easily returned to our neighborhoods to commit more crimes against our friends and families, must occur if we are to realize even further reductions of crime in our city

- MNPD Chief of Police

NPT Fundraiser Coming Up

On Monday, December 11, from 6-10 PM, a group of 12 of our neighbors from Germantown will be helping NPT with their fund raising.

Don't forget to call in next Monday to pledge and help make Germantown look good. Call your friends and ask for their support also.

Christmas Eve

An invitation from Bill and April Mullins

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Somewhere at least 28 years ago, Christmas fell in the middle of the week. We had a number of friends and acquaintances who had no family in town, and no one to be with... so we all got together and created our own family.

Thru the years, people have moved on, or moved back and the family has changed, but remains the same. Four years ago, we decided that it was the 25th and final Christmas Eve party.

But the tradition continues... hence the 3rd anniversary of our 25th. So I hope the Germantown family and their family and friends will join us Christmas Eve sometime between 5:30-8:30...

We look forward to seeing you all

Second Saturday Tours at Nashville City Cemetary

Nashville City Cemetery, the city's oldest continuously operated public cemetery located at 1001 Fourth Avenue South, invites you to meet Nashville's ancestors on the 2nd Saturday of every month.

All tours are free. General information tours begin at 10:00 a.m., special emphasis tours begin at 10:15 a.m. On Saturday, December 9, Fletch Coke will present "Those who were preaching and teaching in the early Nashville churches and now rest in peace at the City Cemetery".

For more information call 862-7970

Winter in the Farmer's Market

The indoor winter market at the Farmer's Market is still in full swing. Stop by on Saturday morning from 8-Noon in the main building to pick up fresh pasta, free-range eggs, and goat cheese. Don't forget to check out the holiday decorations available at Gardens of Babylon and nuts and citrus available through the rest of the market, too.

Walk in the Park with Mayor Purcell

This Saturday, Dec 2, one of Mayor Purcell's walks in the park (part of Celebrate Nashville) will start close by in the Farmers' Market.

The walk starts at 8:30 am in the main market building with hot chocolate, coffee, and cinnamon rolls and continues along the downtown greenway (map [PDF]) to Riverfront Park.

Nashvillians can take a walk in the park with Mayor Bill Purcell each month during the Celebrate Nashville festivities. Purcell announced plans to lead a monthly hike in the city’s parks the first Saturday of each month...

For further information, contact: Molly Sudderth, 862-6030