WEST END ATLANTA

    In 2004 WEND approved the historic West End Flag, designed by Kay Wallace and friends under the presidency of Rick Rivers.  This design was lost until Danielle Carney reproduced it with a lot of help from our Westview neighbors Patrick and Steffi.  So now the West End can show its pride by ordering a flag.  Danielle will be taking pre-orders until August 31th.  The cost is $50.00.  To pre-order you can contact Danielle at daniellecarney@yahoo.com.  You can bring your check to the WEND meeting or mail it to PO Box 10946, Atlanta, GA 30310. The banners are 20"x32"

I am so proud of my community, we had tons of people out.  Cleta was able to able bring out the elders of the community and people who I did not even know spoke  again the closing of station #7  Ceasar proposed ordinance was accepted by the council.   

BUT, we not finished.  It have to go to the finance committee and the safety committee.  So what I need from you is to call or email the finance committees members and let them know how we feel about the closing.  So here are their numbers and email addresses.  I was going ask you to come to the meeting on Wednesday but there is no meeting this week. 

Howard Shook, Chair     404 330-6050 hshook@atlantaga.gov 

Kwanza Hall                   404 330-6046 khall@atlantaga.gov 

Felicia Moore                 404 330 6044 fmoore@atlantaga.gov

Clair Muller                    404 330 6051  cmuller@atlantaga.gov 

Jim Maddox                    404 330 6054 jamddox@altantaga.gov

The ordinance Ceasar proposed will go to the safety committee on Tuesday the 29^th at 3pm if you can make the meeting that would be great it is in committee room 2. Take the elevator and make a right you will see the sign. Public safety members

Anne Fauver                            404 330 6049  afauver@atlantaga.gov

CTMartin                                 404 330 6055  cmartin@atlantaga.gov

Joyce M. Sheperd                    404 330 6053  jmsheperd@atlantaga.gov 

H. Lamar Willis                       404. 330. 6041 hlwillis@atlantaga.gov 

Please let them know how important it is to have the station open. Then on the 30^th the budget portion of the ordinance goes to the finance committee.  The meeting is at 1pm.  And of course if you can make the meetings please do. Please remember to be nice when you email or call but get your point across.  Also the point was made that you should email as often as you can and each time you email state the words 1^st request, 2^nd request and so on.    

Please also do the same to the mayor  

404 330-6100 mayorfranklin@atlantaga.gov , let her know how thankful we are the council has voted to put the money back into the budget for Station number 7. 

Here is the other Council Member’s information and they need to get called or email as well and ask for there support when the final proposal is voted on.  We need ten votes to override the mayor if she vetos Ceasar proposal.

Lisa M. Borders  President        404-330 6035 lmborders@atlantaga.gov

Carla Smith                                404 330 6039 csmith@atlantaga.gov

Natalyn Archibong                     404 330 6048  narchibong@atlantaga.gov

Anne Fauver                               404 330 6049  afauver@atlantaga.gov

CTMartin                                    404 330 6055  cmartin@atlantaga.gov

Joyce M. Sheperd                       404 330 6053  jmsheperd@atlantaga.gov

H. Lamar Willis                          404. 330. 6041 hlwillis@atlantaga.gov 

Ivory Le Young Jr.                       404.330 6038 ilyoung@atlantaga.gov

Please note we are not alone in the fight:

Georgia Stand up,

NPU T,

the Save number 7 Coalition,

NPU S,

NPU F,

the Atlanta Planning Advisory

Have all lent us our support.

Atlanta's No. 7 fire station was the city's oldest firehouse when it was closed last week.

If West End residents and business owners — and some in city hall — have their way, it soon will be again.For nearly 98 years, Atlanta Fire-Rescue Department Station No. 7, was in operation at 535 Whitehall Street in historic West End. No. 7 became known "The Rock." Twenty-one years after opening, it became the city's first and only fire training center, the foundation the Atlanta Fire Department was built on. No. 7 shut its doors July 14 — just over two years short of reaching a century in service — a victim to the city's recent budget crisis.

"It would've been nice to see it make 100," said the department's unofficial historian, Lt. Derek Harris.

No. 7's future remains uncertain as the mayor and City Council play political tug-of-war over whether the station will remain closed.

Here's a little history:

May 31, 1894 — The original No. 7 was built at Benjamin (now Tift) Street, across the railroad tracks from where the current No. 7 sits. The building was razed in 1960 to make way for the East-West Freeway, now known as I-20.

Sept. 30, 1907 — Hoseman Clifford Smith was the first member of Engine Company No. 7 to die. Smith was among a number of firefighters buried when a heavy front porch collapsed. He died a few weeks later from his injuries.

Dec. 10, 1910 — The station moved to 535 Whitehall so firefighters didn't have to maneuver around rail  to respond to emergencies.

May 21, 1917 — No. 7 was the first engine company called to the Candler Warehouse in the West End, one of the first of many fires that day that, collectively, would come to be known as the Great Fire of Atlanta. Overall, nearly 300 acres (much of the modern Fourth Ward) and nearly 2,000 homes were destroyed. No one was killed but about 10,000 people were displaced.November,

1931 — No. 7 became the home of the first recruit school, the Fire College. Complete with a seven-story drill tower, it was given the nickname "The Rock," the designation for all fire training facilities. The top four stories of the tower were taken down when the Fire College was moved to 25 Claire Drive.

Dec. 7, 1946 — The supposedly "fireproof" Winecoff Hotel on the corner of Peachtree and Ellis streets caught fire at 3:42 a.m., killing 119, and leaving 100 injured. No. 7 was one of the many Atlanta and out-of-town companies that responded to the fire.

May 1974 — An Atlanta Fire Department library was established in the old training center classroom on the second floor of Station No. 7.

April 12, 1999 — No. 7 was one of the engine companies responding to the a fire at the Fulton Bag and Cotton Mill in Cabbage Town.No one knows what will become of No. 7.

 But here are other metro Atlanta fire stations that are serving duty as something else:

AFD Station No. 6 — 39 Boulevard Street, AtlantaClosed in 1991 after extensive roof damage, it now serves as a fire museum as part of the National Parks Service.

AFD Station No. 11 — 30 North Avenue, AtlantaUntil the past few months, the station's building was home to "The Spotted Dog Bar and Grill."

Gwinnett County Fire Station No. 6 — 3594 Centerville Highway, Snellville Now the Fire Youth Ministry, an extension of the Hope and Life Fellowship church.

Marietta Fire Station No. 3 — Polk Street, Marietta

Opened in 1952 and closed in the late 1990s, this building houses the Marietta High School Alumni Assoc.

Marietta Fire Station No. 2 — 965 Roswell Street, Marietta

Opened in 1951 and closed in the late 1990s, this building stands vacant.

SOURCE: The Atlanta Fire Department.— Andy Sharp contributed to this article.

Dear Neighbors and Members of the Security Patrol,
 
The first quarter of the Security Patrol in our neighborhood is almost up. We started the Security Patrol service April 1st, 2008 with 57 members. In just our first 3 months, we have grown to over 70 members and as more and more people see the difference we are making, we continue to grow . Every new member adds additional patrol time and increases the effectiveness of our patrol, so please continue to help us get the word out.
 
At this point, our Officer patrols the neighborhood every week, and based on current membership levels, we are on the verge of consistant 3 shift coverage. He has been providing assistance to all the members and you should all know that you can call him at any time. His routine duties include: checking vacant houses, checking car tags for current registration and insurance, watching for any drug activity and reporting to drug suppression unit, watching members’ houses while they are out of town, assisting beat officer whenever needed, and responding to any 911 calls in the area.  We have truly made him feel a partner in improving the neighborhood and often his commitment to the neighborhood extends to his beat shifts.  He has even been effective in organizing on-duty officers to participate in a drug checkpoint.
 
Our goal is to improve safety thereby strengthening the positive community in our neighborhood. Here are a few of our accomplishments:

 

-      arresting a copper thief thanks to the information from one of our neighbors
-      one felony arrest and one stolen gun confiscated thanks to the road blocks organized by our officer in cooperation with police
-      several abandoned cars impounded
-      consistent monitoring of drug activity in certain areas of the neighborhood resulting in arresting 6 people by the crime suppression unit
-      stopping several burglary suspects with hand tools wandering around houses
-      reporting back to the precinct, which resulted in the increase of police visibility in the residential area
-      2 minutes response time to the assault on one of our neighbors at the Public Library, providing help, and immediately looking for suspects
 
The Security Patrol has proven to be an effective solution to fight crime in our neighborhood and neighborhoods around the city. It would not be efficient without members support and involvement by providing valuable information to the Officer. We would like to thank all the members for their participation and contributing to making West End a better place to live.  If you know a neighbor who has not signed up yet, please talk to them. WE NEED YOU! Every additional member makes our Security Service stronger and brings benefit not only to you but to our West End Community as a whole.
 
We are always working on new ways to improve the security patrol and our most recent improvement (soon to be implemented) is the addition of a second officer.  The increased membership and ability for us to have more shifts has allowed us the opportunity to have two officers as part of the program, each working enough time each month and receiving enough money from the patrol to give them a truly vested interest in the community.  Having two "primary" officers will increase our scheduling flexibility and have an additional officer coming up with ideas and advocating for us while they are on duty.
 
After being brought to life through the hard work of Darek  Piecuch and Ewelina Mieszkalska, the Patrol will now be managed jointly by John Pavlin and Michael Joseph.  John and Michael will be focused on looking for ways to improve the Patrol now that it is fully up and running, and standardizing the policies and procedures to ensure the long term success of the program.
 
Now is the time to sign up or renew the membership. We would like to remind you that the first quarter ends June 30th and payments for the second quarter are due July 1st. You can mail or deliver your payment to 662 Grady Pl. SW, or go to our website atlantawestend.com (Click here: PAY ) and pay with PayPal (check is prefered as Paypal currently costs ~$2 per transaction). Also, you can bring your payment to WEND meeting on July 1st at 7.00 pm at the library.
 
The quarterly fee is $70.00 for existing residential members and $115.00 for business members.  If you are a new member please add $10.00 for the sign.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

Michael 504-931-6711

John 404-456-4118