Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Watsessing Park Cleanup April 30, 2011!!!


The Bloomfield Open Space Trust Fund Committee (OSTFC), Watsessing Park Conservancy (WPC), and Watsessing Heights Neighborhood Association (WHNA) are planning a park and river cleanup on Saturday, April 30.

The Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission’s River Restoration division will be on hand to clean up the river, provide garbage bags and gloves for volunteers, and to haul the debris to Newark.

For those not familiar with the park, Watsessing Park is located on 69 acres in the Townships of Bloomfield and East Orange. The meandering Second River, joined here by Toney's Brook, flows through the long open park that was designed in 1899 by the Olmsted Brothers firm and expanded in the early 20th century, also under the auspices of the Olmsted firm.

When: April 30, 2011 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Where: Volunteers will meet at the "W" garden at the park entrance at the intersection of Maolis and Glenwood Avenues, by the Lawn Bowling building.

Refreshments (donuts and coffee) will be provided to the volunteers. We hope to see many members of the community on the 30th and look forward to a successful cleanup! Watch this space for any updates.

Thursday, November 4, 2010

The WHNA is Fired Up and Ready to Go Again

A recent spate of robberies in our neighborhood has gotten neighbors concerned and has inspired a renewed impulse to band together and stand up for Watsessing Heights.

We recently sent out a note to all the neighbors that we could reach via e-mail, and we are posting part of it here to reach anyone else who has not been contacted. We will be setting up a meeting in the near future where we hope to get Mayor McCarthy and possibly representatives from the police department to discuss their plans for the downtown and for enhancing security in the Watsessing Heights area.

In addition, a new Facebook Group has been created, called "Watsessing Heights Neighbors," where we are also sharing information among any neighbors who are on Facebook. Just search on that term and you will find our Group.

From the recent message to the neighborhood:

"As many of you who have been involved in the past have probably noticed, the WHNA has not been very active recently. Many of the original members have left the neighborhood or have become too busy (or tired!) to be as active.

However, we are aware there are many new people in the neighborhood who may be interested in getting involved, and perhaps there are others who now have the time to become more active in the association than in the past.

Now seems like a good time to revitalize the WHNA, as there has been a recent break-in our neighborhood. It happened during the day when no one was home. In addition, there have been reports of suspicious vehicles driving up and down our streets in the middle of the night, shining flashlights at houses and talking on walkie-talkies. Please keep your doors and windows locked when you aren't home, and keep an eye out for suspicious activity. If you notice anything unusual happening, please let the police know.

We hope by revitalizing the WHNA we will increase the number of "eyes on the street" and also get more attention paid to our neighborhood by the police. In addition, with the downtown redevelopment finally starting (we hope!), now is the time to get together and make sure that whatever is done suits our needs and desires, since the downtown abuts the Watsessing Heights neighborhood. The redevelopment is key to enhancing our property values and making Bloomfield a better place to live.

As many of you may recall, in the past the WHNA has done the following:

- Held monthly - then quarterly - meetings. These meetings had speakers ranging from representatives from the police and fire departments; the mayor and council representatives; real estate agents discussing the real estate market; zoning board chairman explaining the zoning board process; school officials discussing school-related issues, and more.

- Created and distributed a newsletter to the entire neighborhood plus local officials.

- Held biannual park cleanups (with sister organization, the Watsessing Park Conservancy)

- Sponsored wine tastings, evenings at the theater, and other social events.

- Held annual Holiday Parties and Summer Socials.

- Put up holiday decorations around the fencing of Watsessing Park.

- Submitted detailed suggestions to the Planning Board for the downtown redevelopment following input from professional planners.

We would love to which of the above activities you feel are the most important things to revive. In addition, if you have other suggestions for projects and issues for the WHNA to address, please let us know. And naturally, if you are interested in becoming directly involved with any of these projects, we want to hear from you!"

Please comment here or send an e-mail to whna@yahoo.com with any suggestions.

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Public Meeting on Watsessing Park 7/27

Your input is needed at a public meeting hosted by Essex County on Monday, July 27, 2009, at the Senior Center building in the park at Conger Street at 7 p.m.

The purpose of the meeting is to present the County's plans for constructing a combination soccer/la crosse field with artificial turf, lighting, seating, and partial fencing, in the section of Watsessing Park bordering Bloomfield Avenue between the Parkway and the area around the bandstand.

A second artificial turf field would be constructed in the central area within the boundaries of the running track in the section of the park between Glenwood Avenue and Cleveland Terrace.

Please come to the meeting and express your opinion about these plans. Thank you.

Saturday, February 21, 2009

New Facebook Group Formed for the WHNA



For the many people who are on Facebook, the WHNA has created an affinity group on Facebook for the WHNA so that people can chat in a more real-time way and we will have a new way to get news out to members (in addition to the e-mails that are sent out).

If you are on Facebook, log in and then go to Groups and search for "Watsessing Heights Neighborhood Association" and you'll find it. We have 21 people in the group so far and are hoping for more!

If you aren't on Facebook, go to their website, http://www.facebook.com, and sign up. It is easy and you don't have to put anything more personal than a name (doesn't have to be your real name) and some very basic information on it. Then you'll be able to access the WHNA group.

Hope to see you on Facebook!

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Bloomfield Farmer's Market is Back!


YES - it is that time again!

1 - 7 p.m. every Thursday

Come to Venner Park (around the water fountain on Bloomfield Ave./State St./Liberty St).

Vendors are selling:

* Fresh Produce and Garden items
* Artisan Breads, Hummus, Specialty Gourmet Items!
* Homemade Organic Baked Goods including chocolate, nuts, breads, cookies, scones!

Visit bloomfieldcenter.com or call 973-429-8050 for more info.

Monday, May 19, 2008

WHNA Annual "Trash to Cash" Neighborhood Yard Sale!

When: Saturday, June 14th
Where: In front of your house!
Time: 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

The WHNA’s annual “TRASH TO CASH” will be held on Saturday, June 14th. If you wish to participate please print out and fill out the form below, and mail your check for $10 made payable to: WHNA, PO Box 1783, Bloomfield, NJ 07003.
We will do all the advertising for you and arrange to have all necessary permits issued as well as provide useful tips for a successful sale and a map of all participants that you can hand out.

You can also call and leave your information on our phone line (973-680-WHNA) and someone will get back to you.
***********************************************************************************
Watsessing Heights, Bloomfield
Neighborhood-Wide Garage/Yard Sale


Turn your “Trash to Cash”
Join our neighborhood-wide yard sale


June 14th (Rain date June 15th)
9:00 to 4:00

Cost to participate: $10.00, which covers:
- Town permit
- Advertising to newspapers, and
- Your site included on the “Trash to Cash” map!

(This is a savings of over $30: Advertising in one paper costs $25 and the town permit costs $10. We will advertise in three papers and secure town permit – all for $10.)

For more information please contact Bill at slukster@hotmail.com (973-748-8808) or Karen krosenbergeraicp@aol.com (973-727-5389)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sign up today!

Name _____________________________________________

Address (of yard sale) ________________________________

Phone Number ______________________________________

E-mail _____________________________________________

To guarantee your site is on the map, return this form with your payment ($10 check payable to WHNA) by May 30 to:

WHNA, Inc.
PO Box 1783
Bloomfield, NJ 07003
Attn: T2C

Sunday, April 20, 2008

WHNA Sponsored Little League Team Off to a Great Start!

The WHNA Little League Team, posing with Coach Steve Rosenberger (upper left) and WHNA President Anne Prince (to his immediate right).

Play Ball!

Team WHNA, once again coached by WHNA member Steve Rosenberger, is off to a great start! They are now undefeated at 3-0 for the season to date.

Below is their schedule for the remaining season:

Tuesday 4/29 – Palagano vs WHNA 6pm @ Felton Field
Saturday 5/3 – WHNA vs Kane 3:30pm @ Wrights Field
Wednesday 5/7 – WHNA vs Senorita's 6pm @ Felton Field
Saturday, 5/10 – WHNA vs Palagano 11am @ Felton Field
Wednesday 5/14 – Kane vs WHNA 6pm @ Felton Field
Saturday 5/17 – Senorita's vs WHNA 11am @ Felton Field
Friday, 5/23 – Palagano vs WHNA 6pm @ Felton Field
Tuesday, 5/27 – WHNA vs Kane 6pm @ Felton Field
Wednesday, 6/4 – WHNA vs Senorita’s 6pm@ Wrights Field
Saturday 6/7 – Minor A All-Star Game TBA

Come on out and support the WHNA team next Saturday!