Brian Duffy Announcements, Publications

Clifton Chronicle: The CTM President’s Message

I believe Clifton continues to be one of the best neighborhoods in the city because of its people. Over many decades our neighbors have worked to protect what is worthy and great, and progress where we can. I feel this dedication toward protection and progress is exemplified by our members, board members and community partners who show up and support our neighborhood though thoughtful ideas, neighborly discussion and plenty of hard work.

Throughout this next year we will be hosting a number of community dialogue sessions both during our regularly scheduled meetings and outside of them, on a wide range of topics. We will be looking for input and we hope you will come to the table to provide your thoughts on a subject that might interest you, or where you may have expertise.

CTM cannot accomplish its goals without a strong and robust membership that supports the community and its council. For those who are already members, thank you and we hope to see you soon! For those who would like to support all of the wonderful community events and priorities that are funded or hosted each year by CTM, please consider becoming a member and a community partner with us!

I also recognize that most projects and activities CTM takes on require the support and cooperation of other organizations, such as the City of Cincinnati, the Clifton Business and Professional Association, the Uptown Consortium, our local elementary schools, the Clifton Cultural Arts Center, CliftonFest, the Clifton Recreation Center, the Clifton Community Fund, our neighborhood businesses and all of our funding partners. We thank all of our partners and will strive to deepen these relationships so that, through our joint efforts, we continuously improve our impact on the Clifton community.

I am proud to serve as the president of Clifton Town Meeting for 2019 and look forward to working with our board to contribute positively to the community and tackle many priorities for the organization. If you are interested in becoming a member of Clifton Town Meeting, or donating time, talent or treasure to support our cause, please contact us.

I also want to thank Christine Celsor for her work over the past year as President of CTM, she led us through a successful year and the community should be proud and thankful for the work that Christine has and continues to accomplish!

We are all in this together and with thoughtful ideas, neighborly discussion and plenty of work, I look forward to seeing what we will accomplish for Clifton.

With Appreciation,

Brad Hawse, President CTM

Brian Duffy Announcements

Burnet Woods Capital Campaign

The Cincinnati Park Board and Parks Foundation are excited to have received seed funding for a restricted fund to support the restoration and enhancement of Burnet Woods. This funding will kick off a 5-year capital campaign to raise the funds that are desperately needed to restore the park.

You are invited on Thursday, February 7th at 6pm to 8pm at the Trailside Nature Center in Burnet Woods for an informational evening with drinks and appetizers to unveil the campaign. Please feel free to share this invitation with any of your friends and neighbors who love our park and want to be part of making it the crown jewel of Clifton. 

The establishment of this restricted fund and the campaign are critical as prior to its creation there was no way to donate specifically for the restoration and enhancement of Burnet Woods. This is our opportunity as a community to come together in solidarity with the common a goal of making the park the best it can be for flora, fauna, fishermen/women, birds, bees, concrete slide lovers, bird watchers, invasive species-haters, outdoor lunch takers, yogis, concert-goers, hikers, and people that live, work and study in Clifton.

If you have questions, prior to the event, Jennifer H. Spieser’s (Executive Director of Cincinnati Parks Foundation) information can be found below and she is copied on this email.

Please RSVP to Bettina Bellucci by Tuesday, February 5th at bettina@cincinnatiparksfoundation.org.

Jennifer H. Spieser, Executive Director
Cincinnati Parks Foundation | 421 Oak Street, Cincinnati, OH, 45219
Office: (513) 861-0023, ext. 16 | Cell: (513) 515-1495
www.cincinnatiparksfoundation.org

Kevin Marsh Announcements, Uncategorized

Connecting with Clifton Town Meeting in 2019

Welcome to 2019! We recommend you bookmark this post as below are some key information about Clifton Town Meeting for your use.

Clifton Town Meeting (CTM) has a Board of 15 Trustees. The organization has a set of bylaws that govern its operation and action.

Your Trustees for 2019 are as follows:

Brad Hawse – President
Pat Borders – Vice President 1
Joyce Rich – Vice President 2
Joe Brunner – Secretary
Buddy Goose – Treasurer
Peter Block
Christine Celsor
Brian Duffy
Rama Kasturi
Seth Maney
Gina Marsh
Kevin Marsh
Vince Metzger
Malcolm Montgomery
Peggy Spohr

There are many ways to interact, engage, volunteer, and communicate with CTM.

In person options

We have monthly Board meetings. The schedule is set every January at the first Board meeting of the year. Generally, the meetings are on the first Monday of the month from 7-9pm at the Clifton Recreation Center. Exact dates will be posted on the Clifton Community Calendar website page.

You can speak at these meetings on a specific topic or at the end of the meeting. Community members should sign up to speak on an agenda item before the start of the meeting. Not all agenda items will have time reserved for public input. Individual input on agenda items will be no more than two minutes. Community members are able to speak on non-agenda issues during the public questions and concerns agenda item. Individuals with statements are asked to sign in before the start of the meeting. Statements will be no more than three minutes during the questions and concerns agenda item.

CTM produces or co-sponsors some events each year.

2019 Event Captains (Event – Captain)

  • Memorial Day Parade/Cookout – Buddy Goose
  • Clifton Fest Booth – CTM Business Committee
  • Golf Outing – Eric Urbas
  • Lantern Walk – Vince Metzger
  • Holidays on Ludlow – Brad Hawse

All events are more successful when we have volunteers from the community to participate in planning or on the day of the event.  The Clifton House Tour is held every 3 years on Mother’s Day. Next Tour is 2021. Planning always starts in the year prior to the event.

CTM Committees are always seeking volunteers for specific activities or for longer-term participating in the work of the Committee. Your involvement, be it big or small, is welcome and desired.

Committees and Chairpersons for 2019

  • Committee – Chairperson
  • Beautification – Seth Maney
  • Business District – Joyce Rich & Gina Marsh
  • Chronicle – Vince Metzger
  • Website / Social Media – Brian Duffy
  • Membership – Kevin Marsh
  • Housing and Zoning – Malcolm Montgomery
  • Nominating – Patrick Borders
  • Clifton Community LLC – Brad Hawse & Buddy Goose
  • Transportation / Public Safety – Mike Schur
  • Parks – Rama Kasturi & Seth Maney
  • Education – Vince Metzger
  • Arts & Culture – Sean Mullaney

Ad Hoc Committees

  • Bylaws – Malcolm Montgomery
  • Fundraising – Brad Hawse
  • Save the CCAC – Malcolm Montgomery
  • Walking Routes – Kevin Marsh

Liaison Roles

  • Uptown / NOU – Joyce Rich
  • Invest In Neighborhoods – Buddy Goose
  • TriHealth – Brad Hawse
  • Clifton Community Fund – Joyce Rich
  • CPBA – Joyce Rich
  • UC Health – Rama Kasturi

Some of our Committees hold public engagement / discussion meetings to gather input on specific topics. These are announced in advance by email and put onto social media channels.

Membership

Our organization is always seeking the financial support of the community through a variety of membership options. You can start or renew a membership online by clicking here.  We run a more detailed membership drive effort each year as well describing the benefits of being a member. Memberships are for the calendar year and there are never any late fees! CTM is a 501c3 so your membership is considered a charitable contribution. Click here to renew or join as a member of CTM for 2019.

Emails to CTM

CTM has multiple emails that you can use to convey information, concerns, questions, volunteer, etc:
• Our primary email is contactctm@Cliftoncommunity.org. This email is monitored daily. Your email is forwarded to the most appropriate person or Committee for a response. When in doubt, use this email for all purposes.
• Financial matter to address with our Treasurer, please email ctmtreasurer@cliftoncommunity.org
• Matters dealing with Housing & Zoning, you can email the Committee directly at housingandzoning@cliftoncommunity.org
• Submit an article / photo for the Clifton Chronicle or wish to place an ad, you can email vblack1@cliftoncommunity.org

Emails from CTM

CTM has a subscriber, opt-in, email list that is used to send information & announcements related to Clifton. By signing up to receive these emails, you will enhance your connectedness to the community.  You can unsubscribe at any time. We never sell or share this list, and we do not email you constantly.  You will receive 2-5 emails a month including the monthly CTM meeting agenda. You can opt-in by clicking here.

Clifton Community Website

CTM maintains the Clifton Community website. This website contains a variety of news, calendar, public safety links, prior CTM meeting minutes, Clifton Chronicle issues, links to institutions & businesses in Clifton, and much more. There are links on the website to submit questions / concerns directly to CTM.

The Clifton Community Calendar has a moderated submission link that you can use to create entries for community events on the calendar.

Social Media

CTM operates various social media accounts:

• Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/CliftonTownMeeting
• Twitter account – https://twitter.com/cliftontownmeet @cliftontownmeet
• NextDoor Clifton account – https://clifton.nextdoor.com/login

Social media “likes”, shares & retweets do not imply Board positions or agreement. We like to promote Clifton related events for the good of the community.

Postal Mail

We accept mail at PO Box 20042, Cincinnati, OH 45220. This is the slowest way to contact us.

Thank you. We look forward to seeing and hearing from you.

Kevin Marsh Announcements

Mount Storm Park Master Plan Funding

Dear Cliftonite:

Mount Storm Park is a treasure many of us in the neighborhood and across the region have enjoyed for decades. Over the last year, a group of us have been working on a project to develop a Master Plan to revitalize the park by restoring Adolph Strauch’s historic design.

Many will recall that Strauch was the Austrian landscape architect invited to Cincinnati by Robert Bowler (whose large estate is now Mount Storm Park) in 1850. Bowler admired Strauch’s landscape designs at the Royal Botanical Gardens in London and was taken by their pastoral feel, the placement of trees on the land that surprises and awes visitors. In addition to being the Cincinnati Parks’ first Superintendent and designer of Mount Storm and other estates along Lafayette Avenue, Strauch famously went on to design Spring Grove Cemetery.

The Cincinnati Parks Foundation, the Clifton Community Fund (the Parks’ Mt. Storm Advisory Council), and several generous individuals have donated to a restricted fund within the Foundation to develop a Master Plan for Mt. Storm that provides for moving, planting, and maintaining new trees in the mode of Strauch’s aesthetic; removing the dead trees and trimming existing ones; and cleaning up the invasive species crowding some of the Park area. The Plan for selection and location of plantings is being developed by the landscape architectural firm, Human Nature, and will be completed in January.

The Parks will contribute staff support and has already begun construction to reduce the size of the parking lot (without reducing parking spaces) to increase greenspace. Our goal is to have at least 2/3 of the planting completed before the end of 2019, including a redesign of the shelter house garden areas. Parks have estimated the budget for the project at approximately $70,000. $50,000 of that has been raised, and an ongoing fundraising campaign is being managed by the Foundation.

Contributions to this exciting project will honor and celebrate the extraordinary and often overlooked contribution nature, and trees in particular, make to our physical and mental health and to the wildlife that is supported by a well-designed greenspace. We see this as a legacy investment in our Parks, our children and grandchildren, and the planet; it is one sure thing we can do today for a better future for us
all.

All gifts are 100% tax-deductible, and gifts of any amount are appreciated. Larger donations of $1,000 or more will be honored with name recognition on a plaque within Mount Storm Park. Please click here to make a donation in support of Mt. Storm.

Sincerely,
Mary Jo Vesper & Bob Rack
Clifton Community Fund