Neighbourhood Bulletin Board

Want Ads

Are you a musician with a hankering to join a group? Bowen Entertainment Orchestra, the band that has played for many years during the pancake breakfast at the picnic are looking for new members, musicians, who can practice weekly at 1pm at Bowen complex and perform in weekly concerts.  Call Bettina Moss at 250 753 1856.

Looking for a 1-bedroom suite. Bill and his little pug Brandis, regular walkers in the neighbourhood are 2 of the residents who must move due to the fire code problem mentioned in this newsletter.  He’s looking for a 1 bedroom apartment, up to $600/month.  If you have a place, drop him a note at 45B  Haliburton or e-mail southendcommunityassociation@gmail.com and we’ll pass the word along.

The neighbourhood bookshelf at 152 Irwin Street is normally a beehive of activity, but right now, it’s so low that even books we thought would only be used to even out tippy chair and table legs have been taken.  Books, movies, magazines, if you have anything that passers-by can use, we’d appreciate them.  Thanks!

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WHAT’S UP

Fire in The South End Leaves Families Homeless

As you probably know a fire on Friday January 16 at 37 Haliburton left two families homeless. They have lost most of their possessions. People are talking about having a fund-raiser or silent auction to help them. Please bring your ideas to the SECA meeting on Wednesday.

Donations can be made to the families at any Nanaimo Royal
Bank branch.  Please make your cheques out to “fire on Haliburton St. fund.”

For the Nanaimo Daily News story about the fire click here.

Balmoral Hotel Renovation Up-date

The renovations to the Balmoral Hotel continue to progress. The
administration offices (former manager suite) are complete and CMHA administration and some of our programs are housed there. The former bar has been completely gutted and now has the framing up for six offices and a reception area. Wiring and plumbing are currently being done and we are hoping that they will be ready for VIHA Outreach, Ministry of Social Development and Housing Outreach, and our peer support workers will be in there by the middle of March.

New boilers for heat and on-demand hot water heaters have been
installed in the building and so all tenants now have heat, which they
didn’t have for the two years prior to our purchase of the building.
The fire department attended the building last week as someone in the
neighbourhood mistook the steam venting from the boiler system for
smoke and called in the alarm. The roof is being completed now that
the snow and nasty weather has ended and we are still in the planning
stages for suite renovations. We have ordered new exterior doors for
the building which should help with the access issues we face from
non-tenants.

Security is on site at the building every night and, with a few
exceptions, we have been able to manage to keep the building fairly
quite. There have been some bumps with tenants and non-tenants in the building but we work very closely with the RCMP and other emergency services. We have banned several people from the building and have charged one with trespassing. Our outreach team meets weekly with the Bike Patrol and I meet monthly, or more often depending on need, with RCMP members to discuss issues with the building. Our desire is to have 24/7 staffing whose work will be on tenant and building supports so that the people housed in the Balmoral have access to service and the access to the building is limited.

Peppermill Frozen Meals, a program of CMHA, is moving in to the old
cafe this month and will sell frozen meals to clients of the mental
health service system on a subscription only basis. The cafe will NOT
be used as a cafe, only as a kitchen and a pick up site for the meal
program.

Hopefully once the nicer weather begins, we can turn our attention to
the facade of the building and to our full integration into the
neighbourhood.

Christina Martens, Executive Director CMHA

WANT ADS

Looking for a place to call home sweet home: a solid responsible professional – 30ish- wants to live in the South End.  Looking for a decent 1 bedroom suite, up to $650/month.  This is the kind of tenant that good landlords are looking for.  Willing to wait for the right place; needs to give notice to existing landlord. E-mail SECA at southendcommunityassociation@gmail.com and we’ll link you up.

 

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Lonely Little Art Bins Looking For a Home!

1.  Lilly the Flower. Bright, lively and willing to please, Lilly is hoping to be fostered by someone who lives on the sunny side of the street.  Plays well with others, especially daffodils and tulips…likes to be part of a bouquet.  Willing to be an “only” bin if there are lots of people passing by so she doesn’t get lonely and wilt.  Loves the fragrant aroma of coffee cups and french fry containers.  Not too happy about dog poop  (but who IS….?)

2.  Percy the Pirate.  Seeking bold places to go, and adventures along the way.  Might be a problem bin, so we need a strong foster person who can keep him under control.  Quite feisty, Percy may kick back if attacked.  Might double as a watchdog/watchbin on your property, scaring away other pirates.  Wants to be near the salty scent of the sea.  Has a soft spot for old running shoes, donut boxes, and empty rum bottles.  Spits out dog poop.

3.  Stella the Star. Stella hasn’t quite decided yet whether she wants to be a starfish when she grows up or to be a star in the sky.  She’s a bit of a prima donna, and a little self-centred.  But as long as you keep feeding her, she’ll be well-behaved.  She would like to be somewhere where she gets LOTS of attention, preferably a steady stream of passers-by…this is NOT a cul-de-sac kind of gal.  Has a weakness for water bottles, old clothing with sequins, and chocolate bar wrappers.  Believes dog poop is “beneath” her stature in life, but every upcoming celebrity has to deal with some crap along the way.

If you would like more information about or are interested in fostering a bin,  please call Sandra Zuccolini at 753-1394.

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Bulletin Board

Loaves & Fishes Food Bank is looking for a casual driver (on-call) for their 1 ton truck. There is a modest wage for this, but they wouldn’t turn down a volunteer either. Need to provide a clean driver’s abstract.  Contact Abby or JoAnne 240-754-8347

Our monthly mini-litter pick-up is THIS Saturday, November 29

McDonald’s dining area won’t be open until mid-Dec, so this gives us the perfect excuse to get out in the neighbourhood, support some other businesses, and try someplace new. The  MGM Restaurant at 240 Nicol has set aside a table for 12 on Sat AM @ 8:45…come anytime from then on for breakfast or coffee. Whining about too much beer intake at the Beer & Burger event the night before will be verboten. (not allowed)

We’ll fan out around 9:30 to clean up for an hour and then deposit our litter in MGM’s bin (thanks Tony and Katrina).

Bring gloves and extra plastic grocery bags.  By 10:30, you’re on your way, and may even have burned off the calories from breakfast!

Let’s take action in 2009 – Province-wide Stands lead up to provincial election

On April 4 2009, thousands of people throughout B.C. will march to demand that the government in Victoria build enough affordable rental housing to meet urgent B.C. needs. Together we can make affordable housing a key issue in the election. The goal of these marches is to elicit immediate, concrete public commitments from provincial candidates seeking election on May 12^th.

During the past six months the province-wide Stands for Housing movement has grown in strength. Our accomplishments include increasing alliances among community organizations, 75 Stands on one day and attention-getting Surround City Hall events last month. Because there have been Stands with close to 100 participants, including 70 in the small municipality of Princeton, we know that recruiting large numbers of people is achievable.

In order to build toward a minimum of 15,000 participants on April 4^th, province-wide Stands will be held on Saturday Nov 29 between 1 and 2pm at the Pearson Bridge

Great Nanaimo Toy Drive

This well-known annual event, which ensures that needy children up to age 17 will receive a gift at Christmas, is up and running for 2008. Registration happens at Harewood Mall (next to Starbucks) on December 1, 2 and 3 from 10 AM to 4 PM. To register a child, please bring your care card.

Receiving Days are December 17 and 18, between 9 and 4 PM at the Franklyn Street Gym (rear). Parents come and select a gift from the display that they think their child would like.

If you would like to donate, the drive is looking for new toys that have not been wrapped in Christmas wrapping paper. Toys are sought for all children, from newborns to teenagers.

This is a huge community effort and over 100 volunteers are needed. If you can help sort before or distribute at the event, please contact Arlene Brownhill at 758.8670.

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