Clarion Newsletter July 2016

Artscape 2016 This Weekend

Artscape is America’s largest free arts festival, attracting 350,000+ attendees over three days. Artscape features 150+ fine artists; fashion designers and craftspeople; visual art exhibits on and off-site, including exhibitions, outdoor sculpture, art cars, photography and the Janet & Walter Sondheim Prize; incredible live concerts on outdoor stages; a full schedule of performing arts including dance, opera, theater, film, experimental music and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra; family events such as hands-on projects, demonstrations, competitions, children’s entertainers and street theater; and a delicious, international menu of food and beverages that is available throughout the festival site.

Dates: Friday, July 15 – Sunday, July 17
Hours Friday: 11am-9pm, Saturday: 11am-9pm, Sunday: 11am-8pm
Artscape After Hours: Friday and Saturday 9pm-11pm
Location: Baltimore, MD

Website: artscape.org

Artscape takes place in the Mount Royal Avenue & Cathedral Street, Charles Street, Bolton Hill, and Station North Arts & Entertainment District neighborhoods.

Artscape is held outdoors in tents, and inside the neighborhood’s premier exhibition spaces and performing arts venues. The event is handicapped accessible and FREE and open to the public!

Pride Week in Baltimore July 17-24

The origins of Baltimore Pride date back to 1975. In the decades since, Baltimore Pride has grown to become Maryland’s largest LGBTQ event. Over the past four decades, Baltimore Pride has evolved from a small rally of a dozen activists to a full-fledged festival with events taking place all week. Some highlights over the weekend include:

THE HIGH HEEL RACE
SATURDAY, JULY 23, 1:30PM
Cathedral Street, from Read Street to Eager Street. Registration for the race will be from 1PM – 1:25PM, at the corner of Read & Cathedral St.

PRIDE PARADE
SATURDAY, JULY 23, 2:00PM
The Parade kicks off at the corners of Madison and Cathedral streets in Mount Vernon, and travels north on Charles to Chase Street.

PRIDE BLOCK PARTY
SATURDAY, JULY 23, 4-10PM
Cathedral Street, Read Street, Eager Street and Charles Street. Hosted by Shawnna Alexander, Baltimore’s Queen of Comedy, Kevin Lei locally known artist and nationally know artist Jacob Kohinoir. The block party will feature a score regional artists throughout the evening, leading up to our 2016 Pride headliners George Lovett and Band, Crystal Waters and CeCe Peniston.

PRIDE FESTIVAL
SUNDAY, JULY 24, 10:00AM – 6:00PM
Druid Hill Park in northwest Baltimore
The Pride festival is held in beautiful Druid Hill Park. This year’s Baltimore Pride Festival features many regional and local performers, vendors, the Lady Lisa Memorial Drag Stage, a Family Zone, and plenty of fun for the whole community to enjoy. An estimated 5,000 celebrants come out on Sunday for the fun and festivities.

For a complete list of events throughout the week visit http://baltimorepride.org/

Volunteers for Pride Parade Cleanup
The Service and Engagement committee will be working with GLCCB and Midtown to do a Post Pride Parade cleanup. Volunteers are needed and welcome, please contact Matt at Corrsecretary@mvba.org ASAP to sign up. Coffee and light refreshments will be served.

MVBA’s Third Thursday Community Happy Hour

This Thursday Evening at Flavor
Come join your neighbors for drinks, friends, and community! This months third Thursday MVBA happy hour will held at Flavor located at 15 East Centre Street. Festivities are from
5:00 – 9:00 on July 21st, the third Thursday of the month. Visit their website at http://www.flavorbaltimore.com/ Flavor is one of the many businesses that have been hurt due to the massive construction on Centre Street. It’s important to support them now!

Flavor is an American bistro specializing in intimate portions and handcrafted cocktails. At Flavor, all food is prepared in their from-scratch kitchen and sourced locally, as often as possible. Flavor specializes in small plates and has happy hour daily from 3:00 – 7:00 Tuesday through Saturday.

MVBA will be organizing a monthly third Thursday at a different venue on the third Thursday of each month. Please visit our Facebook page facebook.com/MVBA1938/ to get updates on Mount Vernon’s monthly third Thursday events.

Wet City Set to Open July 21st
at 223 West Chase Street

Soft Opening This Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 PM
Beer & Booze Only
PJ Sullivan, 37, a graphic designer and founder of Hardly Square, and Josh Sullivan, 34, bartender and owner of craft cocktail company Post Prohibition, have been looking for a bar space to open for years. And I think we will be happy they landed here in Mount Vernon. The brothers are calling the bar Wet City, as a nod to Baltimore’s nickname during Prohibition when it defied the rules and continued selling alcohol.

Wet City will have a large food menu — everything from snacks like charcuterie, popcorn and wings to entrees like burgers, tacos and shrimp & grits. The chef is Chuck Allen, formerly of Sascha’s just a few blocks over on Charles.

Seven of the 20 taps will feature local beers. And in addition to beers, they will serve a limited number of cocktails. They’ll start out with a Summer Shandy, a Gose Margarita and about five more cocktails.

Eventually the bar and restaurant plans to add lunch hours, but initially it will be open from
4 p.m. to 2 a.m. daily, with no dinner service on Sundays or Mondays.

Stop by and welcome this new business to our neighborhood!

Safety Committee Update

Join your neighbors and safety committee members on their summer safety walks from 6:30 to 8:30 PM. Walkers will meet at Centre and Cathedral streets on the following Thursday evenings: 7-19, 7-28, 8-2. And on August 11th the Baltimore City Police Commissioner will join our safety walk and we will be meeting at the Howards Park Dog Park at 6:30 PM.

Also, please remember to double and triple check your fire escapes for access into apartments or homes. Unfortunately, fire escapes provide easy access, so please make sure yours are secure.

Howards Park Dog Park Needs Volunteers

Please consider volunteering to help maintain our new dog park. Nine volunteers have already been trained and are currently working to maintain the park, but we need more volunteers so that people will only have to work one shift every two weeks. Right now many volunteers are working a shift or more every week. Please contact dogpark@mvba.org for more information and to sign up to volunteer.

Community Garden

Those interested in starting a community garden are encouraged to email Brian Levy at president@mvba.org. The first community garden exploratory committee meeting was held on July 14th. The meeting was extremely productive. We look forward to growing our numbers and making more progress in our plans to start a neighborhood garden.

Update on Distribution of City Trash Cans

If you have not received a trash can yet or erroneously received one for your property, please call 311 to report the issue. Each trash can delivered has an identifying number that is for your individual property. There have been some errors made by the City in the distribution of these cans. Please note that your collection day and pickup location will remain the same.

More information about this effort as well as an informational video is available at
http://publicworks.baltimorecity.gov. If you have any questions regarding these cans, please feel free to send a message to cleanandbeautiful@mvba.org.

Mount Vernon Place Conservancy

Performances, Walking Tours & Saturday Morning Yoga in the Park
Every Wednesday evening this summer at 7:00 PM the Mount Vernon Place Conservancy will host performances by a variety of musicians and dancers. All concerts are held in the Mount Vernon Place West Square and are FREE, just bring your blanket or lawn chair. Below is a list of upcoming July performances.

Wed July 20 Lyric Opera.

Wed July 27 Mini Musicals on the Move: Guys and Dolls

And on Sunday July 17 from 10:00 – 11:00 am there will be a historical walking tour of Mount Vernon Place and a Monument climb co-sponsored by Baltimore Heritage. Price $10. Please reserve in advance.

The Conservancy also hosts Saturday morning yoga from 8:30 to 9:45 in the Mount Vernon Place East Square every Saturday May 21 to September 24. Bring your own mat and water bottle. It’s FREE and appropriate for all levels.

Visit http://mvpconservancy.org/ for a complete list of performances, movies in the park beginning in August and Children’s programming in the park also beginning in August.

Baltimore City Farmers’ Market & Bazaar

Maryland’s largest producers-only market offers an assortment of produce, meats, dairy, breads, flowers, collectibles and crafts on Sundays between April 17, 2016 and December 18, 2016 from 7am to sell out (typically noon). Many Sundays also feature live music performances and cooking demonstrations.

Cooking demonstrations are on tap at the Baltimore Farmers’ Market & Bazaar! Kevin Brown kicks off weekly cooking demonstrations at the Market from 9:30 to 11:30am. Brown is co-owner and operator of two cafes in the city’s Station North Arts and Entertainment District: Station North Arts Café Gallery and Nancy by SNAC.

Demos are held near the Saratoga Street entrance. Market goers are encouraged to stop by and pick up helpful cooking tips, recipes and delicious samples. Stay tuned for more cooking demonstrations throughout the season.

The market is located below the Jones Falls Expressway at Holliday & Saratoga streets. For more information visit promotionandarts.org/events-festivals/baltimore-farmers-market-bazaar.

Centre Stage Tickets On Sale After Renovations

Centre Stage tickets are now on sale for the 2016/17 season after significant renovations. The 2016/17 Season will bring plays from across the world. Beginning in 18th-century France with the scandalous Les Liaisons Dangereuses, a story that has captivated and shocked audiences for 200 years. Then on to ancient China with the fable-turned-theatrical-wonder, The White Snake. Then, forward to 20th-century America with Twisted Melodies, a play with music, about musical legend Donny Hathaway. And ending with a world-premiere adaptation-and Center Stage commission-of Toni Morrison’s Jazz.

Make sure to attend at least one of these or buy a membership and go to all four. For more information go to http://www.centerstage.org/.

Silent Movie & Organ Concert Series at the Engineers Club

The Garrett-Jacobs Mansion Endowment Fund in partnership with The Engineers Club Presents the 2016 Silent Movie & Organ Concert Series.

Go enjoy a fun-filled afternoon for all ages, Sunday, July 31st at an organ concert designed to whisk you off to 1920’s Waldorf Astoria! James Harp, renowned organist & Artist in Residence, will be joined by singers Jason Buckwalter and Kimberley Christie featuring Cole Porter, Lehar and other music from the era – featuring of course, the Magnani Wurlitzer Pipe Organ in the Mansion’s beautifully restored Palm Court Ballroom.

And on Sunday, August 14th the club will be showing the silent movie, The Navigator.

All movies and concerts begin at 2:00 p.m. at the Garrett-Jacobs Mansion located at 11 West Mount Vernon Place. Tickets are $8 Adults & $4 Children Ages 11 & Under to the General Public Members of The Engineers Club & Friends of the Mansion Admitted Free and tickets are available at the door. Check out their website for other upcoming movies and organ concerts. http://www.esb.org/club/

Chase Brexton Farmer’s Market Fridays

Real Food Farm’s Mobile Farmer’s Market truck will be parked on Chase Street (between Chase Brexton and the Belvedere Hotel) every Friday from now through December, from 11:45-12:45. The entire neighborhood is welcome to stop by and pickup their fresh produce. More about the community farm here:http://realfoodfarm.civicworks.com/

Also, save the date for the Chase Brexton Charm Ball on September 17th at the B&O Railroad Mueseum. Proceeds raised support Chase Brexton patients in need. More information here: http://www.chasebrexton.org/get-involved/charm-ball

Join a Committee, Meet Your Neighbors and Improve Our Neighborhood!

The Community Service and Engagement Committee meets every other Sunday at 218 E. Preston Street. Please call Matt for entry and for more information at (914) 602-8584 and contact him at corrsecretary@mvba.org for more information.

The Membership Committee meets at Indigma on the second Wednesday of every month at 6:30 pm. Contact Julie Canard for more information at membership@mvba.org.

The Development Committee meets on the first Monday of every month at 6:00 pm. Contact Lance Decker at development@mvba.org.

For the Clean & Beautiful Committee please contact Michele Richter at vicepresident@mvba.org.

For the Green Committee/Trees contact Andy Smith at trees@mvba.org.

For the Dog Park Committee contact Samantha Braun or Geoffrey Hart at dogpark@mvba.org.

The Safety Committee meets on the 1st Tuesday of every month at 6:00 pm at Spirits of Mount Vernon. Contact Jason Curtis at safety@mvba.org for more information.

h4>Elections schedule

2016 General Presidential / Mayoral Election
Deadline for Voter Registration: October 18, 2016 at 9:00 PM
Early Voting Dates: October 27-Nov. 3, 2016
Hours: 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM
General Election Day: November 8, 2016
Hours: 7:00 AM- 8:00 PM

Meeting Space for MVBA Generously provided by the Belvedere & Co.