Yearly Archives: 2014
Surveying neighbors made easy
A growing number of Vermonters are using their local Front Porch Forum to survey their neighbors about a wide variety of issues. From the Burlington Free Press this week…
Westford selectboard member Alex Weinhagen knows a thing or two about rural Vermont towns, but when he sent out a survey through Front Porch Forum to his Westford neighbors he got schooled.
This survey asked if potholes should be used as a speed deterrent. Seventy percent of respondents shot down the idea.
The online survey received 80 responses in less than 48 hours. Ninety-eight people responded total…
POSTED IN WINOOSKI – portraits in response to FPF postings
UPDATE from Dan…
PHOTO RECEPTION @ the BLOCK GALLERY in WINOOSKI
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 9TH, 5-7 PMStop in and view the photographs I am exhibiting that put a face on Winooskis Front Porch Forum. The portraits, made in collaboration with subjects, give a visual dimension to postings and neighbors you may know by name only. Also take time to enjoy the variety of topics that include live chickens, a bocce team, F-35s, a colossal sub, perky dogs, book readers, fallen trees, farmers market, artworks, postal clerks, an impressive hedge trimmer, a VFW barbeque, lawn sales, a grammar lesson, and of course pedestrian frustration over crossing Winooski’s problematic roundabout.
The exhibit will be up all month, at the Block Gallery in downtown Winooski, with a reception that is open to the public on Thursday, October 9th, 5-7 PM.
I hope to see you there.
Come see longtime local artist and UVM professor Dan Higgins’ exhibition…
POSTED IN WINOOSKI – portraits in response to FPF postings
Month of October
The Block Gallery and Coffeehouse
1 East Allen Street, Winooski, VT
Generous East Montpelier neighbors donate Kindles for students
Judy posted on her East Montpelier FPF yesterday…
Thanks to the generous people on Front Porch Forum, I have 3 Kindles for my emerging middle school readers. This means a lot to them (and to me), as they are reading voraciously, but the books they’re enjoying are well below the reading level of their peers. And of course, they’re teased for their choices. Having Kindles means no one knows exactly what they’re reading, so they can read to their heart’s content at their level. Thank you from my students and from me!
Vermont’s Western Slopes Business Assn Q&A about Front Porch Forum
Thanks to the good people of the Western Slopes Business Association for inviting Front Porch Forum co-founder, Michael Wood-Lewis, to share some of our story. Check out the video clip from Mt. Mansfield Community TV…
WSBA Business Association Breakfast Meeting: Michael Wood-Lewis from Mt. Mansfield Community TV on Vimeo.
Vermont inventor uses neighbors to test prototypes
From today’s Burlington Free Press…
Doug Hartwell, founder of Bitybean, developed an UltraCompact Baby Carrier, a business that he has launched…
“… when we got closer to our final prototypes, I actually put an ad on Front Porch Forum saying: ‘Looking for Moms with Babies.’ Whenever we changed something in the prototypes or materials, I’d call them up and ask them to meet somewhere where they could try it on and tell us what they thought. One of those moms became the model for our first promotional material…”
“Bitybean was named one of the top 10 innovative products in the whole industry. That was huge break for us as it came just as we launched the business.”
More and more Vermont small businesses are using FPF to find customers, make hires, and complete research such as Doug. In a recent survey, 58% of the respondents shared that FPF helps local companies gain information valuable to their business.
Sunderland Selectboard takes action to fill vacant Town positions
Reported in the Manchester Journal yesterday…
In other business, [the chairman of the Sunderland Selectboard] said there has been discussion lately on Front Porch Forum, the social media site… about town government and… how to get more people involved in local government. He said Sunderland has been having trouble filling open positions, some of which include compensation…
“These positions are open routinely. The lister hasn’t been filled for years,” he said. “We just can’t get people to come in. The lister is a paid position. The auditor is a paid position; it’s 20 bucks an hour … it actually pays something. No one wants to do it.” Hyde said if these positions stay open, contractors would have to be hired…
The board decided to post meeting agendas to Front Porch Forum, to help disseminate the information.
Wise decision by town leadership! A new survey recently found that FPF subscribers are twice as likely to be “very informed” about local government services than those not using FPF. And the number of people who attend municipal meetings at least once a month increases 38% when joining FPF.
Baby spider plants and meeting neighbors in Morrisville
Yvette shared on the Morrisville FPF today…
I posted those baby spider plants on our Front Porch Forum yesterday and today? I got 7 “hits” with folks who were wanting to adopt them.They came and got them and carefully put them into their vehicles (one girl was on a bike) and took them home. Baby plants finding homes via the forum? You should be proud, FPF, for coming up with such a great plan for an online community bulletin board. Great service. Huge fan. Huge.
Dachshund keeping up with the big dogs
Jim posted the note below recently on his neighborhood Front Porch Forum…
Seeking “Little Red Wagon” or Similar
We’ve tried the thrift shops and not much time to go garage-saling. We’re looking for an inexpensive small child’s wagon. (It’s not for a child…it’s for a middle-aged Dachshund who likes to go for long walks with his young Great Dane brother & Goldendoodle buddy, but can’t make the return trip without going flop-bottom).
Followed today by…
Elvin the Dachshund is FPF’s Newest Fan
You may see him around in his “little red wagon,” kindly donated by a neighborhood family in response to my post. Now he can keep up with the big dogs.
EveryBlock back at it with Comcast at the wheel
From the Washington Post today…
The cable giant Comcast is reviving the once-future of local online news, announcing on its corporate blog that it has expanded its relaunch of the news and social site EveryBlock to include its home city of Philadelphia, at the same time the company is digging into its potential nation-wide merger with Time Warner Cable.
“EveryBlock,” writes Comcast’s director of local media development Paul Wright, “is a personalized news feed that allows users to stay connected with neighbors, interact and share what’s happening on their block, and discover great content and information from around their area. The hyper-local site aggregates news, reviews, events, local blogs and other web content, civic data (like crime reports and 311 requests), as well as user-generated questions and comments, and packages it into a personalized feed for users.”
While the relaunch of EveryBlock Philly is new, Comcast revived the Chicago edition of the site in late January…
Friend of Front Porch Forum, Adrian Holovaty founded EveryBlock in 2007, and received Knight Foundation funding (as FPF did a couple years later). From the Post article…
Holovaty, in an e-mail, describes himself both pleased and doubtful. “I’ve enjoyed having EveryBlock back because it helps me know what’s happening in my neighborhood,” he says. “But I’m very skeptical about Comcast’s ability to maintain the site well. They’ve given a lot of lip service to putting resources into it, but behind the scenes they aren’t doing much moderation, resulting in off-topic discussions on the site. Plus, more broadly, they don’t have a vision for it.”
Before Adrian left EveryBlock, their Chicago site enjoyed great traction and engagement. It’s not clear if they can get that back… especially across many different metro areas.
About Blog
Ghost of Midnight is an online journal about fostering community within neighborhoods, with a special focus on Front Porch Forum (FPF). My wife, Valerie, and I founded FPF in 2006... read more
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