Category Archives: Neighborhood

One of ten neighbors respond to request posted on FPF

Posted on Sunday, September 21, 2008 by • No comments yet

I don’t have much data about the multiplier effect of Front Porch Forum, that is, how much off-forum activity does an FPF posting stir up?  So I was interested to read the following from Mike in Burlington’s South End.  His small neighborhood of 120 households has about 70 of those subscribing to their FPF neighborhood forum.  And in response to his request for a good mechanic?  Nearly one of ten responded with a personal recommendation!  That’s typical from what we hear.

Hi neighbors, I received a lot of responses regarding mechanics last week, and also had a request from Sandra to share what I learned.  Here’s what folks had to say:

Katharine says: “we went to the other Kaigles and have had good luck, plus they sell fine xmas trees in nov.  they seemed to honor Christian’s work and were sort of in a position to help the customers that were formerly from RKaigles.”

Ryan says: “I’ve used the guy down at the Rotary for several small jobs….brakes, suspension…things of that nature.  There not set up to do alignments or machine work so you may need to find another place for those items.  What I do like about him is how he goes over the car with you to show you the problem and his hourly rates are pretty low, 45/hr last time I checked.”

Stephanie says: “I highly recommend bringing your cars to SVS on Batchelder St, just off Home Ave.  Darren is the main guy there and he is fantastic.  As a fairly naive, female car-owner it was important to me to find a straight-forward, no-nonsense mechanic.  SVS is the real deal.  I have had a few instances where the dealer has told me it would be over $1200 in work and Darren has taken care of it for $400.  And it’s a no-frills kind of establishment.  He’s a bit gruff, but I take comfort that I’m not paying for a socialite, I’m paying for quality work.”

Tom says: “I have been pleased with the work of Double G Auto on lower Birchcliff Pkwy. They used to run the Rotary Gulf, until 2-3 years ago. I have been pleased with their reasonable, quick and well done work on our 13 and 9 year old foreign cars. Hope you find this useful.”

Patricia says: “‘double G auto’ on birchcliff pkwy (behind champlain chocolates) is where i go and would highly recommend them.”

Mary says: “I use Double G Auto (Gary Sylvester) at 43 Birchcliff Pkwy (which is real close).  He used to be Rotary Gulf but wanted to do auto repair without pumping gas.”

PBS offers Examples of New Media aiding Local Communities

Posted on Friday, September 19, 2008 by • No comments yet

Mark Glaser, New Media Expert for PBS, offers examples of the internet serving local communities…

That’s heady company for FPF… two nationally known Knight Foundation grant recipients.  Everyblock and Spot.Us are both exciting projects.  See Mark’s comments for yourself…

Information + Communication + Civic Engagement = ??

Posted on Thursday, September 18, 2008 by • No comments yet

Keith Harris in the United Kingdom writes today that “What’s missing is communication, not information” on his blog Neighbourhoods.  Some of his points…

This is very definitely work in progress but maybe the argument is something like this:

  • for various reasons there is a crisis of local social connections which causes evident damage
  • examples of local communication (post-its on windscreens, notes on lamp-posts, message graffiti and so on) point to the inadequacies of existing communication channels, especially in contexts of high mobility and the erosion of local life
  • online networks can augment (not replace) other channels of communication and stimulate more interaction (I never understood why this should ever have been in doubt)
  • we need to find out what research has been done and where the gaps are, showcase good practice and clarify the lessons. This will help the system-builders, and then
  • we have to go to to the housing movement and local government with incontestible arguments that this stuff works and should be developed. Might that do it?

This reminds me of some of the conversation that the Knight Foundation has been sparking through its various efforts.  Knight is pushing easily accessible information at the local level as a needed element to sustain our democracy in the United States.  Hear, hear!  But others, including me, have pushed to have civic engagement be part of that mission as well.  And here’s Keith telling us that communication trumps information.

I think we need all three to feed our democracy… an engaged citizenry that can communicate with each other and develop, access and share information.  I’m thrilled that Front Porch Forum is on the cutting edge of all this.

“The possibility of human-sized communication”

Posted on Sunday, September 14, 2008 by • No comments yet

We keep stumbling over pieces about the value of “local” in the digital universe (and vice versa)… right out of Front Porch Forum‘s playbook.  Today it was a couple of journalists…

Mark Potts writes in part…

Anyone who questions that people are interested in talking about their communities hasn’t dug in to the plethora of listservs, Yahoo groups and organization sites that already provide coverage of many local communities.

And I definitely recommend reading Howard Owen’s full post.  Here’s his opening…

Some people think the web makes the world bigger. I say, it makes it smaller.  Some people say the web makes us neighbors with people in Kenya or the Ukraine.  I say it makes us better neighbors with the family next door.

There was a time in United States history when newspapers served as a centralizing force for drawing communities together — and then came  television, and cable, and satellite — all the forces that did nothing to humanize communication, but made mass communication more mass and less personal.

The Internet brings back the possibility of human-sized communication.

At a time when too many glass-eyed Americans turn to network TV for their “Heroes” and get “Lost” in whatever flimflam Hollywood is dishing out this season,  the Web opens up new possibilities for people, local people, people who share a common interest in a common community, to partake in conversation and pursue change with conviction.

FPF nominated for award

Posted on Thursday, September 11, 2008 by • No comments yet

I just learned that all the great activity surging through Front Porch Forum is being recognized by the Rural Telecom Congress as a finalist for its RTC Champion Awards!  The final selection will be decided at the Rural TeleCon 2008 conference at Smugglers’ Notch, VT on October 8, 2008.  It’s a great honor to be included with several wonderful projects on the short list of finalists.  Thank you RTC!

NOTE:  If you plan to attend the RTC, please sit in on my sessions and please vote for Front Porch Forum!  😉

Talk “community building” with FPF: dates and places

Posted on Thursday, September 11, 2008 by • No comments yet

I always learn something valuable, so it’s a pleasure to converse with an audience about Front Porch Forum.  So I’m grateful for the invitations to address these upcoming events.  Please come!

• Connecting with your Essex Neighbors using Front Porch Forum
Brownell Library, Essex Junction Village, Lincoln St
Sept. 15, 2008, 7:00 PM

• Building Community Online: Leveraging the Web 2.0 World for 21st Century Classrooms and Communities
Sept. 26, 2008, 10:15 AM with Dr. Rob Williams
Action Coalition for Media Education
GROWING UP DIGITAL: Kids, Commercialism & New Media Culture
Rock Point School, Burlington, VT

• Sponsor
Intervale Center‘s 20th Anniversary Harvest Barn Dance
Oct. 3, 2008

• Sponsor
UVM’s Center for Rural Studies 30th Anniversary Symposium
Oct. 4, 2008

• Front Porch Forum: Helping Neighbors Connect and Build Community
Oct. 6, 2008, 9:30 AM
• Vermont e-State: National Model for Broadband Community Building
Oct. 7, 2008, 9:30 AM with Lauren-Glenn Davitian and others
Rural TeleCon 2008
Smugglers’ Notch, VT

“Bite Me”… now is that how your mother taught you how to talk?

Posted on Wednesday, September 10, 2008 by • No comments yet

When neighbors start heating up over a topic through Front Porch Forum, our local traditional media often picks up on it and writes a story.  Some issues are of larger public concern, e.g., violence, multi-million-dollar development projects, etc., while others are more modest.  Take today’s story by Suzanne Podhaizer in Seven Days: Right to Bite: New pizzeria offends some sensitive South Enders.  I can attest… it’s been a firey back and forth.

And on the subject of media coverage of FPF, I just looked back at Mike Ives’ well-written 7D piece about neighbors using FPF to combat vandalism in Burlington.  Here’s the traffic rank on the Seven Days website for the past week…

Skunk’s head stuck? Here’s what you do…

Posted on Monday, September 8, 2008 by • 1 comment

I love the stories that people share with their neighbors on Front Porch Forum.  Here’s one just in from an FPF subscriber…

Today, Monday September 8th, 2008, I witnessed an amazing act of heroism. I live on Claire Pointe Road in the New North End of Burlington. This morning I received a signal from my husband who had been walking our dog, when he pointed with a hurried walk I saw a skunk with a yogurt container stuck on its head. So stuck that this skunk could not see where it was going, just walking and bumping into the cement of the walkways that just jammed the container onto its head even more. When I left the condo and drove out of our garage, this skunk had made its way down the driveway. Still bumping the side cement walls and jamming the container even tighter onto its head. I had to stop and turn my car off because the skunk was coming so close to the car. At this time a wonderfully brave woman, a neighbor who’s name I do not know walked down the driveway, we both discussed for a second what to do and in a terrific fearless act she went quietly to the skunk and with amazing heroism (and if she is reading this now she will know what i mean ) and a bit of scary comedy she freed the skunk from it’s smothering , blinding jail. She did not get sprayed and the two of us ran like the wind once it was over. This woman, my neighbor is a hero. What bravery, I have always lived in a city, we do not know from skunks except picture in animal magazines. Brava to this wonderful woman who will forever have the most wonderful and odd story to tell!!!!

Find needle in haystack? No problem…

Posted on Sunday, September 7, 2008 by • No comments yet

Sometimes it’s the little stories that catch my attention on Front Porch Forum.  Like Shelly’s posting on her FPF neighborhood fourm three days ago…

Hello, Neighbors! My preschooler got off the schoolbus today missing a blue CROC shoe. He was sitting in the front seat and the driver thinks he kicked it off and it fell out somewhere in Huntington.

We know all about missing footwear, mittens, etc. in our house.  It’s the proverbial needle in the haystack search, I figured.  Well, Shelly just posted again today…

Thank you Neighbors and Thank you Front Porch Forum!  My son’s croc shoe was found and returned!

Now that’s what I call “local search!”  Let’s see Google do that.  😉

Feel Good Post of the Day

Posted on Saturday, September 6, 2008 by • No comments yet

From Sarah on the FPF ONE East Neighborhood Forum this evening…

To our wonderful neighbors: thank you so much for all of your help in finding our lost cat, Calvin.  It was one of you readers who eventually found him for us (only a block away from our house!), and I am so appreciative to have him back safe and sound after he spent 5 nights on his own.  We received several emails/phone calls from people who had thought they’d seen him, and I have been absolutely blown away by this kindness and thoughtfulness.  When I was trying to decide where to go to graduate school, I knew that Burlington would be a special place, but I had no idea how amazing the people would be.  Thank you, Front Porch Forum. Thank you, sweet neighbors.  All the very best, Sarah, Drew, and Calvin

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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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