Have a Fun and Safe Holiday Season and New Year

Dear Baltimoreans,

This is the time of year to cherish our families and loved ones while celebrating the season’s festivities. I hope everyone has a safe, joyous holiday, and here’s to a happy new year for all of Baltimore in 2012!

Click here to see a special holiday greeting!

My “Jack’s Journal” newsletter will return Wednesday, January 11, 2012.

On the Mandatory Furlough day – Friday, December 23, 2011:

• Trash and recycling, both curbside and City containers, WILL BE COLLECTED as regularly scheduled.
• There WILL BE NO BULK TRASH collection scheduled.
• Citizen drop off centers WILL BE CLOSED (all yards including Quarantine Road Landfill, the Northwest Transfer Station and the Eastern, Western and Northwestern Sanitation Yards).
• All City buildings WILL BE CLOSED with the exception of the Police Headquarters complex. Citizens will be unable to pay City bills or obtain permits at City offices. Some bills can be paid online; please visit www.baltimorecity.gov.
• Parking meters WILL BE IN EFFECT.

On the Christmas Day holiday – Monday, December 26, 2011:

• Trash and recycling, both curbside and City containers WILL NOT BE COLLECTED.
• There WILL BE NO BULK TRASH collection scheduled.
• Citizen drop off centers WILL BE CLOSED (all yards including Quarantine Road Landfill, the Northwest Transfer Station and the Eastern, Western and Northwestern Sanitation Yards).
• All City buildings WILL BE CLOSED.
• Parking meters WILL be in effect. NOTE: Parking meters WILL NOT be in effect on Christmas Day, Sunday, December 25.

Bernard C. “Jack” Young
President, Baltimore City Council

Christmas Tree Pickup and Mulching

The Department of Public Works will provide Christmas tree mulching Monday through Saturday during the entire month of January 2012. Mulching services will be offered from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Reedbird Avenue Citizen Drop-off Center (701 Reedbird Avenue).  Residents may bring their own bags or containers if they wish to collect mulch for their own use. Community groups are also encouraged to bring bags or containers and collect free mulch for neighborhood gardens while supplies last.

For residents who cannot bring their trees for mulching, the Bureau of Solid Waste will offer curbside tree collection from Tuesday, January 3, 2012 through Tuesday, January 31, 2012.  Residents should set out trees on their regularly scheduled trash collection day at the same location where their trash is collected.  All tinsel and ornaments must be removed from trees before they are set out for curbside collection or mulching.

For additional information, please call 311.

Information courtesy of the Department of Public Works.

Fire Department Encourages Fire Safety During Holidays

As we enter the holiday season, many people will engage in holiday-related festivities like shopping and sharing tidings of joy. The Baltimore City Fire Department would like to remind people to practice Fire Safety during the holidays.

Each year fires occur during the holiday season and injure approximately 2,600 individuals and cause over $930 million in damage. The Baltimore City Fire Department would like to share basic life-saving steps you can take to ensure a safe holiday season. By following some of the outlined precautionary tips, individuals can greatly reduce their chances of becoming a holiday fire casualty.

Preventing Holiday Tree Fires

• Holiday tree fire hazards - Special fire safety precautions need to be taken when keeping a live tree in the house. A burning tree can rapidly fill a room with fire and deadly gases within minutes.
• Selecting a tree for the holiday - Needles on fresh trees should be green and hard to pull back from the branches, and the needle should not break if the tree has been freshly cut. The trunk should be sticky to the touch. Old trees can be identified by bouncing the tree trunk on the ground. If many needles fall off, the tree has been cut too long, has probably dried out and is a fire hazard.
• Caring for your tree - Do not place your tree close to a heat source, including a fireplace or heat vent. The heat will dry out the tree, causing it to be more easily ignited by heat, flame or sparks. Be careful not to drop or flick cigarette ashes near a tree. Do not put your live tree up too early or leave it up for longer than two weeks. Keep the tree stand filled with water at all times.

Holiday Lights

• Maintain your holiday lights - Inspect holiday lights each year for frayed wires, bare spots, gaps in the insulation, broken or cracked sockets, and excessive kinking or wear before putting them up. Use only lighting listed by an approved testing laboratory.
• Do not overload electrical outlets - Do not link more than three light strands, unless the directions indicate it is safe. Connect strings of lights to an extension cord into the outlet. Make sure to periodically check the wires - they should not be warm to the touch.
• Do not leave holiday lights on unattended.

Holiday Decorations

• Use only non-flammable decorations - All decorations should be non-flammable or flame retardant and placed away from heat vents.
• Never place wrapping paper in the fireplace - It can throw off dangerous sparks and produce a chemical buildup in the home that could cause an explosion.
• Artificial holiday trees - If you are using a metallic or artificial tree, make sure that it is flame retardant.

Candle Care

• Avoid using lit candles - If you do use them, make sure that they are in stable holders and place them where they cannot be easily knocked down. Never leave the house with candles burning.
• Never put lit candles on a tree - Do not go near a holiday tree with an open flame - candles, lighters or matches.

Finally, as in every season, have working smoke alarms installed on every level of your home, test them monthly and keep them clean and equipped with fresh batteries at all times. Know when and how to call for help. And remember to practice your home escape plan.

Here is a snapshot of the many meetings, events, discussions and visits Council President Young engages in on a daily basis as he works to strengthen Baltimore's communities.

Council President Young helps a youngster choose a Christmas gift at the Holiday Gift Marketplace hosted by Diakon Kathryn's Kloset and the Baltimore Ravens on Tuesday, December 13.

Council President Young spends time with seniors at the Curtis Bay Christmas Party on Wednesday, December 14.

Resources for Doing Business with Baltimore City

Click HERE for a list of helpful contacts and information that will help companies and individuals do business with the city. City Council President Bernard C. "Jack" Young has a fond appreciation for the importance of small businesses, how they fuel our economy and how they facilitate jobs and a better quality of life for our residents.

Holiday Festival of Trains
Friday November 25 through Saturday, December 31 from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM (11:00 AM on Sundays)
Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum, 901 W. Pratt Street
Celebrate the holiday season at Baltimore’s largest holiday display of toy and model train layouts. Santa arrives by locomotive to the Roundhouse at 10:30 am on November 25. Weekend train rides and photo opportunities take place with Santa through December 21, and with Frosty the Snowman through December 31. It’s a train load of fun that's become an annual holiday tradition!
For more information, visit www.borail.org.

Winter Solstice Celebration
Thursday, December 22 at 7:00 pm
First Unitarian Church, Charles Street and Franklin Street
This annual celebration includes songs, poetry, drama, a symbolic extinguishing of the old year’s fire and lighting of the new, turning the Wheel of the Year, and giving thanks for blessings. Seasonal sweets will be available for tasting. The event will also include blessing of newborn babes.
For more information, email solstice@firstunitarian.net or call 410-252-6074.

Kwanzaa Family Day
Wednesday, December 28 from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Baltimore Museum of Art, 10 Art Museum Drive
This free celebration of community and family features a special performance by Keur Khaleyi African Dance Company and fascinating stories brought to life by actress Maria Broom. Come and create your own African textiles and hand-held treasures!
For more information, call 443-573-1700 or visit artbma.org.

Reginald F. Lewis Museum Kwanzaa Celebration
Wednesday, December 28 to Friday, December 30 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Reginald F. Lewis Museum, 830 E. Pratt Street
Experience three days of arts, crafts, and family activities, along with a traditional African music and dance concert by professional West African percussion orchestra Farafina Kan on Friday, December 30 at 7:00 p.m. Farafina Kan will officiate a Kwanzaa candle-lighting ceremony and community celebration before the concert.
For details and prices, visit africanamericanculture.org.

Three Kings Celebration
Saturday, January 7, 12:00 PM to 3:00 PM
The Walters Art Museum, 600 N. Charles Street
In partnership with Education Based Latino Outreach, the Walters celebrates the Hispanic tradition of the Day of the Three Kings. Join us for “royal” art activities, performances, a visit from the Three Kings, and a piece of the traditional Rosca de Reyes or Kings’ Cake!
For more information, visit thewalters.org/eventscalendar.

Family-to-Family Mental Illness Course
Saturday, January 28 from 10:00 AM to 12:30 PM
Govans Boundary United Methodist Church, 5210 York Road
Tuesday, February 21 from 7:00 PM to 9:30 PM
Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church, 905 Frederick Road
Wednesday, March 28 from 7:00 PM to 9:30 PM
Kingdom Harvest Christian Center, 12 Gwynns Mill Court
Family to Family is a free 12-week course sponsored by NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) for close relatives of individuals with severe mental illness. The course teaches the clinical treatment of major mental illnesses and the knowledge and skills that family members need to cope more effectively.  Topics include: communication skills, coping techniques, brain biology, medications, advocacy and more and are taught by trained family members. NAMI Metropolitan Baltimore is sponsoring three classes this winter/spring session.  Participants must call to register.
Classes fill quickly, so call today at 410-435-2600.

Office of the City Council President
100 N. Holliday St., Suite 400
Baltimore, MD 21202
410-396-4804 (p) 410-539-0647 (f)
CouncilPresident@baltimorecity.gov
Copyright (C) 2011. All rights reserved.
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