EASTWOOD NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

Neighborhood News

  • Friday, February 17, 2023 3:03 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    After Months of Calls and Letters From Your Eastwood Neighborhood Association Board

    When the pedestrian bridge linking the playground park to Lake Highlands Drive was closed by the city many months ago, the ENA board learned to repair it would take a reconstruction of the entire bridge and it would need to be made ADA-compliant to satisfy federal laws. Such a task costs lots of money requiring inclusion in a bond election, which wouldn't happen for a few years. 

    That's much too long! Bicyclists, as well as walkers from Old Lake Highlands, seeking the Dixon Branch Greenbelt depend on that bridge, as do children walking to Hexter, St John's, and other schools. The significantly reduced traffic left the playground park's back section without the usual monitoring, enabling the use of the area for nefarious deeds. 

    The ENA board spent many, many hours bringing this issue to parks, public works, and police. We dialogued extensively with city councilperson Paula Blackmon and park board rep Maria Hasbny. We even notified the bicycle transportation department, East Dallas civic groups, and more. 

    Our work paid off! ENA recently received this note from Chris Turner-Noteware, Assistant Director for Dallas Park and Recreation Department: 

    "I wanted to let you know that we have identified both the funding for design and construction for the Dixon Branch Green Belt Pedestrian Bridge. We are currently working on obtaining a scope from the preferred design consultant for the pedestrian bridge and hope to have this within the next month, if not sooner. The design should be able to be change ordered into a current contract which will expedite the execution of the design once the scope and fee are agreed to."

    Your support in the way of membership dues motivates us to work this hard. All funds received go to efforts such as greenbelt improvement, VIP support, postal box and website costs, and other functional needs. But your membership dues let us know our efforts are appreciated and encourage us to do more. 

    Exciting times are ahead for ENA. We have a new playground committee chair, Erik Ramirez, and plans for more neighborhood social events. So come and grow with us by becoming a member or renewing today.

  • Saturday, December 03, 2022 12:12 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    A Helpful Reminder About Garbage, Recycling, and Bulk Collection From Eastwood Neighborhood Association

    Garbage

    Our NEW collection day is Thursday.

    Set-out time: Your roll cart must be placed in the alley or at the curb by 7am the morning of your collection day.

    Set-out requirements: Please place your roll cart facing the point of collection and allow for 3 feet of space on each side of the roll cart for collection equipment to maneuver. Bagged garbage should be contained in the roll cart, there should be no bags on top of the roll cart or on the side of the roll cart. The roll cart should not be blocked by vehicles, objects, or overhanging tree limbs.

    Bulk

    Our collection week remains 2nd Monday. Put out to curb begins the Thursday prior. Materials must be placed at the curb by 7:00 A.M. the Monday of the pickup week. The size limit for bulk set out is 10 cubic yards (imagine 10 washing machines).

    Details and requests for once annual oversize collection at this webpage.

    Brush and bulky items must be placed just behind the curb line in front of your home.

    Do not place on the side of your home, in an alleyway, or on property across from or adjacent to your home.

    Do not place in the street, on the sidewalk, or in any manner that will interfere with vehicular or pedestrian traffic or with solid waste collection service

    Do not place within 5 feet of a roll cart, mailbox, fence or wall, water meter, telephone connection box, parked cars, fire hydrant, utility pole, or traffic sign

    Do not place under low hanging tree limbs or power lines, in an alley, or in front of a vacant lot or business

    Recycling

    NO BAGS IN RECYCLING BIN! Even if they are recyclable plastic bags. Once bagged, it will be collected in regular trash. Even in paper sacks. 

    For more information check out of Sanitation App or City of Dallas recycling webpage.

  • Friday, November 11, 2022 11:30 AM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Gather Nov. 17 with neighbors for a state of the neighborhood meeting. Learn what ENA is working on with traffic, crime, Vinemont Channel, Dixon Branch Greenbelt, and the closed pedestrian bridge. 

    It’s also our annual election of ENA officers. The slate of officers so far is: 

    President: Scooter Smith
    Vice-president: David Cossum
    Secretary: Terri Hebert
    Treasurer: Hadley Hempel

    Elections are open to ENA members. You can renew dues at the meeting or beforehand at our website https://EastwoodDallas.org/

    Our speaker will be Emory Blackburn of City of Dallas Code Enforcement. Come with questions. He’ll be bringing free literature for your perusal. 

    Hope to see you there! 

    Thursday Nov. 17, 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm

    Central Lutheran Church, 1000 Easton Rd between Lake Gardens and Easton  Place

  • Friday, November 11, 2022 11:18 AM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Bundle up, pack your blankets, grab your camp chairs and join us at the park to watch Encanto!

    • Date: Friday, November 18th
    • Time: 6:00 PM
    • Place: Dixon Branch/ Playground Park
  • Sunday, July 03, 2022 3:48 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    We love our neighborhood... and our Independence Day parade and cookout, held on the Saturday closest to July 4th. Neighbors, kids included, dress up in patriotic and summer wear and gather at Playground Park. Then with police and sometimes fire vehicles leading the way, we saunter down Sylvania to Vinemont and on to Creekmere. To conclude, we party at the park with grilled hot dogs, snow cones, and more, plus a water bounce house and splash pad for the kids.


    See ALL the photos of the event here. Videos below.

    These festivities were made possible by your annual voluntary dues to Eastwood Neighborhood Association. Please join or renew your dues here. If you’ve any questions or issues with membership, please contact us.


    Many thanks to our fabulous volunteers

    • Lauren Yates — ENA social chair and organizer extraordinaire
    • Darrell Wood — traffic manager and police liaison
    • Volunteers in Patrol — traffic assistants
    • David Cunningham — grillmaster
    • Karen Cott — prize and munchie obtainer
    • Andie Cossum — temporary tattoos
    • Carolyn Jones — snow cone machine

    Much gratitude to these officers from the Northeast Dallas substation of the Dallas Police Department: Neighborhood Police Officers Senior Corporal Irene Galvan, Officer Ortiz, and Officer Spence. Love their new UTV! 


    See ALL the photos of the event here. Videos below.

     Costume Prize Winners

    Each winner received a fabulous gift bag courtesy of local merchants. Thanks to El Porton Coffee, Nothing Bundt Cakes, and Happy Tails

    Best Costume: 

    • Big Dog — Emmo (Stewart)
    • Little Dog — Mia (Doyle)
    • Kid — Cormac Murphy
    • Kid Cart — Sullivan Yates
    • Adult — Sally Cunningham

    See ALL the photos of the winners here.  

    VIDEOS 


  • Saturday, June 18, 2022 12:49 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Dress in your most patriotic outfit and join us for Eastwood's annual 4th of July Parade and Picnic!

    This year's event will be Saturday, July 2nd. Meet at Playground Park (Lippitt/Sylvania at Sinclair) at 9:00 am to join in the parade. Then be sure to stick around for a neighborhood block party from 10 am to noon, complete with a water slide bounce house, snow cones, face painting, and more. Plus a cookout with hot dogs (regular and tofu) and cold watermelon. 

    Or lend your support by cheering from your porch! The parade departs from Playground Park, goes up Sylvania, then west on Vinemont, and east on Creekmere back to the park. 

    Your dues to Eastwood Neighborhood Association make this and other events possible. Please give generously: https://eastwooddallas.org/

    YOU are needed to pitch in to this community-made event:

    • Be the parade leader! Decorate a vehicle to lead. Provide minions to help wrangle the parade participants.
    • Provide cold bliss on a hot day by operating the snow cone maker. 
    • Make children happy by applying temporary tattoos. (Where are the two moms from last year? Y'all were great!) 
    • Crowd control at the bounce house. 
    • Come early to help set up. Stay afterward to help clean up. 

    Please contact ENA Social Chair Lauren Yates to help: 803.414.6857.



  • Saturday, June 11, 2022 3:30 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    A few years ago, a large chinkapin oak fell in Playground Park (Lippit at Sinclair) in the DIxon Branch Greenbelt. Dallas Park Department policy is to allow most fallen trees to decompose, which provides great shelter for wildlife and wood-boring insects that feed birds. During that process, Eastwood Riparian seeded the area with acorns, pecans, and wildflower seeds, letting the fallen tree provide shelter for the young emerging plants. But an Eastwood resident complained and pushed the park department mightily. The tree was cut up and taken away. All the saplings and plants were leveled in the process. 

    Starting last fall, and working with the park department, Eastwood Riparian began reconstructing our work. A thick layer of mulch was laid down and we waited to see what would emerge. Now it's time to cull what's not desired and encourage what is. Step one this spring was removing  the hedge parsley, giant ragweed, and other undesirables. Amy Martin and Kathleen Trotter took on the task, made urgent by the need to spiff up the park for Eastwood's July 4th parade and picnic. 

    The scene: A little cluttered with saplings in need of thinning and unwanted aggressive plants.  

    Hedge parsley, whose nasty burs get caught in everything. 

    Prickly lettuce is a monster! 

    The carnage: Two large piles of pulled hedge parsley, giant ragweed, and prickly lettuce. You can see them along Lippit. 


    Here are a few things we liberated

    Hog peanut. A volunteer. 

    Inland sea oats. Seeded by Amy with seeds from her and Michael Parkey's yards. 

    Elderflower shrub, grown and planted by Sam Hudson. 

    White avens. A volunteer. 

    Eve's necklace tree — lots of these! Seeded by Amy from ones in the greenbelt. 

    Rosinweed. Stop by and touch the wildly rough leaves. Seeded by Amy with seeds from the entry garden. 

    Young frostweed. Will get as tall as the rosinweed. Seeded by Amy with seeds from the greenbelt. 

    Collateral damage. Amy's pants coated with hedge parsley burrs. 

    Join us at 8 am on Saturday June 18 to finish the task. Michael will direct us on which saplings stay or go. Need some strong folks to dig up the prickly lettuce we were unable to pull. Amy will treat the few poison ivy plants. Still some hedge parsley to pull in the main park area. 
















  • Tuesday, May 17, 2022 2:01 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Carmen Comes to Eastwood + ENA general meeting

    Thursday, May 19, 7:00 PM

    Central Lutheran Church  - 1000 Easton Rd, between Lake Gardens and Easton Place

    Due to the toasty weather forecasted for Thursday evening, our May gathering has been moved from the park to Central Lutheran Church. Join us this Thursday, May 19, for a brief general meeting followed by Carmen, the famous opera by Georges Bizet. 

    Carmen is an intense tale of passion and intrigue set in exotic Spain. This adaptation is the wonderful 2010 Metropolitan Opera production starring Elina Garanca and Roberto Alagna. The video has English subtitles so we follow the plot while listening to French, the "language of love".

    Grab a picnic blanket, pack some snacks and enjoy the "fiery" Carmen in a nice, cool setting!


  • Wednesday, April 06, 2022 5:02 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Grab your basket and join the fun at the Spring Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, April 9, from 11 am to 2 pm at the Dixon Branch Greenbelt Park (Lippitt/ Sylvania at Sinclair). 

    Come for the egg hunt, face-painting and games! Watch the cotton candy spin and enjoy some tasty treats! Come get to know your Eastwood neighbors!

    Sure to be a great time for kids of all ages! Dogs on leashes welcome!

    Brought to you by Eastwood Neighborhood Association — made possible by your dues. Join here!  

  • Saturday, April 02, 2022 7:47 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Eastwood Riparian stewards 10 acres of Dallas Parks and Recreation land in the Dixon Branch Greenbelt, between Peavy and Easton near E. Lake Highlands. Our focus will be along Creekmere between Overglen and Vinemont.

    The Eastwood Forest Stewards group will tackle a belt of woods with great promise and a nice trail. Along a 120-yard stretch, four exceptional areas 10 to 20 yards long have been identified, including a grove of rusty blackhaw virburnum. The group will rehabilitate them one by one, and eventually connect them.

    Project #1: rusty blackhaw virburnum (RBV) grove

    There are nearly two dozen RBVs, from young ones just finger width to older ones 6 inches in diameter with cool alligator bark. They are struggling to survive an Amur honeysuckle infestation.

    The RBVs are keeping company with some big chinkapin and Shumard oaks, several cedar elms, a few American elms, two old bois d’arcs, and one box elder, all from 40 to 80 years old. The understory has Eve’s necklace, cherry laurel, yaupon, and lots of inland sea oats.

    Plans are to yank up the honeysuckle by the roots where we can, and cut and treat where we can’t. Then pocket in some tiny tree sprouts/saplings from local yards and overseed with Virginia wildrye to add some variety to the sea oats.


    Project #2: mother hackberry

    A favorite feature on the woods trail is an immense hackberry with a 14-foot circumference. Seems to be three hackberries merged. It is surrounded by cherry laurel. A songbird paradise.

    It’s had some wind or possibly lightning damage, and some big limbs are on the ground or hanging from the tree. Fears are that if the park department sees the limbs they’ll want to cut the tree down.

    The plan is to drag as many limbs as possible to a meadow inset and cut the rest as best we can. We’ll use the limbs to create an edge about five feet from the meadow tree line that will deflect mowers. Then will plant a bunch of acorn, pecan, and black walnut mast.


    Project 3: native knoll

    So much potential here! Aromatic sumac and stretchberry or elbow bush hold down the front facing the meadow. Just needs some Chinese privet whupping. The backside has a two-foot catalpa. It could all be stunning someday. This knoll is next to the main entry to the woods trial and creek, so it gets a lot of traffic.


    Project #4: pecan alcove

    A pecan with a 10-foot circumference shares its space with a eastern red cedar almost as large. Several large glossy-leaf privet have been removed. Just needs a little clean up, yanking out small Chinese privet and assorted saplings. It has great potential as a bird-nesting area or just a quiet place to sit.

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