By Cliff Lewis
NewsLanc recently interviewed Mark Herr, a resident of Poplar St in Lancaster City who is working to coordinate his South West city neighborhood into a unified association called the Cabbage Hill Neighbors. The section of Lancaster City dubbed “Cabbage Hill” is roughly bordered by Manor St on the West, W King on the North, and Water St on the East. The area was originally populated in the late 1800s by German immigrants working at new factories in the Western part of the city.
After living in the neighborhood for 13 years, Herr became concerned by an usually rapid increase in litter and crime. So this year, after studying the work done by other neighborhood groups in Lancaster and elsewhere, Herr decided that an organized neighborhood coalition was precisely what was needed to deal with the problems facing his part of town, which Herr affectionately calls “the Hill:“
“This Spring I started putting those [promotional] cards everywhere, walking around the area, talking to people, trying to find out what it is that they want to change—and, of course, it’s crime, drugs, and property beautification.”
For Herr, a key challenge in this phase of the effort is to grab the attention and commitment of neighborhood residents: “We seem to have a lot of positive interest, but you’ve got to keep at them, or people will just sit back and go into their old routine. So you have to keep them interested.”
The committee organizing the Cabbage Hill Neighbors has already begun to meet, and in the coming months the group plans to begin a strong campaign for neighborhood awareness: “This is a good time of year because people are out.” Herr is hoping, “optimistically,” that the Cabbage Hill Neighbors can hold their first official meeting within a month’s time.
As the group gets off the ground this summer, Herr plans to connect the neighbors with phone chains and contact lists, and to use this network to spread information about important City ordinances or opportunities. Other initiatives that the committee has considered include
• A Spring litter cleanup
• A Summer “street splash,” where the City can close a neighborhood block and open up fire hydrant fountain for kids
• A community event hosted by all of the neighborhood churches
• A new public basketball court
• Curb and window beautification initiatives
Finally, with the help a bilingual committee member, all Cabbage Hill Neighbors promotion and activity will be accessible to both Enligh- and Spanish-speaking residents: “I don’t want anybody to feel left out. I want it to work for everybody….That’s what this is all about.”
For more information about the Cabbage Hill Neighbors, click here.
