As we embark upon yet another trip around old Sol, I'm casting a quick look over my shoulder at the recent past and trying to imagine goals for the Woodland Heights Civic Association's future.
With much effort by many people, we did (I think) a good job with Lights in the Heights 2024. Everyone on the committees involved worked very hard. We worked to spread the effort amongst a larger group than usual. That meant there were some new people involved. I'd like to recognize those who are new or taking on new tasks.
Relatively late in the year, Alyssa Holub took over handling LITH/WHCA merchandise. While the transition was a little uneven, we did sell out of cloisonné ornaments, and almost everything was delivered before the holidays. (True story: I can recall going to Jan Greer's house to pick up our ornament late in January one year!)
In addition to the committees, the WHCA board was more directly involved than in recent years. I would especially like to thank Stephanie Frey for taking on the challenge of coordinating bands and porches. Stephanie truly stepped up to fill a notable hole and did an excellent job. In so doing, she documented the process so we have a good grasp of the task in the future.
Finally, a new committee was created to seek out new sponsors for the event. This resulted in sponsorship by "The White Oak Entertainment District," which is the name we gave to a collection of bars and restaurants along White Oak near Studewood. They became our partners, offering the LITH crowd somewhere to go when the event wound down at 9 p.m.
That effort came together quite late in the planning process. Next year, with this new partnership already established, we’re hopeful that it will be even more fruitful.
While the final numbers are not yet tallied, it looks like Lights in the Heights may be close to break-even this year. If so, that reverses a COVID-era trend that was simply unsustainable.
Looking ahead, we can see a busy time. There are many new issues before us, some pressing, others still off on the horizon. There are definitely changes coming to the Constable Patrol Program. Those will be announced at our next public meeting on Tuesday, February 11th.
There are several improvements to infrastructure planned for the coming year. Some of these were detailed in the last printed newsletter.
It won’t be long before we need to elect a new members to the WHCA Board. By design, half of the board is elected each year. This presents an opportunity for those who have an interest in what goes on in the neighborhood to take an active role in directing those efforts.
There are also larger structural matters in play. The WHCA board is working on a revision of our bylaws to clarify and adjust some areas which may be outdated from when the bylaws were last addressed. Further, we may have an opportunity to restructure in a way that will change our tax status. That has the potential to make fund raising considerably easier.
Our neighbors to the west, the Houston Heights Association, are reportedly working on the creation of a new “Greater Heights Management District.” This has the potential to impact all the neighborhoods in Super Neighborhood 15, including Woodland Heights. We don’t know much about it as yet, but we’ll surely being tracking their progress very closely.
There’s just so much potential that remains untapped. There’s much to be done. Won’t you come join us? It’s going to be fun.