Cypress Area Neighborhood Group

Hi Neighbors,

We were fortunate to have a good turnout for our recent Neighborhood Annual Meeting.  In addition to neighborhood residents, several Methuen leaders also attended, including: City Councilors Jeanne Pappalardo & Jim Hajjar, School Committee member Bob Vogler, Methuen Police Sergeant Gunter & Officer Torrisi, and Methuen Charter Commission Member Joe Pappalardo.

Here are some notes from the Annual Meeting held on 3/24/11…

-Methuen High School Renovation: Bob Vogler, Methuen School Committee member, updated us on the status of the Methuen High School renovation plan.  The Central School will be used for 9th graders for the next 3 years while renovation takes place at the high school.  10th-12th graders will remain at the high school during the renovation process. Construction ought to take 28 months from start to finish.  Current 5th graders will be the first freshman class to attend the renovated high school.

-Neighborhood Safety: Methuen Police Officers’ Sgt. Gunter (978-983-8792, jgunter@ci.methuen.ma.us) & Officer Torrisi reiterated several key points to residents.  These include:

• Call Methuen Police at 978-983-8677 for any suspicious activity.  Save this number in your cell phone right now.  As always, call 911 for emergencies.
• Make yourself less likely to be a victim of crime by informing neighbors when you will be away from your house.  You can also inform the police of when you will be away and request them to make periodic rounds to check on your house.  You can request this by filling out a form at the police station.
• Be watchful of suspicious activity in the neighborhood.
• Do not show all your money in the grocery store at the checkout aisle.  Only take out of your purse/wallet the money that you will need to pay.
• Take regular walks in your neighborhood to demonstrate that this is a safe neighborhood and that there are lots of eyes watching.

-Neighborhood Cleanliness:

• It was suggested that residents bring a little trash bag on their walks around the neighborhood to pick up trash along their route to help keep the neighborhood clean.  This helps to show that ours is a neighborhood that is cared for by its residents.  A clean and cared for neighborhood with residents who take walks in their neighborhood is a crime deterrent.
• Street sweeping by the City is scheduled to take place on May 23^rd.
• The Annual Neighborhood Cleanup Day & Cookout, in conjunction with the City of Methuen, will be held on Sat., May 7th.  Cleanup is from 10:00 am-12:00 pm in Cypress Area, followed by the post cleanup cookout at the Tenney Grammar School from 12:30 pm-2:00 pm

-Getting the word out: A concern was expressed that there are still many neighbors in the area who are unaware of our Neighborhood Group.  Residents are encouraged to take responsibility to inform their neighbors and encourage them to visit our website, http://www.CypressMethuen.org and to sign up for our neighborhood e-News via YahooGroups found under the “Subscribe” tab on our website.

Upcoming Neighborhood Events:  Our annual calendar of our 6 neighborhood events can always be found under the “Calendar” tab on our website.  Here are our next several events.  Please mark your calendars.

• May 7 2011: Annual Neighborhood Cleanup Day & Cookout, in conjunction with the City of Methuen.  Cleanup is from 10:00 am-12:00 pm in Cypress Area, followed by the post cleanup cookout at the Tenney Grammar School from 12:30 pm-2:00 pm

• May 29, 2011 (Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend): Neighborhood Block Party, Caswell Ave.  4pm-7pm, with a brief neighborhood meeting at 5pm.

• August 2, 2011 (1st Tues. of August):   National Night Out Dessert Social, 6-7:30pm

• Oct. 9, 2011 (Sunday of Columbus Day Weekend):   Neighborhood Block Party.  Caswell Ave.