I am sending this message to everyone who signed the Western Run Greenway petition last summer to let you know of two upcoming meetings that may be of interest to you. The first is tomorrow; I apologize for the short notice.

1) This Sunday, Nov. 12 at 4PM there will be a meeting at the Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital to discuss the hospital's proposal to create a "universal playground" that would serve their patients as well as the community at large. Genady Schwartz from City Planning and Bob Imhoff from the Hospital will lead us on a walk of the woods where they propose to put the playground and then we will go inside for a conversation. This plan was discussed at the last MWIA meeting and some neighbors expressed concern about the proposal. As with meetings about the greenway, if you think the playground may be an asset that you would support - or not - it is important to attend this meeting.

2) The Western Run Greenway proposal is coming along. There will be a meeting to discuss it this Thursday, November 16 at 7pm at Cross Country Elementary. The proposed design (including three options) is HERE. Option 3 describes an 8-foot-wide bike path along the Western Run from Pimlico Road to Mt. Washington Village. At our last neighborhood meeting on the Greenway, in August, it appeared that the city had reduced the proposed width below 8 feet, which is the minimum necessary for a bike path, so I was glad to see option 3 on the plan. Note, however, that plans for a wilderness trail appear to be abandoned.

I believe that the strong pro-Greenway sentiment demonstrated at the August meeting was crucial in propelling this plan forward, and I am grateful to everyone who spoke up then. However, the last time a meeeting was held at Cross Country Elementary back in the spring, the majority of attendees (few of whom were from Mt. Washington) expressed strong opposition to any sort of path along the Western Run. Therefore, it is essential that those of us who support the greenway show up on Thursday and express our views.

I apologize for the late notice, but I hope it is not too late for those who are interested in enhancing Mt. Washington's recreational and green space to attend these important meetings.

P.S. If you live in Mt. Washington but are not on the Mt. Washington neighborhood listserv, you are missing out on a great way to stay in touch with area happenings. (In fact, both of these meetings were announced on the listserv weeks ago.) If you would like to join, just reply to this message with the word "subscribe" and I will add you to the listserv - you can always unsubscribe at will.