Stories and Images of our Neighborhood

A Call for Pictures that Tell the Story of Our Neighborhood

Personally, when we hear the word “neighborhood” we think of Mr. Rogers and the neighborhood he constructed in our memory and in our dreams – the kind of place where people live and work together computably, where they share in the responsibility to guide young kids out of the street and shovel the walk of the elderly woman next door who has taken ill, where neighborliness is common. We think of streets and trees, cozy storefronts, cafes and home.

We think of East Central that has developed in to an urban version of Mr. Rogers neighborhood within walking distance of the best learning, working, shopping, dining and interesting neighbors. East Central, where you never have to leave but can age in place with all you need.

The East Central community is a maze of conflicting and complimentary stories.

We are not a quiet enclave of some upscale neighborhood sheltered behind grand walls.

No. We are vibrant, diverse and alive, busy, hassling and frenetic.

We boast a crowd of do-gooders!

We have people who have lived here for decades and others who will only live here for a few months.

We have a large population of residents – homeowners and renters

and many large and small businesses too;

all nestled together in a neighborhood that is charming.

The gentle slopes of lawns spilling below graceful homes gives way to a long string

of national chain stores,traffic, graffiti, and noise.

The boisterous exuberance of college students juxtaposed against the stately

backdrop of ancient neighborhoods whose houses have been here before us,

before our parents is a testament to our commitment to the future

and our reverence for the past.

We are a contrast in innovation,

development, growth and history and stability.

We know who we are even as we change and adapt to new uses and new problems and new ideas.

Since we live and work in such a robust and dynamic area of the city, the East Central Community Council has decided to launch a new campaign aimed at documenting the stories of our lives in this neighborhood by posting YOUR images of the neighborhood.

 A new section of the website will include a nook for a photo album.

We encourage you to snap a picture of the sunset, a flowering garden, a child walking with his grandmother to the library, the light off the building across the way, the dance of parishioners dressed for church, the wag of a friendly dog, the hint of morning light splayed across the hills.

We hope to collect a rich and spontaneous look at our neighborhood over time and need your help to do it.

We hope these images will reflect the varied experiences we each have with this neighborhood and remind us to find delight, inspiration and gratitude about the wonderful place in which we live and work.

You may submit your image to the website by an email attachment to eastcentralcommunity@gmail.com and depending on the volume of images submitted we will publish as many as we can.

Please be sure to include your name, where the photo was taken in the community and a short caption to explain the meaning of the image.