Chicago Police closed the Wood Street station house at yearend. East Village Association board meeting minutes, Jan. 14, 2013 Submitted by Meghan Quinn Winter Mixer 2013 Tom Tomek will bring the old EVA signs to auction off. Gladys Anselmo stated that most of the party supplies will be donated, but we will need to spend $100-200 of EVA funds. Everyone is encouraged to bring a new neighbor. Gladys Anselmo/Peter Locke will put together a half-sheet takeaway for people to learn more about EVA and what we do. Suzi Wahl will do a story time for the kids, so the adults can mingle. The suggestion was made to invite all of the other neighborhood groups such as Wicker Park Committee, Chicago Grand Neighbors Association, Ukrainian Village Neighborhood Association, Eckhart Park Advisory Council, etc. Neal has already invited many of them. Another fundraising idea would be to get EVA T-shirts made with our logo on them. We should get them made locally if we do this. Next meeting’s speak...

By Beth Sholtis Wicker Park Bucktown Chamber of Commerce/ WPB SSA #33 Join us for a presentation about the first 5 years of the Wicker Park Bucktown Special Service Area #33 on Wednesday, Jan. 30, in the community meeting room at the Bucktown-Wicker Park Library, 1701 N. Milwaukee Ave. Doors open at 6pm and the presentation starts at 6:30pm. There will be an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about WPB committees and how you can be more involved. Refreshments will be provided. Our work is community directed and your input is invaluable. Please follow this link to our survey and let us know what you think about the SSA programs. WPB SSA#33 is a local tax district that funds expanded services on the major commercial streets and supports community programs in Wicker Park Bucktown.

By Gladys Alcazar-Anselmo Neighbors are planning to bring their kids to the East Village Association winter mixer Friday. The party is set for 6 to 8 pm at Banco Popular, 1445 W. Chicago Ave. We will be offering a story-time session for the 6-and-under set. Ticket price is $10 and children of members are welcome and free. Price includes appetizers and drinks. We are asking guest to bring a dessert to share. A silent auction will sell two of the old EVA signs. The funds raised will go into EVA general funds. EVA members and guests can bring a dessert and participate in a bake-off contest. Members who bring a new member to the event will have their names entered into a raffle.

By Ronda Locke Thanks to all the neighbors who came out and to Ald. Proco Joe Moreno's officeand the Cook County Sheriff's Work Alternative Program to do a neighborhood cleanup. They did the 1st Ward sections of Rice, Iowa, Wolcott and Wood streets. Hope to get them back for another clean-up.

East Village Association Jan. 7, 2013, membership meeting minutes, submitted by Meghan Quinn Business Minute Dave Ecton stopped by to introduce himself and talk about the Dominick’s Finer Foods store at 2021 W. Chicago Ave., where he has been manager for 10 months. Ecton made sure to point out that if there is anything you would like the store to stock and don’t see when you’re shopping, feel free to ask. He's in his office at the front of the store most days from 7:30am to 5:30pm, and wants to be very accessible to the community. The store just completed a remodel and brought 1,000 new ethnic items to the shelves. The store is five years old , and recently retrofitted lighting on Lee Street behind the building will help ensure safety and security for customers. Tiles on the exterior façade with artwork by local children are unfortunately no longer there. EVA would like to see the reinstatement of some public art on the façade, and plans to send along pictures of the previou...

By Molly Murray The new beat meeting schedule has been set for the Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy in our combined police district. We will now meet every other month. If the last 2 digits of your beat are even (1212) then you will meet on the even months, odd (1213) the odd months. The East Village beat 1322 has been split into 2 new beats. Wood Street is the new dividing line. If you live on the west side of Wood Street you are now in beat 1212. If you are on the east side of Wood, you are now 1213. North-south boundaries are still Division Street to Chicago Avenue.  Below you will find the exact boundaries of each beat and the time and location of your meetings. I now will be involved only with beat 1213. I will still send out general information/community concerns for the entire district, but meeting reminders only for beat 1213. If you want to be added to or removed from my distribution, please let me know .

By Molly Murray Hello everyone, passing along a community alert issued on burglaries for our area. Please be vigilant and keep your eyes open on any suspicious activity or persons in the area. If you see something suspicious please call 911 with as much detail as possible.  Thank you!

Buy tickets online for the annual East Village Association winter mixer Friday, Jan. 25. The party is set for 6 to 8 pm at Banco Popular, 1445 W. Chicago Ave. A $10 cover charge covers appetizers and drinks. EVA members and guests will be asked to bring a dessert and can participate in a bake-off contest. Members who bring a new member to the event will have their names entered into a raffle.

East Village Association board meeting minutes, Dec. 10, 2012, submitted by Meghan Quinn Holiday party Gladys Alcazar-Anselmo and Peter Locke have been hard at work securing a location and details for the event. The party will be held at 6pm Jan. 25 at Banco Popular, 1445 W Chicago Ave. The aim is to keep it simple, with drinks and appetizers. Alcazar-Anselmo is working on securing raffle prizes to encourage people to bring new neighbors by entering them in a raffle if they do. The idea was brought up to auction off the old East Village signs. E-mail Locke or Alcazar-Anselmo with any ideas, more donations or raffle prizes, etc. There will be a $10 entrance fee that will cover expenses. Next meeting’s speakers Business minute: A representative from Pure Vibes Fitness at 834 N. Ashland Ave. will give a presentation. There may also be someone from Village Yoga, which is located above Pure Vibes in the same building.

Bernard Williams artwork in a Wicker Park-Bucktown SSA art project at 2001 W. Division St. Monday's East Village Association membership meeting will feature representatives from the business groups that produce diverse Division Street programs from farmers' markets to bike racks and street art . The Wicker Park-Bucktown Chamber of Commerce and WPB Special Service Area leaders work with East Village Association on such issues as Polish Triangle development and attend EVA meetings annually . Lately the chamber has encouraged eco-friendly practices with a WPB Green designation: Businesses pledge to take 10 new environmental initiatives, from cutting down on printer paper to making renovations with recycled materials. Jewelers, caterers, gift shops and other merchants can join Wed Local , a directory and exposition for bridal services. The EVA meeting starts at 7pm in the Happy Village, 1059 N. Wolcott. Dominick's Finer Foods manager Dave Ecton is also on the agenda. Ann...

By Elizabeth Kuhn The Met West Community Garden is in need of good mulch and your help is needed. If you're tossing out a tree this weekend, consider recycling it locally. Community garden volunteers will convert your tree into mulch for the 2013 planting season. Drop-off location is the alley at 1721 W. Ohio. The Chicago Grand Neighbors Association, Ald. Proco Joe Moreno and the Met West Community Garden will conduct the tree recycling drive from 10am to 4pm Jan. 5 & 6. Streets & Sanitation crews will mulch trees at 23 locations through Jan. 18.

By Anne Miskewitch , West Town Branch Manager, Chicago Public Library Child care providers and other new business owners will learn the about business taxes, small business organizations and tax returns in a Money Smart workshop at 6pm Jan. 10 at the West Town branch library, 1625 W. Chicago Ave. The Internal Revenue Service will give tips on required recordkeeping. Other January programs include a Jan. 26 children's concert from award-winning musician and author Jim Gill, and a Jan. 31 adult book-group discussion of The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown. Read more »