Midland News
Midland Washington Community Website: www.MidlandNews.org

It's YOUR CommUnity and what you think MATTERS!

Monthly Meeting Time...

The Midland Resident's Association meetings have resumed. Meetings are always held on the first Tuesday of every month, 7:00 - 9:00 PM at the Midland Community Center located at 1614 - 99th St E. Please add the following dates to your calendars.

COMING IN MAY 2006

TBA - Midland Revitilization Planning Meeting with Councilmember Barbara Gelman at the Pierce County Library Administraion Building. If interested in more information, please email Stacy Emerson via stacy.emerson@southsoundpromotions.com.

TBA - Midland Business Association Meeting with Rob Allen, Economic Development Specialist with the Pierce County Department of Community Services. If interested in more information, please email Stacy Emerson via stacy.emerson@southsoundpromotions.com.

TUES. MAY 2, 2006 - 7:00-9:00PM - Midland Resident's Association Meeting - Southeast Tacoma Community Center, 1614 - 99th Street East (just west of the railroad tracks on 99th St E.

MIDLAND PROPERTY OWNERS ALERT- 1,900 property owners in Midland have received a unique letter from Pierce County Planning & Land Services offering to examine our properties to determine if wetlands are present. How will this affect our property owners? Click for more information

MIDLAND COMMUNITY RECOGNITION - 20 Midland signs have recently been erected at the main roads and streets coming in to Midland. This was made possible by project planning during the writing of the Community Plan, where as a community we asked for Midland signage to be provided by the County. Also, while on the subject of signage, did you notice the refreshed sign now sitting in front of Skeeter's/Circle K? Hats off to Cindy & Mike (MRA board members) for tackling that feat themselves, and a huge thanks to Circle K for allowing the sign to be there. Last note on signage for now…. We have approximately 50 small Midland Matters signs which we would like to have placed throughout Midland. We’re hoping that some of our community members will be willing to post a sign in a highly visible place on their property. Grassroots marketing really works – the amount of email that’s come in since the signs first started going up in remarkable!

MIDLAND PROPERTY ON THE HISTORIC REGISTER – I myself recently discovered that my building, the old Frank’s Shoe Repair building, is on the Historic Register. I haven’t explored what this means, or how it got on the list, but I have plans to in the near future. My building was built in 1916 so I’ve been told, and though I don’t yet know the criteria for inclusion on the list, I’d venture to guess that the majority of Midland properties which qualify, aren’t on the list. I’ll know more by tomorrow night’s meeting and will share what I’ve learned.

Stay tuned to Midland News on the web - Cindy Beckett, current MRA treasurer and once president, vice president, etc., has been taking webwork lessons from me and will soon be skilled enough to take over the website - thank goodness. Cindy, a remarkable woman who has inspired me tremendously, is so knowledgeable of our environmental, water and wildlife & habitat issues and truly is the only person who can make head or tails of the volumes of information on the subject of Midland and its issues. Fairly soon we'll find enough fresh information on the site to make our heads spin.

It's always a little exciting to hear from other Midland Community members - especially those who just learned about the Midland Resident's Association, so please tell everyone you know the MRA. We hope to start seeing more community members attending the meetings – and if the increase in emails recently is any indication, we just might! Though we're only a small but growing troop of individuals who gather month after month to discuss things of importance to Midland and its residents - we are mighty. There's a lot to be said for "knowledge is power" and "strength in numbers" and we want to gain more of both. Bring your ideas and questions and neighbors and their ideas and questions and lets MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

Stacy Emerson, proud Midland Resident & MRA webmaster
www.midlandnews.org

253-536-8798