Winter is here. Time to help out!

On By BNA AdminIn Citizens' Trash Brigade

The City of Portland asked us to help share information about a great program run by Age Friendly Portland. They are looking for volunteers who can shovel snow for an elderly neighbor this winter, and they’re also seeking Neighborhood Coordinators—particularly from the Rosemont and Deering Center neighborhoods—to help match Portland homeowners with volunteers.

If you’d like to volunteer or want more details, you can contact Linda Weare at 207-541-6620 or email agefriendlycommunity@portlandmaine.gov.

If you are a Portland homeowner age 65+ in need of snow removal assistance, please call 207-541-6620.

ALSO: CTB Block Walk Dec 19th

The BNA Citizens’ Trash Brigade continues monthly block walks, sun or snow! We pick a block to pick up trash along our sidewalks, and if there’s snow, we shovel! Every Baysider knows that although property owners are responsible for their sidewalks, when it snows there are always some stretches of sidewalk that don’t get shoveled, whether by ignorance, neglect or special needs. We know clear sidewalks are only good if the paths connect, so we’re committed to helping bridge the gaps, and we could use your help too. Meet 3pm Friday December 19th at 28 Portland Street.

If you’d like to hear more about the BNA’s Citizen Trash Brigade, email ctb@baysideportland.org

Paid Opportunity to Participate in a Pedestrian Safety Focus Group

On By BNA AdminIn Events Team, Safe Streets

Pedestrian injuries and fatalities are rising nationwide — especially in urban communities where many people walk out of necessity.  We need your input to change that, and you could get $50 for your time.

As part of their “Community Voices” approach, The Maine Bureau of Highway Safety is partnering with The Bayside Neighborhood Association to host a community discussion to learn from residents about the risks they see, the behaviors they witness, and the educational solutions they believe will work. These insights will directly inform the campaign’s content and outreach. Two focus groups are scheduled for Monday December 15th and Tuesday December 16th. Both groups will meet at 6pm in the Steve Hirshon Community Room at Unity Village, 24 Stone Street Portland. Please indicate your availability for either date below.

Participants are compensated with a $50 stipend. Applications to attend the focus group are being accepted by the BNA through December 12th. If interested please click here:  https://forms.gle/V5nNSyVMYykP2eHk9 

for more information email safestreets@baysideportland.org 

BNA Public Art Team Project Success

On By BNA AdminIn Arts & Music

Thanks to Betsy Boyd of Portland Downtown, Lily Phillips Carter of Ladybird Glassery, and Kincaid Pearson of 82Parris Gallery, Bayside Portland is a little more colorful now that the BNA Public Art Team was able to bring a PDD-funded utlility box painting program to our neighborhood. Check it out on the corner of Cumberland Ave and Preble Street.

The “Painting Outside the Box Portland Project” is a public art initiative by Portland Downtown that enlists local artists to paint utility boxes to beautify the city. The project transforms ordinary utility boxes into colorful, original works of art. Selected artists receive a stipend for their work.

The contract for the utility box on Cumberland Ave in Bayside was awarded to Lily Carter, whose design was chosen by BNA Public Art Team Lead Kincaid Pearson over more than a dozen applicants, noting “I thought it was a fitting one because it’s based on a quilt and the Bayside neighborhood feels like the most diverse and similar to a quilted network of residents.”

for more information about the BNA Public Art Team, contact arts@baysideportland.org

Giving Tuesday is Just the Beginning

On By BNA AdminIn Governance

Now is the time to donate to the BNA in 2025
December 2nd is Giving Tuesday — the season of giving begins in your neighborhood. Big news — we have a matching gift donor this year, which means your donation to the BNA will be matched by an anonymous benefactor up to $2500.00 even after Giving Tuesday. The Bayside Neighborhood Association is doing more programming than ever, and needs your help more than ever. Please help us continue to help each other. Go to https://givebutter.com/BNA25 or contact us for more information

Neighborhood Meeting Dec 1st

On By Robert SylvainIn Events Team, Relevant Developments, Safe Streets, Uncategorized

The Harvard Kennedy School of Government is calling all Baysiders to participate in a forum to discuss the impacts of climate change and attendant severe weather events in our community. We want to hear from you, and hope you’ll take time to gather with your neighbors to share our thoughts, concerns, and ideas on how to move forward together.

Please share and post this flyer widely. Here are translated flyers for speakers of other languages:

“Join us for an interactive, in-person community engagement session focused on stormwater, flooding, and climate impacts in Bayside. Over about 90 minutes, residents will work together around a large neighborhood map to identify valued community features, share past experiences with flooding using simple color markers and optional notes, and highlight what kinds of resources or support they have used, or might need, in future events. It’s an opportunity for residents to share their own experiences and contribute to supporting the future of Bayside.”

PHOTOS FROM THE EVENT:

Help Shape Portland’s Emergency Operations Plan

On By BNA AdminIn Events Team, Safe Streets

The City of Portland is updating its Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) to improve how we prepare for, respond to, and recover from emergencies.

Your insight is invaluable. We would like to hear your experiences and ideas to make sure this plan truly reflects the needs of our diverse communities. Your input will help us build a plan that is inclusive, effective, and ready for anything.

You can find all the details on the project page here: https://portlandmaine.gov/emergencyplanning

We’re asking residents to share their ideas and concerns through a survey and an idea board on the website, which are open now through November 30, 2025.

The BNA Safe Streets Team is involved with everything concerning pedestrian and bicycle safety, including but not limited to advocating for improved lighting, signage, and streetscape design, collaborating with Midtown Community Policing on crime prevention and enforcement, safe routes to school, and helping first responders in emergency planning efforts like this. We can do more when we raise our voices together. For more information on how you can help contact safestreets@baysideportland.org

Volunteers mulch trees on Bayside Trail

On By BNA AdminIn Trees & Greens
photo by Avery Yale Kamilla

Portland’s tree steward Cameron Scharff was surprised by the number of volunteers who showed up on Saturday, Nov. 9 to help tuck trees on the Bayside Trail in for the winter. 

“I am incredibly pleased with what was accomplished,” Scharff said. “In less than two hours, we mulched and composted nearly 50 younger trees on the Bayside Trail, with volunteers from Bayside, the West End, the East End, and Libbytown. The addition of this organic material will support tree growth, increase water retention, suppress weeds and improve aesthetics along the trail. This collaborative effort is precisely the kind of community-driven forestry initiative that can make a large difference in the lives of trees, the health of parks and the enjoyment of the community that uses them.”

The 15 volunteers were more than had RSVP’d, and people continued to trickle in as the event was in progress. With a fleet of wheelbarrows, shovels and rakes, and piles of loam and woodchips, the volunteers gathered behind Dunkin’ and started with the recently planted trees and expanded from there. The trees in the section of the trail behind Trader Joe’s had been topdressed and mulched in the spring. 

All the activity on this part of the trail discouraged two individuals from setting up a tent. Four used needles were discovered during the tree mulching event. 

Scharff instructed volunteers to spread the loam in a thin layer, feathering it into the topsoil, and then cover it with a layer of woodchips. Volunteers were careful to leave the root flare at the base of each tree trunk exposed to avoid creating the dreaded mulch volcanoes that can injure trees. 

Scharff’s last day on the job was Nov. 21. He served with the Portland Parks Conservancy and Portland’s Parks and Recreation Department in 2025 as a tree steward courtesy of the Maine Conservation Corps, which is funded through the national AmeriCorps program. One project Scharff worked on this season was cataloguing all of Portland’s street trees. Portland hopes to host another Maine Conservation Corps tree steward next season.

Volunteers Needed for Tomorrow!

On By BNA AdminIn Events Team, Welcome Team

Calling all Baysiders! We just got this call to action and our neighbors need our support. Sign up below if you can help on Thursday, November 20th.

Hearts of Harvest Community Thanksgiving Meal Volunteer Sign Up

The City of Portland’s Office of Economic Opportunity is partnering with Food for All Services, a local, multicultural food pantry, to host a Community Thanksgiving Meal and we’d love the support of volunteers in making the event possible! 

Where: Food For All Services, 72 Parris St, Portland

When: Thursday, November 20th, Lunch: 12-3 pm, Dinner: 5-8 pm

(Volunteer Shifts: 11 am-2 pm, 2-5 pm, 5-9 pm)

What: Volunteer roles will include: serving food, greeting people at the door, sharing resources, connecting with community members, set-up, clean-up etc.
Email Lauren at llindenbaum@portlandmaine.gov with any questions!

November Board Meeting

On By Robert SylvainIn Governance, Uncategorized

The November BNA board meeting was moved to November 11th to make room for election day. Monthly meetings are held online on odd-numbered months, and as always the public is welcome to attend. Email info@baysideportland.org for a link to the zoom meeting. Below is the agenda, team reports, and minutes from the October meeting.

2025_011_04 BNA AgendaDownload
BNA Team Reports 2025_11_04Download
BNA_Minutes_2025-10-7Download