January
Happy New Year!

With the New Year, comes an opportunity to start fresh and with a clean slate! Begin this year by setting a New Year's resolution and sticking to it! Maybe you want to participate more in the community. Your Neighborhood Website can help you do just that! It offers many valuable resources for you to connect with other residents in the neighborhood and stay informed with what's happening in the area!

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Welcome to Your
Neighborhood Website! This website is interactive and completely FREE so get involved & make it great.

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11/11/11 Post: Thank you all who came out to GAIN nighton the 5th. We had great food, a balloon artist and visits fromlocal police. Each year, the police department organizes this event, so lookfor information next October/November. Thank you to those who helped plan andrun the event: Joe and Carol Meeker; Aimee Rosa; Rhonda Lindsey; Manuel and AmyRodriguez. Each year, we need volunteers to make this happen, so if you areinterested, contact Danielle Martinez. Check out the pictures from this eventin the “Neighborhood Pictures” tab. 10/12/11 Post: Join Your Neighbors at Sunset Palms Park Saturday, November 5th ● 5 to 7 p.m. G.A.I.N. (Getting Arizona Involved in Neighborhoods) What: GAIN is a city event geared to get neighbors together and involved in their neighborhoods. When: Saturday, November 5th Time: 5 to 7 p.m. Where: Sunset Palms Park (55th Avenue and Sweetwater) - at the Ramada between the two playgrounds. What to expect: BBQ Hot dogs/Burgers, Drinks and Fun! What to bring: This year we will be providing the main dish, but we ask you to bring something to share: If your last name begins with A – M: Please plan to bring a side dish. If your last name begins with N – Z: Please plan to bring a dessert. Please remember the purpose of this evening is to get to know each other, build community and prevent crime in our neighborhood. We will have information available about other city programs, disaster preparedness, and how to start a block watch. **Also present will be information on the City of Glendale's Adopt a Park program. Every few months, we gather at the park for clean-up, inspection of equipment, graffitti removal, etc. We provide a list of items to Parks and Recreation that need attention. This is a great way to keep our park beautiful and safe for all to enjoy. To volunteer, just give your name and email address to Danielle Martinez and she will contact you the next time around. Thank you! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8/29/11 Post: This year’s G.A.I.N. night (Getting Arizona Involved in Neighborhoods) is set for Saturday, November 5th. This will be our 5th year participating!!! It is a great way to come together as a community to meet each other, eat and play at our neighborhood park at 55th Ave and Sweetwater. Last year, we gathered a group of 10 volunteers to help organize the event. In one short meeting (with snacks), we planned the details of the event from what time to have it to what food to serve. This event can’t happen without YOU. This year we will have $250 to spend on food and supplies, so your opinion matters. Please contact me if you are interested in coming to one meeting on October 5th, as part of the “planning committee”. We will decide on these duties: • Soliciting donations for food/drinks (for whatever the $250 doesn’t cover) • Making event signage – all supplies are provided • Set Up • Cooking (most likely barbequing) • Clean Up If you can’t commit to volunteering, plan on coming on November 5th for the event. We look forward to hearing from you! Thank you, Danielle Martinez

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Neighborhood Watch Participant,

Information has been received from our Crime Analyst that vehicles are being stolen as they are being warmed up in the driveway. Most of these thefts have happened north of Union Hills but this does not mean that these thefts are not or will not occur in other parts of the city.

Please do not leave your keys in your vehicle with the engines running unless you are in the vehicle. This is a sure invitation to a criminal to take this vehicle. Please remain in your vehicle if it is running or begin driving as soon as you start your vehicle. Not only is it unsafe to leave an unoccupied vehicle running, it is bad for both the environment and your wallet.

The following article talks about the need to warm your car up before driving. This article can be found here

Do you need to warm up your car?
DriverSense - Kevin Fleming

It is that time of year when a vast majority of us living in Canada and the United States are forced to endure a morning chill inside and outside of our autos. Depending on where you live and to our chagrin (if you do not store your auto indoors), most mornings are spent scraping off frost and/or snow from the previous night’s chill or storm from the windshield. For others who wish to bypass the vast majority of the scraping process, there is nothing too difficult about starting up the car, turning on the defroster and heading inside for a few minutes. However, is this really economical or good for your vehicle? Let’s explore the nuances involved in what would appear to be a simple process.

Should I Let My Engine Warm Up?

No matter the time of year and depending on how new or old your vehicle is, you may notice that after starting up your engine, it may “rev up” a few thousand RPMs for around 15 to 30 seconds. On newer autos, this is simply the act of the engine control unit (ECU) to ready your vehicle for operation. Put simply, this minor revving up allows the engine oil to lubricate the vital parts of the engine before it endures the harshness of everyday driving. On older vehicles, especially those with carbureted engines, this process may take a bit longer, usually between one or two minutes. For a diesel applications, it is best to consult your owner’s manual for more precise information.

You must be wondering why I brought up how a motor warms up. To make a long story short, the warm up process of your engine is more than sufficient and safe for your engine, even in the winter time. That is, if you are an individual that starts up your car on a cold winter morning and lets it sit for more ten minutes, there is really no reason to if you are concerned about your motor. A motor is not as sensitive to cold as the human body is. If you warm your vehicle up just for personal comfort for when you get in, you are most definitely wasting precious gasoline.

How Much Fuel Is Wasted At Idle?

There are many variables involved in calculating how much fuel your vehicle wastes at idle. However, for simplicity’s sake, if you allow a V8 engine and a V6 engine to sit at idle for equal amounts of time, the V8 is going to undoubtedly waste more gas while idling. It is estimated that on average, through all classes of automobiles, 17.2 per cent of fuel (on a full tank) is wasted while a car idles. Keep in mind that this statistic is for everyday driving (i.e. stop lights, stop signs and traffic jams). In the winter though, this statistic rises, especially for those who warm their cars up for longer than the engine requires.

Sacrifice Will Save You Money

With all of this said, what can you do if you want to save money on gas? As mentioned, depending on the age of your vehicle, you are only going to need one or two minutes at most before your engine is warm enough to safely operate. Now, I am firmly aware that scraping off your windshield in subzero temperatures in the early morning hours isn’t exactly a picnic, but in these times of economic turmoil, when every cent counts, adjusting a few simple morning winter habits may save you a bit of money.

If you want to save some money (and the environment, for that matter), try scraping off your windshield or removing the previous night’s snow before firing up your engine. It is understandable if you are still unable to see properly and need to let your engine heat up enough to allow your defroster to clear the windshield. As far as things go after clearing your auto of visual impediments, I recommend investing in a warm pair of comfortable gloves to get you along until your car has warmed up to a comfortable cabin temperature. This is especially important for those who have a manual transmission with a metal shift knob or even a steering wheel that retains an uncomfortable amount of cold.

You may suffer a bit more, but if you follow these tips, you may shock yourself at how much longer a tank of gas will last for you throughout winter.

Chuck Eberspacher
Crime Prevention Specialist
Glendale Police Department

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Thank you,
Your Neighborhood Leader...Danielle Martinez