Greater Belhaven Foundation Director's Blog

Please help us continue to build on the work we have done in 2024, by joining one of our 2025 Annual Giving Circles. Donations can be done monthly, quarterly or all at once. Annual Giving support to the Greater Belhaven Foundation provides unrestricted funds to support the full range of programs provided by Greater Belhaven Foundation throughout the year. When you join a GBF Annual Giving Circle, you provide support for community events, maintenance of our infrastructure, improvements in security, beautification enhancements, preservation of our historical elements, and tools to support, attract, and retain new restaurants and businesses in our footprint, and more!

Join one of our GBF Annual Giving Circles today and support our beautiful, vibrant, historic neighborhood!

The work we do is not possible without this support. In 2024, we accomplished so much thanks to our annual giving donors. Thanks to this special group, we have been able to accomplish an incredible amount of work, including:

Belhaven Boo!
Belhaven Boo was a hit! Thank you to all our sponsors and volunteers for making it possible. A special shoutout goes to Belhaven Boo Event Chairs, Stevie Cantrell and Laura Ashely, If you see them- let them know you appreciate them!

Fall Events
Check out photos from all the fun we’ve been having this October in Greater Belhaven! None of these events would be possible without our amazing volunteers and sponsors. A big thank you to Manning McPhillips, Jason Agostinelli, Max David Marsh, Lydia West, Casey Creasey, Christy Ketchum, Rachel Misenar, Dallis Ketchum, Wood Dale, Chris Mixon, Susan Garrard, Andy Hilton, Sarah Tramel and many others for making these events a success!

GBF Fall Cleanup Day
Pumpkins in the Park
Belhaven Hills Classic
Fairy House Hunt

October Yard of the Month
1816 Laurel Street

Circa 1941, Colonial Revival
Owners: Dr. Michael and Kate Pickard

Being a Belhaven Citizen

On November 5th, Belhavenites will have the opportunity to cast their ballot for not only a presidential candidate, but for our representative in the United States Senate and House of Representative, as well as our district’s Supreme Court Justice. Take time before November 5th to research all the candidates!

Share Your Experience with JXN Water

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) are seeking input regarding the City of Jackson’s drinking water system from members of the public. The public input is intended to inform the EPA’s oversight of the drinking water system to ensure that it meets the requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act and provides clean, safe and reliable water to all customers. We encourage residents to share their experience with the improvements made by JXN Water for our neighborhood.

Specifically, the EPA would like to know:

1) What improvements to the drinking water system have you seen since November 2022?

2) What longer-term considerations do you believe EPA should consider regarding the drinking water system? What additional improvements would you like to see?

3) What communication improvements would you like to see implemented to provide you with information regarding the status of the drinking water system? For instance, how do you currently receive information about the drinking water system (such as JXNWater.com or JXN Water social media (Nextdoor, X, Facebook), EPA’s website, local news media, or word of mouth); how do you like to be notified of work occurring in your area and boil water notices; what other information would you like to know and how can that be made available?

We encourage you to answer these questions and email your comments to JacksonMSWater@epa.govby Friday, October 31, 2024.

Security in Greater Belhaven

After learning of reports of shots fired in our neighborhood this month, GBF reached out to city councilwoman, Virgi Lindsay, Jackson, Police Department captain, Wendell Watts, and Capitol Police, Lieutenant Cody Pruitt in an effort to learn more about the situation. After speaking with these individuals and neighbors about the reported incident, we learned that around 9:30 October 23rd there were three calls made to JPD and CPD reporting shots fired. Two of these calls reported the shots were fired at East River Pl. (A street located off of Fortification on the other side of I 55 bordering the Pearl River.) There was one call to Capitol Police reporting the shots were fired at 1015 Quinn St. Both JPD and CPD reported that they investigated both locations and found no evidence of injured parties or shell castings. After the report was made, Capitol Police initiated a concentrated patrol in our neighborhood throughout the evening and made a traffic stop on Quinn Street as well. After speaking with JPD and CPD about the incident Greater Belhaven Foundation also requested a concentrated patrol in our neighborhood for the following evenings. It was suggested by officers that the most helpful best practice when hearing what sounds like gunshots is to immediately call 911 or Capitol Police dispatch 601-359-3125. We had lots of neighbors who heard the shots but only one who made a report. The Greater Belhaven Foundation is currently contracting with Security Support Services, LLC to conduct a security audit of our entire footprint. This includes locating all cameras and where their footage streams to analyzing police reports, traffic data,- pedestrian and vehicular , etc.. Once we receive the findings from this audit, we will share the results and begin working with security professionals to identify the best investments we can make to address the findings. We want all neighbors to weigh in on this so please stay tuned for opportunities to provide your input!

September 2024

Anna Ballard Fair — Sun, 01 Sep 2024 14:00:00 GMT

Belhaven Park Improvements

GBF has recently contracted with Synergy Electric to furnish and install six new Visonaire bollards, mount these new bollards to concrete in existing empty pole light locations and connect to existing wiring and lighting circuitry. This new lightning will bolster security and encourage more resident use of this lovely neighborhood park. GBF also has provided a doggy waste stand and bags for our four legged friends to keep this space clean for all!

Yard of the Month

1004 Euclid Avenue

The “T. B. Scott House” 1939 Colonial Revival

Owned by Ed & Emily Hartman

“We love working in our yard because it lets us cultivate the earth, remembering our creative God who first made a beautiful garden for His children to tend. It gives us great joy to shape our little plot of land and watch it (sometimes) flourish.”

Road Resurfacing

You’ve probably noticed new curbs being installed on Peachtree. The 1% Sales Tax Commission has announced the following Greater Belhaven streets are scheduled for repaving. After curb work has finished, Peachtree will begin resurfacing.

· Peachtree

· Myrtle

· Pinehurst

· Poplar

· Manship

· St. Ann

· St. Mary (from Poplar to Laurel)

· Bellevue

· Moody

· Whitworth

· Quinn

Museum Trail Security

Do you enjoy using the Museum Trail? We want to hear from you! GBF is exploring paying Capitol Police for additional bike patrols on the Museum Trail. Email us at info@greaterbelhaven.com to share your opinion on the days and times you’d like to see a greater security presence on the trail.

Fairy House Hunt

The 2024 GBF Fairy House Hunt was a huge success! We appreciate all the artists, businesses and individuals who created beautiful fairy homes and all those who participated in the search!

The Being Belhaven Art Series is sponsored by the Mississippi Arts Commission and the City of Jackson. Check out photos HERE!

Bright Lights

2024 Bright Lights was a blast! The success of the day would not have been possible without our hard working Bright Lights Committee members- Molly West, Jennifer Welch, Conner Reeves, Emily Pote, Cody McCain, Ahmad Thompson & Lydia West. Are you passionate about the future of Bright Lights? Email us at info@greaterbelhaven.com to share your opinion on the event. Check out photos from the event here.

Keith Haring Fitness Court

This Thursday we celebrated the new Keith Haring Fitness Court with a Ribbon Cutting event with all of our partners and supporters. Check out photos from the event here.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Greater Belhaven Fall Cleanup Day

This spring, We had over 90 volunteers show up to assist with our March Spring Clean up day! We filled two 30 foot dumpsters full of trash and debris and cleaned out miles of overgrown curbs. On October 12, let’s make it happen again for our Greater Belhaven Fall Cleanup Day– Join your neighbors as we get ready for a beautiful fall in Belhaven for a community-wide day of cleaning of streets, public spaces, and yards. We will kick off at Sunflower Oven at 8:30 AM! Sign up here! End the day with neighbors and family relaxing at Pumpkins in the Park at Belhaven Park at 3 pm.

Pumpkins in the Park- October 12th 3PM at Belhaven Park

Join us for a family-friendly, relaxed event at Belhaven Park. Come create your own pumpkin masterpiece and add some festive flair to your Belhaven yard! Thanks to Keifers for the donation of pumpkins!

Belhaven Hills Classic: Saturday, October 19th

Join us for the second annual race benefitting Greater Belhaven Parks & Trails. Choose from an 8K run, 8K walk, Bier Mile, and a children’s 1 mile fun run. Register here!

To sponsor this event, click HERE!

Being Belhaven Annual Meeting & Party

Join us November 19 for our Annual Greater Belhaven Foundation Meeting and Being Belhaven Party! Party tickets are a $100 donation or free when you join an annual donation group.

@ Fairview Inn 5:30-8

August 2024

Anna Ballard Fair — Fri, 30 Aug 2024 11:18:45 GMT

September is almost here! It's the perfect time for a walk around the neighborhood, a dinner on the patio, and the opportunity to be a part of some wonderful events we have coming up!

Fairy House Hunt

Design a fairy house, gnome home, or woodland scene for your home. Sign up here to be added to the map!

September 13 at 4pm: Kickoff party at Belhaven Art Park (1000 Poplar Blvd) with a live DJ playing kids music, bubbles, and the Cornival Popcorn Truck. Then we will parade to the BTC Green to watch a movie. Dress up in your favorite fairytale costume!

September 13-15: The Greater Belhaven Fairy House Hunt. Businesses all over Greater Belhaven, as well the yards of residential homes, will have a fairy house to find. Post a picture on social media and include @GreaterBelhavenFoundation on Facebook and @greaterbelhaven on Instagram with #GreaterBelhavenFairyHunt in the comments to be entered into a drawing for a gift card to a neighborhood business!

Bright Lights

Bright Lights will host it’s 18th annual neighborhood festival on Sunday, September 22. This day-long, free event will showcase local musicians, artists, makers, chefs and Belhaven businesses. For more information and to check out the schedule, visit www.brightlightsbelhaven.com. If you’d like to volunteer, sign up here.

Keith Haring Fitness Court

You are invited to celebrate the grand opening of the state’s first Keith Haring Fitness Court located in the historic Belhaven Heights neighborhood!

The Keith Haring Fitness Court is a fitness court and a one-of-a-kind art installation developed by the National Fitness Campaign in partnership with the Keith Haring Foundation. Jackson was selected by the Keith Haring Foundation as one of the national sites for the court in 2019. Though the project received funding, the installation of the project stalled after the equipment was procured due to the pandemic. The equipment had remained in storage since 2019. This year, the Greater Belhaven Foundation proposed relocating the fitness court to Belhaven Heights Park in order to link it with the Museum Trail and to add it to the park’s assets. Thanks to the Belhaven Heights community and our Ward Seven Council women, Virgi Lindsey, the City of Jackson agreed to relocate the court to the Belhaven Heights Park. The Greater Belhaven Foundation’s Community Improvement District committee provided a site design, facilitated work with groundwork contractors, and coordinated with National Fitness Campaign installers. In July, the Keith Haring Fitness Court was finally installed. We hope you will join us on September 26th to celebrate this new treasure in our city! If you appreciate this investment, and would like to see this project continue to improve, consider a donation to GBF today!

National Night Out

Capitol Police will be hosting National Night Out on October 1st, 2024 from 5-8PM at Veterans Memorial Stadium. Come join Greater Belhaven Foundation at this wonderful event! This year Capitol Police is partnering with multiple law enforcement agencies, including JSU, UMMC, Hind County Sheriff’s Department, FBI, and other resource agencies to host one big event. There will be a kid’s zone, vendors, and food trucks. We hope to see you there!

Greater Belhaven Fall Cleanup Day

Pumpkins in the Park

Pumpkins in the Park- October 12th 3PM at Belhaven Park

Join us for a family-friendly, relaxed event at Belhaven Park. Come create your own pumpkin masterpiece and add some festive flair to your Belhaven yard! If you appreciate this event, and would like to see this kind of work continue , consider a donation to GBF today!

Belhaven Hills Classic

Join us for the second annual race benefitting the Museum Trail, the Belhaven Mountain Bike Trails, and Greater Belhaven Parks & Trails. Choose from an 8K run, 8K walk, Bier Mile, and a children’s 1 mile fun run. Register here!

New Doggie Bag Stands Installed

GBF received requests for additional doggy bag stands and bags throughout the neighborhood to keep our parks and Riverside Drive free of dog droppings. We now have four stands across the neighborhood, located at Belhaven Heights Park, Laurel Street Park, Belhaven Park, and the intersection of Linden and Riverside. GBF will continue to replenish bags as needed.If you appreciate this investment, and would like to see this kind of work continue, consider a donation to GBF today!

Riverside Drive and Fortification Maintenance

You’ve asked, and GBF has delivered! We all love the look of our new Riverside Drive. In order to keep it maintained, GBF has contracted with professional landscapers to service both Riverside and Fortification from I-55 to State Street. Contracted crews will be picking up trash and debris from both sides of the street and in medians. They will mow, weedeat, edge sidewalks and medians, blow out curbs and haul away debris six times a year. If you appreciate this event, and would like to see this kind of work continue, consider a donation to GBF today!

GBF also invested in equipment to rope off medians to prevent destruction from cars parking in them for Veterans Memorial Stadium Football games.

Peachtree Curb Work and Resurfacing

You’ve probably noticed new curbs being installed on Peachtree. The 1% Sales Tax Commission has announced the following Greater Belhaven streets are scheduled for repaving this summer. After curbwork has finished, Peachtree will begin resurfacing.

· Peachtree

· Myrtle

· Pinehurst

· Poplar

· Manship

· St. Ann

· St. Mary (from Poplar to Laurel)

· Bellevue

· Moody

· Whitworth

· Quinn

Mississippi Book Festival

A Literary Lawn Party: Each year, the Mississippi Book Festival unites readers and authors in an exhilarating celebration of books.

The Capitol’s stately rooms and nearby Galloway Church turn into venues for distinguished panelists, the streets in-between transform into a bustling marketplace for booksellers, and the grounds and Capitol Rotunda become a hub of lively exchange. FREE AND OPEN TO ALL, the festival brings the written word to fun, festive life with authors, panel discussions, book signings, family-friendly activities, food trucks, live music, and more!

July 2024

Anna Ballard Fair — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 02:27:02 GMT

The summer heat is still with us, and we have a packed month ahead. From community events to neighborhood projects, there’s plenty happening around here. Whether you’re catching up with neighbors or checking out new improvements, you won’t want to miss what's coming up. Let’s make the most of this month together!

July Yard of the Month

Congratulations to Barry and Angelyn Cannada of Pinehurst Place for being awarded Yard of the Month! They say, "A well maintained yard reflects how one feels about their neighborhood, yard, home, neighbors, and city."

Want to submit a neighbor to win Yard of the Month? Let us know!

Make the Clean Curb Commitment

With long hot days and occasional thunderstorms, this is peak grass-growing season. Sometimes that grass grows over the curb and into the street. Take some time to cut and edge that grass and remove any grass growing in the street for a cleaner look. You will be amazed at how much better the neighborhood will look if everyone keeps their curbs clean and tidy.

Mid-Summer Gardening Tips

The hot and humid temps this time of year can take a toll on your plants. Our friends at the MSU Extension Service provide these tips for beating the heat in the garden. Make sure you are giving your plants at least one inch of water per week. Apply postemergent herbicides on weeds as they try to take over your garden. Crapemyrtles are in full bloom and you can prune fading bloom clusters to encourage the development of additional blooms and to extend the flowering season. This is a good time to take root cuttings for plants like azaleas, boxwoods, camellias, and gardenias. These cuttings can be planted in a fine sand mix to encourage new growths.

Over 20 Abandoned Cars Removed from Belhaven Streets

Abandoned vehicles impact the aesthetics, safety, and moreale of a community. Since November 2023, GBF has partnered with active neighbors and the Jackson Police Department to reomve over 20 abandoned cars from Belhaven's streets. If you notice an abandoned or non-running vehicle, let us know if we can assist in having it towed or removed. Keep these cars out of our footprint improves quality of life for our residents and visitors.

Have any abandoned homes or cars to report? Add it to our Tracker!

Being Belhaven Art Series Continues!

Movie in the Park will be rescheduled!

Due to wet and rainy weather on July 27th, we will reschedule this family-friendly event for a future date. Follow along on Instagram, Facebook, and on our website for updates!

Greater Belhaven Parks Survey

We want to hear from you! How would you like to see our three Greater Belhaven Parks develop and grow? Let us know how you’d like to see these funds put to work by completing the survey.

take the survey HERE!

Mississippi’s First Keith Haring Fitness Court

Set to Open in Belhaven Heights Park this August

PROGRESS PICS:

The National Fitness Campaign (NFC), Greater Belhaven Foundation, Community Foundation of Mississippi and Jackson Heart Foundation are excited to announce that Belhaven Heights Park has been selected as one of only ten locations nationwide for a one-of-a-kind Keith Haring outdoor Fitness Court® as part of the 2024 National Fitness Campaign. NFC is an award-winning initiative that welcomed its 500th healthy community in 2023 and is now funded to deliver vital outdoor wellness programs to 1,000 healthy communities by 2025 to help get people moving outdoors and to fight the rising fiscal and humanitarian costs of physical inactivity.

The Keith Haring Fitness Court initiative was born in 2020 as part of NFC’s Arts and Culture Series, uniting the world-renowned art of Keith Haring, one of the most influential modern artists in American history, with the world’s best outdoor gym in the Fitness Court. Jackson was originally selected by the Keith Haring Foundation as one of the national sites for the court in 2019. Its original site was the pocket park on Woodrow Wilson across from the Children’s Hospital. The project stalled after the equipment was procured during the COVID emergency. The equipment has been in storage since2019. GBFproposed relocating the fitness court to Belhaven Heights Park to link the park to the Museum Trail and to add to the neighborhood’s outdoor recreational assets. GBF facilitated a letter-writing campaign, after which the City of Jackson agreed to relocate the project. We owe a huge thanks to our Ward Seven Council woman Virgi Lindsay for her leadership in this effort! GBF’s CID committee provided a design for the court in the Belhaven Heights Park as well as funding to construct the concrete pad for the equipment.The new Keith Haring Fitness Court at Belhaven Heights Park allows users to leverage their own body weight to get a complete workout using seven stations in just seven minutes. Created for people aged 14 and over and with all abilities in mind, the workouts are adaptable for all fitness levels, allowing participants to move at their own pace. The location at Belhaven Heights Park offers a significant tie-in with the existing outdoor recreational amenities in Greater Belhaven, including a direct physical connection to the Museum Trail and close proximity to the Belhaven Mountain Biking Trails, and will energize the park as a community center.

Community Improvement District

In 2020, the Legislature enacted Mississippi Code § 19-31-17, allowing the creation of Community Improvement Districts. CIDs are special taxing districts that let neighborhoods raise funds for projects like traffic calming, combating blight, and improving greenspace. CIDs must be administered by a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Property owners within a CID contribute to the CID through their property taxes, an example of which is illustrated below. In this example, a property with an appraised value of about $125,000 contributes about $75 a year to the CID (Line Item MS1). You can find the CID assessment for your property by looking at the Hinds County Landroll.

Helpful links in learning more about CIDs

https://www.wlbt.com/2021/02/02/ordinance-would-spell-out-procedures-allowing-community-improvement-districts/

https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/politics/2019/04/05/cid-community-improvement-district-jackson-neighborhood-self-taxing-authority/3298071002/

https://law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2020/title-19/chapter-31/section-19-31-3/

https://law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/2020/title-19/chapter-31/section-19-31-17

June 2024

Anna Ballard Fair — Mon, 01 Jul 2024 02:24:30 GMT

Curbside Debris Piles

After the series of recent storms, we’ve begun to notice a number of debris piles across the neighborhood. Richard’s Garbage Disposal states that in order to have debris piles picked up, piles must be no more than 4 feet long, limbs no more than 4 inches thick, and bundled. If your debris piles don't meet these criteria, the city will not pick them up and you must either dispose of them yourself or pay a vendor to do so. The GBF is offering a debris pick up service in the coming weeks in order to mitigate the demand for debris pick up around the neighborhood. If you have a debris pile you’d like addressed, please submit the location using this form. If you do request a pick up, please consider a donation to the GBF to offset the cost of this service.

Movie in the Park: Saturday, July 27th 6pm, Belhaven Park

Join us for a family-friendly outdoor movie! Bring your lawn chairs and blankets. The film will be based on a book, and families in attendance will receive copies of the book. Feel free to bring your own movie snacks; we may even have a popcorn truck. We hope to see you there!

Mississippi’s First Keith Haring Fitness Court Set to Open in Belhaven Heights Park this August

GBF Belhaven Mountain Biking Trails Voted an “M-List” Favorite in the “Best Bike Trails” Category in the recent Mississippi Magazine Best of Mississippi Ballot

The BMBT Committee has been busy maintaining and improving the miles of walking and mountain biking trails located on GBF’s 58 acres bordering I-55 and the east side of our neighborhood. Recently, several more bridges have been erected in the newly cut areas of trail, which helped to traverse low-lying, wet areas, as well as provide more fun features along the trail system. Volunteers completed a work weekend in which the current 4+ miles of trail were sprayed and mowed. The final stage of trail to be cut along the hilltop portion has been begun and volunteer Peter Hammond’s pump track is nearing completion. It is an incredible showcase of earth work that was done completely by hand. Construction on a new bridge has begun to aid in traversing wet areas in the inner Belhaven Creek loop.

Historical Preservation Restoration Initiative

We saw a tremendous response to our fundraising efforts for historical preservation efforts in the neighborhood. GBF quickly used these funds to repair the fallen historic entrance pillar on Linden Street and facilitate the refurbishment of the Historical Marker located at the neighborhood entrance on Peachtree Street and Riverside Drive. We are using remaining funds to contract with Seabold Studios for our Brick Pillar Renewal Project. This team will conduct a survey of all our neighborhood pillars, providing us with history on their construction, documentation on their locations, condition, and any needs for future repairs.

More Storm Drains Vacuumed Across Greater Belhaven

We have heard from many of you regarding concerns of flooding caused by clogged storm drains. GBF recently contracted with Suncoast Infrastructure to vacuum out particularly problematic storm drains across the neighborhood. Over the course of three work days spread out throughout the spring and early summer, we have seen a great improvement in the level of pooling and flooding in our footprint after significant rains. In order to keep drains flowing, it is critically important for neighbors and lawn care services to bag leaves and debris and avoid blowing them into these drains. If you’d like your drain to be included in the next round of work, please submit the location HERE and consider a donation to the Greater Belhaven Foundation to offset this cost!

May 2024

Anna Ballard Fair — Sat, 01 Jun 2024 02:21:46 GMT

Join us for Growing Your Kitchen Garden with Emily Grohovsky

Belhaven Town Center Terrace
June 4th 5:30-7:00

Space is limited! Register and Purchase Tickets HERE

Join the Greater Belhaven Foundation's "Love Your Haven" Beautification Committee and your neighbors for a special gardening event at the Belhaven Town Center Terrace on June 4th from 5:30-7 with Emily Grohovsky. Emily is a wife, mama to two boys and owner and founder of Cedar Hill Gardens, a custom raised bed garden design business in Madison which specializes in helping you learn how to grow food in your own backyard. This is a great opportunity to help jump start your summer gardening goals! Space is limited!

Tickets are $35 and include one seat for the seminar and one special cocktail from Goodbar. (Purchase tickets HERE) Looking forward to seeing you there!

Historic Preservation Restoration Initiative

We saw a tremendous response to our fundraising efforts for historical preservation efforts in the neighborhood.The Greater Belhaven Foundation quickly used these funds to repair the fallen pillar on Linden and order a replacement marker for the entrance on Peachtree and Riverside Drive.

Before, During & After

We are also pursuing a survey on the condition of all existing pillars in the neighborhood and plan to use these findings to repair and fortify these beautiful and unique historic pillars!

A huge thank you to all the donors to the Historic Preservation Restoration Initiative!

David Pharr

Julie Lord

Susan Garrard

Mary Kay Kimble

Susan Warren

Erin Hicks

Lydia West

Margaret Cupples

Arden Barnett

Jason Agostinelli

Daniel Hise

Andrew Kronfol

David Blount

Steve Holloway

Chaz Lindsay

Maggie Brown

Gayle Entrekin

Andrew Canter

Janine Bucley

Robert Fortenberry

Virgi Lindsay

Ryder Taff

Kim Zachow

Kathy Waring

Virginia Munford

Stevie Phillips

Christopher Garness

Elaine Joya

Sara Kathryn Wellman

William Wymond

Stacy Underwood

William Osborne

Robert Smith

Rodney Clement

Beth Graham

Laura Morgan

Laine Dalrymple

Richard Key

Mary Micheal Lindsay

Ellen Treadway

Walter Boone

Martin Street

Heath Jordan

Libba Wilkes

May Yard of the Month

Congratulations to neighbor Walker Dowell of 1518 Myrtle St. on being named this month’s Yard of the Month! On living in Belhaven, Walker says: “Belhaven is a great community with plenty going on. One of the neat things about Belhaven is how many people you’ll find on a walk at any given moment. Walks are great in Belhaven because of the variety of homes / yards you’ll pass in the neighborhood. It is fun to experience, and I hope I’m doing my part in adding to the quilt.”

The Yard of the Month is selected by the Yard of the Month committee and determined based on the following criteria.

Curbs, driveway, and walkways are edged and cleaned regularly
Yard is mowed and edged regularly
Flower beds are weeded, mulched, and shrubs are trimmed regularly
Yard is free of debris and clutter

Want to nominate someone for next month’s award? Let us know!

Being Belhaven Art Series Kicks off!

May 18th was a beautiful day in Belhaven Park. We saw over 250 attendants to the 2024 Shakespeare in the Park - a perfect kick off to our Being Belhaven Art Series.

Saturday, June 22

Belhaven Park

4PM- 8:30 PM

Join us for a great evening of talented and diverse local musicians! Bring your lawn chairs, blankets and coolers and set up for an evening with music and friends.

All are welcome, let us know if you are coming HERE!

Keith Haring Fitness Court coming soon to Belhaven Heights Park!

The Keith Haring Fitness Court is a project developed by the National Fitness Foundation in partnership with the Keith Haring Foundation. It is both a fitness court and an art installation. Jackson was selected by the Keith Haring Foundation as one of the national sites for the court in 2019. The court had to be funded by the community and the initial costs were covered by the Jackson Heart Foundation, The Community Foundation for Mississippi, Visit Jackson, EPS Energy and Trustmark National Bank. The project stalled during the pandemic. The original site was the pocket park on Woodrow Wilson across from Batson Children’s Hospital.

In 2024, the Greater Belhaven Foundation proposed relocating the fitness court to Belhaven Heights Park in order to link it with the Museum Trail and add to the park’s assets. Thanks to the work of our Ward Seven Councilwoman, Virgi Lindsey, the City and the National Fitness Foundation agreed to relocate the court to the park. The Greater Belhaven Foundation’s CID committee provided a design for the court in this new location which was subsequently accepted by the National Fitness Foundation. The addition of the fitness court to the park offers a significant tie-in with the trail and will energize the park as a center for the Belhaven Heights community. Recognizing the court also serves as a one-of-a-kind art installation complements the existing park and trail murals. Tentatively, the installation process is scheduled to begin in June and completed by the end of July.

Code Enforcement Update

If you see a property that needs to be addressed, call 311 or email it to director@greaterbelhaven.com and we will submit it to Code Enforcement for you!

Keep up with the status of properties that have already been submitted by GBF HERE.

Educate yourself by reading about the opportunities and expectations of property ownership in Greater Belhaven using the following resources:

City of Jackson Code Enforcement
City of Jackson- Code of Ordinances
City of Jackson Planning Board
City of Jackson Historical Preservation Commission
Greater Belhaven Historical Registry Nomination
Environmental court meets every second Tuesday of each month at 11am at the Jackson Municipal court house.
Historic Preservation Commission meets every second Wednesday of each month at 12pm. 200 S. President Street, room 105

Renters and Rental Property Owners in Greater Belhaven
Being a rental property owner in a historic district requires ongoing proactive maintenance, attention, and care. Whether properties are well-maintained and tenants are thoughtfully chosen bears a significant impact on our overall neighborhood climate, culture, and the determination of surrounding homeowner’s property values. Operating as a creative, historic and mixed-income neighborhood is one of our greatest sources of pride, and the maintenance of rental properties play a huge role in our ability to keep the neighborhood attractive. If you are a renter or a rental property owner, Greater Belhaven Foundation urges you to educate yourself on the rights and responsibilities that come along with these roles and consider the neighborhood as a whole when making decisions about purchasing rental property, maintaining your rental property, selecting tenants, or when choosing to live as a renter in the neighborhood.

All rental properties must be registered with the City. Rental properties are subject to the same requirements for renovations as owner-occupied properties within the historic district and must receive a certificate of appropriateness from the Historic Preservation Commission in order to make exterior renovations. Additionally, the City of Jackson requires all rental property owners to hold a business license in order to operate rental properties and apply for a rental certification from the City. Other requirements for rental properties in Jackson include:

April 2024

Anna Ballard Fair — Wed, 01 May 2024 02:15:44 GMT

Art for the Park Recap

This week, the Greater Belhaven Foundation and Belhaven Garden Club raised almost $17,000 for our three Belhaven Parks! Big thanks to our Friends of Belhaven Parks and Garden Club volunteers, especially Leslie Agostinelli, Erin Doctor, Miriam Fair and Andrea Alabejovic for all their hard work! Check out photos from the event here!

Let us know how you’d like to see these funds put to work by completing this parks survey.

Missed Art for the Park? Make your contribution to Belhaven’s Parks here!

New Playground Equipment installed at Laurel Street Park!

Thanks to funds raised from 2022 Art for the Park, GBF and Friends of Belhaven Parks have purchased and installed multiple brand new pieces of playground equipment at Laurel Street Park! Stay tuned for an official ribbon cutting for these new pieces along with a lemonade and cookie party to celebrate!

Historical Preservation Restoration Initiative

We saw a tremendous response to our fundraising efforts for historical preservation efforts in the neighborhood- in particular the repair of our brick historical pillars. The Greater Belhaven Foundation is currently working to use these funds to first survey the condition of all existing pillars in the neighborhood and use these findings to then work with high-quality brick mason contractors in order to repair and fortify these beautiful and unique historic pillars! We are also working to reinstate the historical marker that was damaged on Peachtree and add additional markers to the neighborhood. Would you like to suggest a location for a potential future marker? Let us know!

A huge thank you to the donors to the Historic Preservation Restoration Initiative!

David Pharr

Julie Lord

Susan Garrard

Mary Kay Kimble

Susan Warren

Erin Hicks

Lydia West

Margaret Cupples

Arden Barnett

Jason Agostinelli

Daniel Hise

Andrew Kronfol

David Blount

Steve Holloway

Chaz Lindsay

Maggie Brown

Gayle Entrekin

Andrew Canter

Janine Bucley

Robert Fortenberry

Virgi Lindsay

Ryder Taff

Kim Zachow

Kathy Waring

Virginia Munford

Stevie Phillips

Christopher Garness

Elaine Joya

Sara Kathryn Wellman

William Wymond

Stacy Underwood

William Osborne

Robert Smith

Rodney Clement

Beth Graham

Laura Morgan

Laine Dalrymple

Richard Key

Mary Micheal Lindsay

Ellen Treadway

Walter Boone

Martin Street

Heath Jordan

Libba Wilkes

April Yard of the Month

Congratulations to neighbor Scott Lee of 1709 St. Ann on being named this month’s Yard of the Month!

Yard of the Month is selected by the Yard of the Month committee and is determined based on the following criteria.

Curbs, driveway, and walkways are edged and cleaned regularly
Yard is mowed and edged regularly
Flower beds are weeded, mulched, and shrubs are trimmed regularly
Yard is free of debris and clutter

Want to nominate someone for next month’s award? Let us know!

May 11 Riverside Cleanup Day

It’s a (Riverside Dr) Party! The Greater Belhaven Foundation is committed to the maintenance and preservation of what we believe is now the city’s most beautiful thoroughfare, Riverside Drive!

Join us on May 11th for a morning to clean up and celebrate Riverside Drive. Our main goals for the day are to weedeat overgrown medians, blow out and bag curbs, and pick up trash. We will begin at Wells APAC for coffee at 8:00. GBF will provide safety vests, work gloves, trash bags, and some working tools. Please, please, please bring the tools you have!! Weed eaters, blowers, roundup, trash pickers, or even a lawn mower!

Can’t make it to the cleanup day? Consider a contribution to the Riverside Keepers - an initiative dedicated to sustaining the ongoing maintenance of Riverside Drive.

Being Belhaven Art Series kicks off May 18th with Shakespeare in the Park!

May 18 Shakespeare in the Park

RSVP here for Performance 1 from 11:00-12:00

RSVP here for Performance 2 from 2:00-3:00

Renters and Rental Property Owners in Greater Belhaven

Being a rental property owner in a historic district requires ongoing proactive maintenance, attention, and care. Whether properties are well-maintained and tenants are thoughtfully chosen bears a significant impact on our overall neighborhood climate, culture, and the determination of surrounding homeowner’s property values. Operating as a creative, historic and mixed-income neighborhood is one of our greatest sources of pride, and the maintenance of rental properties play a huge role in our ability to keep the neighborhood attractive. If you are a renter or a rental property owner, Greater Belhaven Foundation urges you to educate yourself on the rights and responsibilities that come along with these roles and consider the neighborhood as a whole when making decisions about purchasing rental property, maintaining your rental property, selecting tenants, or when choosing to live as a renter in the neighborhood.

Rachel Misenar Art Show

March 2024

Anna Ballard Fair — Sat, 02 Mar 2024 02:03:23 GMT

Neighbor in Need

We are saddened to share that Belhaven neighbor Dau Mabil has been missing since noon on Monday. A missing person’s report has been filed and many neighbors have organized an ongoing search effort. If you have any information please contact Capitol Police or Dau’s wife, Karissa.

Art for the Park

Join us on April 25th from 5:30 to 8:30 pm at the Fairview Inn for the much-loved biannual event, Art for the Park! Presented by the Belhaven Garden Club and Greater Belhaven Foundation, Art for the Park will feature specialty drinks and bites from favorite local restaurants, live music, and a silent auction featuring works from artists around Mississippi including a new piece from this year’s feature artist Stacy Underwood! Guaranteed to be a fun time for all, we invite you to mark your calendar and purchase your tickets today in support of our cherished neighborhood and its wonderful parks – Laurel Street Park, Belhaven Art Park, and Belhaven Heights Park!

Purchase your tickets HERE.

Greater Belhaven Parks Survey

We want to hear from you! How would you like to see our three Greater Belhaven Parks develop and grow? Our Friends of Belhaven Parks Committee is hard at work raising funds and identifying partnerships that help improve our parks and green spaces, but we want to know– what do you want to see happen with these funds?

https://forms.gle/kiWqZQgjTBoAYi6i9

March Yard of the Month

Neighbors Kevin and Jayme McDonald of Peachtree Street were honored with the GBF’s first Yard of the Month designation. When asked about her yard, homeowner Jayme shared, “I do not want to be responsible for killing these amazing 75+ year old azaleas, camellias, roses, etc. that were so thoughtfully planted and cared for all these years! And of course I do it for my neighborhood! “

The Yard of the Month Committee selects homes using the following criteria:

Curbs, driveway, and walkways are edged and cleaned regularly
Yard is mowed and edged regularly
Flower beds are weeded, mulched, and shrubs are trimmed regularly
Yard is free of debris and clutter

Will your yard be next??

March 2nd Spring Cleanup Day

We had over 90 volunteers show up to assist with our March Spring Clean up day! We filled two 30 foot dumpsters full of trash and debris and cleaned out miles of overgrown curbs. A huge thank you to all who sponsored and participated in this great neighborhood day!

Storm Drain Clean Out

To kick off our Spring Clean Weekend, Greater Belhaven Foundation partnered with Suncoast Infrastructure to vacuum out dozens of clogged storm drains. Neighbors were asked to submit storm drain locations they have observed to be particularly problematic. Remember to avoid clogging storm drains in the future- always bag your yard leaves and debris instead of leaving in the street. Each storm drain vacuum cost the Greater Belhaven Foundation approximately $480! If you are still seeing drains in desperate need of service, submit them HERE and consider contributing financially to the effort!

Easter Egg Hunt at Laurel Park

February 2024

Anna Ballard Fair — Fri, 02 Feb 2024 01:24:25 GMT

FEBRUARY 2024

Keith Harris Fitness Center
We are thrilled to announce the approval of the Keith Haring Fitness Installation at our beloved Belhaven Heights Park! This is more than just a fitness amenity; it's a symbol of community, health, and vitality in Greater Belhaven.

We are committed to fostering a healthy and active lifestyle amongst our neighbors. The new fitness installation will be an immersive experience blending high-quality fitness equipment with the vibrant art of Keith Haring to create a uniquely engaging outdoor workout space! If you are interested in taking an active role in the process to fundraise for and install this structure, please let us know! info@greaterbelhaven.com.

Yard of the Month

Do you spend time keeping your yard beautiful? We want to recognize all our neighbors who go the extra mile to make their yard and curb attractive. The newly formed Yard of the Month committee will begin their search for the most beautiful yard in Greater Belhaven and award the very first Yard of the Month the first week in March! Keep your eyes peeled for the sign! Winners will be celebrated on our social media and in our newsletter!

Yards that are considered for the recognition meet the following criteria:
Curbs, driveway, and walkways are edged and cleaned regularly
Yard is mowed and edged regularly
Flower beds are weeded, mulched, and shrubs are trimmed regularly
Yard is free of debris and clutter

Greater Belhaven Spring Clean

Join us for our Greater Belhaven Spring Cleanup Day! Bring the energy and invite your friends to join you THIS Saturday, on March 2nd— let’s make our neighborhood shine! We’ll have a little kick-off party at Belhaven Town Center at 8:30am. See you there!

Neighborhood Celebrations

We loved seeing so many friendly neighbors show up for the GBF Cheering Section at the MS Blues Marathon! Thank you to our partners at Native for sponsoring coffee for all!

Happy Birthday!

A hearty congratulations to our beloved local eateries, Pulito and Elvie's on celebrating their recent birthdays — we're thrilled to have such incredible establishments thriving and supporting our community!

Storm Drain Cleanout

The Greater Belhaven Foundation is consulting with Suncoast Infrastructure professional construction services using CID funds to vacuum clogged storm drains across the neighborhood! You will see their vacuum trucks hard at work this Friday, March 1^st kicking off our Spring Clean weekend!

Is there a storm drain on your street or near your home that appears to be clogged? Signs of a clogged storm drain include:

pooling
flooding after rain
very slow draining

Our Community Improvement District Committee is working hard to have these vacuumed & cleaned across the neighborhood! You can submit a request to have your storm drain vacuumed here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScFkN1U_BS8m3AvYmg5khUWknXUiEO3v6i8NBNdpAhVaNDL3Q/viewform

January 2024

Anna Ballard Fair — Wed, 31 Jan 2024 17:24:30 GMT

January 2024

Your Greater Belhaven Foundation has been hard at work this month, preparing for a great year in our vibrant, historic neighborhood. Our newsletter is a great way to keep up with all the things we are doing!

Great Conversation at the GBF Legislative Breakfast!

Thanks to all who joined us at the Heights on Monday morning to meet with our State Senator David Blount, our State Representative Earle Banks and our City Councilwoman Virgi Lindsay. You don’t want to miss this event next year!

Love Your Haven

Gardening Tips:

According to the MSU Extension Service, healthy soil is the key to a successful garden come springtime. In January, focus on the soil in your flower beds. Use organic matter like compost or manure to augment your soil now and bulk up its nutrients for the growing season.Don't forget to keep those leaves raked in your yard to avoid harmful fungus growth in your grass. And remember our Clean Curb Commitment. Take the time to blow and bag leaves and debris in your curb in front of your homes. It will make a huge difference in the overall look of the neighborhood.

Greater Belhaven Spring Cleanup Day March 2, 2023

Sign up TODAY to join us for our Greater Belhaven Spring Cleanup Day. We are looking for volunteers and sponsors to help us make this the best cleanup day yet!

Riverside Drive

Neighbors are continuing to enjoy our newly paved and landscaped Riverside Drive!

The Greater Belhaven Foundation was able to work directly with the City of Jackson and Hemphill to ensure that branded street signs were installed, and the sidewalk between Peachtree and Pinehurst was filled! Our beautification and landscaping efforts included the replanting of dozens of Live Oaks to replace those that were removed during construction. We are also learning the newly structured street is no longer a good option for 18-wheelers and other oversized vehicles and we are working on solutions to deter these larger service vehicles from using it in order to preserve our beautification efforts.

Update on Code Enforcement

Thanks to the work of Chief Wendell Watts and his Code Enforcement team at JPD, Greater Belhaven Foundation has facilitated the removal of 8 abandoned vehicles in the neighborhood! We are still working on this effort.

Please continue to notate any abandoned vehicles or problematic properties in our tracker: GBF Abandoned Vehicles Tracker

The city of Jackson Code Enforcement Solid Waste Division and City Employee James Bennett has assisted us in removing large amounts of trash and debris from our parks and other residences around the neighborhood.

Neighborhood Celebrations:

Hunter Evans of Elvie’s Named as James Beard Semi-Finalist for Best Chef https://eu.clarionledger.com/story/news/local/2024/04/03/see-the-jackson-ms-chef-named-as-a-james-beard-award-finalist/73194135007/
Mississippi Children's Museum - vote for MCM for the award they were nominated for by USA Today https://10best.usatoday.com/awards/travel/best-childrens-museum-2024/mississippi-childrens-museum-jackson-mississippi/

February 24: MS Blues Marathon runs through Belhaven!Join the GBF and your neighbors at Native Coffee at 8:00 A.M. for a free cup of coffee and cheer on the runners as they come through our friendly neighborhood!

March 2: Greater Belhaven Spring Cleanup Day Join your neighbors as we get ready for a beautiful spring in Belhaven through a community-wide day of cleaning of streets, public spaces, and yards. We will kick off with coffee and donuts at the Belhaven Town Center at 8:30 AM! Sign up here!

March 30: Belhaven Garden Club Presents their Annual Laurel Park Easter Egg Hunt and Parade. Children are invited to decorate their bikes, scooters or strollers and join us at Laurel Park for an Easter Parade around the block with an Egg Hunt to follow! 2024 Grand Bunny Marshall (Walker Dowell) will lead the parade! Support this event by donating stuffed eggs to the Belhaven Garden Club. Contact Event Chair Stephanie Parkinson stephaniemparkinson@gmail.com for more information.

April 25: Art for the Park Join us on April 25th from 5:30 to 8:30 pm at the Fairview Inn for the much-loved biennial event, Art for the Park! Hosted by the Belhaven Garden Club and the newly formed Friends of Belhaven Parks, Art for the Park will feature specialty drinks and bites from favorite local restaurants, live music, and a silent auction featuring works from artists around Mississippi including a new piece from this year’s feature artist, Stacy Underwood! Guaranteed to be a fun time for all, we invite you to mark your calendar and purchase your tickets today in support of our cherished neighborhood and its wonderful parks – Laurel Street Park, Belhaven Art Park, and Belhaven Heights Park!

Greater Belhaven Foundation Director's Blog

July 2025

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UPCOMING EVENTS: