Caught On the Web
Mstreetscd.org and Mstreetsforum.org
Quick! What’s the difference between a Craftsman style home and a High Tudor? If you’re stumped, find the answers to this and similar questions at mstreetscd.org and mstreetsforum.org. Paul Sims created these websites for Save the M Streets after his wife and now-councilperson, Angela Hunt, became involved with the organization. “There was an original group of founders, and my wife was part of that group. The effort started in May 2001,” Sims says. In the beginning, the organization’s mission was to make the M Streets a conservation district, which the group accomplished. Now, visitors to mstreetscd.org can educate themselves about how their own neighborhood can become a conservation district, acquaint themselves with the rules for rebuilding or doing construction on old homes in the M Streets, and/or locate particular houses in the area by using the plat map. With the M Streets forum, neighbors “can get information about everything from neighborhood news to lost dogs,” Sims says. Since launching these sites, Sims has noticed an increase in awareness about the importance of conservation districts. “People from all over the country use our sites as a resource,” he says. “There are tips on how to protect your neighborhood. It’s helpful for a lot of people.”
