It’s a great time to renew or pay first time OCA Membership dues for FY 2026-2027! Don’t wait! Membership runs from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027. Dues help pay for the newsletter, community advocacy, the Farmer’s Market, Potluck dinners, the Annual Christmas Tree Lighting, the Belair Road flower pots, the website, and so much more. You can support the community by paying annual membership dues. There are several membership options:

• $10 Regular per person
• $25 Good Neighbor per person
• $50 Business
• $500 Lifetime member

If you have mailed dues and it was returned from the post office, this is a post office error. Leadership has done everything possible to have this corrected, but it has not helped. Please do not remail or throw it in the trash. If this happens to you, please contact membership Chair, Debi Brocht by Email at brochtdebi@gmail.com Thanks for your support!

Overlea’s city residents may want to be aware of legislation being discussed by the Baltimore City Counsel. City ordinance 25-0066 hopes to address the housing shortage in Baltimore City by allowing homeowners to develop multi-family units from their single family dwellings in low-density, residential communities. This legislation would eliminate zoning requirements and parking minimums. The number of units would be determined by the size of the lot and building structure. Overlea is considered R-3 and R-4 zoning which would allow homes with 3000 square feet of dwelling and between 3000 and 5000 square feet of lot size to become a dwelling with 4 family units. Public input for this legislation has been closed since December, but community members are encouraged to reach out to our councilperson, Danielle McCray, at 410-396-4808 or Danielle.McCray@baltimorecity.gov with questions or concerns.

Flower bed planting event at the Overlea sign at Walther Blvd on Saturday, April 25th, 10am – Noon (Rain date – Wednesday, May 6th, 5pm-7pm). Volunteers are needed. Wear sturdy shoes. Bring gloves, a water bottle, and wear sunscreen. If you have extra cardboard boxes, please bring those with you.

Cities are shifting to more eco-friendly urban landscaping and including more greenery. Vegetation creates better habitats for wildlife and people, but it also helps clean the air and reduce pollution. Trees improve air quality by shading surfaces and reducing temperature.By shading buildings and houses, trees reduce the need for air conditioning—thus reducing greenhouse emissions. Trees can directly remove air pollutants. Not only can they absorb carbon dioxide and emit oxygen, but trees also filter air pollutants like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide through their leaves, and effectively removing Particulate Matter (PM) from the environment. PM can cause severe health problems, but not all trees filter it in the same way. This difference widely depends on the canopy, leaf size and structure. Bigger canopies can trap smaller particles, and larger leaves trap more pollutants than smaller ones. Also, leaves with rough surfaces have higher efficiency when filtering PM. Research shows that tiny hairs on the leaves can trap solid and liquid particles of PM

Most Inc. General Contracting has been located in Overlea at 7203 Belair Road since 1979. Owners Rob and Randy Keiser, took over the family business that was started by their grandfather Milton Most in 1947. Milton served in WW2 with the Seabees. His work with the Seabees laid the foundation for his building contracting business after the war.

Rob and Randy grew up on Springwood Ave and attended Overlea High School. Randy lived on W. Elm Ave For 25 years. They have always felt a deep connection with the community.

One early project completed by Milton Most was to rebuild the Bill and Earls Transmission building. It was previously the McMann Bus Depot. Originally, this same building was a stage coach house, that offered trips up to Belair, Maryland.

As word has it, folks from points south would take the street car to the Overlea station, walk down the hill to the stage coach house and continue on their journey north.

While much of what they do is commercial work, they have completed large outstanding residential projects in Overlea.

Most Inc. has been recognized for high quality conscientious work and has earned an award from the Maryland Improvement Contractors Association and the Home Builders Association of Maryland.

For more information about Most Inc., call 410-668-6678.

After living for a year in Cuenca, Ecuador, both working for a software company, Liz Mullan and Joe Allen landed in Overlea to start a new chapter of their lives. Looking to buy a house, they walked into the Fuller Ave house and knew instantly they were home. In March 2020, they moved in. While the whole world was in isolation, they undertook projects creating the home they dreamed of.

As the world reopened, they met their neighbors and became interested in the Overlea Community Association. Joe reached out to offer his web development expertise and redeveloped the overleaonline.org website.

In 2022, Liz came to a community meeting and became interested in volunteering and managing the Overlea Farmers Market for the 2022 season. Both Joe and Liz deliver newsletters on Manor Ave, edit and send Bulletin emails, and volunteer at the Holiday Tree Lighting event by setting up, making hot chocolate and organizing the St. Michael’s food pantry donation table. One of their favorite neighborhood activities is volunteering at the Overlea Farmers Market. They’re looking forward to the 2026 season!

Liz and Joe married in April of 2022 in a small outdoor wedding at Patapsco Valley State Park. In February this year, they joyfully welcomed their son, Jack, into their lives.

When asked what they like best about living in Overlea they had this to say, “Our neighbors and the friends we have made here. We really enjoy the Holiday Tree Lighting, the 4th of July fireworks (we can watch from our front porch!), pot luck dinners and the movie nights- all of the great ways that bring neighbors together.”

Happy New Year to everyone in Overlea! I hope that folks in our community had a joyous and festive holiday season. The OCA has been moving and shaking, gearing up for our many events in 2023. We also celebrated an amazing Holiday Tree Lighting in December, thanks to volunteers Joe Allen and Brent Ceryes who pulled the occasion together. A HUGE thank you to our sponsors, Mary and Will Geddes, Sippel Electric, Rosedale Volunteer Fire Company, Baltimore County Police, and Baltimore County Parks and Recreation.

Our next community meeting, with both in-person and online options, will be on March 14th at 7 p.m. Be sure to follow us on Facebook for links and updates.

A mighty congratulations to Doris Franz-Poling, OCA board member. Anyone who has ever met Doris, knows that she works INCREDIBLY hard for our community, mostly behind the scenes. She loves Overla and tirelessly advocates on our behalf. Doris’ most recent position was as the Legislative Aide for our outgoing County Councilwoman, Cathy Bevins. When Cathy retired in December, Doris took a new position with the County as the Essex Initiative Community Liaison. We are positive Doris will continue to make great contributions to our neighborhood and surrounding area, for years to come. Thanks Doris!

Our newsletter this quarter focuses on all the cool events we have planned for this year in Overlea. A new three- day Youth Art Show will premier in March, allowing kids ages 6-15 to enter their artwork in a true art show. We’ll also celebrate the Overlea Farmers Market’s 8th year, which kicks off on June 10th; the Fullerton Fireworks on Saturday, July 1st; ArtsFest on August 11th-13th at Holt Park, and so much more!

Melissa Davis, President, Overlea Community Association president@overleaonline.org

The popular Overlea ArtsFest 3-day festival is back, and submissions are open for all types of visual art and short films for our juried show. If you’re at least 16 years old, and you’re an artist or filmmaker living, working or going to school in Maryland, we’d love to see what you’ve been working on!

This year’s festival is on August 11th, 12th and 13th, 2023 at Holt Park & Center for the Arts, and will feature the juried art show, family art & nature activities, entertainment, art vendors and food. Cash prizes and certificates will be given to the winners.

For more information go to Overlea ArtsFest website between now and Monday June 12th to submit your work. There is NO FEE to submit.

The feral cat population in Baltimore has been an ongoing issue for many years. Feral cats are a direct outcome of owners who have deliberately abandoned their unwanted animals. Every spring, the feral mama cat that lives under a neighbor’s shed has multiple litters of kittens (did you know a female cat can get pregnant up to five times a year?!) These cats tend to lead a difficult, short life. They continue to reproduce and in a few short years, create an entire community of feral cats if interventions are not put in place. In addition to the stressful life these cats live, their existence creates an ecological issues. They kill birds and their feces pollutes our waterways, posing issues to our public health systems.

While there is no easy solution, it is imperative that we band together as a community to make sure these cats are vetted and spayed/neutered. The benefits include: healthier outdoor cats, prevention of unwanted litters; saving taxpayer dollars by keeping cats out of municipal shelters; and decreasing the number of cats needlessly dying in shelters. If you are feeding a stray cat, there are many resources to assist you to receive discounted or free treatment for thems.

In Baltimore City, you may borrow a trap to catch the cats from BARCS (410.396.4695). They will spay/neuter, vaccinate, and ear tip community cats for free. The SPCA on Falls Rd (410.235.8826) offers similar discounted services to city residents. Baltimore County Animal Shelter (in Baldwin) also offers TNR (Trap/Neuter/Return) services to County Residents (410.887.7297). If you feed community cats, it is imperative to the health of the colony and our community, that they are taken care of. If you need direct assistance for community cats on your property, please reach out to Melissa Davis, Overlea’s resident crazy cat lady, at mspicknall1@gmail.com

Historic Overlea gem, Buck Fowlers Tavern is one of Baltimore Magazine’s Best Dive Bars!

By Lydia Woolever, reprinted from Dec. 2022

Past northeast Baltimore’s autobody shops and car dealerships, on the literal city-county line, you’ll find this circa-1950 tavern is still kicking, though just barely. Into the ’90s, the family-run, former “stag bar” (aka men only) was a popular hangout for Colts players like Art Donovan and Bruce Laird, but many of its biggest fans have kicked the bucket in recent years. Even so, the Coors Light sign turns on daily at 11 a.m., with WBAL on the TV, a Sun on the oak bartop, and perhaps the city’s best dartboard in the back room. During a recent lunch beer, one local, whom the tenured bartender referred to as “the mayor,” topped off his own tequila and talked about how bustling the place used to be. Take his advice: “If you’re not looking for a lot of wild and crazy excitement, come on down, sit with the old farts, and have a beverage.”

Visit Buck’s Facebook page.

Jade Farm sells great foods at the Overlea Farmers Market every summer and is now delivering in Overlea! They offer pastured chicken and eggs, woodland raised pork, sauces and honey along with duck and turkey when in season as well. It’s all delicious. You can order on their Facebook page at Jade Farm.

Join us at this year’s Fullerton Fireworks display! The festivities will be on July 1st with fireworks beginning at 9:15 pm. The field will open at 3pm with food vendors and at 5pm live music by “Awaken” begins! Bring the family for dinner and stay for the excitement.

Fullerton Fireworks Foundation is a non-profit organization run by volunteers. The Foundation has built one of the largest, non-government sponsored fireworks programs in the region. It is supported by the communities of: Linover, Overlea, Elmwood, Belmar and our neighbors in Perry Hall, White Marsh, Parkville, Rosedale, and NE Baltimore City. 2023 will be the 60th Anniversary of the event.

Volunteers are always needed! If you can help, please contact George Stover at: george@adventureproductions.com