The Man Behind VHList

Most residents in Virginia-Highland know Stephen Cohen as the piano playing ghoul on Elkmont Drive on Halloween.

But Cohen, a long-time Atlanta resident, provides neighbors with one of the most valuable resources in the community.

Cohen, 62, is the founder of VHList, an online group that aims to connect the Virginia-Highland neighborhood.

The discussion forum for Virginia Highland residents started out as a platform for residents to announce that they have a great contractor that people should know about or to ask for recommendations for a local dry cleaner.

But since Cohen founded the group in 2007, it has grown into a virtual town square for residents to find out what’s going on in the neighborhood.

"I see it as almost like a glue that holds the community together," Cohen said.  "It keeps everyone in the neighborhood in touch with what’s going and enables them to serve as resources for each other."

The group, which is open to anyone that lives in the Virginia-Highland neighborhood, allows members to write and respond to posts in a discussion board forum.

VHList reached 1,300 members this week and continues to grow.

"The more people who belong, the more people can help each other," he said. "It took a little while for it to take off, but it eventually did," he said.

When Cohen started the forum in February 2007, it was the only group of its kind in InTown Atlanta.

Today, many Intown Atlanta communities such as Inman Park, Candler Park, and Grant Park have forums or discussion boards where residents talk about local issues.

Cohen, who moved to Atlanta in 1976 from South Africa, said he got the idea to start the group when he was visiting family in Israel and learned about a neighborhood forum.

He saw the need for a community platform in Virginia-Highland, and years later, most residents would agree.

"I particularly like the VH List because I believe it’s a channel for real neighborhood dialogue," Virginia-Highland resident Lola Carlisle said. "The only monitoring I’ve noticed has seemed fair and warranted at times when users submit commentary with personal attacks."

Cohen said he "strongly believes in freedom of speech" and only monitors comments when a post is disrespectful.

"For the most part, the users seem to be reasonable and polite with one another," Carlisle said. "And I also appreciate the range of viewpoints – you will hear from multiple sources on varying topics."

John Wolfinger, the Virginia-Highland Civic Association safety chair, said he finds the forum useful for instant communication about safety issues.

“There have been many instances where one person has reported a suspicious person knocking on their door or something like that… and then pretty soon they’ll be another comment, ‘the same person just knocked on my door,’” Wolfinger said.

"Especially before the Patch came along, the VHList was really the only instant communication about things that are happening."

Cohen is the sole moderator of the group and said the forum takes very little work to maintain.

Outside of moderating the forum, Cohen works as the vice president of marketing for a credit union and enjoys spending time with his wife, Eleanor Barrineau.

When asked about handing off the moderating duties to someone else in the neighborhood, Cohen said, "For now, I’m perfectly content."

What do you find most useful about VHList? Tell us in the comments!

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About this column: Know someone doing something to make their corner of the world a little brighter who would make a great "Greatest Person of the Day" profile? Send an e-mail to: jaclyn.hirsch@patch.com