Community meetings galore - tonight!

I'm excited about all the community organizing in NE Seattle lately.  From City transportation projects to resident-led community gardens, there are so many ways to get involved in what's happening in your neighborhood. Tonight alone, we have four meetings taking place:

Thornton Creek Alliance Meeting
7:00pm - 9:00pm
Lake City Presbyterian Church
3841 NE 123rd St., Room B-2

The Thornton Creek Alliance will be discussing the Hubbard Homestead Park, Thornton Creek Park naming, and their 2010-2011 Work Plan. Bruce Johnson, of the TCA Executive Committee, had these meeting details to share:

Bruce Hubbard will share his memories and his vision for this new park (near Northgate Mall) due to be completed this summer. Also, the Park Naming Committee wants your input. (What kind of name is Park #2, anyway?) TCA's general membership meeting is the place to meet neighbors, learn more about the watershed and the people & wildlife who live here, share your interests & concerns, find a committee to work on, and join a work party. It's free & open to the public, so invite your friends. Hope to see you there!

North Link Light Rail - final design discussion

5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Roosevelt High School Commons
1410 NE 66th Street

Thanks to the new Roosiehood blog for posting details about tonight's light rail design meeting. For those who don't know, the North Link is a 4.3-mile extension to the light rail system with stations at the University District, Roosevelt and Northgate. Tonight's presentation will share engineer drawings and recommendations and discuss what the next steps in the design will look.

Maple Leaf Reservoir Park meeting
6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Olympic View Elementary
504 NE 95th Street

The final design meeting is tonight! For those of you following the progress of the new reservoir park, or those still interested in getting their two cents in, tonight is your last chance before the design schematic is approved.  Friends for a Greater Maple Leaf Park and the Maple Leaf Community Council have graciously sponsored professional childcare...so there's no excuse not to go.

Lake City Community Council meeting

Seattle Mennonite Church - community room
3120 NE 125th Street (Enter from parking lot in back.)

Tonight's meeting will be focused on neighborhood events that will support local businesses (The Restaurant Crawl), make the neighborhood safer and build community (Night Out August 3rd), clean up streets and raise awareness about the 33rd Ave NE Vision Project (fall workparty for 33rd Ave NE), and raise awareness about the new park (PARK-ing Day).

Waldo Woods Preservation in Jeopardy

Some of you may remember a post I wrote recently celebrating Maple Leaf's Waldo Woods being permanently preserved. Well it looks like that isn't quite the case now.  According to a press release from the Maple Leaf Community Council, all involved parties have signed the easement paperwork that will save the wooded area except Camp Fire Puget Sound.

Waldo Woods Working Group head, David Miller, had this to say about the latest events

I find it ironic that as Camp Fire celebrates its 100th birthday with a video packed with scenes of kids enjoying the environment and stating its focus on the environment that Camp Fire Puget Sound continues to block the community’s efforts at preserving Waldo Woods,” stated Mr. Miller. “I would hope those parents and kids who love both Camp Fire and the environment would contact Camp Fire Puget Sound’s executive leadership and tell them the continued blocking of the preservation of Waldo Woods is unacceptable.

For those who have questions or are interested in learning more about this preservation effort go to the Maple Leaf Community Council General Meeting tomorrow night (7-9pm) at Olympic View Elementary (5th NE & NE 95th).

New Maple Leaf Reservoir Park Meeting - Save the Date

Some of you may remember my previous post about the art installation project being planned for the future Maple Leaf reservoir park.  For those not in the know, let me catch you up to speed. Seattle Public Utilities decided to cover all remaining open reservoirs in Seattle with an underground structure to improve the security and quality of the city's water.  The "reservoir lid"is covered with soil, grass and plants to make it a public green space.  In the case of the Maple Leaf reservoir, it will seamlessly fit in with the adjacent playground adding 16 acres of green space. 

Friends for a Greater Maple Leaf Park is inviting the whole community to come out to the next park planning meeting happening on Thursday, April 22nd. The Parks Department will present draft designs in order to get feedback from the public. For those interested in attending, the meeting will be held at Olympic View Elementary (504 NE 94th) from 6:00 to 8:00pm.

Want to add this save this date directly into your Outlook or other icalendar? Click on the NE Seattle Life events calendar button and you're all set! 

Maple Leaf's Waldo Woods now Permanently Preserved

The Maple Leaf Community Council sent out a press release announcing the wonderful news that Waldo Woods has now completed the process of being approved as a conservation easement:

Ordinance 116794 was passed by the Seattle City Council Monday, March 8. Confirmation was received today that Seattle Mayor Michael McGinn has signed the legislation. This ordinance represents the last step in the process where the Seattle Parks Department takes possession of a conservation easement for Waldo Woods. The effect of the conservation easement is the permanent preservation of Waldo Woods, an urban grove of mature, native Douglas firs. 

Wondering what the heck is a conservation easement? Simply put, it's a legally enforceable preservation agreement between a landowner and government agency; in this case the two players being the Menachem Mendel Seattle Cheder Day School and the City of Seattle.

Though this type of easement puts certain restrictions on land use by the owner, it doesn't make the property automatically available to the public. Luckily the day school has graciously agreed to make a portion of Waldo Woods available to the public so all may enjoy the 85-year-old forest.

Congratulations to the Maple Leaf Community Council, the Waldo Woods Working Group and all Maple Leaf residents who worked for over three years to save this important piece of city green space.

Photo courtesy of: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dbaron/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

Helicopters Flying Over House Fire in Maple Leaf This Morning

I was woken up this morning to the loud sounds of a helicopter flying close by.  Did anyone else hear it? Apparently it was the KIRO7 news copter hovering over a house fire in Maple Life  at 23rd Ave NE and 86th Street.  Fire crews have been working on the sizable fire for quite some time.  Luckily, KIRO reports that firefighters did not find any people in the home.

Calling All Artists! Public Art Project at New Maple Leaf Reservoir Park

Seattle's Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, in partnership with Seattle Parks and Recreations and Seattle Public Utilities, issued a call for professional artists to install public art projects at two new parks; one of which is the new Maple Leaf Reservoir Park.  Funded by SPU and the 2008 Parks and Green Spaces Levy 1% For Arts fund, one artist will be selected to collaborate with design consultants and city staff to "create engaging areas or installations that are integrated into the parks' design, enhance the experience  of visiting the parks, and promote discovery or define a space or activity within the park."

The application deadline is 11pm, Thursday, March 11.  Artists whose work addresses environmental sustainability issues and use green design are encouraged to apply.  For more information on the call and application process, go to: http://www.seattle.gov/arts/publicart/calls_for_art.asp#parks.

Maple Leaf Community Council Meeting Tomorrow Night

For readers in Maple Leaf, or those interested in discussing the recent crimes in that neighborhood, the following is a notice about the Community Council meeting happening tomorrow night.   Go out and voice your opinion on what's happening in your hood!

Dear Neighbor:

This month's Maple Leaf Community Council General Meeting is approaching fast. We've put together a great program we believe will be of significant interest to Maple Leaf residents and businesses.

What: Maple Leaf Community Council General Meeting
Date: Wednesday, January 27
Time: 7-9 pm
Place: Olympic View Elementary, 5th NE and NE 95th
** Free, Licensed Childcare Available On Site **

Hudson Public House - First Impressions

I’ve driven past the corner of 15^th Ave NE and Lake City Way at least three times a week since moving last August and never noticed Hudson Public House until recently.  Maybe it was the addition of a small clapboard sign?  Whatever it was, my curiosity was piqued.  I've been quietly wishing to find more higher-end bars like those in my old Capitol Hill neighborhood.  Maybe Hudson would be what I was looking for?  The answer: yes and no.