Community Club Meeting

When:Wednesday, March 8, 2000
7:30 p.m.

Where:Montlake Community Center
1618 Calhoun Street
 

Agenda

7:30: Introductory remarks, approval of minutes, and old business

7:45: Community discussion of new Montlake Branch Library (Ellen Judson)

8:30: Plans for improvements to Interlaken Park (Suzanne Wittmann)

8:45: Nominations for Club officers and Board members; Announcement of slate from Nominating Committee.

9:00: "Tour" of the new MCC Web Site (Bruce Balick)

9:15: New Business

9:30 Adjournment
 

Montlake Community To Open a Site on the World Wide Web

The Montlake Community Club has designed and implemented a new site on the World Wide Web, intended specifically for residents of Montlake. The web site will be available before mid March at www.scn.org/neighbors/montlake. The Seattle Community Network is providing the services for us at no charge on the "scn.org" server. The home page features links about Montlake, the Community Club and its activities, newsletters, officers, bylaws, and policies; Montlake history (some articles are still in the works); recent articles about Montlake; and links to the web pages of Montlake School, our library, MOHAI, the Community Center, etc. Links are also provided to popular branches of City, County, and State governments, Metro transit information, weather, news, and a host of other sites that we think will be of interest to the community. Be sure to bookmark this page. The home page will evolve in response to your suggestions.

Nominations Sought for April Election of Club Officers

The nominating committee, chaired by Ellen Judson (322-7641), will identify its candidates for the annual Montlake Community Club elections at the general meeting on March 8. The terms of the four officers and three of the nine trustees end each April, when the annual election is held. Community members who wish to serve on the board may have their names added to the ballot by contacting Ms. Judson, by floor nomination at the coming meeting, or by a written request to the club president. Candidates should submit short profiles by March 17 for publication in the April Flyer. Nominees must be Montlake residents who will agree to run and serve if elected.
 

President's Comments

Montlake is to get a new library, one which will three times larger than the present facility, open 48 hours per week, and designed to house both books and computers. Many Montlakers have been waiting years for this delightful occasion!

The MCC has taken the initiative to open a neighborhood discussion with Library staff. Library Director Deborah Jacobs and others from the library staff met with us at our February meeting. Ms.Jacobs reports that the library administration is hoping to develop their visions for each of the new branch libraries before the end of this year. The goal is to complete construction of the Montlake Branch in 2004.

Ms.Jacobs emphasized repeatedly that her staff will work closely with all interested people and groups served by this library branch to make it a source of neighborhood pride. She also explained the budget and various design and policy constraints within which we have to work. We have until sometime in early 2001 to develop a final plan and layout from which architects can start their work.

Site Selection: A site must be found, evaluated and approved. Only then can the architects get down to serious work. Site selection not only affects the building shape and costs, it also determines accessibility of the new library to its patrons. Site costs

compete with the cost of the building for the fixed budget of $2.6M (and as we all know, land in Montlake isn't cheap!). Our first task is to develop a list of plausible sites so that their pros and cons, benefits and impacts can be fully assessed.

Building Design: Ms. Jacobs says that aside from the floor space, no decisions have been reached or serious planning begun on the interior or exterior design of the new facility. Patron input will be the key to a successful facility. Library staff will work with the Club, Montlake School, and other patron groups to this end.

Coordination Plans: The MCC Board asked one of its members, Ellen Judson, to form a neighborhood working group that will work constructively and actively with library staff. Their primary job is to expedite communications between the Club and the Library and to inform and to make recommendations to the Club's members. Ellen has eagerly accepted and is now looking for volunteer members.

Next Steps: Now is the best time for ideas to reach the table for serious consideration while the design is still very fluid. At the February meeting we solicited a list of possible sites to be studied from the attendees at the meeting. This and other library-related topics will dominate the agenda for the March meeting. Please come share your ideas with Ellen and her Library Working Group.

Springing forward: By the time your read this winter will be almost over. Neighborhood crocuses will be in full swing. If you're out on a clear night then grab your binoculars and bid adieu to our old friends Jupiter, Saturn, and Orion before they depart for the summer and fall. Jupiter and Saturn are a pair of bright neighbors high in the south-western sky after dark; Jupiter is the brightest star in the sky and Saturn is about one large fist to its left. Happy March!

Bruce Balick
President
 

Board meeting minutes
February 2, 2000

President Bruce Balick called the meeting to order at 7:35 PM at Conie Bain's home. A quorum was present including: Bruce Balick, Ellen Judson, Mike Storie, Paul Gibson, Scott Burgett, Conie Bain, Diane Thompson, Ron Walken, Jeanine Jacobson, and Mimi DeBurle.

The first order of business was to review the agenda. A list of Montlake residents to be publicly thanked by the Board was presented and all members present signed appropriate "thank you neighbor" cards.

Bruce reported that Debra Jacobs, the project manager for construction of the new Montlake Branch Library, will speak at the next general meeting. There followed some discussion of where the new 5,000-square-foot facility might be located. Some locations that have been discussed in the past are in the Museum of History and Industry building (they are moving), and at the Montlake Playfield. A budget of $2.5 million has been established for the land and building. The two lots owned by MCC were mentioned. One concern of local residents would be that adequate parking and traffic control be established.

It was moved, seconded, and passed that Ellen Judson would head a committee to form a liaison between the community and the library project.

This committee will be open to any resident interested in the new library development.

The Board reviewed the preliminary design of a web page for the Montlake Community. It is not as yet operational, but a "beta test" version is functional. Several suggestions were made as to content and functionality. The effort and value of placing a searchable version of the Flyer online was discussed. The consensus was that the email addresses and personal phone numbers of individual board members would not be posted on the Web as they are in the Flyer. There is no thought of replacing the paper version of the Flyer.

The Montlake web page will be tested for one more month before being made available to the public.

Bruce called for suggestions for the program for the March general meeting. Suggestions included a presentation by the Fire Department's Disaster Response team. Another suggestion was a discussion of pending State legislation that would allow cities to hold elections to see if private/government partner-ships should be set up to manage park facilities such as the Zoo and Aquarium. One controversial point in this plan is that these partnership entities would have the authority to levy taxes to maintain the facilities. Paul Gibson reported that the Arboretum was specifically NOT included in this legislation.

There was a quick review of the terms of office of the various board members. The new slate of board members and officers will be presented at the March general meeting.

Ted Choi had requested that a committee be formed of Montlake residents to review the design of the Community Center. Diane Thompson responded that the Montlake Advisory Council was already doing this and was concerned that we would only be duplicating effort and causing more meetings. Choi's request was denied by the Board.

President Balick adjourned the meeting at 9:45.

General meeting minutes
January 12, 2000

The minutes for the January meeting were inadvertently omitted from the February issue of the Flyer. They are presented here in their entirety. The meeting was called to order at 7:35PM by president Bruce Balick. A quorum of Montlake residents was in attendance.

There were no minutes of the previous meeting as it was a holiday party held at Grady's Pub. President Balick thanked Mr. Grady for so graciously hosting the December meeting.

There was no new business brought up.

Debra Jacobs of the Seattle Public Library will come to the February meeting to discuss the new Montlake Branch Library. $2 million was approved by the voters for this library. This will be a good chance to give input into the early stages of the planning process.

J. Paul Blake, the Director of Communications for Seattle Public Utilities gave a presentation on this important department. SPU is only three years old and has made important strides in water quality and solid waste.

He described their "millennium project" of restoring urban creeks. Water consumption in Seattle is now 118 gallons/person/day (a total of 148 million gallons per day), but that has decreased from 147 gallons/day as a result of water conservation measures.

A short video was presented on solid waste management. There will be new contracts starting in April which will effect collection in our neighborhood. Garbage will be picked up on Wednesdays with recycle material and yard waste picked up on alternate Wednesdays. An extra bag of yard waste will cost $1.25. The goal is to have the trucks on the roads on fewer days and to cut the incidences of empty waste containers left scattered after they have been emptied. Adequate notice of these changes will be mailed to all residents.

The next order of business was the response to the Trans-Lake Study report. Peter Staten had submitted a motion at the October general meeting so that it could be printed in the Flyer and put to a vote in November. Unfortunately, the motion was inadvertently left out of the Flyer and the December meeting was the holiday party. Therefore, the motion was printed in the January issue so that it could be voted on at the January meeting.

Because President Bruce Balick wanted to take a position on the motion, he turned the gavel over to Vice-President Paul Gibson at 8:30PM. Paul read the motion in its entirety and asked if anyone would move that it be adopted.

Liz Bagshaw moved that the motion be approved and Roger Leed seconded.

Bruce Balick was recognized and stated that he generally agreed with the contents of the proposed motion. The state is going ahead with funding to do the scoping study for the environmental impact study (EIS) on the trans-lake options in spite of the effects of I-695. Bruce felt that there were some good points in the study report and to just say "no" at this time would be premature. He felt that Montlake should work with the scoping process and insist that mitigation measures be applied to existing freeways as well as any new ones.

He said we need a response that will be listened to. At this time the plan has no specific details. Bruce felt that the motion on the table was simply too heavy-handed at this early date, and that a strongly worded letter from the President would be more effective.

Bruce had drafted such a letter, which he passed out and summarized. Several people stated that they needed more time to digest the draft letter and that it should be printed in the Flyer so that all residents could see it prior to any further action.

Roger Leed then moved to table the original motion indefinitely.

Jean Leed seconded. The motion to table the original motion indefinitely passed.

It was then moved and seconded that the President would work with a small committee of his choosing to refine his letter prior to publishing it in the February Flyer and that it would be discussed at the February meeting.

President Bruce Balick then took over the meeting at 9:05PM and called for new business.

Resident Bruce McKinney said he would like to see a discussion of what we WOULD like regarding traffic. He stated that traffic in Montlake was much worse than when he moved here in 1992.

Jean Leed said that part of the Trans-Lake Study includes "what to do in the meantime." She asked if there were any volunteers to form a committee to discuss interim traffic solutions.

Karen Ko addressed the meeting and mentioned that February 12 has been designated Neighbor Appreciation Day by the city. Liz Bagshaw said that the cards they printed were very useful for thanking neighbors.

Resident Debra Adler discussed progress toward more equitable distribution of airplane noise over Seattle. This would be accomplished by rerouting airplanes over less densely populated areas such as waterways.

Paul Gibson reported that the city is asking the state for enabling legislation for park districts that would allow private companies to run such facilities as the zoo and the aquarium. These entities would then have some taxation powers. Some people are concerned about abuse of this. Anyone interested in this development should contact Paul.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:30PM.

General Meeting Minutes
February 9, 2000

President Bruce Balick called the meeting to order at 7:30 pm. There were no committee reports or old business. The minutes of the January meeting could not be approved, as they had been inadvertently omitted from the February Flyer. Minutes from January and February appear in this issue.

Bruce deferred new business until after the presentation of Debra Jacobs of the Seattle Public Library. Attending with Debra Jacobs were Library Board Trustee Gil Anderson, board steward for the Montlake Library; Capital Projects Manager Sue Partridge; and Montlake Library staff members Rae Charleton and Jim Nelson.

Debra Jacobs provided information, including printed handouts detailing the funding and schedule of the "Libraries for All" bond issue. Funding for the current plan will be from a combination of private donors and a public bond issue passed in 1998.

Plans for the Montlake branch call for replacement of the current small facility with a 5,000-square-foot branch, to be completed in 2004. The committee is now making initial public contacts to solicit neighborhood input on facility requirements, aesthetics and site selection, prior to the formal public meeting process. At the conclusion of the presentation, Debra Jacobs opened the discussion to the club, asking for concerns and initial ideas for sites.

Parking: Parking was a major concern as was the effective service area for the branch. Debra Jacobs said the plan would take those concerns into consideration, but that zoning and building codes might dictate the amount of parking required.

Sites: President Balick encouraged the club to suggest any sites without regard, for the moment, for practical considerations. Suggestions included: investigating a cooperative agreement to use the parking lot of the Greek Church, which is generally empty during library hours; the two parcels of land owned by Montlake Community Club on 24th Avenue East, which could figure in a possible land swap or be added to the site should adjacent property be procured; the office buildings at the top of 24th Avenue East where it turns into 23rd Avenue East; a site that could make use of the parking lot at Hop-In Groceries; the MOHAI building; and combining the library with plans to upgrade the Montlake Community Center buildings. Suggestions were also offered that a cite be acquired in the business district near the current location of the branch; and in the Madison Valley/Madison Park area. Attending members felt the discussion should focus only on cites in Montlake. The suggestions were noted by the Club and by Library Capital Projects Manger Sue Partridge and will be available when more formal discussions take place.

President Balick next put to the club the proposed letter expressing the sense of the community on the Trans-Lake Washington Study Committee recommendations. The text of the letter was received favorably and the members in attendance unanimously approved sending the letter to Renee Mongelas, director of the Office of Urban Mobility.

New Business: Suzanne Wittmann presented information on the Friends of Interlaken Park grant request. She was asked to submit an announcement on the park restoration effort and grant request for publication in the next issue of the Montlake Flyer and to make a copy of the organization’Äôs plan available at the Montlake Library.

Paul Gibson reported that there have been substantial amendments to the bill before the state legislature that would allow creation of special park management districts, empowered to transfer responsibility for management of public parks, such as the Seattle Aquarium and Woodland Park Zoo, to their private governing bodies. It was agreed that the issue is very complex and it is unlikely the club could mount an appropriate response in time to affect the action in Olympia.

President Balick announced that a new Montlake community club web site was nearly finished, with release planned for March.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:35.

Announcements
Items of interest to Montlake residents

Montlake Advisory Council Meeting

Montlake Advisory Council (MAC) is a volunteer group made up of interested community members who act in an advisory capacity to the Montlake Recreation Center staff in order to help provide maximum recreational opportunities and services for the residents of Montlake and other users of the Center facilities. The MAC worked with the Park Department to build the Bill Dawson bicycle trail, the children’s playground and the new modular building which was installed this past summer. The Montlake Community Center is a busy facility with total user visits over 500,000 per year, which includes the largest summer camp program and the second largest basketball program in the City. We are the second smallest and second oldest center in Seattle. The MAC is beginning a planning process to increase program space at the center. We welcome your ideas and suggestions. Monthly meetings are the first Monday of each month, 7:00-9:00 pm. The next meeting is March 6^th , 7:00 pm in the modular building. The meeting is open to all. Contact Sam Greeley, MAC President GreelS@CHAMPINT.COM, or Roger Peter, center director.

Friends of Interlaken Park Seek Support for Park's Restoration

Interlaken Park is a heavily used city park of approximately 50 acres bounded by Capitol Hill and the Montlake neighborhoods. Friends of Interlaken Park (FIP) is a community group working to steward the park's urban forest. Formed in Spring of 1994, FIP is coordinated by certified tree steward volunteers, Cynthia Putnam and Suzanne Wittmann, who reside in the Capitol Hill and Montlake neighborhoods respectively.

FIP is applying for a matching grant from the City of Seattle Department of Neighborhoods to implement the Interlaken Park Restoration and Education Plan, which was completed in 1997 and approved by the Parks Department. The plan has two primary elements: a vegetation management strategy for two sites in the park, and a park user and park neighbor education plan. Grant funds would be used to purchase plant material for the two sites to replace non-native species and restore degraded areas. Funds would also support interpretive signage in the park and education events, such as walking tours and workshops (e.g., how to be a good neighbor to the park) for park neighbors and teachers.

At the general meeting February 9, FIP requested that MCC draft a letter expressing the community’s support for the FIP application. The request will be discussed in the March general meeting. The Interlaken Park Restoration and Education Plan describes activities to be funded by the grant in more detail. A copy is available at the Montlake Public Library until March 9.

A sample letter of support is included below:

Dear Grant Reviewers,

As President of the Montlake Community Council, I am writing in support of the grant application for the Friends of Interlaken Park.

Their plan to restore and maintain the natural habitat is very much in keeping with the desires of the neighborhood and the current efforts of many communities to conserve open space and parks.

Anyone walking or riding through this greenbelt from Montlake to Capitol Hill would be gratified to know that a group of fifty volunteer neighbors, coordinated by certified Tree Stewards, cares for this area by organizing work parties to maintain plant and tree life, repair trails, and helps educate park users and neighbors. It is a great resource of learning for our children in how to enrich the community with a peaceful, natural environment.

Please help this group improve the park by granting the funds requested for restoration and education.

Sincerely,

XXXX

Swim Club Open to Montlake Children

The Central Area Aquatics Team (CAAT) is a nonprofit, parent-run swim club dedicated to providing the best and most cost-effective swimming opportunities for the children of Montlake and other neighborhoods in and around the Central Area. CAAT is a member of United States Swimming, the umbrella organization for competitive swimming in the U.S. Our swimmers range in age from 6 to 17 and compete at various levels in local and regional age-group swim meets. Swimmers are divided into Bronze, Silver, and Gold levels that reflect both age and level of competition. We practice every weekday from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at Medgar Evers Pool, 500 23^rd Ave. (adjacent to Garfield High School). Our coach, Jamie Millar, has had extensive coaching experience in the Boston and Seattle areas. At Carnegie Mellon University he was swim team captain and two-time All-America. Come and visit us at any of our practices, or call CAAT president Peter Byers (328-0999), coach Jamie Millar (726-0710) or CAAT board member and Montlake resident Bruce Fulton (325-2838) for further details.

Train To Be a Watershed Volunteer

Are you concerned about the environment? Wondering how you can help in salmon recovery efforts?

WSU Cooperative Extension, King County's Land/Water Stewardship Program, is recruiting for the 2000 Watershed Steward Training. Land/Water stewards are trained volunteers who help others make educated choices about the use of their land and water resources. Selected applicants will receive 70+ hours of training about watersheds and their resources. In return for the training, volunteers agree to provide a minimum of 70 hours of outreach and education to residents of King County.

The program is looking for people willing to volunteer in specific geographic areas, as well as self-directed projects, formal and informal presentations, and agency projects. The training will be held in the greater Seattle area every Friday from March 31 to May 26, 2000 (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.). Field trips will be held on two Saturdays.

To receive a Land/Water Stewardship Application Packet, phone 206-296-3900 and leave your name, address, and phone number. Outside the Seattle calling area, dial toll-free 1-800-325-6165 extension 6-3900. Visit our web site at http://king.wsu.edu/ NatResources/lwsintro.htm. The application deadline is 4:00 p.m. on Friday, March 10, 2000.

Response to Trans-Lake Washington Transportation Study Report

The draft letter published in February's FLYER was approved at the February meeting. The letter expresses Montlake's response to the Trans-Lake Washington Study Report. President Balick has submitted it to Ms. Renee Mongelas, Director of WSDOT's Office of Urban Mobility.

NEDC Meeting Report

By Paul Gibson

At its February meeting the Northeast District Council heard a presentation on the proposed development of the Northgate Mall. The block south of the developed area, currently used for parking and temporary events, is to be developed for more shopping, residences, a hotel, one of the world's largest cinemas and more. The area contains the headwaters of one branch of Thornton Creek which has been the object of restoration and flood control efforts recently. Opponents of the development believe it will put increased stress on the creek, increasing the likelihood of flooding and destruction of salmon spawning areas. The Thornton Creek Legal Defense Fund is seeking citizen participation. (206-522-5919 or knoll@igc.org)

We were alerted to a two block-long condo development planned for NE Blakeley, the street north of University Village. The building would create a multistory solid wall along the Burke/Gilman and Blakeley.

We learned that the parks funding legislation for which the City has been lobbying in Olympia was moved out of committee in a modified form, which allayed some fears of local community activists who oppose the measure.

The NEDC is composed of representatives from the MCC, Portage Bay/Roanoke C.C. and various organizations (mostly community councils) located north of the canal to NE 95th Street and between I-5 and Lake Washington. It is one of 12 District Councils that send representatives to the City Neighborhood Council. Responsibilities of the CNC include review and recommendations regarding City budget issues including especially the Neighborhood Matching Fund and the Neighborhood Street Fund. The NEDC frequently airs issues of concern to individual member organizations such as traffic, land use, and legislative proposals, and may adopt positions of support. Thus the system of district and city wide councils provide a formal structure for neighborhood organizations to influence City policies. Questions? Call 323 - 1851.

CUCAC Meeting Report

By Ken Fales

Discussions at the February 8, 2000 City University Community Advisory Committee (CUCAC) included two issues of immediate concern to residents of Montlake.

First, the University of Washington Medical Center is going ahead with plans and design for an "Ambulatory Care Pavilion" located in the parking lots (S-10) east of the UW Hospital complex. This building has been proposed for a number of years and now is receiving serious attention. It is billed as a three-story structure above ground with a three-level garage below. No pictures or plans are available at this date, but it is supposed to be "hidden" behind the trees and shrubbery on the west side of Montlake Boulevard and south side of NE Pacific. An EIS scoping meeting is scheduled for March.

Second, preparation of the University of Washington Campus Master Plan (CMP) for the years 2000 to 2010 is on schedule. A preliminary plan with pictures will be issued the week of September 11, 2000. To further a better understanding of the CMP content, the UW planning folks invite us to visit the web site www.washington.edu/community/cmp.html. Your comments are welcome.

Of utmost interest to Montlake, UW planners will post a draft Transportation Management Plan (TMP) on this web site by the end of February 2000. The TMP is a vital part of the whole plan. Use of the internet site may enhance communication between the UW and its neighbors during the planning process.

Classified ads are free for Montlake residents, subject to the following restrictions; a) repeated ads may be refused. b) space per family may be restricted to 1.5 column inches per issue. Ads exceeding this length may be shortened by abbreviation or omitted entirely if there is a shortage of space. c) material of questionable taste will not be published. Submissions to Editor, The Montlake Flyer, 4756 U. Vill. Pl. NE #446, Seattle, WA 98105-5021, or via e-mail to summerwood@home.com. The March issue deadline is Friday, February 11,2000.