SR-520 Fountain Replacement Considered
View the drawings,
voice your opinions
Have you wondered why the fountains beside our
bridge to Bellevue no longer function? Did you even know they are fountains?
They are turned off because the filters that clean the water before it is
pumped through the works need to be cleaned on a recurring basis. For awhile
the designer of the fountains, Mr. Max Gurvich, paid for the filter
maintenance, but neither he nor the Department of Highways was willing to
continue the maintenance, so the water ceased to flow. To deal with this
unsatisfactory state of affairs, Mr. Gurvich has prepared a proposal for a new
pair of objet d’art to replace them.
The Department of Transportation has approved
the structural qualities of the proposed work, but is requiring approval by the
Seattle City Council before giving Mr. Gurvich the go ahead. The Department, by
way of Mr. Gurvich, is also soliciting the opinion of the Montlake neighborhood
regarding the installation. When this information was presented to the MCC
Board of Trustees, the Board quickly concluded that in such a subjective
judgment as the merits of public art, the question should be passed to the
broader community. Mr. Gurvich did provide a graphic representation of his
proposal, which is available on the MCC web page at montlake.net. If you
do not have access to the internet, you should be able to use a computer at the
library to get to the MCC web site. Pictures have also been posted on bulletin
boards at Mont's Market and at the Community Center.
The
geometry of the proposed work is quite simple, basically an inverted pyramid,
but with enough taken off the point to provide a base. The two pieces would use
the pedestals now occupied by the fountains and appear to be of about the same
height. The sculptures are created from sheets of reflective, stainless steel
and copper which are woven around the structure in nine bands of alternating
color; green, copper and blue.
Since
the metal sheets are not flat, an ever changing pattern of reflection is
created. The same metals can be seen, used in a similar manner across the front
of the Office Max store at 14th Avenue NW and NW Leary Way. Costs of
installation would be met privately.
The Washington Department
of Highways has made Mr. Gurvich responsible for establishing that his work has
support in Montlake and other neighborhoods. Accordingly the MCC Board of Trustees
urges all who would support this project to write to Mr. Gurvich. The address
is: Mr. Max Gurvich, 1700 Westlake Avenue North, Suite 700, Seattle, WA 98109.
Help MCC Welcome Spring at Plant Exchange
Come early to MCC
meeting
By
Mimi DeBurle
MCC
is hosting a plant exchange immediately before the regular club meeting this
month. One way we can spread the joy of our gardens is to share any abundance
we have. I know I have a hard time throwing usable plants or plant parts. If
you are the same and find that you end up with more of a plant than you can use
in your garden, please come and share at what we hope will become the first
annual or semi-annual plant exchange. Please come to the Montlake Community
Center a bit early at 7:00pm to meet other gardening neighbors, have a cup of
coffee, and exchange plants. If you have no plants, but are interested in
acquiring some, you are welcome, as well. It would be a good idea to bring a
container to keep your plants in good shape during the meeting.
President’s Corner
I’d
like to welcome this month and spring with my sincere thanks for the energetic
efforts of three community club members who have recently made significant
contributions to the quality of life in our neighborhood. Mimi DeBurle of the
Beautification Committee has focused attention on some neglected corners of our
community and is organizing the volunteer and city grant activities necessary
to improve the appearance these parcels. Shane Doran, chairman and sole member
of the Club’s nominating committee, has assembled a very strong slate of
candidates to represent both our community’s residents and its business owners.
Peter Staten has kept a sharp and analytical eye on developments of the
Trans-Lake Washington Study and drafted a resolution stipulating the precise
types of information Montlake needs to participate meaningfully in development
of the plan for SR-520.
On
the subject of the SR-520 plan, I would like to remind every family and
business owner that the time is growing short in which we as a community can
make our wishes known to the design team. I would therefore encourage every one
of you to take the time to jot down your answer to two simple questions:
Ø What does Montlake
really want for SR-520 improvement?
Ø
What
mitigation would your family or business value?
The Environmental Impact Statement process will begin
soon and it will be too late to introduce new ideas at that point. Reactive
measures after the process is complete cannot be as effective as a timely
contribution before hand.
Send your ideas via the Club’s web site at
montlake.net or mail to the Montlake Community Club, 4756 University Village
Place Northeast, box #446, Seattle, WA 98105. Or share your thoughts at a
Montlake Community Club meeting, the second Wednesday of each month.
--Clarissa Easton
Board Meeting Minutes
March 7, 2001 The Board of Trustees of the Montlake Community Club
convened at 7:30pm at the Montlake Community Center, with president Clarissa
Easton presiding. Members Dubman, Doran, Gibson, Jacobson, Judson, Lindemann,
Kolb, and Thompson were present.
Nomination of Officers and Board of Trustees: Shane Doran, chair of the Nominating Committee,
reported that the committee's current list of candidates consisted of:
President:
Clarissa Easton
Vice President:
Jonathan Dubman
Secretary:
Robert Newhouse
Treasurer:
Moira Conner
Full-term trustees: Neil Weschler, Scott Coughlin, Don Argus
Trustee to complete final year of term of Mimi
DeBurle: not confirmed.
Shane said that biographical information for the
coming newsletter was still needed on a few.
Action:
The mechanics of the nominating process were reviewed by the secretary and
nominations validated.
MCC Web Site Policy: Jonathan Dubman distributed a new draft of the standing policy for
MCC's web site. It was very slightly changed from the original, which was
submitted last May. Marty Lindemann brought up the importance of protecting
email addresses of those who participate in forums. Mr. Dubman acknowledged
this, saying that he felt that a service available from Yahoo provided the
necessary safeguards. Motion: Mr. Lindemann moved to adopt the
draft policy with the addition of the sentence, "THE WEBMASTER WILL STRIVE
TO MAINTAIN THE PRIVACY OF INDIVIDUAL EMAIL ADDRESSES." in section (4). Discussion:
Paul Gibson questioned the exact meaning of the phrase "list owner"
in that same section. By general consent, the phrase was changed to
"ADMINISTRATOR OF THE LIST." Lee Kolb pointed out that, while there
was agreement that the webmaster was not responsible for editorial content,
this responsibility had not been assigned elsewhere in the document. By general
agreement, the sentence, "The webmaster has responsibility for the
content of the web site," was replaced by "THE BOARD HAS
RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE CONTENT OF THE WEB SITE. THE WEBMASTER HAS
RESPONSIBILITY FOR OPERATION OF THE WEB SITE AND FOR PUBLISHING THE APPROVED
CONTENT." Action: With these changes, the motion to approve
the policy was passed (see reference 1 below).
Grant Proposal for Community Participation: Jean Leed, who was not present, had suggested that
the board plan for a mini-retreat after the election, and had offered to lead
in organizing it and obtaining a Department of Neighborhoods grant to help pay
for it. Her proposal had been to spend a half day with a consultant developing
consensus on approaches to managing issues in the coming year, but some board
members felt that the narrower issue of increasing community participation in
club activities was more important. Motion: Diane Thompson moved
that the board ask Jean Leed to write a grant proposal and plan a leadership
and/or a community participation workshop for the board. Action:
The motion was passed.
SR-520 Decorative Sculptures: Lee Kolb summarized recent discussions with Mr. Max
Gurvich, designer of the (inoperative) fountains at the west end of the SR-520
bridge on Lake Washington, and with the Wash. State Dept. of Transportation.
Mr. Gurvich has proposed replacing the fountains with sheet metal sculptures of
his design, and WSDOT has asked him to provide letters of support from the
community. He asked that the Montlake Community Club provide a letter of
support. Conclusion: The board generally felt that artistic taste
was better expressed by individuals, and that the proposed change should be
made available to the community in general, with information on how to register
opinions. Action: Paul Gibson volunteered to get the information
into the newsletter, and Jonathan Dubman, to follow up with pictures on the web
site.
Montlake Branch Library Siting: Ellen Judson reported that the Seattle Library Board
plans to hold a public meeting sometime in March to again address the issue of
a site for the new Montlake branch. She said that they are anxious to make a
decision and still have the same four sites on their preferred list, although
they may introduce some new alternatives at this meeting. Some board members
expressed concern about adequate notice of the meeting being provided in the
community. Action: There was informal agreement to try to
supplement the Library Board's notification process with a web notice, posters,
and, possibly, a community-wide home-delivered flyer.
Arboretum Master Plan: Paul Gibson mentioned the Arboretum Master Plan
hearing at City Hall, 11th floor, on March 28, 5:30pm. He expressed the view
that the plan had evolved from a turkey to something nearer a swan, and
emphasized that the last opportunity to influence this on-going evolution would
be at this meeting.
General Meeting Agenda: President Easton said she had arranged a program on
Salmon-Friendly Gardening by Seattle Public Utilities for the April general
meeting. She asked if the board favored devoting a general meeting to a
"candidates' night" prior to the elections next fall. The response
was generally positive. Paul Gibson mentioned that some of the most successful
events of this type in the past have been conducted in cooperation with other
neighborhoods.
Trans-Lake Project Information: President Easton introduced a letter from the Seattle
members of the Trans-Lake Advisory Committee and Project Design Workshop groups
to the Seattle members of the Executive Committee (Richard McIver, Heidi Wills,
Richard Conlin, and Daryl Grigsby). The letter asked that they provide minutes
or summaries of the Executive Committee meetings. She said the Advisory
Committee and Workshop members were concerned that our Executive Committee
representatives were often missing their meetings. Motion:
President Easton asked for the board to approve of the Montlake
representatives' signatures on the letter. Jeanine Jacobson introduced a motion
to approve. Action: The motion was passed, although some board
members expressed the view that the letter did not directly address the
concerns.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:30pm.
Reference 1: Montlake
Community Club Web Site Policies
Introduction
The Montlake
Community Club web site is published under the direction of the board of
trustees to keep the community informed of news, events and other items of
interest which are relevant to the membership. It is also referred to as
"Montlake.net". It communicates club and board activities and also
provides a forum for the community.
(1) Editorial and Content
Policies
The board
has responsibility for the content of the web site. The webmaster has
responsibility for operation of the web site and for publishing the approved
content. The webmaster shall be appointed by the club president, subject to
approval by the board.
The content of the newsletter
(also referred to as the "Montlake Flyer"), with exceptions as stated
in the Advertising Policies and Email Policies sections below, will be
replicated on the web site. The webmaster will work with the newsletter editor
to accomplish this. Newsletters will remain archived on the site.
The home page of the web site
will announce the particulars of the next community meeting.
A listing of the club
officers and trustees will be on the web site.
The text of the club's bylaws
and policies will be on the web site.
The web site shall include a
calendar with dates and details of public meetings relevant to the community.
It shall also include links to various community services and publications and
other information of general interest.
The web site will not
"take a position" on any issue unless the membership, via the means
set down in the bylaws, has taken such a position. The webmaster shall strive
for a neutral position in presenting both news and the opinions of others. The
webmaster shall not offer personal opinions on submitted material. Invited
contributions may be published in such a section.
Feedback from club members
will be encouraged to improve the accuracy, quality and usefulness of the site.
The newsletter will publish
the address of the website (also known as the "URL") in each issue.
(2) Advertising Policies
Until a web
site advertising policy is developed by the board, advertisements will not be
permitted on the web site. Advertisements published in the newsletter will not
be replicated on the web site.
(3) E-mail Policies
In order to
protect against unsolicited e-mail, e-mail addresses of club members will not
be published on the site without permission of their owners. Officers,
trustees, appointees and committee members will receive generic addresses at
montlake.net (such as president@montlake.net, treasurer@montlake.net, etc.)
that will forward in turn to their respective e-mail accounts. As the e-mail
addresses of the persons holding these positions change over time, so will the
forwarding addresses. These generic addresses will be published on the web
site.
(4) Forum Policies
The
webmaster shall create a system for creating and managing e-mail distribution
lists (also known as forums or mailing lists) for announcements and group
discussion. Any club member can request creation of a mailing list by providing
the suggested name and initial membership list to a form on the Web site.
Membership in any mailing list is always voluntary; every list member will have
the option of being removed from a list at any time. The creator of the list
will be the initial administrator of the list, though this responsibility may
be passed to another club member. Some lists may be open for any to join and
others restricted, at the discretion of the administrator. Some lists may be
open for any to contribute, some may be moderated by the administrator or any
delegates thereof who must preapprove any submissions, and others (intended for
news and announcements) may only allow postings by the administrator, at the
discretion of the administrator. Mailing lists that are open for the public to
join or contribute shall be publicized on the web site. The Montlake Community
Club will thus provide the means for discourse via mailing lists, but
contributors to any such lists shall maintain responsibility for their own
submissions. The board shall exercise its own discretion if it is determined in
any case that this public service is being used inappropriately.
Adopted by the MCC Board of
Trustees on March 7, 2001
General Meeting Minutes
March 14, 2001
The Montlake Community Club
convened at 7:3 pm at the Montlake Community Center, with president Clarissa
Easton presiding.
Nominations of Officers and Trustees: Nominating Committee Chair Shane Doran made the
following nominations for next month's annual election:
President—Clarissa
Easton
Vice-President—Jonathan
Dubman
Secretary—Robert
Newhouse
Treasurer—Moira
Conner
Trustees (full
3-year term)—Neil Weschler, Scott Coughlin, Don Argus
Trustee (final
year of open position)—Heidi Powell, with Andy Jessup as alternate.
Action: President Easton asked for further nominations from
the floor. None were offered.
Resolution:
Peter Staten moved that the club approve the following resolution:
The Membership of the Montlake Community Club asks
that the Scope of Work for Trans-Lake Washington Study EIS include the
following:
A. For
each SR-520 alternative selected for inclusion in the EIS, an illustrative
design shall be provided showing traffic improvements or alterations at the
Montlake SR-520 interchange. The designs shall show what improvements are
required for managing additional traffic or change in transportation modes
created by the alternative. For this purpose, the Montlake Interchange shall be
taken to extend along 24th Avenue East and East Montlake Place East and
Montlake Boulevard East, from the intersection of 24th Avenue East with East
Louisa Street on the south, to the intersection of Montlake Boulevard East with
Northeast Pacific Street on the north, and include all the street intersections
between; and shall include the Arboretum on- and off-ramps.
B. Design
volumes and directions at each intersection shall be the sum of estimated
growth of in-city traffic volumes (based on adopted growth plans for the City
of Seattle) plus estimated volumes to and from the Montlake interchange and the
SR-520 ramps for each SR-520 alternative. The baseline volumes shall be
existing volumes in the year 2000. The design volumes and directions shall be
those projected for the year 2020.
C. Each
design shall include the following information: number and direction of traffic
lanes required to accommodate projected 2020 traffic on local streets at the
Interchange; signalization for each intersection, including phase time and
sequence; number and dimensions (length) of left-turn lanes on Montlake
Boulevard; number and dimensions of merge lanes on Montlake Boulevard exiting
SR-520; number and dimensions of queuing lanes leading from Montlake Boulevard
to SR-520.
D. Each
design shall specify what mitigations are necessary to limit the environmental
impacts of the design on the local street system and adjacent properties,
together with their estimated costs.
E. Each
design shall describe how that design may affect current or future plans of the
City of Seattle for the Montlake Interchange, and assess its effect on
applicable Level of Service standards ("Concurrency") of the Seattle
Comprehensive Plan.
Discussion: After a second, he made the
following points in arguing for its adoption:
·
The
Trans Lake Study is about to enter the Environmental Impact Statement phase.
·
The
Montlake Community's concern regarding the potential enlargement of SR-520 and
impact it may have on the local streets.
·
The
questions on local impact need to be answered before any construction decisions
are made.
·
The
resolution simply asks that these questions be answered in the EIS.
Jonathan Dubman suggested an amendment to enlarge the
geographical area to which the resolution applies so as to include nearby
streets outside of Montlake which would be directly connected to SR-520 if some
of the present design ideas were implemented. Mr. Staten responded that it was
difficult to predict which of the ideas might be around very long, and he felt
it more appropriate to restrict the resolution to Montlake's streets. The
amendment was withdrawn.
Jeff Peacock, Consultant Project Manager for the Trans
Lake Study, remarked that the resolution captured what would typically be
considered in a proper EIS, with the exception of the requirement to define
traffic signal timing.
Amendment: After some discussion as to
how the resolution, if passed, would be used, Nancy Beadie and Paul Gibson
proposed that its first sentence be amended to insert the names of the four
Trans-Lake Study lead agencies after the verb "asks." This amendment
was made by general agreement. There was additional discussion about the need
for an identified community point of contact, but no general agreement.
Action: President Easton asked for a vote on the resolution,
as amended, and it passed with near-unanimous approval.
University Area Transportation Study Presentation: President Easton introduced Jon Layzer, Strategic
Transportation Advisor in the City of Seattle Strategic Planning Office, who is
project manager for the city's University Area Transportation Study. Mr. Layzer
began by mentioning that Seattle now has funds for simple
transportation-related neighborhood grants, then passed out a brochure
describing the program. Scope: He then described the study as a
12 month effort to develop a multimode 10-year plan for the area bounded by I-5
on the west, NE 65th on the north, 35th NE on the east,
and the Lake Washington Ship Canal on the south, plus the Montlake Boulevard
corridor across the canal and south to SR-520. Process: The study
is to be coordinated with other plans affecting the same geographic area,
including the University of Washington Transportation Management Plan. The
principal mechanism for public involvement is the University District Sounding
Board, which meets the third Thursday of every month, 5:30 to 7:00pm, at the
University Heights Center. Membership on the Sounding Board is open to
representatives of communities in the affected area. He is also trying to
involve the public by his appearances at community meetings. Output:
Public open houses are tentatively planned for June and October, after which a
draft of the plan will be prepared. A project newsletter and web site are also
coming. At this point, Mr. Layzer supplied a handout entitled "University
Area Transportation Study Project Overview." It contained three maps
of the study area, entitled "Pedestrian and Bicycle Problem Areas",
"Transit Problem Areas", and "Roadway and Intersection
Problem Areas." Schedule: According to Mr. Layzer, the
first three months of the study period are being devoted to identifying the
problems in the study region (as identified in the maps), compiling a list of
possible solutions (both novel and previously considered), and setting up
evaluation criteria for solutions. Montlake Focus: The specific
problems identified on the maps for the Montlake Bridge and SR-520 interchange
area were pedestrian/bicycle conflicts, low transit speeds, constrained bridge
capacity, congested interchanges, and insufficient vehicle storage capacity.
The balance of the program was devoted to questions,
suggestions, and complaints, summarized as follows:
·
Montlake Bridge openings
for boat traffic are a major cause of the automobile traffic problems.
Negotiate with the Federal Government about changing priorities for bridge
openings.
·
Consider as another
problem the greatly increased use of the Fuhrman/Boyer/Lynn Street route by
cars trying to avoid the Montlake Boulevard congestion.
·
Another pedestrian
problem is crossing streets around the SR-520 interchange, now that traffic
signals have lost their meaning.
Q. Who is
representing the interests of Montlake and of bicyclists in the preparation of
this plan?
A. Montlake should appoint one or more representatives to the Sounding
Board.
Q. What
is the schedule for plan development, and what are the deliverables?
A. First newsletter next month, a late-May newsletter, which should have
the completed list of identified problems and possible solutions, a series of
open houses beginning in June, a final package of solutions to be submitted for
technical analysis, and a report on the results of the analysis and identification
of potential funding sources for solutions in the fall.
Q. Will
the study include the effects of the UW proposal for significant changes to
Campus Parkway?
A. Only if the street vacation is approved by the city.
Q. Is
there any money to fund solutions?
A. The city has little money of its own. One part of the study is to try to
find ways of paying for improvements as part of state-funded projects or as
part of planned city arterial rebuilds.
Q. Any
chance of eliminating some on-street parking to provide bicycle corridors?
A. Wholesale parking elimination is hard to sell, but subtle changes are
possible and can sometimes produce significant improvements.
In another traffic study some years ago, the phrase
"managing traffic in place", meaning making improvements without
moving the problems, became popular. It should be a goal of this study.
Beautification Committee: Beautification Committee Chair Mimi DeBurle reported
that, as a result of some volunteer clearing by neighbors, improving the
triangle at 23rd and Newton now took precedence over the planned
improvement project at the club-owned lot at 24th and Boyer. She
asked for landscape improvement work party volunteers for both locations so she
could estimate the size of a city matching grant she would apply for.
Arboretum Master Plan: Joe Marshall encouraged attendance and participation
by club members at the final public hearing on the Arboretum Master Plan on
March 28. Motion: Paul Gibson moved that the Montlake Community
Club send a letter to the City Council identifying the elements of the Club's
resolution on arboretum development that are in conflict with the present plan.
Action: The motion was seconded and passed.
Library Siting:
Ellen Judson announced that a Seattle Public Library Board public meeting on
site selection for the Montlake Branch is scheduled for the Montlake Community
Center on Monday, March 26. She described the many mechanisms for public notice
she had suggested to the Library Board and mentioned that the Club is also
undertaking a campaign to notify its members.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:25 p.m.
Candidate’s Statements
Office of President
Clarissa Easton: Clarissa has been asked
to stand for a second term as the Club’s president in 2001. She is an architect
who works for King County government. She lived in Montlake from 1980 through
1990 and served as president of MCC from 1986 to 1989. After living on Capitol
Hill for ten years, she and her two children are thrilled to again reside in
Montlake. Respecting the privilege of an address in this fair neighborhood, she
is delighted to have been nominated to serve as MCC president in 2001. She
believes key issues are transportation, environmental stewardship, and civic
collaboration. Clarissa will be grateful for your support of the community club
in 2001.
Office of Vice President:
Jonathan
Dubman:
I am fortunate to have lived in Montlake since 1993. I've enjoyed getting to
know more neighbors by serving as webmaster for montlake.net, participating on
various committees and, recently, by filling in as a trustee. I have been a
vocal participant in the Trans-Lake Washington Project that presents major
opportunities and risks for Montlake. Seattle neighborhoods need to band
together and stay involved to make sure that the preferred alternative
minimizes noise, pollution, through-traffic and other impacts, and maximizes
benefits. I oppose adding general purpose lanes to 520, new bridges over the
cut, or taking our homes or parks. I would like to lid 520 at Montlake, but I'm
concerned about living in a construction zone for 10 years. I support safety
measures, better transit and bicycle access, and solutions that address
congestion on Montlake Blvd. I also want to reduce speeding on 24th, nourish
our small commercial district, retain our historic character, keep a watchful
eye on UW, Sound Transit and our city council, and enhance trails and
pedestrian safety. I want to build online forums to involve more community
members who may not have time to devote to meetings.
Office of Treasurer
Moira
Connor:
[Statement not available at time of print.]
Office of Secretary
Bob
Newhouse:
I have been in and out of the Pacific Northwest since the early
1950s—Bremerton, Sand Point, etc., during my Navy years—and consulting work at
Boeing in the 1970s and 1980s. Four years ago, My wife and I moved permanently
to Seattle (Montlake) just blocks from our daughter. I have served on the
Arboretum Park Preservation Coalition (APPC), a charter of the MCC, and just
recently on the Library Committee. I look forward to service with the Montlake
Community Club.
Trustees
Scott
Coughlin:
I'm a Seattle native who has spent the last eleven years in Montlake. My wife
Lisa and I have two great boys, one at Montlake and a second at Lowell.
Although I currently work in web-related business development, in the past I
worked professionally in political campaign management at the city, county and
state level. Our neighborhood and community council have a well-deserved
reputation among Seattle's policy makers for activism and civic engagement.
It's no wonder. We have a great place to live here, and many reasons to be
involved. I would like to bring my practical experience to that effort, and
work to ensure that Montlake's political engagement is always creative,
effective and adaptive.
Neil
Wechsler:
I first moved to the Montlake/North Capitol Hill area in 1970 as a UW student.
I moved back in 1980 to open the Montlake Bicycle Shop. My wife, Mary, works at
Group Health and my daughter, Sadie, goes to Garfield. For the last 20 years I
have tried to provide Montlake and the surrounding neighborhoods with a
friendly and helpful place to address all their bicycling needs. If my
experience in the neighborhood would be of benefit to the Community Council I
would be pleased to serve on its board.
Don
Argus: Don
Argus followed his wife Nancy Beadie west to Seattle in 1993. They rented a
house on East Calhoun Street and bought it the following year. They are pleased
to live within walking distance of the University and major transit routes to downtown.
Since Mont's Market opened they rarely have to drive. They intend to stay put,
as seven years of soil amendments are beginning to have some effect. Don is an
architect with a firm in Pioneer Square. His work concentrates on affordable
housing, hygiene centers and building preservation. He is mad as hell at the
way people drive through our neighborhood. He hopes to work for calmer traffic,
pedestrian safety, and stable boundaries between land uses in Montlake.
Heidi
Powell:
Heidi Powell and Andy Jessup have lived in Montlake since 1990. We both work at
the University of Washington and have two daughters that attend Montlake
Elementary. Andy is active in the PTA as cochairman of the carnival committee
and Heidi volunteers in the classroom weekly. We are interested in representing
Montlake school at the Montlake Community Council meetings.
Trans-Lake Washington Project Q&A
Bruce
Balick posed the following questions to the Trans-Lake Washington Project in
conjunction with March 6 open house at MOHAI. Trans-Lake Washington Project
consultant team Project Manager Jeff Peacock, PE, graciously provided the
accompanying responses.
Q. In broad terms, what
is the Trans-Lake project trying to accomplish?
A.
The
overall objective of the project is to improve mobility for people and goods in
the SR-520 corridor while avoiding, minimizing, or mitigating environmental
impacts to natural areas and the built environment. Today, congestion and the
lack of travel reliability in the corridor are seriously degrading the quality
of life for travelers using the corridor, and for those living near the
corridor as a result of high levels of noise and clogged arterials approaching
SR-520. The congestion and lack of reliability is also having a negative effect
on businesses and commerce in the region. These conditions will obviously
become much worse if nothing is done to improve mobility in the corridor. The
Washington State Department of Transportation and Sound Transit are committed
to developing community-based solutions to improve upon the regional and
community problems associated with SR-520.
Q. What physical changes
to the SR-520 roadway and its entrance/exit ramps are contemplated from Foster
Island to I-5?
A. Alternatives being
considered include widening SR 520 from four to six lanes (add one high
occupancy vehicle (HOV); or bus-only lane in each direction) or eight lanes
(one general purpose (GP) lane and one HOV or bus-only lane in each direction).
High capacity transit (HCT) options, including rail or bus rapid transit are
also under consideration for the corridor.
HCT options include an alignment in the SR-520 corridor, which
would tunnel under I-5 to the Eastlake/Fairview area. Two different options
provide HCT access to the University of Washington from SR-520 across the
Montlake Cut. One generally runs south of Pacific Street, the other generally
along Montlake Boulevard to NE 45th Street. Both of these alignments
would access downtown Seattle west of Lake Union.
On the roadway side, the interchange with Montlake Boulevard would
be reconstructed including a new transit stop. The ramps from Lake Washington
Boulevard would be relocated. Additionally, a new connection from SR-520 at
Lake Washington Boulevard to the Montlake Boulevard/Pacific Street intersection
is being considered. This connection would cross the Montlake Cut north of the
Museum of History and Industry. At I-5, new ramp work depends on which
alternative is selected. With the six-lane alternative, only a reversible ramp
from SR 520 to the I-5 south express lanes is proposed. The eight-lane
alternative may include a new ramp from I-5 to SR-520, HOV reversible ramps to
the north and south express lanes, and a tunnel from SR-520 to the
Eastlake/Fairview intersection.
Q. Precisely what park,
public, or private land will need to be added to the enlarged SR-520 right of
way from Foster Island to I-5?
A. Right-of-way requirements
will depend on which alternative is selected. It is still too early in the
design process to determine exact right-of-way needs, especially at
interchanges. Widening through the Portage Bay area may be to the north side or
the south side. Widening to the north side would impact the adjacent marinas
and the NOAA facility, but would stay away from a park area and environmentally
sensitive shorelines to the south. Widening to the south would have the
opposite impacts. One facility that is
likely to be impacted is the Museum of History and Industry. The existing
roadway through this area has several back-to-back curves that should be
straightened for safety considerations. The museum and the Horace McCurdy park
are within the area that is likely to be widened for the roadway and ramps.
Some additional right of way may be needed through the Arboretum; however, it
is anticipated that relocation of the Lake Washington Boulevard ramps will
mitigate some of the increased right-of-way needs within the Arboretum.
Throughout the corridor, retaining walls will be used where practicable to
minimize the highway footprint. Lids may be used near Montlake Boulevard and
near I-5 to help reduce noise and provide open space for the communities.
Q. What changes are
being proposed for Montlake’s arterials and neighborhood streets, homes,
buildings and pedestrian/bikeways?
A. The SR-520 corridor
will include a pedestrian/bicycle path across Lake Washington to the Montlake
area. Connections will be made to the Arboretum trail system. Interchange
design at Montlake Boulevard and Lake Washington Boulevard will strive to
maintain the current balance between traffic on 24th Avenue/Montlake
Boulevard and Lake Washington Boulevard. Local access may be altered on some
streets in the vicinity of interchanges. Modifications could include
cul-de-sacs, right-in/right-out intersections or relocation of signals. The new
connection under consideration between SR-520 at Lake Washington Boulevard and
the Pacific Street/Montlake Boulevard intersection could provide significant
congestion relief to Montlake Boulevard. At this point, there may be commercial
displacements along Montlake Boulevard south of SR-520, but no residential
displacements are anticipated with any of the alternatives in this area.
However, we are very early in the design process and more detailed information
is required before concluding this for certain. We are making a great effort to
avoid displacements whenever possible.
Q. How will all of these
changes mitigate the impacts of the increased noise, pollution, and local
traffic congestion? Please be quantitative.
A. We are too early in the design process to be able to
identify what specific changes should be made or exactly what their mitigating
effect may be. We are, however, guardedly optimistic that some of the ideas
under consideration will improve conditions in the Montlake area from what is
being experienced today and what is certain to be worse in the future. While it
is still early in the design process, we are developing mitigation and
enhancement concepts integrally with the development of transportation
concepts. Ideas include covering SR-520 to address noise and community
connectivity and modifying the connections to SR-520 at Montlake Boulevard and
the Arboretum with the objective of lessening the traffic problems on Montlake
Boulevard.
Q. In your view, why
should Montlake residents consider supporting the proposed changes?
A. Let me begin by stating
that supporting any changes or not, getting involved with what is going on is
critical for Montlake residents. We are committed to community-based solutions
for the challenges in the SR-520 corridor and the residents’ perspectives are
invaluable to the planning and engineering team.
Montlake has suffered from
the impact of SR-520 for nearly 40 years, with the situation worsening every
year. The trend of reducing the quality of life and community livability in
Montlake is certain to continue if significant investments are not made in the
corridor and in the community. We believe many of the ideas under consideration
can greatly improve upon what is in store for the community and commuters along
SR-520, should nothing be done. The periods of high noise levels will grow
later into the evening and earlier into the morning. At the same time, traffic
along Montlake Boulevard, Lake Washington Boulevard and the adjacent streets
will continue to worsen, making it more and more difficult to get in and out of
the neighborhoods to go to the store, pick up children or commute to work.
Much
of our design focus has been, and will continue to be, to look for
opportunities to create “win-win” solutions for addressing regional mobility
and community livability issues. By understanding what the future holds in the
do-nothing case, as well as the various effects of potential improvements,
Montlake residents put themselves in a position to voice support, or lack of
support, for specific ideas that may be developed. In a nutshell, Montlake
residents should consider supporting changes to SR-520 if they believe the
improvements will improve the quality of life for their families and neighbors.
We are confident the planning and engineering team can help residents
understand each scenario, and we are also confident residents can help our team
understand community issues beyond the numbers. We only ask that everyone get
involved and form their opinions based on objective information being developed
in response to regional and community issues.
Jeff Peacock is Vice President Environmental and
Infrastructure Services, Parametrix Inc. His background includes 23 years of
planning, design, and construction on a variety of highway and transit related
projects throughout the Northwest. The last 10 years of his career have focused
on transportation planning on large-scale corridor projects and Community and
Urban Design for city activity centers linking land use with supporting
transportation infrastructure.
Announcements and Notices
Montlake Garden Tours 2001
First, I wish to express my sincere thanks to all of the 66 fine and wonderful people who attended last year’s garden party potluck held in my garden. Special thanks to the Bagshaws for bringing extra chairs, to Irmi Ven Den Berghe for lending a hand afterwards and to all of those nice guests who sent cards and belated notes on the merits of garden parties and asking when we’ll have the next one.
OK
folks, make a note on your calendars for Sunday, June 24. The time will be from
12:30pm to 5:00pm. We would like to limit the number of gardens to 12, with
exceptions for tiny pocket gardens next door to one another, which might be
considered as one. If you have questions or ideas, please contact Lee Jacobson
at 328-8733, Judith Dibuz at 324-0252, or Kari Olson (after 3:00pm) at
329-1911.
Montlake Community Center News
Spring
Sports registration is going great! We have returning instructors and something
for all ages 4 to18. Several of our classes and teams are already full, and registration just began March 17!
Montlake
has been working with community groups and the Advisory Council to offer a
wider range of age-appropriate classes. We now have classes at both Montlake
and Madison Beach House for ages 0 to 100 years.
Summer
Day Camp
information is available—we have already distributed over 100 applications to
walk-in customers! Wow!
We
are still looking for new applicants for various summer positions. Get resumes
and cover letters in as soon as possible as orientation and required training
dates are rapidly approaching.
Spring
Egg Hunt is scheduled for 10am on April 14. We a trying out a different format
this year. Instead of having big prizes that only limited numbers receive in
each age group, this year everyone will collect various plastic eggs with one
candy or plastic prize enclosed in each egg. This way everyone that
participates in the hunt will walk away with something! We still need
volunteers for this event. Please call Anita at 684-4736 to register as a
volunteer for the Hunt (ages 14 and up please).
Look for new classes: for toddlers and
pre-school, middle school and seniors in the spring brochure. We are also
offering a new am & pm Yoga classes and several adult workshops.
Schools/Parks
Coordination: TOPS school and Montlake have joined forces to enhance recreation
opportunities for middle school students after school. TOPS is offering classes
in the sports and academic education areas, as Montlake’s focus is arts and
culture.
It’s
that time again, schools are hosting their annual auction fund raisers through
school parks at our community centers. Montlake Advisory Council is
collaborating with Stevens and Montlake Elementary schools on various aspects
of these fundraising events.
Committee Reports
Beautification Committee
As
spring approaches, many of our thoughts turn to the outdoors. There are many
problems that seem to beset Montlake (traffic, 520, the arboretum plan, etc.),
but I think at this time of year we all appreciate what a beautiful
neighborhood Montlake is to live in. This is in to small part due to the
beautiful gardens, trees and public areas. Plans are moving forward to beautify
more of the public areas. The neighbors around 23rd and Newton have
taken it upon themselves to clear out the immense tangle of blackberries and
scotch broom that had taken over that area. If you get a chance, take a walk
down that block and see how nice it is to be able to use that sidewalk again.
We
are now in the process of formulating a plan to landscape that area, and when
that is done, we will apply for a “Small and Simple” grant. In order to get the
grant, we have to match whatever moneys the city allots us. Since the
Beautification Committee has very little money, one way we can match is by
providing volunteer labor. Once we have the grant, we will need volunteers to
implement the plan. Several people volunteered at the last Community Club
meeting, but we can use more. If you will have some time around the middle of
July, please call me at 322-8660.
The
other project that is in the works is for the Southeast corner at 24th
and Boyer. The work on that will probably commence towards the end of
September. If that is a better time for you to volunteer, please let me know.
Some
of you who have been around the neighborhood for awhile may remember the
attempt to start a Montlake Garden Club. There just wasn’t enough interest to
keep it going, but hopefully that has changed. If you are interested in forming
a garden club, please call Kari Olson at 329-1911 after 3:00pm.
Last,
but certainly not least, there will be a Montlake Garden Tour this year. As you
can see from the following report from Kari Olson, it will be on June 24th
and I know we will be looking forward to it.
Trans-Lake Washington Advisory Committee
We
had a very good turnout from local neighborhoods at the Trans-Lake Open House
at MOHAI on March 6, and many pages of comments from participants about
proposed road configurations, interchange options, transit ideas, and ways to
limit transportation demand. Both the design specificity and the level of
interest is growing in Montlake as we move toward the July deadline to define
the scope and alternatives to be examined in the Draft Environmental Impact
Statement which follows.
At
the March 13 meeting of the TLW Advisory Committee (on which I represent
Montlake), the project managers presented initial findings of the mobility,
environmental impacts, and projected costs of the highway and transit
alternatives selected for Level I evaluation last fall. They recommended
dropping from further consideration the following options: the Minimum
Footprint highway option (no additional lanes on 520), the Bus- and
Vanpool-Only highway option (adding one dedicated lane in each direction on 520
restricted to buses and vanpools), and a Mid-Lake bus tunnel (a new submerged
crossing, between SR-520 and I-90).
The
project managers also presented eight multi-modal alternatives for second-level
screening (all except the first assume bicycle/pedestrian improvements and
“aggressive” transportation demand management on SR-520): No action; Safety and
seismic upgrades on SR-520 with High Capacity Transit (HCT) on I-90; add one
high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane each direction to 520, HCT on I-90; add one HOV
and one general purpose (GP) lane on SR-520, HCT on I-90; add one HOV lane on
520 and a fixed guideway transit system in the SR-520 corridor; add one HOV and
one GP lane each direction on SR-520, plus fixed guideway transit in SR-520
corridor; add 1 HOV lane and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) trunk/feeder service using
SR-520; add one HOV and 1 GP lane plus BRT system to SR-520. These options will
be further discussed at our next meeting, on April 17.
Another
series of community open houses will be held in May (dates and locations TBD).
It is vital that Montlake neighbors attend these workshops to see firsthand
(before final decisions are made) what options are being explored and provide
feedback. Check the Montlake Community Club website for updates.
CUCAC Meeting Report
The
City University Community Advisory Committee met on Tuesday, March 13, 2001 at
the South Campus Center (HUB). Continuing our discussion of sports field night
lighting, the committee heard from University personnel representing both the
intercollegiate and intramural sports departments. A heated exchange of
comments resulted. The UW folks reiterated that they want to be good neighbors
and are doing everything to cut down on scattered illumination. For instance:
in Husky Stadium, lights would be on between 6 and 8am at 25% for ROTC drill,
at 75% between 4 and 6pm for football practice, at 25% between 6 and 11pm for
recreational sports (intramural sports) and only during Husky and Seahawk
football games would lights be at 100%. The tall corner light banks are for TV
use only.
Design
work for rebuilding the Golf Driving Range at the corner of Montlake Boulevard
and 45th Street is in full swing. Currently the proposed features
include a two-level tee structure and a "state of the art" mesh
screen, ranging from 60 to 100 feet high supported on 11 poles. Pole-mounted
lights will be directed on target greens and not into Laurelhurst eyes.
The
University folks responsible for the Campus Master Plan are reviewing all the
comments that we submitted and expect to have a final plan ready for us to
review in June. It then goes to the City (DCLU) for a 120-day review. In this
period CUCAC is officially allotted 56 days for its review. This may be a
problem since many community councils have limited summer schedules.
NEDC Meeting Report
City
Council Member Peter Steinbrueck attended the March meeting of the Northeast
District Council and talked with us for about an hour on topics of interest to
the member groups. Of particular interest was University Village and its past
and current expansion plans and strategies. The NEDC and many groups
neighboring the Village, including Montlake have for several years endeavored
to get a the City to require that the Village do a master plan covering its
growth intentions. Although agreeing in principal several years ago, the
Village has not undertaken such a plan and, in fact, has expanded piecemeal in
a fashion familiar to all who have been there over the past few years. By
handling each new development project individually, the Village has managed to
transform itself into a much more regional operation than formerly, without
undertaking any environmental review, including traffic impacts its neighbors.
Some nascent efforts at creating a City requirement for master plan for
commercial centers quietly expired a year or so ago. Councilman Steinbrueck
paid close attention to this situation, including the NEDC hope for an EIS for
the currently proposed parking garage that would increase onsite parking by about
50%. Also discussed was the fact that neighborhood densification, as called for
in the University District neighborhood plan, is supposed to be accompanied by
improved infrastructure (traffic, park and public utilities) and the main
traffic improvement for the U District, the Link Light Rail, is now to be
substantially delayed at the least.
The
NEDC also voted to support currently pending legislation that would facilitate
enforcement of some existing tenant protection laws.
Finally I would remind any reader who feels an
impulse to participate directly in the civic life of our city that there are
many opportunities, including service on the NEDC committee, which will
evaluate grant proposals (some in excess of $100,000) for the Neighborhood
Matching Fund.
Letter to the Editor
I
note in the March Flyer that the MCC Board was informed that the Library Board
is considering the open field between Hamlin Street and SR-520, east of
Montlake Boulevard, as a possible location for the Montlake Branch library.
There are at least three reasons why the Library Board is wasting its time, and
here they are: The property in question was deeded to the University of
Washington by the Washington State legislature back in the 1960s, in
compensation for other property the UW lost during the building of SR-520. The
deed makes it plain that this property was given to the UW “for Arboretum
purposes;” and that under no circumstances can it be deeded to any other party
than—and this is explicit—the Washington State Department of Transportation.
Anyone who has troubled to keep up with the current Trans-Lake Study will know
by now that the proposed "improvements" (i.e., widening) of SR-520
rely on taking most of this property for additional highway lanes and
off-ramps. They will also know that the present Museum of History and Industry
is also proposed to be taken for the same reasons.
One
reason, I think, that there hasn't been more interest in using this property
for more ambitious development schemes is that it is very hard to get in and
out of, without turning Hamlin Street into a major thoroughfare connecting the
Boulevard (Montlake or Lake Washington) with an on-site parking lot. Given the
problems this neighborhood has had over the years with the use of Hamlin and
Shelby as ways to get in and out of MOHAI, this kind of proposal will not be
viewed as a friendly act by these neighbors.
So
I'd predict that the Library Board is about to be disappointed in this scheme.
(And by the way, the Arboretum Coalition also is, if they are counting on MOHAI
as an available alternative to building more offices and money-making buildings
in the Arboretum itself. Seems like the library project is back to being the
Flying Dutchman of Montlake.
--Peter
Staten