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Montlake Residents Speak for Neighborhood at Seattle Design Commission Meeting

July 12, 2016 by Kathy Laughman 1 Comment

Several Montlake residents attended the Seattle Design Commission (SDC) meeting on Thursday, July 7th to listen and comment on WSDOT’s plans for construction of the SR 520 Rest of the West Project.  Those attending were Jon Decker, Kathy Laughman, John O’Neil, Lionel Job and Barbara Wright.

The meeting agenda called for WSDOT to discuss its Request for Proposals (RFP) process and the role that the Commission will have in that process.

The commissioners asked for clarification on several points made by WSDOT.  Among them were:

  • How does WSDOT plan to have transparency in the design process and finality of design decisions if it plans to utilize a design-build method in this phase of the construction?
  •  What process does WSDOT have for mitigating environmental and quality of live concerns the residents in the surrounding area will have during the duration of construction, especially since the construction will take 11 – 12 years to complete?

Barbara Wright and Lionel Job, chosen earlier to speak for the group, expressed their concerns about WSDOT not being open and not honestly taking the community needs into consideration.  Lionel mentioned the example of discovering on the day of the June 28th WSDOT Open House  that there was a plan to demolish the Montlake Blvd Market and the 76 Station to make way for a construction staging area.

The intersection of SR 520, Montlake Blvd. and Montlake Place is the second busiest intersection in the city. Barbara & Lionel asked the Seattle Design Commission to consider this fact and how this constant traffic and the planned construction will impact the surrounding communities. They hoped the Commission would urge the City to take an active and transparent role in working with WSDOT to protect the integrity of the environment and surrounding neighborhoods.  Both the Council and the Mayor’s Office need to be actively involved in the project (design, implementation, and construction) to ensure we build a transportation project, they said.

John O’Neil, Montlake Community Club board trustee for transportation, also spoke in regard to the safety and environmental concerns that the long construction period will have on the students at Seattle Prep High School.

The Seattle Design Commission will be presenting recommendations to the City Council at its 9:30 a.m. briefing meeting on July 18th.  The public may attend this meeting but is not traditionally permitted to make comments. Therefore the group which attended the recent SDC meeting has sent a list of written concerns that will be used to brief the Council in advance of this meeting.  The City Council will then be up to update on the concerns that the surrounding neighborhoods want to address regarding the SR 520 Rest of the West Project’s impact on their communities.

A follow-up article will be posted to the Montlake Flyer with the details after the July 18th meeting.

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Filed Under: 520, Action, Arboretum, Business District Improvement Project, Coalition, Montlake Flyer, Page Two, Traffic

WABN Op-Ed: The Short Answer Is NO

April 24, 2014 by Art 2 Comments

WABN-10apr14-e

THE MEETING – 10 APRIL, 2014 – WABN Construction Update

Some people had a meeting just the other night,

at the Queen City Yacht Club with a WSDOT invite.

WSDOT’s people paid a visit, their panel fronted the room

to inform us about WABN which would be happening soon.

A mayor’s office representative sat far in the back

and waved when introduced but never said jack.

People from distant neighborhoods were plentiful there

and a man from Roanoke was the meeting’s acting chair.

The chairman was polite with well-prepared questions

all carefully worded to avoid any hint of contention.

The chair’s polite questions were vaguely answered by WSDOT

and those ambiguous answers caused the audience to get hot.

Many folks were just there because they were curious

while a few of our neighbors almost sounded furious.

When the time came to give the audience their turn,

the hands flew in the air – they were starting to burn!

THE DISCUSSION

The first public comment came from Madison Park.

A man stood and said this WSDOT plan is too stark.

He had tried working that plan for now seventeen years;

seems this WSDOT fiasco had nearly brought him to tears.

Then the audience helped him out with loud applause and cheers!

Though most of the speakers were cool and polite,

the audience mood was hardly contrite.

Both S DOT and WS DOT did their own traffic studies

but, our analysis has shown their results are too muddy.

So intentionally focused at just the traffic ‘on-shore’,

they’ve ignored the real reasons that the neighbors deplore,

reasons that keep the neighbors from getting to the store.

Then a man from Montlake stood and pointed out the fatal flaws

in WSDOT’s traffic study, to more loud audience applause.

That study’s missed out the Arboretum’s five thousand cars;

WSDOT didn’t answer  – perhaps the cars are on Mars.

Next a lady from Laurelhurst complained about the long time

driving from her home neighborhood waiting in traffic lines,

all the way through Montlake full of traffic lights and stop signs,

she said her trip downtown in minutes takes about forty-nine.

A second man from Montlake stood up, then he rambled,

though his thoughts were pertinent they were a bit scrambled.

When the chair finally asked is there a question in there,

man two paused – but before sitting back in his chair –

he held up the evening handout, WSDOT’s March newsletter,

and asked ‘Why is this intentionally misleading information in there’?

What was in that newsletter that excited the man so?

It was this one simple question to be answered yes or no:

Will there be traffic impacts when WABN lets go?

And to their own question, WSDOT’s short answer was no.

More audience applause then helped Montlake man two to his chair.

THE REAL PROBLEM

University Village keeps adding more and more parking,

and at the car-intense U dub only the huskies are barking.

As for the drawbridge that flies open for just one solitary boat,

stopping hundreds of cars from crossing our own Montlake moat,

fixing that outdated maritime law is our neighbor’s big hope.

It’s a big Montlake deal to which all our politicians say nope.

THE ENDING

WS DOT responded weakly to most questions from the audience,

as though they would have preferred to just sit there in silence.

When their talking points got repetitive people started looking bored

and before too much longer we all headed for the door

So, did the neighborhood appreciate WSDOT’s evening PR show?

If I could speak for the neighbors, I’d say the short answer was NO!

By: ArtArchitect

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Filed Under: 520, Coalition, Featured, Humor, Montlake Flyer, Op-Ed, Page Two, Politics, Traffic, WABN Tagged With: Poem

520 “WABN” Construction Coming to Montlake in 2014

March 14, 2014 by jneuhart 2 Comments

WABN_Overview_Map_580

Public Meeting to Discuss the 520 WABN Construction

Thursday, April 10th

6:30-8:00pm

Queen City Yacht Club

The Washington State Department of Transportation will start construction on the WABN phase of 520 replacement this summer. WABN stands for “West Approach Bridge – North” and will build three new lanes of highway between the new floating bridge and Montlake Blvd.  This is the last section of the 520 project for which there is currently funding. The state legislature’s failure to pass a transportation package with funding to replace the rest of 520 in Seattle means we may have to live with this interim solution for a while.

There was a public meeting in January with the WSDOT team and Seattle Department of Transportation and Seattle Parks staff. The presentation reviewed WABN’s design features including the relocation of the westbound Lake Washington Blvd exit ramp near the Arboretum to the 24th Ave overpass near the old MOHAI (soon to be demolished). WSDOT has been contacting property owners along Lake Washington Blvd to get easements for enlarging sidewalks and making changes to local traffic lanes.

At the January meeting there was much discussion of the damage to Madison Park condos and apartments along the shoreline closest to the pile driving. WSDOT reported that while the pile drivers are out in the lake working on bridge supports for the West Connection Bridge (connecting the new floating bridge to the future WABN), some preparation activities such as moving utility poles in Montlake will occur later this spring and summer. Montlake homes near the construction zone may also experience high levels of vibration and noise during WABN construction.  I urge property owners to attend the April 10th meeting and gather current information about what to expect and what can be done if damage occurs.

About the meeting on April 10th: neighbors in Portage Bay and Roanoke Park are organizing this meeting. They are inviting residents of Montlake, Madison Park and neighboring areas. Some of the questions which will be asked of WSDOT staff relate to the Environmental Impact Statement and the Memorandum of Understanding with the city and whether those documents are being followed. There will also be inquiry about the mitigation projects that have been promised. Anyone who has a burning question for WSDOT staff can contact me and I’ll forward it to the meeting moderator (president@montlake.net).

For background and analysis of the WABN, look at the website of the Coalition for a Sustainable 520.

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Filed Under: 520, Coalition, News, Traffic

Message from the President

March 5, 2014 by jneuhart 1 Comment

Zone1Montlake Follow up to parking problems:  Last month I wrote about the University of Washington Community Relations staff trying to reduce the parking violations in the Shelby-Hamlin area.  This problem occurs when employees and students without our zone parking decals park on these streets beyond the 2-hour limit.  There seems to be a large number of drivers who park here regularly with a hope and a prayer they will not get a parking ticket.

I received several responses about this issue.  The majority opinion is that these parking violators will not be deterred by a polite letter placed on their windshield asking the driver to obey the ordinance and not park beyond 2 hours.  The solution to this problem seems to be to call the Seattle Police Traffic Enforcement (Phone 206-684-8757) and report the violator.  My hope is that we create a vigilant group of residents on Shelby and Hamlin who are calling frequently to report violations.  Maybe the City will see this as a lucrative source of traffic ticket revenue for the city coffers and assign traffic enforcement officers to patrol regularly.  Currently officers do not regularly patrol except on Husky Football game days.

News about the 520 Bridge construction:  It was brought to my attention that we have not been publishing information in The Flyer about recent events related to the 520 replacement bridge.  Frankly, the MCC board has not had any good news to pass along, since the Coalition for a Sustainable SR 520 of which Montlake is a member, lost their lawsuit again the state department of transportation in July, 2012.  However, Montlake.net has a link to the Coalition website.  It can be found under “Neighborhood” then “Montlake Resources“.  You can scroll down the Neighborhood listing and find “Groups in Montlake”.  Listed under that heading is the Coalition for 520.  The website has not been updated for several months.  However, there is information and illustrations about the next phase of construction which will greatly impact Montlake.  That is the building of a section of the bridge called “WABN” or western approach bridge-north side.  This is the section directly east of Foster Island. The illustration shows the new exit for westbound traffic heading south into the Montlake neighborhood and heading north to the Montlake bridge and the University of Washington.

Submitted by Julee Neuhart

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Filed Under: 520, Coalition, MCC President's Message, Montlake Flyer, Page Two

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From The Flyer:

  • Give feedback on the new Montlake sign structure September 21, 2023
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  • Music in the Arboretum: Gansango Music & Dance August 17, 2023
  • Have you registered for the All Montlake Yard Sale? August 3, 2023
  • Music in the Arboretum: Jose Gonzales Trio, August 9 July 24, 2023
  • The Montlake Playground is reopening! Join the fun Wednesday, July 19 from 10:00-12:00. July 12, 2023
  • Join neighborhood block party on August 1! July 2, 2023
  • All Montlake Yard Sale registration is open! June 28, 2023

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