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Obliteride Rolls through Montlake Aug. 14

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150809.Obliteride.js-253-2It’s time to obliterate cancer! It’s time to Obliteride!

On Sunday, Aug. 14, approximately 1,400 riders participating in Fred Hutch’s 4th annual Obliteride will be riding through Montlake.

Neighbors are asked to look out for cyclists and cheer for riders along Fuhrman and Boyer.

Obliteride has several routes ranging from 10 to 165 miles, so everyone can participate.

All routes start at the Fred Hutch campus in South Lake Union and end at Gas Works Park.

The 10-mile Family Ride loops Lake Union and benefits women’s cancer research at Fred Hutch.

People interested in cheering riders on can find more info and maps of the routes @ www.obliteride.org/crew/course-spirit-teams

If you are interested in riding or volunteering, registration is still open at www.obliteride.orgJoshua-7-of-14-Finish-LineIMG_4940

Montlakers Offer Ideas For Business District Plan

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“Slow the speeding cars on 24th.” “Clear the traffic jams.” “Keep pedestrians safe from harm.” “Make Uptown & Downtown Montlake attractive.” “Give us parking for our businesses.” “Discourage cut-throughs.” “Rescue the Boulevard Market.” “This is a great idea!” “And we don’t much trust  SDOT or WSDOT.” That’s what we heard from a crowd of residents who jammed the Tudor building at the Community Center on Tuesday night (July 26).

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KPG consultants working on Montlake’s Business District Development project carried away a ton of useful input about just what needs to be fixed and what needs to be treasured to keep Montlake businesses thriving and Montlake’s neighborhood livable.

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Montlake Development Package – July 2016 Meeting – Click to View Meeting Documents

Paul Fuesel and Liz Gibson of KPG and your Montlake Community Club (MCC) Board members set up posters and maps and set out comment forms and sheets both to offer possible ideas AND to invite ideas from Montlakers. The Mother Pluckers, our favorite local ukulele band, provided lively “mood music,” while neighbors browsed the posters and maps, munching cookies and downing cold beverages. (Need I mention that it was hot and crowded?)

Urban Design Preliminary Design Ideas

“Meet Me in Montlake” Preliminary Design Ideas Shared by KPG for Discussion – Click to View Larger Image

MCC President Bryan Haworth welcomed everyone to the community meeting to introduce the Business District Development Planning Project. MCC Project Lead, Kathy Laughman, next encouraged everyone to get involved and offer their ideas on this exciting project funded by a grant from the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods. Paul Fuesel of KPG was handed the microphone to give an overview of the goals and issues, followed by a lively,  enthusiastic, though sometimes skeptical, but mutually respectful Q & A session.

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IMG_2379Pretty quickly, many concurred that traffic through the business district was the biggest issue to be addressed, followed by parking and cut-through effects on the rest of the neighborhood.

We couldn’t be dealing with these street and auto issues at a better time, for the best ideas can be included in a final report to those leading the SDOT reconstruction of the 23rd/24th corridor. The Montlake segment of that major project (Phase 3) is next to be initiated, though funding and scheduling are not yet confirmed.

A committed contingent of those present was focused on gaining information and plans for action to defend the recently threatened Montlake Boulevard Market. Haworth took time to describe the several ways MCC is working to support the business owner and preserve this valued community hub—this in the face of possible destruction for previously unannounced plans to use the site for WSDOT construction staging. He urged everyone to contact the Mayor and all City Council members to make their objections known. It’s clear that many of us see the Blvd. Market, not just as a fine business, but as a social and service center that would be a great loss, especially when other alternatives appear adequate for WSDOT’s claimed needs. (See this post for guidance on what you can do.)

The MCC and KPG consultants aim to keep you informed and welcome your input. Keep giving thought to what would help make our business district flourish and our neighborhood an even better place to live. Send your ideas and comments to Kathy Laughman (kathleenlaughman@gmail.com) She’ll see that your great ideas get into the hopper. Watch the Montlake Forum, Flyer, and Montlake.net for events and updates as the project progresses.

View the slideshow below to see your neighbors and more photos from the evening.

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National “Night Out” Tuesday August 2nd

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Night-OutTime once again to dust off the lawn chairs and slice up the watermelon because the National Night Out is Tuesday August 2nd and block parties will be popping up all over the city.  National Night Out is an annual crime prevention event designed to heighten crime awareness and increase neighborhood support for anti-crime efforts.  Some gatherings are just a few households while others are large multi-block parties with lots of great food and even live entertainment.  Get involved in an existing one or start your own.  The Montlake Community Club is again offering to reimburse each organized block party in Montlake up to $75 for party expenses, just provide copies of receipts (sorry alcohol is not included).  For more information along with instructions on how to close a street or register an event go to www.seattle.gov/police/nightout/.  Receipts and/or questions can be emailed to president@montlake.net.  Cheers!

Tails of Entanglement

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EB2R5454Ninety nine point nine percent of the time when an osprey and a fish tangle the fish loses. The fish tail in this photo tried to get the last laugh. See more photos and find out how Lacey, the mother of three young osprey, deals with the fighting fishtail. Visit:

Union Bay Watch

Have a great day on Union Bay…where nature lives in the city!

Larry

 

Seattle Times Article on Market, What You Can Do

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Montlake MarketThe Seattle Times published an article yesterday on the possible loss of the Montlake Boulevard Market. Get the story here.

People in Montlake are working hard to stop the closure. Your Montlake Community Club & neighbors have already:

  • started a 520 Transportation Committee
  • offered comments to the Seattle Design Commission
  • given interviews to the local TV networks and print media
  • briefed City Council members
  • offered public comments to the City Council
  • created a Change.Org petition (Click to Sign)
Here’s what YOU can do – Send the Mayor, the City Council, and state legislators your concerns by letter and/or email.  Urge your neighbors to do the same. Send your letter or email to:

What you can share with them about this devastating closure:

  • Your personal story about why the Montlake Boulevard Market is important
  • The addition of a staging area at one of the city’s busiest intersections undergoing a massive rebuild doesn’t make sense; it would simply make traffic jams worse and make commuting harder
  • Montlake has a low walk score and this takes away a critical resource that is loved in this neighborhood
  • A visually attractive & safe intersection, even during the construction phase, is needed as this is a key gateway to the city
  • WSDOT announced its decision without any advanced warning
  • The city needs to manage planning for the entire area and validate WSDOT decisions; there is a need to coordinate work done by several transport agencies and the UW.  The city has perspective and can see the 520 work in its larger context. We encourage a stronger role for the city over the next 12 years of construction and during the creation of the Design-Build contract.

 

Montlake Business District Community Meeting Tomorrow (Tuesday) at 6:30 pm

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Logo-Design-Concept-3Just a reminder that tomorrow night (Tuesday, July 26) at 6:30 pm, the Montlake Community Club invites you to the Montlake Business District Development Project Community Meeting. This meeting will take place at Tudor House at the Montlake Community Center at 1618 E. Calhoun St.

The meeting gives you an opportunity to join with your neighbors to envision a better Montlake Business District. Meet the urban planning team helping the MCC with this project, review proposed plans, ask questions, and share your ideas.

Come early to hear the ukulele music of the Motherpluckers! Complete info here.

All Montlake Community Meeting, Tues, July 26

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Logo Design Concept 3Right now, Please! Add to your calendars: Tuesday, July 26 (6:30 p.m.) at the Montlake Community Center for a Community Meeting about the Montlake Business District Development Project. Montlake Community Club leaders will introduce our KPG consultants to explain the project. They’ll answer your questions, and hear and record your ideas on changes you’d like to see in the Middle of Montlake—the Center of the Universe. Come early to the Tudor Building at the Community Center (1618 E. Calhoun) so you can enjoy the music of Montlake’s own Mother Pluckers Ukulele Band. Then join your neighbors in learning and contributing ideas to this development project.

With all that’s happening in and around Montlake these days, we need to be an active influence on what gets done to our community. This one-year planning project, funded by a grant from the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods, brings us the help of KPG consultants, Paul Fuesel and Liz Gibson. They offer skills, knowledge, and years of experience in urban design, landscape architecture, public involvement and town visioning. (Visit the KPG website, kpg.com, for a look at some of their terrific local projects.)

Montlake’s Business District Development planning can have a significant effect on the upcoming SDOT Phase 3 reconstruction of 24th Ave. E. The project also may help in coordination of the Seattle Neighborhoods Greenways project as well as current and upcoming phases of WSDOT 520 Bridge construction Those are all reasons why we need to get together to clarify opportunities and contribute our ideas to Montlake’s Business District Development Project. WE neighbors have a role to play. Come and join us at the All Montlake Community Meeting, Tuesday, July 26, 6:30 p.m., Tudor Building, Montlake Community Center, 1618 E. Calhoun St.

Your Montlake Community Club Board, working for you.

Montlake Residents Speak for Neighborhood at Seattle Design Commission Meeting

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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.

King 5 News Story On Market – Video

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In case you missed it, King 5 ran a news story on the possible demolition of the Montlake Boulevard Market. The Montlake Community Club participated in the story. Click here to access the video.

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Coyote Challenge

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Neighbors,

This short post is related to the killing of three coyotes in Laurelhurst last week. Please take a moment to read the post and consider forwarding your own thoughts to Director Woodruff at Wildlife Services.

Coyote Challenge on Union Bay Watch

Thank you!

Larry