The Seattle Police Department has introduced an interactive map showing where and when police reports were taken by officers responding to incidents around the city. For more information visit the Seattle Police Department website.
MCC Board Resolution on Proposed Cell Tower
At our June 2nd meeting the MCC Board passed a resolution asking the city to postpone a decision on Clearwire’s request to erect a 70′ utility pole at the corner of 24th Ave. E and Lynn St., until the Montlake community has had a reasonable opportunity to review and research the request.
Clearwire is a provider of high-speed wireless wireless internet access, and is building the wireless network that Sprint will use for its 4G cell phones. Several Montlake residences recently received notice of Clearwire’s application to the City of Seattle to replace a utility pole in the Montlake business district with a significantly taller pole, so that Clearwire could mount wireless antennas atop the pole and provide coverage to the Montlake neighborhood.
In the Montlake Forum and at the Board meeting, several residents expressed concern that Clearwire’s proposal would detract from the character of our neighborhood. The Montlake Community Club also received no notice of the proposal, either from Clearwire or from the City, and became aware of it only when individuals within the community shared the information they’d received.
Concerned residents are encouraged to comment on the proposal using the “Comment on Application” link at the City of Seattle Department of Planning and Development site.
MCC June Meeting
Our last General Meeting before our summer break will end the year just as we began it, with the SR520 Bridge Rebuild.
We had an incredible turnout at our last General Meeting to address WSDOT’s announcement of the preferred alternative for the west side. The design plans we were given to review at the meeting were more renditions than technical and Jonathan did a great job, as usual, in explaining the plan to us.
You had far more questions than we were able to answer or even hear, so we have asked WSDOT to return. Ethan Bancroft, WSDOT Communications, will make a presentation and will answer your questions and take your comments.
When the presentation is over and everyone has been given the opportunity to speak, we need to determine not only the components of the plan we cannot live with but also we need to have viable suggestions for change.
CleanScapes Announces Montlake among Winners
CleanScapes is excited to announce the winners of the first Seattle Neighborhood Waste Reduction Rewards competition. The spring tons have been weighed and the Thursday Collection Neighborhoods have won the 2009/2010 waste reduction challenge! Everything you and your neighbors did to reduce household waste helped tip the scale in your neighborhood’s favor. Congratulations!
As the winner, Thursday Collection Neighborhoods will receive $50,000 towards a community improvement project. The Thursday collection area includes portions of the following neighborhoods: Montlake, Capitol Hill, Madison Park, Madrona, Madison Valley, and First Hill.
In the coming months, CleanScapes will solicit ideas for the $50,000 neighborhood improvement project. Community members will be asked to submit a project proposal form, which will be made available shortly. Community Councils representatives from the winning area will select the winning project or projects based on criteria provided by CleanScapes.
Neighbors who are interested in helping to develop the Montlake Project for submittal to Cleanscapes or just want to submit an idea, please contact Anita Bowers (president@montlake.net). This is a great opportunity for Montlake.
Welcome to the new Montlake.net!
Our new website is still a work in progress, but we’re inviting the Montlake community to participate by trying out the new site’s features and giving us feedback ahead of our “official” launch date on June 1st.
We’ve decided to retain the existing Montlake Forum on Yahoo Groups, based on your feedback from the April Montlake Community Club meeting; with the new Montlake.net, there are now three ways to participate in discussions about Montlake:
- The Montlake Forum is our online home for neighbor-to-neighbor conversations, where any member of the community can start a discussion or participate in one (subject to the MCC’s Forum policy). Members can use the Yahoo Groups settings to control whether and how they receive email from the Forum.
- The Montlake Flyer is our monthly newsletter of events and issues, distributed to over 700 households and email addresses in the Montlake area. The Flyer is distributed electronically, with paper copies available upon request and at selected area locations (the Montlake Public Library, Mont’s Market, the Montlake Ale House, etc.).
- Montlake.net is our public website and the “central hub” of our online community, with current updates on neighborhood issues, information about MCC programs and events (Neighborhood Watch groups, community improvement projects, block parties and more), resources for new neighbors, and opportunities to participate and interact.
We’re still tinkering at the margins and trying out all the new things we can do with the new website, so stay tuned as we add content and finish building the site. You can watch our progress (and see what is and isn’t working) as we check off items on the to-do list below.
[post_todo]
Summer Programs at the Montlake Community Center
Please go to http://www.seattle.gov/parks/centers/montlakecc.htm to see all our summer programs – first come, first serve. Over 15 camps to choose from, plus classes for adults and seniors, young old, medium old and old old.
Morning aerobics Monday-Friday throughout the summer at 7 am and 8:15 am. Get fit, get in the grove, and see the transformation.
MCC April Meeting: Board Elections
April 14th is the designated Annual Meeting when the MCC Board makes a Report of the Club. Board Members will not only update you on their committee work, but will include some proposed changes to the Club Bylaws and a preview of our new website. Your questions and comments are appreciated and will be used to guide us in the coming year.
The Annual Meeting is also when we hold our Board Elections. This year we will be electing a new President, Secretary and three Trustees.
Montlake has a unique reputation as an activist community. When you hear the Board Members speak, you will get a glimpse of what that means. Over the years, the Board has taken the lead in guiding not only the Montlake Community, but also Seattle to make decisions that we all benefit from. We are right in the middle of one of those epic moments for Montlake and need your participation.
The Board functions best when it comprises new members with fresh perspectives along with the Montlake veterans. Please consider giving Montlake your experience and time. You can contact me or any Board Member with your questions or interest in a position.
I had lived in Montlake only five years when I became President. I knew very little about the community other than the Business District and my immediate neighbors. I had much to learn and many of you were my tutors. You took the time to meet with me over coffee at Fuel or in your home and answer my questions and give me some history and your advice. I quickly learned that it was you that had made my community a choice place to live and I needed to reciprocate. It has been both a rewarding and challenging journey.
Anita
My Library – The Next Generation
The Seattle Public Library is embarking on My Library – The Next Generation, a strategic planning process to plan for future services. This project will engage the community and Library staff throughout 2010 to explore the future of the Library. The Seattle Public Library recently completed a 10-year project to rebuild our facilities through the voter-approved “Libraries for All” program.
Last Paper Flyer Delivered to All Households
January’s Montlake Flyer was the last printed Flyer delivered to all households in Montlake. We will continue of course delivering printed Flyers to all those on our home delivery list. If you prefer a paper Flyer delivered to you, please call 206-329-5270 and we’re happy to add you to the delivery list.
We will also continue to put copies of the printed Flyer in the Montlake Community Center, Montlake Library, Hop In Grocery, Mont’s Market, Montlake Alehouse, and Fuel Coffee.
Our thanks to all that have signed up to get the Montlake Flyer by email. Our online subscription is up over 700. To sign up for the Montlake Flyer by email, please use the subscription form in the sidebar on the right side of this page.
Minutes from MCC General Meeting 1/13/10
Anita Bowers opened the meeting at 7:30, followed by Jon Nelson’s Treasurer’s report. Anita announced that there will be one more delivery of the Montlake Flyer in a paper version in addition to the online publication.
The balance of the meeting time was given to the WSDOT management team, with a preface given by Barbara Gillerman, legislative work group administrator regarding the 520 project. This group recommended option A+ as its preference.
WSDOT’s presentation was primarily of the A+ version of the highway replacement as it would be configured in the West Side design, that is, in our neighborhood. They made these points during the program:
- Traffic volumes after the 520 rebuild are expected to remain about the same as they are today. The primary benefit of the project is to reroute transit and HOV traffic, thus adding lanes to the interchange in Montlake.
- The transit stops now provided on 520 at Montlake will be removed and relocated to the UW side of the cut.
- The Portage Bay bridge will be 7 lanes wide, one of which will be reversible to serve the traffic from the east side. A portion of the NOAA property will be displaced for this.
- There will be an HOV lane through the middle of the interchange.
- There will be a second bascule bridge over the cut and displacement of homes.
- The draft EIS documents will be released soon and a preferred option will move forward into the final EIS process. Property values are not addressed in these documents, but noise, air quality and visual blight are. For mitigation of noise, walls are the only mitigation measure currently approved.
- Storm water runoff will be collected into treatment facilities.
- WSDOT is not working on Option M at this time.
The various plans and documents will be available for review on the WSDOT website, with hard copies available at libraries. The legislative work group report is also available online.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:00.
