I have been a resident of Montlake since 1987. After 38+ years, I recently retired from the Bird Department at Woodland Park Zoo. I plan on doing short bird walks around South Portage Bay and the Montlake Playfields every Wednesday. If you would like to join me, let’s meet in the parking lot of the Montlake Community Center at 9AM (times will change as spring approaches). Beginners and all are welcome. Walks will be about 1 hour. The first bird walk will take place on Wednesday, March 15. Please bring binoculars and weather appropriate clothing. Let’s make this into the beginning of something fun! If you have any questions, you can contact me at cassidix2005@gmail.com. Thank you, Eric Kowalczyk
Please Make a Donation to the Montlake Community Club
The Montlake Community Club only asks you to donate once a year. Now is that time. Please consider making a donation today to the Montlake Community Club. It’s easy to do in one of these ways:
- Complete and mail a donation form with a check
- Pay online via Paypal by clicking the DONATE button
- Mail a check to: Montlake Community Club, 4616 25th Ave NE #446 Seattle, WA 98105–4183
Your gift to the MCC allows us to continue to represent your interests to city officials and to build a sense of community in Montlake.
In 2016 alone, the Montlake Community Club put on our annual all-neighborhood Yale Sale, our first ever 5K Turkey Trot and Kids Run, and put up holiday lights in our business district. We’ve moved the needle on the 520, improving our business district traffic congestion, and pedestrian and bike safety. We manage Montlake.net and keep the neighborhood connected.
Gifts of all sizes are appreciated and welcome. The MCC is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization so your donation qualifies as a federal tax deduction.
Coyote Karma
After last week’s post, “Beep, Beep“, about the road runner, it seems perfectly fitting that this week we should focus on a coyote. I hope you enjoy the new post on:
Have a great day on Union Bay…where nature lives in the city!
Larry
Seattle Times Recognizes Effort to Commemorate Freeway Revolt
The efforts of neighborhood activists to preserve part of “the ramps to nowhere” are getting noticed. The Seattle Times published a story about how Montlake residents and others who are part of ARCH (Activists Remembered Celebrated & Honored) want an old Highway 520 crossbeam to be an ‘urban ruins’ honoring anti-freeway activists. In October, ARCH was successful in getting the Seattle City Council to adopt a resolution to support the ruins. Get the full story on the Seattle Times Web site.
Reminder: WSDOT Meeting at Community Center Tuesday Evening
All are invited to attend an important meeting this Tuesday evening, February 28, 5:00 pm to 7:30 pm, at the Montlake Community Center. This meeting will focus on noise during the Montlake phase of 520 bridge construction and an overview of the Montlake Phase of construction, including timeline and project elements.
Here is the complete invite from WSDOT on the 2/28 meeting:
Greetings,
You are invited to a public meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 28, to hear Montlake Phase project updates and information about upcoming public comment opportunities.
Meeting details
- Date: Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017
- Time: 5:00 – 7:30 p.m. (presentation at 5:30 p.m.)
- Location: Montlake Community Center, Multipurpose room
- Address: 1618 East Calhoun Street, Seattle, WA 98112
- Parking: Limited free parking is available at the community center. Bus routes 43 and 48 also serve the area, but require a short walk to the meeting location.
- Meeting format: The meeting will include a short presentation at 5:30 p.m. and time for questions and answers with project staff as a full group and one-on-one.
At the meeting we will share the following
- An overview of the Montlake Phase of construction including timeline and project elements.
- Information about WSDOT’s application to the City of Seattle for a Major Public Project Construction Noise Variance (MPPCNV).
- The MMPCNV establishes the noise limits a Design-Build contractor must comply with during nighttime construction activities.
- City staff will also be available to discuss the city’s process for WSDOT to obtain the permit and how the public can submit formal comments later this spring.
- 3. A look-ahead to other spring public meetings and outreach activities including the upcoming public comment period for the SR 520 Montlake Phase Neighborhood Traffic Management Plan (NTMP).
The WABN team will host our usual monthly meeting again on Wednesday, April 5, at theGraham Visitors Center from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
We hope you can join us for these meetings and look forward to sharing information with you as we move forward with building a new, safer and more reliable SR 520 corridor in Seattle.
Beep, Beep
Does this bird remind you of any childhood cartoon series? Think of a very fast bird and a falling anvil. Either way I hope you enjoy learning more about the bird species which inspired the cartoon. See more on:
Have a great day on Union Bay…where nature lives in the city!
Larry
Making Memories
Whenever eagles call it all sounds about the same to me. However, this week when Eva told Albert it was time to pay attention – his response was obvious and immediate. Maybe it is not what she says but how she says it. Clearly, it is all still a mystery to me. See more on:
Have a great day on Union Bay...where nature lives in the city!
Larry
Feb. 28 WSDOT Meeting on Bridge Construction, Noise
Mark your calendars for an important WSDOT meeting on Tuesday, February 28, 5:00 pm to 7:30 pm, at the Montlake Community Center. This meeting will focus on noise during the Montlake phase of 520 bridge construction and an overview of the Montlake Phase of construction, including timeline and project elements.
[Don’t forget about another important community meeting, this Saturday the 18th on the Lake Washington Loop Bicycling Greenway.]
Here is the complete invite from WSDOT on the 2/28 meeting:
Greetings,
You are invited to a public meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 28, to hear Montlake Phase project updates and information about upcoming public comment opportunities.
Meeting details
- Date: Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017
- Time: 5:00 – 7:30 p.m. (presentation at 5:30 p.m.)
- Location: Montlake Community Center, Multipurpose room
- Address: 1618 East Calhoun Street, Seattle, WA 98112
- Parking: Limited free parking is available at the community center. Bus routes 43 and 48 also serve the area, but require a short walk to the meeting location.
- Meeting format: The meeting will include a short presentation at 5:30 p.m. and time for questions and answers with project staff as a full group and one-on-one.
At the meeting we will share the following
- An overview of the Montlake Phase of construction including timeline and project elements.
- Information about WSDOT’s application to the City of Seattle for a Major Public Project Construction Noise Variance (MPPCNV).
- The MMPCNV establishes the noise limits a Design-Build contractor must comply with during nighttime construction activities.
- City staff will also be available to discuss the city’s process for WSDOT to obtain the permit and how the public can submit formal comments later this spring.
- 3. A look-ahead to other spring public meetings and outreach activities including the upcoming public comment period for the SR 520 Montlake Phase Neighborhood Traffic Management Plan (NTMP).
The WABN team will host our usual monthly meeting again on Wednesday, April 5, at theGraham Visitors Center from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
We hope you can join us for these meetings and look forward to sharing information with you as we move forward with building a new, safer and more reliable SR 520 corridor in Seattle.
Laughman Adds French Touch To Development Project
Kathy Laughman believes in community. That’s not just your TV sitcom version, however. She’s committed to an older, more deeply rooted communal idea–where people living and working in a neighborhood share resources, and support the success and the very survival of each other. Kathy is inspired by the years she spent in southern France where she was taken into membership in such a community. We’re fortunate to have her back home and leading the Montlake Business District Development project, for she is bringing that classic concept of community with a French touch to her role.
Kathy first came to live in Seattle in 1970, found a staff position at the UW, and bought a home in Montlake for proximity to her work, and for love of the drawbridge, the beautiful parks, and the architectural details of the homes. Later, after gaining an advanced degree in design and working in the local garment industry, she was wisely hired by Nordstrom to work on the Fauçonnable product line. Following much travel to France, Europe and Asia on Nordstrom’s business, Kathy rented out her house and was on her way to Nice, France to oversee creative design for the company for seven years. It was in Nice that she first experienced what she perceives as real community.
Kathy explains: “People there had a sense that it was their responsibility to take care of each other. Here, there was a tendency to see that as butting into other people’s business, but over there, they see themselves as responsible for each other. It’s simple things, like I would leave for work in winter … and I wouldn’t have my neck scarf on. The concierge would notice it and remind me that I should go back up and put my neck scarf on so I wouldn’t catch a cold.” She goes on, “The local businesses, many of which have been in their location for generations, believe that it is their obligation to see that their customers are happy.” This commitment, she says, extended to such actions as a shop owner accompanying her home, carrying her newly purchased floor lamp up the stairs, unpacking it, placing it, and making sure it worked. Kathy laughingly offers that: “This is a level of service that not even Nordstrom will give you!” She doesn’t see this as “just about customer satisfaction, but about a sense of community. He wanted to make sure that I was being taken care of….Their idea is that if an individual succeeds, it is good for the community, so its really not so much being generous and self-sacrificing, it’s in everybody’s interest to take care of everybody because then the group prospers….”
Responsibility for enhancing the community within neighborhoods extends to City governmental bodies as well. Laughman recounts, “Nice is definitely organized into neighborhoods and the City spend its tax dollars on landscaping, seasonal decorations, repairing the roads, keeping the sidewalks clean, with proper crosswalk signage and street lights. They take safety and welfare of the people in each community very, very seriously. And they put their money where their mouth is!”
Kathy Laughman thus sees the need in Montlake for the same reciprocity among business owners, residents, and City government. That general principle shows up in how she’s led the Montlake Business District Development Project. For example, she’s engaged the Montlake Business Association (MBA) in a series of meetings to gather the business owners’ ideas for development of downtown and uptown Montlake. Business owners have had roles on the project committee including meetings with the City and hiring the project consultant. Juan Lopez of Glam & Tonics and Carla Leonardi of Café Lago have been particularly active.
In the same spirit, Laughman has made sure that the project engages Montlake residents in the business district development plans and in support of its business owners. She has sought to provide the community with regular project-related information and progress reports via the Montlake Flyer Intrepid Reporter postings. She has assured opportunities to gather concerns and design ideas from residents through community meetings and comment options on Montlake.net. Further. She has helped lead the residents’ efforts to support our Montlake businesses– the Blvd Market & Service Station that have been seriously threatened by WSDOT’s late-declared needs for 520 bridge reconstruction. As Kathy declares: “We support them—they support us.”
Then there is, finally, the reciprocity with that important third party—the City within which our neighborhood exists. Here Kathy Laughman becomes mildly militant. She says, “We pay taxes to support City services; they provide us with the services our businesses and residents need.” Sometimes, of course, “they” needed to be reminded. As project lead, Kathy has assured that Montlake has made and maintained strong connections with representatives of SDOT, City planners, and the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods that funds the project. It’s no accident that we’ve had the opportunity to explore ideas for the future of our business district and neighborhood, tell our side of the story about what’s happening to Montlake and just possibly persuade the City representatives to be our champions. Laughman makes sure those representatives are at the table and quickly informed of what’s happening, what outcomes the community wants, and what’s needed from them.
Yes, we’re lucky to have Kathy Laughman in Montlake. She is helping us live into a model of community like the one she first experienced in southern France. It calls each of us to get engaged; to support and look out for each other, whether business owner or resident; to expect a fair share of service from the City government commensurate with the taxes we contribute. Kathy’s seven years abroad enriched her life and deepened her understanding of community, no question. We in Montlake are the lucky beneficiaries. Thanks Kathy.
*8th report of the Montlake Business District Development Project
**Coming soon, an update on the Montlake Business District Development Project –what’s happening, and what’s known and unknown about what’s coming.
Open House This Saturday for Lake Washington Loop Bicycling Greenway
If you’re interested in traffic safety improvements and potential routes for a neighborhood greenway connecting the Montlake and Madison Valley neighborhoods, don’t miss an important open house this Saturday, February 18. The meeting takes place at the Bush School Community Room from 10:30 AM to noon, 3400 E Harrison St, Seattle WA 98112.
Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) and the Department of Neighborhoods (DON) through the Neighborhood Park and Street Fund are partnering with the Arboretum Neighbors for Safe Streets and Madison Valley Greenways neighborhood groups to study traffic safety improvements and routes for a neighborhood greenway connecting the Montlake and Madison Valley neighborhoods. Join us at our second open house to share you ideas for this route on Saturday, February 18th. We are eager to hear more from our fellow neighbors who live, work, shop and play along these streets.
The Seattle Bicycle Master Plan recommends a neighborhood greenway along the Lake Washington Loop in the vicinity of 26th Ave E and 28th Ave E, between East Harrison and Boyer Ave E. We studied potential neighborhood greenway routes, identifying traffic safety improvements and developing a conceptual design. This is a neighborhood-led study.
This is the second of two meetings on the neighborhood greenway. The first meeting shared traffic data and helped us understand where people want to walk and bike and barriers to doing so. At this meeting we will share the results of technical analysis and public comment and the most promising route with recommended safety improvements, including the intersection of 26th Avenue East and Boyer Avenue East.
Project Website: www.seattle.gov/transportation/lakewashingtonloopgreenway.htm
Arboretum Neighbors for Safer Streets: https://arboretum.nextdoor.com/groups/724004/
Madison Park Greenways:
http://seattlegreenways.org/neighborhoods/madison-park/
Department of Neighborhoods, Neighborhood Park and Street Fund: http://www.seattle.gov/neighborhoods/programs-and-services/neighborhood-park
Snow Day
Monday was a definitely an unusual day for all of us. I went look for eagles and ended up encountering another species altogether. This bird was also primarily dark and light in her color scheme, with one flaming exception. I hope my photos brighten your day!
Have a great day on Union Bay…where nature lives in the city!
Larry
Montlake Playfield Improvements, Keeping the Montlake Market
The Montlake Community Club would like to share two letters that we’ve recently written to officials. One addresses site selection for a potential Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) control project, and the other addresses possible design alternatives for SR 520 construction in Montlake.
Montlake Playfield Improvements?
You may have noticed a recent Montlake.net post about combined sewer overflows in Montlake. King County is currently considering the construction of an underground CSO storage tank that would hold stormwater and sewage during heavy rains, so that it may be pumped to the treatment station rather than flow directly into local waterways. If a tank were built beneath the Montlake Playfields, this would require improvements that would address drainage issues. We believe this would provide a benefit to our community by making the track and field behind the Community Center usable throughout the year.
Read the MCC’s Letter to Officials About the Playfields and CSO
Keeping the Montlake Market and Gas Station…
Possible design constraints for the SR 520 construction project in Montlake prompted WSDOT to claim that it needs to acquire and demolish the Montlake Market and gas station. One of their considerations has been accommodating existing CSO pipes that flow beneath the SR 520. This is still an open issue, and it seems that a final design likely will be left up to contractors. We have encouraged WSDOT to solicit and consider public input for any major design changes, and to require contractors to do the same. Given the connection with the CSO pipes, we also encouraged WSDOT to collaborate with local agencies and look for opportunities that can meet the needs of all stakeholders.
Read the MCC’s Letter to WSDOT
King County and City of Seattle Committed to the Environment
Officials at King County and the City of Seattle have reported to the MCC that they are committed to complying with the Clean Water Act and Consent Decree agreements with the Environmental Protection Agency, which require control of CSOs to protect public health and the environment.
More information:
- King County: CSO regulations and requirements
- Seattle Public Utilities: CSO / SSO Consent Decree
- Wikipedia: Clean Water Act
Introducing a New and Expanded Montlake Snow Brigade
Continuing the Montlake Community Club’s goal to support the Montlake Neighborhood, we are expanding the old Snow Brigade to include two broader goals:
- Aid our community in Emergency Preparedness (to ready our community for major disasters)
- Organize a team of volunteers – Neighbors Helping Neighbors – (to help our neighbors pick up medications, food and other essential supplies, provide rides to doctors’ appointments and provide additional essential services during snow storms, floods, power outages and personal illnesses)
There are several city-sponsored preparedness activities that we can participate in, including:
- Block Watch groups with Block Watch Captains
- HUBs with HUB Captains (a HUB is a community gathering place where community members meet during an emergency. HUBs house large containers with supplies for emergency use)
- CERT – Certified Emergency Response Teams – specially trained teams skilled in emergency management
- SNAP – Seattle Neighborhoods Actively Prepared – training sessions in emergency preparedness for community groups
At present, there are no Block Watch groups registered in Montlake, and according to the latest city emergency preparedness maps, there are currently no HUBs or CERTs.
Our first step in this project is to register our Block Watch groups with the city and we need your help. Our hope is to have the Block Watch Captains be part of a phone tree for our Neighbors Helping Neighbors program, as well as for our Emergency Preparedness program.
We plan to apply to the city for a HUB that will be located within our Montlake boundaries and begin a series of regular SNAP sessions on emergency preparedness at the Montlake Library or Montlake Community Center.
If you are a Block Watch Captain, please email Carol Cordy, a Montlake Community Club board member, at carolcordymd@gmail.com at your earliest convenience.
And let Carol know if you are interested in participating in these projects, in any capacity. Carol will be sure to keep you informed of our planning meetings and training sessions.
On behalf of the Montlake Community Club, thank you for your time and attention. If you have any questions or comments, please contact Carol Cordy at carolcordymd@gmail.com. Carol has graciously volunteered her time to spearhead this project.
If you are interested in learning how to prepare an Emergency Kit for your home/car/ business, or just want to find out what the city of Seattle has in place for disaster preparedness please visit:
seattle.gov/emergency-management/preparedness/prepare-yourself, or seattle.gov/emergency-management/preparedness
Three’s Company
Reading the signals and finding a mate can be challenging. Not everyone is motivated by the same desires. Watch this hooded merganser as he attempts to deal with a very self-assured female.
Have a great day on Union Bay…where nature lives in the city!
Larry
Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs)
From the late 1800s through the 1940s, engineers designed sewers to carry sewage and stormwater to the nearest body of water. At that time, planners believed that diluted pollution would not harm the water bodies. The system took care of horse manure and garbage on the streets along with human waste. Today, cities in King County build separate pipes; one to carry sewage to a treatment plant and another to carry stormwater to the nearest water body. However, there are still combined sewers in the oldest neighborhoods in Seattle. (source: King County website)
In Montlake, there are four CSO locations that spill combined sewage and stormwater during heavy rains. Here is a link to a map of CSO locations that also shows the current status of each site. This combined sewer overflow status page is provided and maintained by King County.
Typical overflow contents include approximately 10% sewage and 90% stormwater. While discharging untreated sewage into our public waters is certainly gross, the water temperatures are generally too cold for most bacteria in sewage to survive for very long. However, due to health concerns (contact with polluted water can make you sick), King County recommends that people stay out of the water for 48 hours after a combined sewer overflow event.
Aging Eagles
This week’s post is not about ancient, near-sighted eagles in need of bifocals. It is about looking at immature eagles and figuring out how old they are. This week, I have seen at least five young eagles on Union Bay. To learn their various different age’s visit:
Have a great day on Union Bay…where eagles do grow old in the city!
Larry
A Full Circle
This week I set out to determine whether this male pileated woodpecker is Squall or his father, Chip. Please, come and review the pileated family photos and see if you agree with my conclusions on:
Have a great day on Union Bay…where pileated woodpeckers live in the city!
Larry
Three Ways to Help Montlake Elementary
Hello Montlake Neighbors,
Montlake Elementary will hold our annual auction on March 18 to raise critical funds to help reduce class sizes, provide extra reading and tutoring support, and ensure a full range of specialists including art, health and fitness, vocal music, instrumental music, library and technology, and greenhouse education.
Here are 3 ways you can help the auction:
DONATE AN ITEM
Airline miles, hotel points, vacation homes, a cool product from your company, experiences, sports tickets (Procurement form on website.)
BE A SPONSOR
Are you looking for more visibility for your business? We are looking for sponsors to help underwrite the auction. In return we will make you look like a rock – err disco – star! (Sponsorship packages on website.)
BAKE A DESSERT
Calling all bakers and dessert makers! This year’s auction will once again feature the much-anticipated Dessert Dash and we need your help! We anticipate needing around 30 desserts for the event. Yummy ideas from past events include Port and a selection of gourmet cheeses, a salted caramel chocolate ding dong cake, and a gingerbread stack cake, just to name a few. If you are willing to make (or procure from a local retailer, friend or relative) a scrumptious dessert, please reach out to Meredith Helmick @ meredith.helmick@gmail.com.
Thank you for supporting our wonderful public elementary school in the heart of Montlake.
Please feel free to reach out to auction chair, Amy Anderson, at amygeoff@comcast.net with questions.
Nature’s Delight
Sometimes it feels like nature is teasing me. Showing me birds from a distance and then hiding them when I try to get close – until suddenly the reverse happens. See more on:
Have a great day on Union Bay…where nature lives in the city!
Larry
Meet Your Montlake Community Club Board & Volunteers
![Photo Caption: MCC Board. Bottom Row – Kerry Clayman and Tyler Blitz. Second Row – Bob DeLay, Michele Layton, Yvonne Werner, Lori Sabado, Kathy Laughman, and Carol Cordy. Top Row: Sharsti Sandall, Bryan Haworth, and Darcy LaBelle. Not Pictured: Juan Lopez and John O’Neil.](https://montlake.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/DSC_2294-600x397.jpg)
MCC Board. Bottom Row – Kerry Clayman and Tyler Blitz. Second Row – Bob DeLay, Michele Layton, Yvonne Werner, Lori Sabado, Kathy Laughman, and Carol Cordy. Top Row: Sharsti Sandall, Bryan Haworth, and Darcy LaBelle. Not Pictured: Juan Lopez and John O’Neil.
Happy New Year from the Montlake Community Club Board of Directors! We’ve recently updated our bio page and invite you to read more about who we are. We’ve also added bios of some of our wonderful volunteers, without whom we would not be able to do what we do.
The Montlake Community Club is a volunteer-led organization that represents your interests as Montlake residents. We are your conduit to city officials and other civic groups; we organized the first ever Montlake 5K Turkey Trot & Kids Run in 2016, and the fourth annual All Montlake Yard Sale; we authored the grant that is helping us think about improving our business district; and we are involved with ongoing transportation and safety issues, including the possible loss of the Montlake Blvd Market. As a Montlake resident, you are automatically a member of the club.
After hearing from community members who felt out-of-touch when the paper version of the Montlake Flyer was discontinued, we brought back the paper Flyer last year. Expect a new issue of the Montlake Flyer on your doorstep soon.
With a 2016 that had us busier than ever, the Montlake Community Club needs more volunteer support. Whatever your contribution is, large or small, there is a role for you with the MCC. If you are interested in connecting with your neighbors and helping your community, please contact us at board@montlake.net.
Click here to learn more about your MCC board members and volunteers: http://montlake.net/mcc/mcc-board-of-directors/