Making Connections - Pierre Project Mental Mapping

DPC met Thursday with Marty Curry and three of the UW grad students working on the Pierre Property project. We were given a sheet of paper and were asked to draw out our perception of Lake City - to make a "mental map". Afterwards, we each explained our maps - what we liked about Lake City and what we thought could be better in the context of the Pierre Property redevelopment.  Some highlights after the jump.

North Helpline Empty Bowl Fundraiser

This Sunday, May 6th is the North Helpline Empty Bowls Fundraiser. The event is from noon until 3:00pm at the Lake City Elks Lodge - 14540 Lake City Way  NE ( Behind Deja Vu )


More information about the event can be found here!

You can purchase tickets here!

Bike Works in Lake City

Bike Works will be offering classes at the Lake City Community Center on Sunday, June 3rd. See the flyer below for more details. If you are interested in the  Squeaky Brakes Class, contact Davey Oil at Bike Works to register.


 

PHOTO: Albert Davis Park birds

You may recall from a recent post the small bird nest we found in the grass at Albert Davis Park behind the Lake City Library.

The nest was a welcome site for our group during one of our twice-weekly neighborhood walks. Usually we find drug paraphernalia, bottles and cans used to feed addictions and other trash. See examples here, here and here.

When we first spotted the small nest there were four small eggs in there.

Well, when we returned the following morning to mark the nest with a couple surveyors flags so no one would stepped on it there was a surprise inside.

During the night or morning two of the eggs hatched into something else.

Walk report

Typically you hear our reports of the overwhelming number of empty cans and bottles that feed addictions, the drug paraphernalia and prescription pill bottles, graffiti, and other evidence of nuisance behaviors we find and document on our twice-weekly neighborhood walks.

But all is not bad. Our walks help to build a sense of community and seem to act as informal meetings where we discuss our community and brainstorm ideas as we explore the neighborhood in real time.

And sometimes there are surprises.

On Monday night, while exploring in Albert Davis Park behind the Library, picking up litter and looking for empty bottles and cans, we found a small nest with four eggs built in the grass, a sure sign that spring is upon us.

The mother bird chirped nervously while perched on a nearby wall as Douglas Park Cooperative members passed through the area.

A DPC member later returned with a small flag to mark the nest so it wouldn't be stepped on by someone else walking through the area.

Upcoming Meetings

Here is a list of meetings over the next week:

Monday, April 30th - DPC Weekly Walk

We meet tonight at 6:30pm at the corner of 125th and 26th. We'll be picking up litter in Virgil Flaim Park and our usual route.

Tuesday, May 1st - Parks and Greenspace Opportunity Fund Workshop

The workshop is from 6pm to 7:30pm at the Greenwood Library ( 8016 Greenwood Ave N ). The Opportunity Fund has $8 million dollars available for the acquisition and development of parks space through community initiative. The amount available for a proposal to acquire property is $1.5 million and the property must be over 10,000 sf. The amount available for improvements on public land is between $200 and $750k per project. DPC reps will be there tomorrow to discuss a proposal for the development of a skatepark in Lake City using these funds.

Wednesday, May 2nd - North District Council meeting

The NDC meeting is from 7pm to 8:30pm at the Lake City Library Conference Room ( on the north side of the building ). Discussion about the Pierre Properties Workshop on May 19th. There will also be an SDOT rep there to talk about the Seattle Waterfront redevelopment.

Wednesday, May 2nd - North Precinct Advisory Council meeting

The meeting is held at 7pm to 8:30pm in the Student Club Room ( by the Cafeteria ) at the North Seattle Community College.

Thursday, May 3rd - Douglas Park Cooperative meeting with Marty Curry

At Kaffeeklatsch from 7pm to 8pm. We will be doing the Mental Map of Lake City with Marty Curry and the UW students for inclusion in the work on the Pierre Property redevelopment vision.

Updated: New event added.  

Sunday, May 6th - North Helpline Empty Bowls Fundraiser
Noon to 3:00pm at the Lake City Elks Lodge #1800, 14540 Lake City Way ( Bothell Way )

Monday, May 7th - Douglas Park Cooperative meeting with Parks, SPD, and DON

Updated: At the Lake City Library Conference Room  from 7pm to 8:30pm.  

We will be meeting with representatives from Parks and Rec, Seattle Police, and Department of Neighborhoods to put an action plan in place for reducing nuisance behaviors in Virgil Flaim and Albert Davis Parks. Solutions will include making problem spots more visible, creating a schedule of programs for positive activities this summer, and establishing proper routines for reporting and documenting negative behaviors in the parks.

Douglas Park Cooperative meetings are open to all.

Monday, May 7th - City Council "Three Mondays in May"

At North Seattle Community College in room #1161 from 6pm to 7:30pm.

"Join the Seattle City Council for one of three conversations in May about the City budget and community priorities. Participants will engage City Councilmembers and neighbors in conversation centered on five thought-provoking questions about the future of our City."

More info here and here.

Saturday, May 19th - Pierre Properties Redevelopment Public Workshop

Updated: Time and Links added.  

From 9am to 1:30pm at Nathan Hale High School. This will be a workshop open to the public to talk about your vision for Lake City with the community.

More information at Families for Lake City & at the UW Grad Students project blog.

There will also be a large public safety meeting in our area some time in May or June that will be put on by Councilmember Bruce Harrell's office. This event will have ~350 to 400 devices that the audience will use to respond to questions regarding public safety in our neighborhood. It will provide them with real time feedback for addressing concerns. Questions will be presented by leaders of community organizations. The last event was held in the South Precinct. More info about that event and who to expect at ours is here.  We will post a time/date/place for this event as soon as we know.

Neighborhood Matching Fund Workshop

Quote from Paul Dubois on NMF

A DPC member attended the Large Projects matching fund workshop at the Youngstown Cultural Arts Center in Delridge on Saturday. The workshop is mandatory for any group that is intending to request large project funding.

The Large Projects fund will match up to $100,000 in donations from a community toward a project. The donations can be of four kinds:

1. Donated labor ( at a flat rate of $20 per hour and recorded as pledged future labor and documented completed labor from individuals)
2. Donated professional services ( same as above, but at the professional rate. )
3. Donated cash.
4. Donated materials.

Correction: We made an incorrect statement that the fund can be used for property acquisition. Thank you to the City Community Relations person who notified us of this. 


The fund can be used for property acquisition, development, and events. The primary criteria for judging the applications is "Does it build community?" It can be used in conjunction with other funding sources, but the match only applies to community donated resources. The funding can be used for a phase of a project too, but the funds need to be used within a year of their issue ( which would be December of this year to December of 2013. )

Many of the projects funded by the Neighborhood Matching Fund are on property owned by the City ( mostly Parks and Rec or SDOT ) or Seattle Schools. Permission from a representative of these entities is required with the application. There were representatives from DPR and SDOT there who act as point persons for the NMF application  process. From DPR was Pamela Kliment, and from SDOT was Luke Korpi. The point person for Seattle Schools is Karen Dedecker.

Applications are due on July 16th by 5pm. No applications submitted after this time will be considered for this round. The applications are then screened by Department of Neighborhood staff to determine if they meet the requirements. The applications then go on to be reviewed by representatives of the City Neighborhood Council's Citywide Review Team and the North District Council for scoring. A presentation by our organization is then required at a Large Project Funds open house in September as well as a presentation at a North District Council Meeting in September. The City Neighborhood Council's Citywide Review Team makes final recommendations to the Department of Neighborhoods and those then go to Mayor's office for approval and then on to City Council for their approval. The funds are then available sometime in December.

So, with that mouthful out of the way and the first hurdle cleared, what do you want to see happen in our neighborhood and what are you willing to donate to make it happen? Here are some suggestions:

An Educational P-Patch and Weather Station at the NE corner of Olymic Hills Elementary.

A Neighborhood  Greenway from Olympic Hills Elementary to the Library.

Acquisition of "The House" and development of a Pocket Park.

Let us know what you think!