05/22/02

Dear Neighbors,

It's time again for our Annual Neighborhood Meeting and we hope you can join us on May 30th. It's a busy time for our community and we have many things to tell you about in addition to the Neighborhood Meeting. Here's a summary of items included in this message:

  • Annual Neighborhood Meeting: Join us on May 30th! Details below.
  • Are you good with numbers? The Laurelhurst Community Club is looking for a new treasurer. Interested? Details below.
  • Laurelhurst Sidewalk Safety Program: LCC is launching its Sidewalk Safety Program! The first step is to take an inventory of the condition of our sidewalks. Find out how you can help below.
  • Take Five for Kids! Comment on the All Ages Dance Ordinance: The City Council is considering an ordinance that would allow for profit dance clubs open to children of ALL ages, with no closing time in venues where alcohol is present. LCC is very concerned about this proposal and has offered amendments to ensure the safety of our kids. If the City Council doesn't hear from you, this measure will pass without amendments to protect our kids. Details below.
  • Support the Center for Urban Horticulture: Purchase a Merrill Hall Donor Tile and help build an enhanced visitors lobby at the Center. The tiles are beautiful and cost between $85 and $250 depending upon size. Details below.
  • An opportunity to support The Learning Center: The Learning Center invites you to a fundraiser to help teachers integrate technology into our classrooms. Details below.
  • Fun things to do at Magnuson Park: Mark your calendar for an upcoming breakdancing competition, free sailing instruction for young children and a fun run to benefit Children's Hospital. Help out with the Promontory Point natural area. Get involved in the Community Garden Art Committee. Details below.

Just cursor down to whatever interests you for details about the above meetings, projects and events. We apologize that this message is so long, but there's a lot going on and we only send out one message a month.

Please forward this message to neighbors who may not be on our email network. We now have 638 on our list! As always, we appreciate your support and commitment to the neighborhood. If you have questions about this message or any other neighborhood concerns, please email back. The LCC board meets at 7 p.m. the second Monday of each month at St. Stephens. All calls and concerns from neighbors are discussed and neighbors are always welcome to attend.

Jeannie Hale, LCC President

=========LAURELHURST ANNUAL NEIGHBORHOOD MEETING=======

Please join us for the Laurelhurst Annual Neighborhood Meeting on Thursday, May 30th at the Laurelhurst Community Center, 4554 NE 41st Street. There will be an informal reception at 6:45 p.m. and the meeting starts at 7 p.m. Kids are welcome! Here's the lineup of topics and speakers:

  • Battelle Property Development: Robert Wicklein from The Seneca Group and Dorm Anderson, an architect from NBBJ, will update the community on plans for either an Institute for Advanced Study or in the alternative a single-family housing development on the 18-acre Battelle property.
  • Union Bay Natural Area Restoration: Hear an update from Amalia Leighton, Matthew Ramsay and Shelly French, students in the Restoration Ecology Certificate program at the Center for Urban Horticulture about progress to restore the nearby wetlands.
  • Rebuilding the Center for Urban Horticulture: Tom Hinckley, Center Director, will update neighbors about planning underway to rebuild the Center for Urban Horticulture after the eco-terrorist arson attack in May 2001.
  • Villa Master Plan: Villa Headmistress Polly Skinner, Villa Trustee Kay Stimson and Villa Development Director Mike McCloskey will discuss preliminary planning efforts to develop a Villa Master Plan. The plan will change traffic circulation patterns in the neighborhood.
  • Transportation Master Plan: Laurelhurst Project Manager Liz Ogden and Transportation Consultant Marni Heffron will present the draft North Laurelhurst Transportation Plan, a comprehensive effort to address traffic and pedestrian safety problems in the north section of Laurelhurst.

Questions? Contact Shahina Piyarali at 526-8005 or shahinapiyarali@hotmail.com or Jeannie Hale at 525-5135 or jeannieh@serv.net.

=================ARE YOU GOOD WITH NUMBERS?==============

LCC is looking for a new treasurer. We have been fortunate to have the excellent services of Han Kim, but he and his wife will have their second baby soon and Han will be resigning from the LCC Board of Trustees to attend to other matters.

Treasurer Responsibilities: Our current treasurer has a good system set up and can teach you how to do things. Here are the major responsibilities:

  • Attend monthly LCC trustee meetings (second Monday at 7 p.m. at St. Stephens)
  • Pay monthly bills (maintenance of the NE 41st Street boulevard, newsletter expenses, dues in membership organizations and other bills and expenses authorized by the board)
  • Deposit annual neighbors dues
  • Prepare the annual IRS Form 990
  • Prepare quarterly Treasurer's Reports for the board
  • Prepare an annual budget

Are you interested? Please contact Shahina Piyarali at 206-526-8005 or shahinapiyarali@hotmail.com.

==========LAURELHURST SIDEWALK SAFETY PROGRAM ============

LCC is launching the Laurelhurst Sidewalk Safety Program. The plan is to educate neighbors about sidewalk safety problems, develop an inventory of Laurelhurst sidewalks where problems exist and to develop a plan for the City, the Laurelhurst Community Club and neighbors to work together and to share some of the cost of safety repairs. Brochures about the program are available at the Laurelhurst Community Center.

Neighbors with unsteady gait or who rely on assistive devices such as canes and walkers are especially at risk for falls from cracked and uneven sidewalks. For these neighbors, a broken hip or other serious injury can all too easily result from a fall. For some, recovery from this kind of accident could require surgery or be very slow and some may never recover completely.

Children playing on the sidewalk can end up with skinned knees or worse. Neighbors often end up walking in the street to avoid hazards associated with unsafe sidewalks and this also poses risks.

How You Can Help: Phase 1 of the project is to develop an inventory of Laurelhurst sidewalks. Forms are available for neighbors to complete at the community center or you can email Karl Weyrauch at karlweyrauch@hotmail.com to get one. Students with community service school requirements are welcome and encouraged to help out with the inventory. We are basically asking neighbors for help in identifying:

  • Cracks in sidewalks (especially where the sidewalk is no longer level);
  • Sidewalk overgrowth that in unsafe for walkers and those with strollers;
  • Unsafe/slippery grates on sidewalks;
  • Need for curb cuts or ramps at corner locations for wheelchairs and bicycles; and
  • Other problems that contribute to unsafe sidewalks.

Questions? Contact Karl Weyrauch at 206-525-5562 or karlweyrauch@hotmail.com or Jeannie Hale at 206-525-5135 or jeannieh@serv.net.

====================TAKE FIVE FOR KIDS!=====================

Send in Comments on the Proposed All Ages Dance Ordinance

Background: Two years ago, LCC worked with the Mayor, the City Council and others to get amendments included in the All Ages Dance Ordinance to ensure protection of our youth at for profit nightclubs. At that time, the Music and Youth Task Force recommended repeal of a law known as the "Teen Dance Ordinance" and replacement with an "All Ages Dance Ordinance."

LCC supported changes to the archaic Teen Dance Ordinance to expand entertainment opportunities for kids. But, we thought the All Ages Dance Ordinance went too far in allowing unsupervised children of any age into dance clubs where alcohol would be served. We asked for amendments to address such issues as imposing a curfew at dance venues as the proposed law would have allowed these venues to be open 24 hours a day and alcohol would be served. We asked that there be a readmission fee, something required at high school events in Seattle, to deter young people from leaving the premises to use drugs or engage in other unlawful activity. LCC sought other amendments addressing the issues presented by the proposed new law.

The City Council passed the All Ages Dance Ordinance in August 2000 by a close vote. Mayor Schell subsequently vetoed the measure listing concerns raised by Laurelhurst and others.

The All Ages Dance Ordinance is now back before the City Council. The same issues that LCC was concerned about a couple of years ago are still here. We want a compromise proposal to ensure young people have access to music venues, but with adequate safeguards. We urge you to attend the upcoming public hearing on May 28th or email your comments to City Councilmembers and the Mayor. If the City Council and the Mayor do not hear from concerned citizens the All Ages Dance Ordinance will pass in its current form!

The Public Hearing: The City Council Neighborhoods, Arts and Civil Rights Committee will hold a public hearing to take comments on an ordinance repealing the Teen Dance Ordinance and adopting the All-Ages Dance Ordinance on Tuesday, May 28th at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chamber, located in City Hall at 600 Fourth Avenue. For those wishing to testify at the hearing, a sign-up sheet will be available outside the door to the Council Chamber at 5:00 p.m. Councilmember Nick Licata will chair the hearing.

Email or Fax Comments: You can also email in comments to the Mayor and Councilmembers at the addresses below, call them or fax them. The fax number for Councilmembers is 684-8587.

The Message: Please consider asking Councilmembers and the Mayor for the following amendments to the All Ages Dance Ordinance:

  • Curfew: Impose a curfew so that the City is not in the position of promoting or encouraging children to stay out all night; (We prefer a midnight curfew, the curfew set by the Bellevue Ordinance, especially on school nights. Some councilmembers support a 2 a.m. curfew.)
  • Age Limit/Parental Consent: Limit the age of children who may attend the all-age nightclubs and require those under 14 to be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian;
  • Alcohol: Do not allow alcohol to be served on the premises.
  • Security Issues: Require adequate police to protect our youth against victimization and to guard against illegal underage drinking and drug activity both inside and outside the premises;
  • Readmission Fee: Require a readmission fee to minimize off-site underage drinking and illegal drug activity; (This is required under the Bellevue ordinance and by many of our high schools. Seattle should follow these examples.);
  • Criminal Background Check: Require a criminal background check for club owners, managers and promoters;
  • Insurance Requirement: Impose an insurance requirement in the event that young people are injured on the premises and to ensure funds to indemnify the City; and
  • Exemptions: Maintain the current regulation that exempts nightclubs that have fewer than 150 patrons, rather than increasing the number to 250.

Further Information? The ordinances can be viewed by clicking the following hyperlinks: For the All Ages Dance Ordinance, go to http://clerk.ci.seattle.wa.us/~public/CBOR1.htm and type "114170" in the Council Bill field. The "Teen Dance Ordinance" is section 6.294 of the Seattle Municipal Code. Go to http://clerk.ci.seattle.wa.us/~public/code1.htm and type "6.294" under the "Code Section Number" field.

===AN OPPORTUNITY TO SUPPORT THE CENTER FOR URBAN HORTICULTURE===

Merrill Hall Donor Tiles

"You’re not just buying a tile—you’re buying a building!"

 

Plans to rebuild the Center for Urban Horticulture are continuing and you can help! As you know, Merrill Hall, the flagship of the Center for Urban Horticulture, was destroyed by the May 21, 2001 eco-terrorist fire. The Center will be rebuilt with funds from the State, the UW and private contributors. But to create a wonderful, sustainable facility more money is needed.

The Center for Urban Horticulture (CUH) is offering engraved tiles that you can purchase to help build an enhanced visitors lobby. The proposed lobby will house an expanded CUH information desk, a Master Gardener Diagnostic Clinic, interpretive displays of the programs and landscapes at the Center, and a new entrance to the Miller Library and the Hyde Herbarium. The Center envisions this space as a ‘one-stop’ resource for gardeners and horticulturists. They hope to have space for tables and chairs where visitors, students and staff can informally gather. But this can only happen with your help.

Options: CUH is offering three types of donor tiles for the floor of the lobby to help fund the enhanced lobby area. Each tile will have a beautiful engraving of a native tree leaf and the donor’s name (or the name of someone specified by the donor). Here are the options:

  1. $85 red alder (Alnus rubra), 6" x 6" engraved, colored, polished concrete tile
  2. $150 Garry oak (Quercus garryana), 6" x 12" engraved, colored, polished concrete tile
  3. $250 bigleaf maple (Acer macrophyllum), 12" x 12" engraved, colored, polished concrete tile

For an additional $25, you may add another line, 30 characters for the maple and oak tiles, 20 for the alder tile.

How to Participate in the Donor Tile Program: Neighbors are welcome to stop by the reception desk at the Center for Urban Horticulture to see pictures of the tiles, and a full-size example of the 12" x 12" maple leaf tile. If you would like to purchase a tile, please contact Ray Larson at 206-616-9113 or halcyon@u.washington.edu to obtain a form to fill out the required information or just stop by the Center for Urban Horticulture. Contributions are tax-deductible.

Questions about Reconstruction: Go to www.urbanhort.org.

========AN OPPORTUNITY TO SUPPORT THE LEARNING SPACE=====

The Learning Space invites you to a fundraiser on June 1st from Noon to 4 p.m. at the Skansonia Ferry Boat, permanently moored at 2505 North Northlake Way in Seattle. Celebrate the great Learning Space teachers and the inventive minds of their students. The Learning Space is a teacher-based, non-profit organization whose mission is to help teachers and educators integrate technology directly in classrooms to revolutionize teaching and student learning.

Enjoy delicious cuisine from around the world as well as cultural performances and artwork inspired by Morocco, the Pacific Northwest, Italy, Asia, Mexico, Senegal, Spain, Switzerland and Thailand.

Meet guest chefs from some of the Northwest's finest restaurants including Afrikando, Brasa, Dragonfish Asian Café, Kaspar's, Fandango, Fernando's Hideaway and Serafina.

Cost: $65 per person, $50 for teachers. Please RSVP online at www.learningspace.org.

Further Information: Call 206-545-9109 or email Andrea Justham at ajustham@learningspace.org. For directions, go to www.skansonia.com.

=============FUNS THINGS TO DO AT MAGNUSON PARK==========

  • Red Bull Lords of the Floor: On June 1st at 2 p.m. the national break dance competition for local and national performers will take place in Building 2 at Magnuson Park, 7400 Sand Point Way NE. The cost is $12 in advance or $15 at the door. For further information, contact Justine Mittelman at 310-460-5370 or justine.mittelman@us.redbull.com or go to http://www.redbulllordsofthefloor.com/index.html.
  • 3rd Annual Run for Children's Run/Walk: Your participation on June 8th in either a 10K run or 5K walk will help raise funds for uncompensated care at Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center. The event will be held at Magnuson Park. Enter at the NE 65th Street entrance. The start/finish line is located on the shore of Lake Washington. Arrive at 7 a.m. The cost is $20 pre-registration or $25 the day of the race. This event is sponsored by the Laure Brigman Guild. For further information, contact Jorie Jones at 206-528-2777 or go to http://www.runforchildrens.org/.
  • Youth Fast and Fun Sailing! Fast and Fun Sailing! is a FREE youth program of the US Sailing Association to introduce sailing to children ages 8 and up. Qualified instructors will be provided from June 14th through 16th. Enter Magnuson Park at NE 65th Street and proceed to Magnuson Beach. For further information, contact Caleb Tarleton at 425-557-8108 or calebtar@aol.com or go to http://www.ussailing.org/multihull/fast&fun.htm.
  • Help with Promontory Point: The Promontory Point Habitat Enhancement Project at Magnuson Park is well on its way to transforming a neglected area into a beautiful environment for passive enjoyment of birds, nature and other Northwest amenities. Work parties are held on the second Sunday and third Thursday of each month at 10 a.m. Get involved yourself, involve your family and neighbors or even your place of business. Enter at the NE 65th Street entrance and meet at the Education Pavilion in the southeast part of the park. This project is sponsored by the Magnuson Environmental Stewardship Alliance Work. For further information, contact Bonnie Miller 206-524-8713 or bmiller@serv.net.
  • Community Garden Art Committee: The Magnuson Community Garden at Magnuson Park is seeking artistically gifted neighbors to serve as members of the Art Committee. This group will meet once a month. The important function is to integrate artistic sensibilities into the various elements of the Community Garden. This will include the benches, paths, any permanent art installations, etc. Since this is not "just a P-Patch" it is important to create an environment that will be welcoming to the visitors to the Park and involve the visitors in the landscape. The Art Committee will also coordinate the various art components of the different and separate areas of the garden so that there will be a unifying theme. The second meeting of the Art Committee of the Magnuson Community Garden at Warren G. Magnuson Park will be on Monday, May 13, at 5:30 p.m. in the conference room of Building 30. For more information contact Krista Heron at 206-522-2550 or Kjh@dbug.org.