This Saturday you can meet your local police officers, tour the precinct building, and enjoy music, dancing, and free food at this year’s Picnic at the Precinct. All South Precinct residents are invited to this free community event, which will be held from 1:00 – 4:00 pm in the South Precinct parking lot, 3001 South Myrtle Street.

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Nearby in the South Beacon Hill area, Seattle Parks and Recreation will host a meeting for the Othello Playground Safety and Lighting Improvement project on Monday, September 20 from 7:00 – 8:30 pm at the Van Asselt Community Center, 2820 South Myrtle Street.

At this meeting, the design team will present schematic designs for the project, based on information gathered at the first meeting in May and at the August Othello Park International Music and Art Festival.

For more information, please contact Rick Nishi, Parks and Green Spaces Levy Manager at 206-733-9319 or at rick.nishi@seattle.gov, or visit the project website.

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The Beacon Hill branch of the Seattle Public Library will host a special story time for children on Saturday, October 2 at 3:30 pm featuring an actor in costume as the television character Kai-lan from Ni Hao, Kai-lan. The story time is free and registration is not required. Kai-lan will read from one of her Mandarin Chinese/English bilingual books, and giveaways and photo opportunities will be available. The story time is presented in partnership with the Seattle Theatre Group in promotion of the upcoming stage show Storytime Live! at the Paramount Theatre.

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Neighbor Julie writes, “This very friendly cat appeared at our door last night (9/8/10). It is a small, black and white, with an interesting tail. We live in the 19th Ave S. and Horton neighborhood. Please call Julie at 206-999-9231 to claim it.”

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You still have time to submit an application with the Seattle Releaf “Trees for Neighborhoods” program. The application deadline has been extended to October 4 for the program, in which participants receive free trees, training, and some supplies to get started caring for their trees. Trees may be planted along the street or in your yard. To find out more and to get your application, check out the website.

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Another way to help green-up your neighborhood is coming on October 10, with a Maple School Natural Area Invasive Species Removal and Native Planting work party. The work party is from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, followed by a social party until 6:00 pm. All you need to bring is yourself—refreshments, tools, and gloves will be provided.

The Maple School Natural Area is located at 20th Avenue South and South Lucile Street, near Cleveland High School. You can find out more about the event and RSVP at the website.