Category Archives: Meetings

Meetings, Urban Planning

Neighborhood plan update moving forward tomorrow

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The Seattle Public Utilities and Neighborhoods Committee (SPUNC) is meeting tomorrow, Tuesday, September 28, at 2:00 pm. One of the items on the agenda (item #5) is “recognition of the North Beacon Hill, Othello, and North Rainier Neighborhood Plan Updates,” including briefing, discussion, and a possible vote.

Key items in the proposed update include changing the zoning around Beacon Hill Station to 65 feet, and encouraging more residential development in our Urban Village.

The committee will consider and discuss Resolution 31245:

A Resolution recognizing the extensive efforts of the North Beacon Hill neighborhood to update their vision and plan for the future; approving an action plan for the neighborhood and City to undertake actions to advance neighborhood priorities and authorizing the submittal of proposed amendments to the North Beacon Hill Neighborhood Plan for consideration as part of the Comprehension Plan amendment process.

You can read the  entire resolution online.

City Councilmember Mike O’Brien chairs SPUNC, the committee responsible for neighborhood planning (among other things).  To share your thoughts on whether the North Beacon Hill Neighborhood Plan is ready to move forward, please attend the meeting tomorrow or contact Councilmember O’Brien via email at mike.obrien@seattle.gov or by phone at 206-684-8800. SPUNC meetings are held in Council Chambers on the 2nd floor of City Hall, 600 Fourth Avenue.

The proposed Neighborhood Plan Update was drafted during one of the worst budget crises the city has ever seen. North Beacon Hill residents will benefit from projects and goals in the plan, and will also be able to pursue funding for other projects in the future.  Action teams will be forming soon to work on specific items in the plan—stay tuned to the Beacon Hill Blog to learn how to get involved!

Our community is strong and vibrant because neighbors like you get involved in the planning process and—most importantly—in the many ongoing projects happening on Beacon Hill. Whether you have five minutes to send an email or hours to devote to meetings, thank you for helping make North Beacon Hill an amazing place to live, work, play and learn!

Meetings, Urban Planning

September NBHC meeting agenda

The postponed-due-to-the-week-long-library-closure September North Beacon Hill Council Meeting is happening this Thursday at 7pm in the Beacon Hill Library Community Room. Everyone is welcome, and if you’ve been to at least one meeting, you’re eligible to vote!

The agenda as posted on the NBHC website with some added emphasis:

  • 7:00 Introductions and Welcome
  • 7:05 Allison Schwartz, Transportation Planner, Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) and Mike Podowski, Planner, Department of Planning and Development (DPD) will give an update on light rail station area parking and get feedback on the Restricted Parking Zones – how are they working for us. Q & A follows five minute presentations by each.
  • 7:40 City Councilmember Mike O’Brien, Chair, Seattle Public Utilities and Neighborhoods Committee: CC member O’Brien’s City Council Committee will be making a decision this month on the Neighborhood Plan as presented by DPD; he has asked for this opportunity to receive neighborhood feedback. Mike will also be soliciting members for the Action Teams which are forming to implement the Neighborhood Plan.
  • 8:10 Neighborhood updates
    • Beacon Rocks
    • Beacon Hill Business Association
    • Nomination of new North Beacon Hill Council Board Member
    • Resignation accepted from Shelly Bates, Board Member – thank you so much, Shelly, for all you have done for us!
    • Other announcements, events
  • 8:30 Executive Board Meeting (open to all, however only Board Members are allowed to speak and take any needed votes. If you choose to leave at this time, it’s understood!)
    • Election of new board member(s)
    • Updates on plans made at the August Board Social meeting
Clean and Green, Getting Around, Meetings, Volunteering and Giving

Beacon BIKES! update

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Photo by Two Ladies & Two Cats.
Ryan Harrison sent this announcement with information and an invitation from Beacon BIKES!:

As many of you know, there is a growing movement among Beacon Hill residents interested in safely getting people of all ages and abilities around and to destinations within our neighborhood on foot and bicycle.  This propelled Beacon BIKES!, a growing group of community members, to obtain the knowledge and expertise of a consultant to bring our collective vision to fruition.  (Links available describing some of our ideas can be found on the September 3rd posting on this blog.)

Friday, we chose Alta Planning + Design as our consultant from among three enthusiastic applicants.  Beacon BIKES! believes that pedestrians and cyclists encounter similar obstacles in getting around our neighborhood and that facilities that address both modes make the most sense.  This philosophy is in line with Alta’s belief in “integrating all modes of travel (including walking and bicycling) into the daily lives of residents and creating healthy, safe, and sustainable communities.”  Most importantly, they offer an interactive approach geared to keeping the neighborhood informed and involved throughout the process.

All this is great news, but in order for this to work, we’ll need anyone and everyone to chime in at our monthly Beacon BIKES! meetings to make this a uniquely Beacon Hill plan. The next meeting will be held at the community room of the Library at 6:30 PM on Monday, September 13th.  SDOT representatives will be in attendance, so the more Beaconites there, the more seriously our work will be taken.  If you’re not involved already, you will want to be after this meeting!

In addition, there will be opportunities to participate through community forums, walks and other interactive outings to make this circulation plan for us and by us.

As always, you can prepare for the next Beacon BIKES! Family Bike and Pedestrian Circulation Plan meeting by visiting our Facebook page: Beacon BIKES!

You may also contact Sandra Woods or Brian Dougherty of SDOT and our City Council members to let them know you are a participant in and support our Family Bike and Pedestrian Circulation Plan.

Be sure to check back to the blog for updates.  We hope to see many of you at the meeting.

Thanks Beacon Hill!

Meetings

Reminder: North Beacon Hill Council meeting is next week

The North Beacon Hill Council meeting, usually the first Thursday each month, has been rescheduled this month to next Thursday, September 9 at 7:00 pm. NBHC meetings are usually held at the Beacon Hill Library, 2821 Beacon Avenue South. Stay tuned—we usually post the agenda here a few days before the meeting. All are welcome to participate in the neighborhood council.

The meeting cannot be held at the library tonight, as all branches of the Seattle Public Library are closed this week due to budget cuts.

Getting Around, Meetings

Open house Tuesday on proposed road changes in Mid-Beacon

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Bike paths like this one on North Beacon Hill may soon be added further south on 15th Avenue. Photo by Wendi.
Your comments are needed Tuesday at an Open House for several proposed street reconfigurations in Mid-Beacon Hill. The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is planning changes for several roads in Mid-Beacon to address safety, provide traffic calming, improve pedestrian crossings, and install bicycle facilities. These changes will implement a “Complete Streets” approach, in which the street is redesigned to enable safe access for all users, including pedestrians, cyclists, transit users, and drivers, as well as children, seniors, and people with disabilities.

15th Avenue South between South Bradford Street and South Oregon Street (the red line on the map below) currently consists of four travel lanes with parking restricted at the morning and evening peak rush hour. Motor vehicles often travel significantly faster through this corridor than the speed limit of 30 mph. SDOT is proposing to remove on-street parking from both sides of the street, remove one northbound travel lane, widen the travel lanes and install dedicated bike lanes in both directions.

15th Avenue South between South Oregon Street and Swift Avenue South (the green line on the map) currently consists of one travel lane in each direction with parking on both sides of the street. There are marked school crosswalks at South Dawson Street and South Shelton Street for Maple Elementary School and St. George School as well as a school speed zone for Cleveland High School. SDOT is proposing a combination of a bicycle lanes where the road is uphill and sharrows where the road is flat or downhill. On-street parking would be removed from the east side of the street between South Lucile Street and South Dawson Street, and from the west side between South Dawson Street and South Angeline Street. Removing street parking in this alternating fashion will provide some traffic calming at the school crosswalks.

South Columbian Way between Beacon Avenue South and South Alaska Street (the blue line on the map) currently consists of four travel lanes. SDOT is proposing to remove one downhill lane and install dedicated bicycle lanes in both directions.

These proposals, when completed, will create continuous bike facilities from downtown Seattle and North Beacon to Mercer Middle School, Cleveland High School, Mid-Beacon Hill and Columbia City. If approved, these changes would be implemented in 2010. This project is funded by the “Bridging the Gap” transportation levy approved by Seattle voters in 2006.

You are invited to stop by the Open House and view project plans, provide feedback and chat with the project team. The event is Tuesday, August 24 from 5:00 – 7:00 pm at the Jefferson Community Center Meeting Room, 3801 Beacon Avenue South. You may also email your comments to walkandbike@seattle.gov or call 206-684-7583.

(Much of this article is adapted from SDOT’s press release describing the project. Thanks to Peg Nielsen for sending it along.)


View “Complete Streets” changes in Mid-Beacon Hill in a larger map

Meetings

Lewis Park Vegetation Management Plan meeting Wednesday

Flowers at sunset in Lewis Park. Photo by Wendi.
We mentioned earlier that the Jefferson Park skatepark design meeting is tomorrow night (Wednesday, July 14) at 6:00 pm, but if your park interests on the Hill lean more toward Lewis Park, there’s a meeting tomorrow for you, too. The Lewis Park Vegetation Management Plan meeting begins at 6:30 pm at the Citywide Horticulture Center, 1600 South Dakota Street. The Vegetation Management Plan will guide the maintenance of vegetation at Lewis Park so that it restores the park to its intended use as a natural area. More information may be found here.

Meetings

NBHC meeting tonight, Merchants Association on Friday

It’s that time again—time for the monthly meeting of the North Beacon Hill Council. The meeting is at 7:00 pm tonight, July 1, at the Beacon Hill Library community room, 2821 Beacon Avenue South. Everyone is welcome. As a reminder, you are part of the council when you attend your first meeting, and you have voting privileges when you attend your second.

Here is this month’s agenda:

  • 7:00 Welcomes and Introductions of new Board Members
  • 7:05 Genjo Marinello: Proposed change of apartment house on Horton to mediation house, followed by questions and answers from the community
  • 7:30 Reports and Announcements
    • Beacon Rocks, Bob Zappone
    • Pinata Party, Judith Edwards
    • Public Relations position needed on Board—nominations?
    • Community concerns
    • Other announcements
    • Steve Louie, Neighborhood Coordinator
  • 8:30 ADJOURN

The Beacon Merchants Association will also be meeting this week, Friday, July 2, at 10:00 am at the new coffee shop, The Station. The address is 2533 16th Avenue South, just north of Beacon Hill Station and across from El Centro.

Here’s the agenda and information from the Merchants Association:

“While our grant application has been accepted, the contract has not been completed yet due to delay at the city’s end. We hope to have that completed by Friday. We’ll be moving ahead with outreach plans, hiring our graphic designer, and building our walking map of businesses on the hill. I’ve sent out our proposed bylaws and hopefully folks have had a chance to look them over; anyone requesting an additional copy can reply to this message. (beaconmerchants@gmail.com is the address—Ed.) Bylaws will be passed by acclamation in early September, and board selection and development should be completed by the end of the year. This is the essential groundwork for building an improved business environment on Beacon Hill!”

Meetings

Meet Broadstripe with UPTUN this Thursday

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Seattle Broadstripe customers, many of whom are on Beacon Hill, are encouraged to attend the second quarterly meeting between Broadstripe, the City of Seattle Department of Technology, and volunteer community group Upping Technology for Underserved Neighbors (UPTUN) this Thursday, June 24th, from 5:30 to 7:00 PM in the Bank of America Conference Room at Promenade Plaza, 23rd and Jackson.

UPTUN contends that Broadstripe services for customers in their franchise area are priced higher and are of lower quality than those offered by their competitors servicing other neighborhoods. (We imagine this is an opinion held by many neighbors.) UPTUN also describes a few less-direct effects that poor cable and broadband service has on a neighborhood: Tenants don’t want to lease and condo buyers don’t want to purchase when they find out they must use Broadstripe, negatively affecting vacancy rates; telecommuters and home businesses cannot count on Broadstripe to do their work; substandard services provided by the city and Broadstripe reinforce perceptions and stereotypes that the afflicted neighborhoods are of lesser value than others; and poor service through Broadstripe not only discourages families from moving in, but also provides an incentive to leave the neighborhood.

UPTUN’s quarterly meetings are held to ensure the improvements promised in the 2010 Work Plan are completed, and completed on-schedule.

Contact tracyb@uptun.org for more information.