At this meeting, Parks staff and the community will discuss the community’s priorities for Phase Two of the expansion project, and the community will hear an update on Phase One. Design of Phase Two begins later this year. For more information, contact Kim Baldwin, Project Manager at 206-615-0810 or kim.baldwin@seattle.gov. For translation services at this meeting, contact Karen O’Connor at 206-233-7929.
There are a few changes from the 1956 photo to today, though the site is still clearly recognizable. This is just north of where Columbian Way carries the I-5 and West Seattle Bridge ramp traffic up toward Beacon Hill.
In the 1956 photo, there are much fewer trees and plants than we see in the modern view. The empty lot on the left side of the old photo is now the big apartment building at Columbian and Spokane, though it’s hidden behind trees in the new photo. The Columbian/Spokane intersection is rather busy now, but there’s no obvious traffic signal there in the 1956 photo.
The sidewalk on the right side of 14th no longer exists; the space is now blocked by a chain-link fence. And the car turning right onto Columbian at the bottom of the hill is doing something that is no longer legal; 14th is a one-way street going northbound in this area now. However, while I was taking the current-day photo, a car sped past me, down the hill, and took the right turn anyway.
Here’s another 1956 photo of this location:
The North Beacon Hill Council monthly meeting is this Thursday, at 7:00 pm at the Beacon Hill Library, 2821 Beacon Avenue South.
Here’s the agenda, as sent by Judith Edwards to the Beacon Hill Mailing List:
The North Beacon Hill Council Meeting will be a short one this month, as we must be out of the Library by 8:00. Though short, it’s very important.
Planning Director Ray Gastil of the Seattle Department of Planning and Development will be with us. Ray chairs the inter-departmental team that is updating our Neighborhood Plans.
On Saturday many of us met with Ray and others to provide input to the Station Area planning and ultimately, our Neighborhood Plans. Ray is meeting with us to answer these questions:
1. How can the community stay involved in the process, particularly concerning how the information gained at Saturday’s workshop is incorporated into our existing neighborhood plan and matrix?
2. What are realistic time lines for different phases of the planning process? How do zoning updates, review by other city departments, Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan, etc. affect this timeline?
3. How can we build a collaborative and trusting relationship with your department and others in the city? What can we expect from you? What do you expect from us?
Please plan to attend this important meeting. The agenda is as follows:
7:00 Hellos, Introductions, Announcements
7:15 Ray Gastil, Director, office of Planning and Development, City of Seattle
7:25 Q&A with Ray
7:40 Community Concerns – due to our limited time frame there will be no police visit this month.
7:55 Close
“As early as Tuesday, March 31, Sound Transit’s contractor, Obayashi Corporation will begin removal of the blue noise wall that surrounds the site of the Beacon Hill light rail station.
“The first phase will include the removal of the blue noise wall starting with the northernmost sections along Beacon Ave S., 17th Ave S and S. Lander Street… The second phase will include removing the remainder of the blue noise wall on the south end of the property. The second phase is currently scheduled for the middle of May to early June. Once the blue noise wall is down, the site will be secured by a chain link fence. As a result, residents may experience increased noise from construction activities.
“Pedestrians should use caution while using the sidewalk on the eastside of Beacon Ave (that borders the blue noise wall) as pedestrian access will be moved safely around the work site.
“The noisier activities (such as jack-hammering) will take place during the day, and will be restricted to the hours of 7:00 am to 5:00pm.
“Construction activities expected between the hours of 5:00 pm and 10:00 pm include the installation of brick veneer, site and roadway (S. Lander St.) restoration, plaza paving and landscaping.
“No surface-level construction activity is expected between 10:00 pm and 7:00 am.
“Sound Transit will continue to monitor construction noise levels and any activity whose noise is outside of acceptable limits will be restricted to the hours between 7:00 am and 5:00 pm.
“If you have any construction-related concerns, please call Sound Transit’s construction hotline at 1-(888) 298-2395.”
A map of the affected area is located in Sound Transit’s PDF.
Some portions of the wall already seem to be coming down, as seen in Jason’s photo above.
If you attended this morning’s meeting about updating the neighborhood plan at El Centro, I’d like to invite you to comment on what you saw there, and how you feel about the direction things are headed. Was there something that was missed? Something that needs particular attention? How’d you like the food? What worked well about this meeting? What should be done differently for the next one coming up in May? What did you hear that you liked? Disliked? Want more information about? Pretty much anything.
A few of my thoughts: The room was too small and too loud with all the groups working at once. The food (from Kusina Filipina and… er… Dahlak? Please, someone confirm or correct — I seem to have misplaced their card) was great. The ideas discussed were good, most of them were much in-line with what had been in the plan previously. P-I boxes to flower boxes is an entertaining idea. I’d like hear more about ‘micro villages’ outside the formal Urban Village area.
This isn’t an official feedback route to the city, but we’d love to hear what you think!
Update: Freddie Merrell has a pretty relevant comment she just added to an older article here.
North Beacon Hill Council Chair Judith Edwards writes to the mailing list:
Several North Beacon Hill Council Directors positions will be open in 2009. Nominations for these positions will be brought forward at the May Council meeting. Residents of the community and business owners in the service area are invited and encouraged to fill these positions.
The North Beacon Council (NBHC) is a voice for our neighborhood, building relationships with City Council members, and City departments, applying for or acting as a fiscal agent for grants that result in improvements to North Beacon Hill such as stairway cleanup/enhancement, pedestrian crossings, public spaces, etc. These are some of the skills the Council is looking for:
- Someone with the ability to update and add new members to an existing webpage – and we’d be open to someone re-designing the page, making it really pop!
- A willingness to take minutes at meetings and provide them to the web-site monitor for posting to the website.
- Someone to act as a fundraising chair – getting people excited about an occasional fund raiser for the Council – a great position for an idea person!
- Someone to act as a liaison to media outlets, seeing that meetings and events are published, media attention is brought to the community in a positive way. This is a great opportunity for someone who wants to establish media contacts!
- Someone to monitor and report to the council zoning requests/changes which will have or do have an impact on the BH area.
- And many other skills!
Directors are elected to two year terms, and are expected to attend one (1) meeting per month, on the first Thursday of each month. These volunteer positions offer a great opportunity for leadership in the community and a chance to be part of the exciting changes which Beacon Hill will see in the coming years. Sorry, no recompense – only glory! Interested? Contact Judith Edwards, NBHC Chair, by emailing judedw@comcast.net.
Thanks, Judith!
See if you can spot your block, and put BeHi Bonsai in your bookmarks or feed reader to stay abreast of the best in Beacon Hill greenery.
Photos posted recently to the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr are showing a hint of spring. Thanks, neighbors, for taking such wonderful photos!
The area just south of Cleveland High School on Swift Avenue South is notoriously pedestrian-unfriendly to students and others walking there. Fortunately, there are improvements coming to the area.
The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is completing a sidewalk improvement at the Metro bus stop on Swift Avenue South at 19th Avenue South. This will widen the 3-foot wide sidewalk to 9-feet wide at the bus stop. This sidewalk widening is part of a larger project that also includes a new lighted bus shelter, a new southbound bike lane, guardrail improvements, new school zone signs, and approximately 270 street trees in the neighborhood around Cleveland.
To celebrate these improvements, SDOT is hosting an event
next Friday, March 27 at 1:00 pm at the corner of South Orcas Street and 16th Avenue South. Grace Crunican, the Director of SDOT, will join approximately 30 school children from nearby Maple Elementary School to plant approximately 30 trees on South Orcas Street. The Mayor may possibly attend as well.
Thanks to Steve Louie for the information!