All posts by Rob Fellows

Why Get Involved in the Greenwood Community Council (GCC)?

GCC is a volunteer group that seeks to:

  • Help get Greenwood residents involved in the neighborhood
  • Provide an open forum where everyone is heard
  • End polarization to find points of agreement and win-win solutions
  • Help inform and empower Greenwood residents to be effective 

We are not an advocacy group for a particular perspective or ideology, and we don’t claim to represent the diverse populations and points of view in Greenwood. But we recognize that when we succeed in engaging and voicing agreement among broad and diverse opinions and perspectives, we can help Greenwood’s voice be stronger and more productive.

If that’s the kind of group you’d like to be part of, please attend our annual meeting tomorrow (Tuesday – see the meeting announcement below) and consider joining our board. To see more about our board positions, see this message, and if you have questions or comments send them to this email address.

April Meeting: Set 2017 Priorities for GCC and Elect a New Board

ProgramAgendaMinutes
Greenwood Community Council  
Annual Meeting is this Tuesday!

Help Set our 2017 Priorities, and
Elect a New Board

 

Tuesday April 18, 7pm
Greenwood Public Library (Yes, it’s Open Again!)
8016 Greenwood Ave. N., Seattle, WA 98103

There’s a lot going on in Greenwood this year:

  • At least four six-to-seven story buildings are moving through the city’s process, including the site of last year’s gas explosion, the old DOL building, and the grassy area in the Greenwood Shopping Center east of Palatine,
  • Seattle’s changing its land use code to allow taller buildings everywhere in return for developers contributing towards affordable housing,
  • New schools will open next fall near Aurora, and safe pathways for kids to get there are still a concern,
  • Homelessness and opiate addiction is increasing with hundreds of unplanned encampments in Seattle, while Seattle has just opened a new sanctioned encampment site nearby,
  • Seattle’s changing how it engages the public to get more voices to the table, and
  • Meanwhile sidewalks and better bus connections are still needed.

–  What should the Greenwood Community Council focus its attention on over the next year? 
–  What issues would you like to learn more about, or find out what your neighbors think?
–  How could we do a better job building community in Greenwood?

Please join us Tuesday to weigh in on the most important issues facing Greenwood, and set priorities over the coming year. You can also weigh in on issues and priorities by filling our our survey before Tuesday, whether you plan to attend or not. The survey results will be shared at the meeting to stimulate discussion. We have received 60 responses so far, and the free version of SurveyMonkey will accept another 40 more.

Please also consider joining our board. If you’ve ever thought about getting involved in the neighborhood, joining our board is a great way to do it. 
 

Meeting agenda:

7:00  Introductions and agenda review
7:10  Survey results, and discussion of GCC priorities for 2017
8:00  Describe GCC board positions and hold election
8:20  Adjourn (new board sticks around to touch base)

Not every meeting will have minutes, but if minutes are published they will be posted here after the event occurs.

What are the most important issues facing Greenwood in 2017?

The Greenwood Community Council is conducting a survey about the most important issues in Greenwood to help shape our agenda and priorities for 2017.

You can weigh in by following this link. What issues are on your mind, and which should the Community Council focus on over the coming year? 

We will tally the surveys received through Sunday night (April 16) and display the results at our annual meeting and elections next Tuesday April 18 at the Greenwood Library. Announcements and agenda for that meeting will go out this weekend, but please mark it on your calendar now. We will elect new board members and establish priorities for the coming year. 

Reminder – Opportunities to Get Involved in Greenwood


Reminder of two opportunities this week to get involved in Greenwood:

  • Tuesday 3/28 (Tomorrow), 7pm at the Couth Buzzard:
    Discuss potential interest in joining the Greenwood Community Council board before elections in April
     
  • Wednesday 3/29, 7pm at the Couth Buzzard:
    Attend the initial meeting of the GCC Engagement and Outreach volunteers to help increase community and participation in Greenwood

I want to add a personal note about why I’ve been involved in the community council off and on over the last few years. I have long believed that being involved in one’s neighborhood is a good thing in itself, because it builds community. But as I’ve become more concerned about politics getting more polarized (yes, even here in Seattle!) and people self-selecting the information they’re exposed to, I’ve become more convinced than ever that face-to-face community engagement can help find middle ground win-win solutions, and promote understanding between people who have different backgrounds and values. When we talk about diversity, the first step is to listen, and understand that neighborhoods are where diverse interests come together and need to be reflected.

In Greenwood we’ve had a positive effect on development. Ten years ago GCC worked with businesses and the city to develop a town center plan for Greenwood that has promoted a positive vision for development that would be consistent with preserving the things we all like about living and working here. Now we are seeing a sudden surge in development, and many of the developers have come to the community council to discuss their development proposals early in the design process.

For transportation we have seen some progress, including some new sidewalks on Greenwood last year. But we have a long way to go to complete the sidewalk system even along arterials and in the urban villages. With new schools and light rail stations opening, pedestrian and bicycle pathways need to be made safe or available at all. And of course getting around in a bus or car is getting more difficult every day.  Every neighborhood needs to speak up to be heard downtown, not just for transportation, but for parks, playfields, community centers, drainage, libraries.

And there is also a lot to be done for safety and health issues – from responding to neighbors in need, to preparing for disasters and earthquakes. GCC has been active previously in these areas, but need new interest to get these efforts restarted and to partner with other community organizations. There is a growing interest and need to focus community and city resources on Aurora Avenue, where new encampments and shelters are planned.

Finally Seattle has challenged all of us to help voices be heard who are not always part of city debate. The community council can play an important role bringing decision-makers to Greenwood to meet with neighbors directly, to educate on how the city works and how to be most effective, and to reach out to constituencies in Greenwood who are not prone to or able to go to evening meetings.

These are the things we’re involved in as volunteers. We hope you’ll consider joining in.

Rob Fellows, President
Greenwood Community Council

Engage your neighbors

Help launch the GCC Outreach and Engagement Committee


First 2017 Meeting of the
 Outreach and Engagement Committee  
7:00 PM Wednesday, March 29
The Couth Buzzard, 8310 Greenwood Ave N

On Wednesday, March 29 we’ll have the first meeting of a re-launched Greenwood Community Council committee on neighborhood outreach and engagement.  This committee will focus on bringing new voices into neighborhood discussions, helping people who don’t normally go to meetings get their voice heard, and help develop common ground on issues that polarize people and problems needing resolution in Greenwood.  Some immediate projects might include improving our website, and establishing a promotional restaurant passport program, but all ideas are welcome.

Please join us! We welcome participation large and small. Even just contributing your perspective to brainstorming will be helpful.

Proposed agenda:

  • Introductions 
  • Interests and ideas – around the table
  • Summary, action items – what to focus on first.
  • Future meetings, meeting location, etc.

Special Forum on Homelessness

GCC February Meeting Moved to Wed. March 1
Special Forum on Homelessness  

 

7pm, Wednesday March 1
Greenwood Senior Center
525 N 85th St.

Hundreds of people are living on the streets in Seattle today, with more arriving all the time. There have been several local meetings on new encampment plans, but this one has a different focus: Who are the homeless, why is homelessness growing, what would one-term solutions look like, and how can communities help?

Our three speakers on the front lines responding:

  • The Mayor’s Director of Homelessness George Scarola
  • The Executive Director of Aurora Commons Elizabeth Dahl
  • A representative from Speak Out Seattle!

Mark your calendar now – and watch for more information early next week.

Library Park Design Presentation is Posted

Thank you to everyone who came out to the Library Park Design meeting on January 31! The presentation made at the meeting is now available online. For more details on the park, see this PhinneyWood article.

All of the energy, attention and ideas you’ve provided will result in a better park that will be loved and cared for by neighbors and the community. The Friends of the Library Park will continue, and hope you will stay informed and involved throughout the development process and after. 

Final Public Meeting on Designing the New Park – This Wednesday!

Greenwood Phinney Library Park Design
Last Public Meeting on the Park Design

Please attend the last public meeting to hear
about and comment on the developing plan and
construction schedule 

Hosted by: Seattle Parks Department

 

This Wednesday, February 1st
Greenwood Senior Center
525 N. 85th Street
Time: 6:00 – 7:30 pm

 

  • Plans are nearing final approval, and the project is expected to be underway by Early Spring
     
  • There will also be an opportunity to discuss ideas and involvement with the Friends of the Library Group (FOLP),  along with programming for the site during demolition, construction, and into the future ~ 

Look forward to seeing you there !

-Friends of the Library Park (FOLP)
 Greenwood/Phinney Neighborhood

No Land Use Meeting … but Design Review Meeting Monday for the Blast Site

The land use committee  usually meets on the second Tuesday of each month, but that meeting is cancelled this month.  However –  if you need your monthly installment of land use goodness, you should consider attending the design review meeting for the building that will replace the building that blew up last year in the gas explosion. This design review meeting will address the height and massing of the proposed project. Design details will likely be addressed at a second design review meeting at a later date. GCC will invite the developer to a meeting to discuss the project design prior to that second meeting.

You can View Design Proposal  here. (43 MB)    

Design Review Meeting
January 9, 2017 6:30 p.m.

Ballard Community Center

6020 28th Ave NW
Sunset/Captain Ballard Room
 
Design Review Early Design Guidance proposing a 6-story building consisting of 70 residential units and 6,660 sq. ft. of commercial space. Parking for 70 vehicles to be provided below grade. One existing structure to remain and other structures, surface parking and on site debris to be demolished.”

 

Tuesday GCC Land Use Committee – Town Center Projects

Two Projects in Greenwood Town Center
Looking for Early Design Feedback

 

Greenwood Community Council
Land Use Committee Meeting

Tuesday December 13, 7:00 pm
Greenwood Library, 8016 Greenwood Ave. N.

The Greenwood Shopping Center is beginning development of the next phase of their master plan, the first phase of which created Morrow Lane and the Sedges apartments and businesses between Greenwood Avenue and Fred Meyer. They would like to briefly introduce their next project to the committee and hear our concerns and thoughts early in the design stage.  The permit says they plan to construct 156,000 sq. ft. of mixed use building with 154 units and 105 parking stalls at 8612 Palatine Ave. N. This is a great opportunity to talk with the developer early in the design process while there is still time to shape their proposal.  Greenwood Shopping Center participated with GCC and Fred Meyer on the Greenwood Town Center Plan about nine years ago.

Another project in the Town Center will have its early design hearing on January 9th for a six story mixed use building at 8403 Greenwood Ave. N., the site of the gas explosion last year.  The design review board will hold a meeting on early design guidance for this project on January 9. (See the early design guidance proposal here.)  The developer has discussed this project with the community council previously. The developer will not be present, but we will have an opportunity to compare notes in advance of the design review board meeting. Early design guidance focuses on project scale and massing, while later design review will address more defined design details.  Their preferred massing proposal is pictured below.

November Meeting: How Should Greenwood Weigh In on Land Use Changes

This Tuesday Evening:
How Should Greenwood Weigh In on the Biggest Citywide
Land Use Changes in Decades?
 

zones-graphic-cityGreenwood Community Council Membership Meeting
Tuesday November 15, 7:00 pm
Razzi’s Downstairs Meeting Room – 8523 Greenwood Ave. N

 

Seattle is preparing to make city-wide changes to zoning that will change the allowable height of all multi-family buildings by one story, change single family zoning within designated “urban villages” into a new zoning category, and alter what massing and designs are allowed in specific zones, among other things. Added height is part of a “grand bargain” with developers in return for dedicating roughly 6% of new housing to affordable units, and the other changes are aimed at increasing Seattle’s density to increase walking and transit use.

On Tuesday the Greenwood Community Council meeting will help understand what is proposed, provide time for community discussion on the issues. Join us in a special location – downstairs at Razzi’s – for pizza and a slightly extended meeting to digest some complicated material (and I’m not talking about the pizza.) At the end of the meeting we will ask whether GCC should weigh in on the proposed changes and how. 

Please join us! If you’re able to contribute for pizza, that will be appreciated.

Community Discussion Wednesday 11/16: What Should the New Park Include?

It’s been a stressful election – but now here’s something happy to talk about!

Last week Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) had a public meeting about the new park planned just north of the Greenwood Library. A group of your neighbors helped get the word out, and over 100 people participated – more than the Parks Department has seen before! The SPR meeting got people thinking and gathered lots of individual input.

To follow up, Friends of The Library Park (until there’s a real park name) invites you to a community discussion. The SPR showed three concepts that were different arrangements of the same set of functions. Where there activities or functions they didn’t consider? Is there a community character we’d like the park to convey? Are there design factors that will especially matter to you? 

Our meeting is planned for next Wednesday, 7pm at the Greenwood Senior Center. This is the time to weigh in. SPR is on a very fast track to complete design and get this project underway. This will be our only chance to discuss this as a community prior to the final SPR input meeting planned for January. You can also fill out SPR’s survey or learn more about the project by visiting the project website.

folpmeetingflier_v6

Reminder – City Meeting to Plan New Park at the Library is TONIGHT at PNA, 6:00

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Just a reminder – this meeting is TONIGHT!
Now (this Wednesday) is the time to shape the new park at the Greenwood Library

In November the Seattle Parks Department will begin removing the Bleachers’ Tavern and Minimart buildings next to the Greenwood Library, clearing the space for a new park that will be constructed over the coming year.  The new park is on a fast track, and decisions about what it will include and feel like will be made over the next two months. 

If you are interested in affecting how the park turns out, the meeting announced below is your one best chance!  This Wednesday, 6pm at the Phinney Neighborhood Center, park designers will present three concepts at a public meeting and take your comments.

Also please hold November 16 on your calendar, when a “friends of the park” group organized recently by your neighbors will provide an opportunity to review Seattle Parks’ conceptual designs and discuss steps for promoting features of the park best supported. That meeting will be at the Senior Center at 7pm. More info soon!

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This Wednesday is Your Best Chance to Affect the New Park

Now (this Wednesday) is the time to shape the new park at the Greenwood Library. In November the Seattle Parks Department will begin removing the Bleachers’ Tavern and Minimart buildings next to the Greenwood Library, clearing the space for a new park that will be constructed over the coming year.  The new park is on a fast track, and decisions about what it will include and feel like will be made over the next two months. 

If you are interested in affecting how the park turns out, the meeting announced below is your one best chance!  This Wednesday, 6pm at the Phinney Neighborhood Center, park designers will present three concepts at a public meeting and take your comments.

Also please hold November 16 on your calendar, when a “friends of the park” group organized recently by your neighbors will provide an opportunity to review Seattle Parks’ conceptual designs and discuss steps for promoting features of the park best supported. That meeting will be at the Senior Center at 7pm. More info soon!

meetingposter_20161102

Election Forum at the Taproot

Greenwood Community Council
2016 Election Forum

Featuring District 7 Congressional Race and ST3

With the 2016 Presidential race consuming political news this election year, it can be easy to lose sight of our local electoral races and ballot initiatives that will be put in front of Seattle voters. We are now 30 days out from election day, and it’s time to bone up on the candidates and the issues!

Please join the Greenwood Community Council on Tuesday, Oct. 18 at 7:00 at the Taproot Theatre for our 2016 Election Forum. Our forum will be moderated by former Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, and will cover the following local race and ballot measure:

  • U.S. Congressional District 7, House of Representatives – Both candidates are confirmed to attend
  • Sound Transit Proposition 1, light rail, commuter rail, and bus service expansion – representatives from the competing Yes and No campaigns are confirmed to attend
Election Forum Agenda

Oct. 18, 7:00 – 8:30 PM

Taproot Theatre, Greenwood

  • 7:00-7:05 – Welcome and Introductions 
  • 7:05-7:45 – District 7, U.S. House of Representatives
                              (including  audience Q&A)
  • 7:50-8:30 – Sound Transit 3 (including audience Q&A)
  • 8:30-9:00 – Informal networking
We hope to see you there!

GCC Social Event This Tuesday at Naked City

Who is the Community Council
and What Do they Do? — Find Out!

Tuesday August 16, 7:00 pm
at the Naked City Screening Room

         
nakedcity1 naked city screening-roomInstead of our regular third Tuesday meeting this month the Greenwood Community Council is having a social event at the Naked City Brewery at 8564 Greenwood Ave N. It’s a great chance to relax with some refreshment, meet some people and talk about the neighborhood – or not. If you’re interested in learning about the community council and finding out who’s involved, this is a nice way to do it.  Please join us – everyone welcome!

(sorry, no host bar).

News From the Greenwood Community Council

Happy Summer! We have several announcements for you:

  • WE STILL EXIST!  Many people got the impression this week that Mayor Murray had thrown out the entire idea of neighborhood involvement and disestablished community council across the city, but in fact he only eliminated staff support to district councils. Not many people have heard of district councils; there are thirteen across the city whose members are community councils, chambers of commerce and other groups. Community councils are voluntary associations that receive no ongoing city support. We will continue meeting to foster open face-to-face discussion of neighborhood issues, find win-win solutions, engage hard-to-reach neighbors, and advocate for changes to benefit Greenwood.
     
  • WE WILL NOT HAVE A MEMBERSHIP MEETING IN JULY.  Our usual meeting would be on Tuesday July 19 (the third Tuesday), which will probably be a beautiful day and you can now do something else to enjoy it.  We will not meet in August either, but may plan a social event.
     
  • WE’VE INSTALLED A NEW MAILING PROGRAM – Please check to make sure you’ll get the mail you want to see.  You might have noticed we have a new logo too!  GCC maintains six different mailing lists, and you’ll want to check to make sure you’re on the ones you intend.  The lists are described further below.

    If you get an email from GCC, click on “update your preferences” at the bottom of this message (illustrated below) you can check whether you’re signed up for the lists you intended to sign up for.  

 

 

Here’s more information about the lists you can sign up for to help you decide which to check.

  • Greenwood Community Council: Click on this to receive announcement about our membership meetings and general member communications like this one
     
  • Land Use: for announcements about land use committee meetings and information about city planning and development proposals in Greenwood
     
  • Transportation: announcements about transportation committee meetings and information about transportation projects and plans, including sidewalks, roads, greenways, transit, etc.
     
  • Safety and Health: announcements about safety and health committee meetings, and information about crime and disaster prevention
     
  • Engagement: announcements about opportunities to help GCC reach out to and engage people who are harder to reach through email and are less likely to attend evening meetings
     
  • Library Park: this list is for people who want to stay informed and involved in planning for the new city park that will be designed and build just north of the Library next year.

 

Changes at the Greenwood Community Council

 

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News From the
Greenwood Community Council

Happy Summer! We have several announcements for you:

  • WE STILL EXIST!  Many people got the impression this week that Mayor Murray had thrown out the entire idea of neighborhood involvement and disestablished community council across the city, but in fact he only eliminated staff support to district councils. Not many people have heard of district councils; there are thirteen across the city whose members are community councils, chambers of commerce and other groups. Community councils are voluntary associations that receive no ongoing city support. We will continue meeting to foster open face-to-face discussion of neighborhood issues, find win-win solutions, engage hard-to-reach neighbors, and advocate for changes to benefit Greenwood.
     
  • WE WILL NOT HAVE A MEMBERSHIP MEETING IN JULY.  Our usual meeting would be on Tuesday July 19 (the third Tuesday), which will probably be a beautiful day and you can now do something else to enjoy it.  We will not meet in August either, but may plan a social event.
     
  • WE’VE INSTALLED A NEW MAILING PROGRAM – Please check to make sure you’ll get the mail you want to see.  You might have noticed we have a new logo too!  GCC maintains six different mailing lists, and you’ll want to check to make sure you’re on the ones you intend.  The lists are described further below.

    If you click on “update your preferences” at the bottom of this message (illustrated below) you can check whether you’re signed up for the lists you intended to sign up for.  

     

  • JOIN US ON FACEBOOK.  Visit and “like” us at https://www.facebook.com/GreenwoodCommunityCouncil/ 
Here’s more information about the lists you can sign up for to help you decide which to check.
  • Greenwood Community Council: Click on this to receive announcement about our membership meetings and general member communications like this one
     
  • Land Use: for announcements about land use committee meetings and information about city planning and development proposals in Greenwood
     
  • Transportation: announcements about transportation committee meetings and information about transportation projects and plans, including sidewalks, roads, greenways, transit, etc.
     
  • Safety and Health: announcements about safety and health committee meetings, and information about crime and disaster prevention
     
  • Engagement: announcements about opportunities to help GCC reach out to and engage people who are harder to reach through email and are less likely to attend evening meetings
     
  • Library Park: this list is for people who want to stay informed and involved in planning for the new city park that will be designed and build just north of the Library next year.

 

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GCC Out and About This Weekend

 

Please stop by the Greenwood Community Council booth at two community events this weekend!  

We will have new cool swag thanks to a Small Sparks grant from Seattle’s Department of Neighborhoods – including magnets with our new logo and contact information and tattoos with the “Give Greenwood Some Love” graphic that was designed by a parent at Greenwood Elementary School.  Please stop by and let us know what you’re thinking about the neighborhood.

We’ll be at both events this weekend:

  • The Car Show on Saturday: We’ll be at the site of the new park just north of the Greenwood Library.  If you come between 11:00-1:00 you can also participate in the Parks Department’s open house to kickoff planning and design for the new park!
  • Celebrate North Seattle on Sunday: This is a big fun event you may not have heard of that takes place in the Oak Tree parking lot. We’ll be sharing a tent with the newly-formed Aurora-Licton Urban Village (A-LUV) group and others.

If you’d like to join us at the table and meet your neighbors, send an email! 

No Meeting This Month

gone fishin

If you’re a fervent fan of community council meetings you know that our regular meeting would be this Tuesday May 17, and you will be crestfallen to learn that we have canceled this month’s meeting. I don’t know how to console you, except to note that you now have an evening free that you hadn’t planned on!

The GCC will meet as usual on the third Tuesday in June, June 21. Mark it on your calendar!  Hope to see you then.

April Meeting – Crown Hill, Aurora-Licton and Lake City

We have a really interesting Greenwood Community Council meeting this week – representatives from Crown Hill, Aurora-Licton Springs and Lake City will present on how each of their neighborhoods is engaging with Seattle on how their urban villages should be defined.  Each has taken a different approach to engage neighbors and neighborhood groups.  

Seattle’s comprehensive plan attempts to guide development into designated urban villages. Originally this policy was intended to prioritize Seattle’s investments into designated urban village areas to make them great urban places; more recently policies focus more on incentivizing developers to invest in these areas by making zoning more flexible and reducing regulation. The implications for being in a designated urban village will depend on many pieces of legislation to implement the Comprehensive Plan and Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda (HALA) initiatives, but neighborhoods are being asked now to weigh in on their boundaries.
 
I hope you’ll attend this weeks’s community council meeting to hear how our neighbors in nearby urban village areas are responding to these issues.  The meeting may take action to support the Crown Hill Urban Village, Committee for Smart Growth recommendations (link) and to endorse a grant proposal that will be presented during the Transportation Committee report for the Aurora Crossings project (link). Here’s the meeting announcement:
 
– – – – – – – – – 

The Urban Village Strategy
What is it and how should we redefine?

The Greenwood Community Council’s monthly meeting will be devoted to the urban village strategy, which forms the backbone of Seattle’s growth plans as outlined in the 2035 Comprehensive Plan.  Guest speakers from nearby Lake City, Crown Hill, and Aurora Licton Springs will be present to share their experience engaging their community and developing a vision for potential changes to the zoning, boundaries, livability, infrastructure, and neighborhood planning in the urban village.

Please join us at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 19th, at the Greenwood Library, 8016 Greenwood Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103.

AGENDA

7:00   Welcome and introductions
7:10   Committee Reports

7:20  The Urban Village Strategy

  • Introduction
  • Lake City – Sandy Motzer
  • Aurora Licton Springs – Leah Anderson
  • Crown Hill – Deborah Jaquith

8:05   Open Question and Answer Session
8:25   Action Items
8:30   Adjourn


Resources:

 

Special Meeting on the Greenwood Explosion

Reminder – this event is this Tuesday night.  
This post has also been updated to include the meeting agenda and links to news and resources. Please help get the word out by forwarding to anyone you think might be interested.


 

GREENWOOD EXPLOSION:

How to Stay Safe, and
What Steps are Needed to Rebuild?

Greenwood explosion smaller

The Greenwood Community Council’s monthly meeting is devoted to the aftermath of the blast that leveled part of our downtown.  The response by our public servants and neighborhood volunteers has been amazing, and we honor everyone who has contributed.  

This meeting will focus on the way forward:

  • What steps do we all need to take to prepare for and avoid future disasters such as gas leaks,  and
  • What are resources for recovering and rebuilding after over the longer term.

Please join us Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. at a special location: St. John’s Egan Hall, 120 N 79th St. just off Greenwood Avenue.  The program for this event is still coming together, but we have confirmed speakers from Puget Sound Energy, the Mayor’s office, Seattle’s Department of Neighborhoods and Office of Economic Development.  We will also set aside time and ask for tributes for those who have stepped up this week to help the community, its businesses and their employees who have been impacted.


AGENDA

7:00   Welcome and introductions

7:10   How to stay safe from gas leaks and prepare for disaster
                  Speakers from Puget Sound Energy,
                  Greenwood CC Safety/Health Committee,
                  Q&A

7:40   Steps and resources to recover and rebuild
                  Speakers from Phinney Neighborhood Center, Dept.
                  of Neighborhoods, Office of Economic Development,
                  Q&A

8:20   Testimonials from the audience for those who stepped up
              to help neighbors in a time of crisis

8:30   Adjourn


Here are some useful links and resources:

Downtown Greenwood Disaster – here is how you can help

IMG_0010

Dear Greenwood Neighbors:

All of us are shaken by the blast last night in our downtown.  We thank the firefighters and responders for putting their lives on the line and their shoulder to the wheel today.  When they’re finished, a sustained effort will be needed to help the businesses and neighbors affected, to reassure us that we’re safe from explosions in the future, and to rebuild downtown Greenwood with the strength and character that’s been lost.   

If you want to help, read on. Here are two places you can turn right away.  Tomorrow night you can help raise relief funds for businesses hurt by the blast at Naked City, and the Phinney Neighborhood Center has stepped up to pull together a website with a list of opportunities to donate or help.  Please take a look.  Thanks also to PhinneyWood for keeping us informed when it matters most.

The Greenwood Community Council will also try to pull a meeting together next week on Tuesday as usual, and we will work to bring city officials to answer your questions about what happened, how we can keep it from happening again, and what resources will be brought to bear to help rebuild and restore what’s been lost.  Please stay tuned for more.

Rob Fellows, President
Greenwood Community Council


Greenwood Emergency Fundraiser at Naked City

Greenwood is resilient. Greenwood is strong. Our neighborhood has fought its way through adversity before, and we will do so again. Together, we are a phoenix. 

Naked City and Taproot Theatre are teaming up to raise as much money as possible in a single day for those affected by the explosion in Greenwood. 

100 percent of proceeds from every pint of Greenwood Phoenix Golden Ale sold at Naked City on Thursday, March 10th, open to close, will go directly to the PNA (Phinney Neighborhood Association) tax deductible support fund.

Additional donations are encouraged!! Please help us help our friends and neighbors. 

Greenwood will rise up from this as we always do!

Bryan Miller 
Web   |   Facebook   |   Twitter


And to find out other ways to help the Greenwood Community:

The Phinney Neighborhood Association has set up this community page, which they are updating to include opportunities to donate or volunteer to help the community and affected businesses recover from the blast.

 

January Meeting: Open board meeting, vote on backyard cottages letter

Open GCC Board Meeting – All Welcome
Tuesday January 19 at 7PM
Greenwood Public Library

This month’s Greenwood Community Council meeting will be an open board meeting covering a number of topics.  Anyone is welcome, and there will be time in the meeting to speak to any issue you feel the community council should be following.  

We will also vote on proposed correspondence about pending legislation on backyard cottages.  You can see a draft here, and your opinion will be welcomed at the meeting.

Proposed Agenda

  1. Committee business and meeting plans
    • Transportation
    • Safety and Health
    • Engagement (no report)
    • Land Use
      • Proposed letter on accessory dwelling units/background cottages
      • Aurora-Licton Springs urban village expansion?
  2. Plan to engage community in discussion of HALA and Comp Plan
  3. Discussion – is committee structure working and how to improve/change it
  4. Open mike for community concerns
  5. Review upcoming membership meeting plans
  6. Volunteer opportunities and board openings
  7. Adjourn

Land Use Committee Tuesday on Affordability

Obrien ImageHousing Affordability in Seattle

The GCC land use committee will meet 7:00 next Tuesday at the Flying Bike brewery.  The topic is Housing Affordability. 

The debate over housing affordability rages on as rents, property values, and cost of living continues to rise for most people in Seattle.   Affordability and livability have increasingly become drivers of public policy as terms like “Grand Bargain”, “living wage”, “HALA”, “rent control”, “incentive zoning” and “equity” join the vernacular.  We will explore the recent trends in housing cost and  availability to inform a discussion of solutions and tradeoffs that have been proposed by community groups, the City, and developers alike.