The Aurora-Licton Springs “Urban Village”
Needs a Voice!
Special Community Meeting
Monday June 15
7:00 PM at Lantern Brewing
938 N 95th St.
The Aurora-Licton Springs area (shown in yellow above, and in another map at the end of this email) has been designated by Seattle as an “urban village,” where new development should be focused. When the urban village concept was adopted 20 years ago, the policy was to recognize where development was most likely and to focus city attention and infrastructure on making these places high quality safe and walkable urban neighborhoods. The primary strategies in the adopted Aurora-Licton Springs Neighborhood Plan (in 1999) were “designation of the … urban village, establishment of a community center in conjunction with an excellent educational center at the Wilson-Pacific site, creation of one or more neighborhood commercial centers, enhancements to the business area and streetscape along Aurora Avenue North, and establish a comprehensive network of safe and attractive pedestrian connections.”
In 20 years it’s not clear much of that has occurred, yet development has proceeded faster than anticipated. One potential reason for city inaction may be that the neighborhood has not had an effective voice. The Greenwood, Licton Springs, Haller Lake and Broadview community councils intersect at 105th and Aurora, and none of them has focused on the specific needs of the Aurora-Licton Springs neighborhood. In Greenwood, where I’m president of the community council, the focus has always been on … Greenwood, and I’m not well equipped to speak for the needs of the quarter of Aurora-Licton Springs that is located in our boundary. So this meeting is my personal appeal to form a community group whose primary focus is on dialogue within the Aurora-Licton Springs neighborhood and a proactive voice for the neighborhood.
Proposed Agenda
7:00 Welcome and Introduction
– Meeting purpose
– Urban village concept and history
– Current issues in the neighborhood
– Community councils in the area –
who represents Aurora-Licton Springs?
who represents Aurora-Licton Springs?
7:20 Open Discussion
– What are key problems in the neighborhood?
– What would you like to see changed or improved?
7:50 How Can Neighbors be Proactive and
Get Changes?
Get Changes?
– How to be heard at city hall on neighborhood
issues and needs?
– How to provide a vision and guidelines for
development?
– How to work with local businesses on a better
business district?
– How to help neighbors be safe?
8:15 Call for Volunteers and Next Steps
8:30 Adjourn