Here's a vaguely chronoligical record of things
we've been concerned about in the past. Note that they're worth
preserving because they tend to come back and haunt us eventually.
- The townhouses at 20th & Denny are coming along: the
carport roof looks alarmingly huge! Andrew writes
to DCLU and gets speedy responses from the Director: The
builders didn't get a permit for the carports! The
carport was eventially demolished.
- Master Use permit application to subdivide
521 - 20th Ave E. and build townhouses.
- The restoration of the exterior of the house at 1908
E. Madison seems almost
complete.
- Seattle Transportation issues a report on "Madison-Miller
Spot Improvements". Please look at it and send them
your feedback. There'll be meetings about it in March. (and check
out concerns about the
"big picture"). Read other
peoples' comments on the report (and submit your??).
- Hearing, Speech and Deafness
Center building on Madison is nearing completion and the
director is seeking
commercial tenants and has had open houses for residential
teneants.
- Report
issued on decisions to remove bus-stops on 48 route north of
Madison
- Deano's
Liquor License renewed.
- Details of recent
shootings and stabbing on Madison
- Community Police Team
Officer Bogucki leaves us: welcome CPT Officer Stokes
- 1/11/03: Proposed
changes to 43 & 48 bus routes: some stops may be eliminated
(UPDATED: comment period extended)
- 11/12/02: Proposed park on 24th
Ave gets $1,300,000 donation
- Dean Falls and Meriland Dillard are in the Design Review
process for their property
on Madison (Deano's Market, Deano's Bar, etc). The Daily
Journal of Commerce had a long
article about the project.
- 9/10/02: Several of us put together a "position
paper" on Madison Street issues (and the City/WSLCB
actions on the liquor license at Deano's Bar). See report
in The
Stranger
- 9/6/02: City Council Transportation Committee is briefed
about Madison-Miller Transportation Issues
- The Neighborhood Association endorses
the City Housing Levy!
- City Attorney's
office seeks letters of support for action on Deano's Bar license
renewal
- Groundbreaking for the "19th
Ave Lofts" condos at 1816 19th Ave.
- Look at the draft report
on our transportation scoping meeting and send in your comments/ideas/revisions.
- City Council Ballfield meeting happened: still
time to comment . Council Parks Committee will discuss the
ballfield issue at their Friday Sept 20th meeting ( 3 - 5 PM,
City Council chambers)
- Master
use permit application to install cell-phone antennas at
1818 20th Ave. See this
site for a fair and balanced report on the safety of cell
phone antennas: no evidence of health effects!
- Trader Joe's
development (1700 E. Madison) delayed: they want to use the
site as a parking lot for up to 6 months.
- 1908 E. Madison
builidng to be renovated, not demolished.
- Details of Councilmember Compton's visit
to our Friday night neighborhood patrol.
- Ballfield news: The Mayor
decides that ballfield lights at Miller will go off at
10:15 PM and recommends that Miller gets new ballfield
lights in 2003-4. City Council will decide on some issues: why
not write to them?
- Deano's Cafe and Lounge liquor
license renewal. application Two other liquor licenses in
the area are up for renewal (Monsoon, Twilight Exit). Here's
how to submit
your comments.
- Master Use permit issued for the large
grocery store/residential development at 23rd & Madison.
- Vancouver, B.C.-based Cressey
Development Corp. replaces Legacy Partners as developer of
250 apartments in the 23rd & Madison project.
- The transportation
study of our neighborhood (requested in meeting with Mayor)
is going to happen. We'll be meeting
to help decide what needs to be included in the study.
- Mayor Nickels was at our Thursday June 6th Neighborhood Association
meeting. Here's a report.
, with links to several peoples' presentations and a Capitol
Hill Times report (and a few photos)..
State
Representative Ed Murray was at the meeting to talk about
the State's redistricting
plans, which will move those of us north of Madison back
into his area (the 43rd
District). Questions? Contact his Seattle aide Mark
Rupp (206.720.3074).
- The Housing Levy
on the September 2002 ballot offers some housing in the 50 -
80% median income range that is needed in our area. The Director
of the Capitol Hill Housing Improvement Program wrote
earlier to point out how the housing levy may
help our neighborhood.
- Here's a copy of the
presentation Andrew made to the Parks Board on 4/10/02.
- Edited copies of reports
sent by neighbors to our public safety
report form are now on the website.
- Page of City links
added: where to report potholes, how to complain effectively,
etc. Please send me your
favorite links
- Master Use permit application to divide
up 107 - 21st Ave E. and build townhouses
- At the April 4th MPNA meeting we talked with Grace
Crunican the new Director of the Seattle Department of Transportation
(now known as Seattle
Transportation). We discussed the transportation challenges
facing our neighborhood: schools, "park and hide",
popular restaurants and (especially) the huge number of new residents
that the redevelopment of East Madison will bring to our streets.
Here's the background
letter sent to her before the meeting.
- Summary Map showing
the 670 housing units coming to the area
- New MPNA Officers, including
a secretary, so we even have minutes!
- Sex Offender
lists updated, 3/29/02
- Parks Department process
to revise ballfield use is still grinding along. At the March
28 Parks Board Meeting a new draft was presented, which met
many neighbors' concerns about lighting levels, hours of operation
and player behavior. On April 11th, you (and the players) will
get to comment on this latest
revision to the "Joint Athletic Fields Development Program".
- Affordable Housing:
The Office of Housing concludes that the Property
Tax Exemption program for Multifamily Housing (which we have
been lobbying for) won't work in our neighborhood. Andrew writes
to City Council, asking for help and advice.
- Master Use Permit issued for 1818
E. Madison, Val Thomas's project on the old Fratelli's site.
- Neighbor Andy Haas writes: "I just wanted to give
an update on my efforts to get small trees planted along the
planting strip along 21st Ave E on the Miller Park side and other
proposals. My goal was to make are street greener and more inviting.
Unfortunately it is not going well. In fact, one might say that
it has been a complete disaster. After giving me the run-around
for the last three month, the Parks Department got back to me
with a counter proposal to pave over the strip to cut down on
maintenance! I view this as a complete slap in the face. I have
attached my response to this proposal. Any assistance or words
of wisdom on how to deal with the Parks Department would be much
appreciated." Here's his
letter to Parks. Please drop a note to the Director
of the Parks Department and share your views about greenspace
vs. blacktop for our parks! Or you could attend the March 28th
Parks
Board of Commissioners meeting and make a 3 minute oral presentation
to the Board.
- Master Use permit issued for new 6-unit
townhouse project at 20th & Denny. DCLU skipped the 2nd
Design Review Hearing, but I suggest that we "let sleeping
dogs lie".
- Photographs of proposed park
site added (and links about William Grose)
- Master Use application for 1828
- 25th Ave
- Mugging alert and
a report of a recent
attempted break-in and assorted unpleasant activities
- Brief report: Miller Park Neighborhood Association meeting.Thursday,
March 7th, 7PM.
Elected:: Co-chairs: Andrew Taylor, Burton Palmer. Secretary:
Liz Ellis. Treasurer: Julie Renick.
Lise Ward from the Parks Department described their plans
to purchase land for a new park at 24th
& Howell. Neighbors were generally enthusiastic about
the plan.
The new director of the Department of Neighborhoods, Yvonne Sanchez,
came to our meeting (her 3rd day on the job!). She and Garry
Owens (also from DON) shared their thoughts about how to increase
the diversity of our membership.
Tom Lee, developer of the 23rd & Madison project, described
plans for "community display kiosks" on the 23rd Ave
side of the project:he'd like the neighborhood association to
take "ownership" of them.
- The big building project planned for 23rd & Madison (Grocery
store, shops, 200 apartments) has been approved by the Design
Review Board. Here's a very brief
report and photos of the
drawings and model presented at the Design Review meeting.
There are reports that the residential part of the large grocery/residential development
at 23rd & Madison will be owned and managed by
Legacy Partners, an "upscale" property development
company.
- Do you have a small neighborhood traffic project (curb bulb,
traffic circle, flaoting bridge, etc) that you would like funded?
Read these instructions from
the City, then fill out this form.
- Andrew's new analysis of Miller
Playfield scheduling shows that almost all games could end
at 10:15, with no loss of games. A neighbor
points out the laws about quiet time after 10 PM. Andrew
and other ballfield neighbors met
with the Mayor on 5/28/02.
- Report on the 4/25/02 Parks
Board meeting and on their recommendation to light ALL lit
fields till 11PM. Details of who
you should contact about the ballfield..
- The tentative schedule
for the Ron K. Bills fountain
has been set. Come on down and have a splash!
-
- (From Capitol Hill Community Council) Rumor has it that Walgreens
might be looking at the former City People's Mercantile location.If
you interested in doing some work with the land use/planning
andcommunity development committees on this issue please contact
communitycouncil@hotmail.com
- This fall, the Department of Neighborhoods will be providing
free trees for residential streets and parks in Seattle. Applications
are accepted from groups of neighbors, and are due on Friday,
August 2, 2002. Start planning now to plant trees with your neighbors
this fall. For an application or more information, click on this
link: http://cityofseattle.net/don/trees/Trees.htm
- Community Policing Action Council The Seattle Police Department
is currently seeking interested applicants for the Community
Policing Action Council. The Community Policing Action Council
(CPAC) is a 24-member council appointed by the Chief of Police
to represent the people of Seattle. CPAC works to develop programs
and strategies that enhance positive community/police partnerships.
CPAC's goal is to identify critical community concerns and to
develop opportunities for police and community members to talk
openly and increase
understanding of each other's values and concerns. Help make
Seattle a safer place to live, work, and play! For more information
or to obtain an application, contact Ginny Heller at 615-0062
or email at ginny.heller@ci.seattle.wa.us
- Traffic-circle contest Since the city's first two traffic
circles showed up on Capitol Hill more than 25 years ago, more
than 800 have sprouted all around town, many beautified by neighbors
with plantings. Now Seattle's Transportation Department is holding
a traffic-circle garden contest, open to any city resident who
wants to nominate a favorite traffic circle, curb bulb, triangle
or median. Entries must be received by June 30, along with a
current photo. Judging will take place in the summer, and awards
will be presented in September.
Entry forms and information are online at
www.cityofseattle.net/td/trafcirc.asp or from Liz Ellis at
206-684-5008 The city's Department of Neighborhoods also has
a program for circle stewards to apply for grants of up to $500
to pay for plant replacement, soil or compost, and dump runs.
Call 206-684-0464 for information (from the Seattle Times)
- A Miller Community Center employee and her family were recently
left homeless by a devastating house fire. Can
you help them get back on their feet?vSeveral Design Review
Reports obtained from DCLU and posted: the final one for Trader Joe's and
the "Fratelli's Site"
and an interim one for the big
grocery store to be built at 23rd & Madison.
- At our last meeting we agreed to expand the neighborhood
boundaries a bit .We now share the area between Madison and Pine
with the Central Neighborhood Association: they are focused on
23rd & Union and have not
been having regular meetings of late. As a result many newcomers
to the area (particularly those on 22nd Ave) found their way
to our meetings. So we sort of adopted them. As a result our
neighborhood boundaries now reflect those of the Madison-Miller
Urban Village that is part of the Central Area Neighborhood Plan.
- Seattle
Office of Housing: updated details of their "Multifamily
Tax Exempt" Affordable Housing Program, which they discussed
as our Feb. 5 meeting.
- The Incident report form (for reporting
public safety issues) seems to work well, and is a good way to
document ongoing problems: I send them on to our Community Police
Team officer.
- Master Use Permit for "Trader
Joe's" on Madison. Application to extend woodworking
shop on Olive.
- Details of several
shootings on/near E. Madison Street. Reports
from Police and Liquor Board on their responses to the ongoing
problems.
- Sex Offender info
and links.
- Mayor Nickels is replacing several department heads, including
DCLU.
The acting director, after January 2nd, will be Diane Sugimura.
She worked with us on the neighborhood plan and was very knowledgeable,
diligent and hardworking. We will also (sadly) be losing Jim
Diers, longtime head of the Department
of Neighborhoods: the new director, Yvonne Sanchez, came
to our March meeting and shared her thoughts about how to increase
the diversity of our membership.
- The Saturday November 10th, volunteer work party to finish
the curb bulb at 20th & Madison, next to Mount Zion Baptist
Church was a great success. We planted all the bushes and were
rewarded with a free lunch! Here
are details of the project (with photos of the work party)
and a low-tech virtual
tour of the site.
- On Wednesday, November 7, there was a Design Review Hearing
for Val Thomas's mixed use building on the "Fratelli's"
site at 19th & Madison. Click here
for more details about this large but attractive project. The
project was well received by the Design Review Board, and seems
"ready to go".
- Reports from
Neighborhood Public Safety groups about problems around 21/22nd
& Madison. Read letters
from those in the thick of it, detailing the problems, and
consider writing ( or E-mailing)
letters of support to the Captain of the East Precinct of the
Police Department.
- I received a preliminary
report (via Councilmember Licata) on our application
to get more affordable
housing in the neighborhood. There's a Catch 22: we can't
apply till redevelopment raises rents, but then redevelopment
will have happened (and the program works by subsidizing redevelopment
to produce affordable housing!). Why not write to the Director
of the Office of Housing?
- I
met with the Office of Housing about our application. I took
their advice and agreed to postpone our application till the
New Year.
- Master Use Permit for 1700
E. Madison (Permit # 9907734) has
been applied for. The store that will be most of the project
will definitely (according to an article in the Daily
Journal of Commerce) be a Trader
Joe's!. Second Design Review hearing held recently. Report
from September 18th meeting is available now.
- The Final Design Review Hearing for the Madison
Temple's 85' mixed use building at 22nd & Madison. The
project was approved: here's the report.
10/15/01: Master
Use Permit issued
- DCLU Final
Design Review report for Val Thomas's condominium project
on 19th Avenue (just S. of Denny).
- Sketches from a Design Review Hearing on the redevelopment
of the "Shipscalers"
property at 2305 E. Madison and the Early Design Guidance Hearing
report from the meeting.
- DCLU Director's Final Decision Report on the 514
- 19th Ave E. project has been issued. Reports that
they will be allowed to exceed the allowed lot coverage for the
upper stories of their building and that the project will produce
no parking impacts!
- The second Design Review Hearing
for 1816
- 19th Avenue (Val Thomas's residential project at 19th &
Denny) was on Tuesday June 19th. Here's a report
from a neighbor who attended the meeting. Comments may be sent
to Michael Jenkins, DCLU planner at 206-615-1331, or by E-mail.)
- The Interim Design Review Hearing for the redevelopment of
the "old Planned Parenthood"
site at 23rd & Madison was on Wednesday May 16th. Here's
Andrew's report
and the Design Review
Board's version.
- A neighbor, concerned about rumors concerning the choice
of grocery store for the 23rd & Madison site, offers these suggestions
to make your feelings known.
- Master
use permits to subdivide 122 - 19th Ave E. and 126 - 19th
Ave E. In each case the existing structure will remain and a
two-unit
townhouse will be built. The existing house at 126 - 19th
Ave E. is now for sale.
- East Sector Neighborhood Planning
Report (from a presentation by Darlene Flynn at a City Council
committee meeting this Spring).
- Several letters
of support for the Multifamily
Tax Exemption Housing program in our area have been sent.
- Note that we are now officially a "Neighborhood
of the Year"
