Author Archives: Dawn

Department of Neighborhoods People’s Academy for Community Engagement – applications due May 29

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The People’s Academy for Community Engagement (PACE) is a civic leadership development program that builds the skills of emerging community leaders. During the 12-month program, 26 emerging leaders (18 years and up) will learn hands-on strategies for community building, inclusive engagement, and accessing government from experts in the field. PACE has a strong focus on Seattle’s community and neighborhood organizations, and the city’s governmental structure and processes.

PACE Curriculum

These topics will be covered in the 2015-2016 program:

Accessing Government
Community Organizing
Meeting Facilitation
Sustaining Involvement
Conflict Management
Public Speaking
Approaches to Leadership
Inclusive Outreach & Public Engagement
Each session is taught by facilitators from community and nonprofit organizations, along with city of Seattle departments, who have expertise in the topic and in facilitating group discussion.

APPLY NOW!
Sessions and Community Projects
Sessions are held on the third Thursday of each month from 5:30-9 p.m. at Seattle University. They begin in September 2015 and go through May 2016.

From May through August 2016, participants work in teams with neighborhood groups to plan, engage in, and implement community projects.

Tuition
Tuition is $100. It is payable upon receipt of invoice after acceptance into the program. Tuition assistance is available.

PACE Application Process
Visit seattle.gov/neighborhoods/engage/pace.htm to apply online (after April 13). The application deadline is May 29. Notifications of acceptance will be issued by July 10, 2015.

Learn More
Visit seattle.gov/neighborhoods/engage/pace.htm for details and the online application. For questions, contact:

Wendy Watson
phone: 206-684-0719
email: Wendy.Watson@seattle.gov

Download a flier HERE!

Metro is proposing changes to the 28 bus you may not like – provide comments until May 31

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If you rely on the 28 bus to get you from Ballard to Fremont or the South Lake Union neighborhood, then this proposal from Metro is worth a read and your comments. In addition to changes to support the University Link Light Rail, Metro is proposing to combine the 28X and 28 bus routes. At first glance, that doesn’t sound like a bad idea for downtown commuters, since frequency of the 28X would increase at peak hours, but there could be an increase in stops along 8th Ave NW, because the route will change from running along Market St, to running along Leary and 39th in Fremont instead. If you want to get to/from Fremont or South Lake Union, then it looks like you’ll probably have to make a connection (most likely on Leary) with the 40 bus.

The proposed changes on Metro’s site are not very detailed. They provide proposed route changes for the 28 and 28X but don’t provide proposed stop locations or information on how much longer the commute will be with the extra stops. We’re sharing this information with you to not only inform, but to ask you to provide comments to Metro before May 31. The survey is confusing and doesn’t directly address anything related to the Ballard bus route changes until the very end, so you’ll have to forward through to the end to ask your questions and provide comments relating to the bus route changes.

Note that there are some positive Metro changes being proposed for the Ballard area. If you’re a rider of the 44 bus, you’ll see some improved frequency in the future. There will also be a new bus 45 route from Loyal Heights to the University Link Light Rail.

Overview of the proposed Sound Transit and Metro changes
Metro’s Proposal
Proposed Route 28X changes
Proposed Route 28 changes
Provide comments

Fill out a survey to share your transportation priorities for Ballard

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Were you unable to attend the Ballard Urban Design & Transporation Open House on May 7?

What is it?
A City and Community partnership to create a vision that will guide new development and transportation investments in Ballard. Tell us your priorities for transportation and preferred station locations for future high capacity transit.

Unable to Attend?
Complete the survey at Move Ballard to share your transportation priorities and comments.

To Learn More
Visit www.seattle.gov/dpd/ballard or www.seattle.gov/transportation/moveBallard.

Contact
David Goldberg (DPD) or Chris Yake (SDOT) for any questions about this project or event.

Edible Garden Tour will be in East Ballard/West Woodland this year – still spots available to show off your garden!

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2015_EGT_announce

Sustainable Ballard’s 7th Annual Edible Garden Tour will be on Saturday, June 27, 2015 and will be showcasing gardens in the East Ballard/West Woodland neighborhood this year!

Start Point and Tickets:  West Woodland Elementary School, 5601 4th Ave NW
Cost: $10 per person (kids are free).  Buy your ticket/map at the start point on the day of the tour.

Grow, don’t mow!  This tour includes more than a dozen gardens to explore within walking distance of West Woodland Elementary and the entry fee supports Sustainable Ballard’s community projects throughout the year.  West Woodland itself has a new edible garden and will have gardening and art activities on the day of the tour.

Now in it’s 7th year, the Edible Garden Tour has been an inspiration to hundreds of gardeners every June. This fun walking / biking tour highlights creative uses of parking strips, containers, raised beds, bee houses, chicken coops, goats, fruit trees, berries, herbs and veggies galore!

This year, in addition to inspiring gardens, goats & chickens, we will include artists’ displays in the gardens!

Help out!

Sustainable Ballard is still seeking gardens and urban farms in SE Ballard to include on the tour.  If you’d like to show off your approach to urban food production and live between 3rd and 11th NW, south of NW 65th St, please contact Paula to learn all about being on the tour!

Volunteers are needed to help with outreach for the event, write a blog post or promote the event in other media, hang and distribute posters and help out the day of the event!  If you’d like to host a stop on the tour, donate a raffle prize, become a sponsor or volunteer please contact Paula or Jennifer.

Cascade Compost LOGO

THANK YOU to Cascade Compost for sponsoring this year’s tour!!

 

Call for Ballard Tool Library Volunteers

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sustainable BALLARD

Sustainable Ballard  is looking to connect members of the greater Ballard community with the tools they need and the know-how to create projects. The Ballard Tool Library will be a wonderful resource for our community – little or no cost tool rentals and members looking to share knowledge with one another. ”Tool” can be broadly defined.  Some ideas that have been kicked around include: wood working tools, gardening tools, sewing machines/sergers, masonry tools, marine tools, brewing equipment, canning supplies, recreational gear…the sky is the limit.  Besides tool rentals, we could have a community workspace, classes, job training – and facilitate the sharing of knowledge and resources in so many other ways.

So what will the Ballard Tool Library end up looking like? That’s up to you: the volunteers.
Volunteers might…
  • Attend monthly planning meetings
  • Design a floor plan
  • Work on the Ballard Tool Library Space (building shelving, etc.)
  • Reach out to the Ballard community
  • Apply for grants
  • Work as a Project Facilitator at the library
Sustainable Ballard is looking for volunteers to help out with the Ballard Tool Library now! Volunteers can commit to as little as a couple hours a month. We’d love to have people help out as much as they can, but recognize that not everyone has a lot of time available. We already have a lead on a space and we could ramp this project up quickly if the pieces fall into place. If we could start with just 10 volunteers, we would be in a great position as the Ballard Tool Library turns from concept into reality.
Please reach out to Dan McKeon if you are interested in helping create the Ballard Tool Library or have any questions: dan@sustainableballard.org

Deadline approaches to apply for funds to support your neighborhood project

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Department of Neighborhoods

If your group needs funds to do a neighborhood project, the city’s Neighborhood Matching Fund may be able to help. But you’ll need to be quick because the application deadline for the Small and Simple Projects Fund is Monday, June 1 at 5:00 p.m. This fund provides matching awards of up to $25,000 to neighborhood groups and community organizations for community-building projects.

To learn about the Small and Simple Projects Fund, there is one more workshop scheduled for Thursday, May 14 at Northgate Community Center from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. The workshop will provide an overview of the Neighborhood Matching Fund, the qualities of a good project, and the application process and requirements. To RSVP call 206-733-9916 or go online at surveymonkey.com/s/NMFWorkshop.

There will be another opportunity to apply to the Small and Simple Projects Fund this October.

Neighborhood Matching Fund staff are available to advise groups on ways to develop successful applications and projects. You are strongly encouraged to call 206.233.0093 or email NMFund@seattle.gov to discuss your project idea with one of our project managers.

A program of Seattle Department of Neighborhoods, the Neighborhood Matching Fund (NMF) has three funding programs that award matching funds for projects initiated, planned, and implemented by community members. Its goal is to build stronger and more vibrant neighborhoods through community involvement and engagement. Every award is matched by a neighborhood’s contribution of volunteer labor, donated materials, in-kind professional services, or cash.

Seattle Department of Neighborhoods provides programs and services that engage residents in civic participation, foster stronger communities, make government more accessible, and preserve and enhance the character of Seattle’s neighborhoods. 

A great day for a Ballard Janes Walk

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We had over 35 participants in this year’s Ballard Janes walk this past Sunday. We had beautiful weather just right for a 4 hour stroll to explore the nooks and crannies of a neighborhood deserving to be explored. A big thank-you to Stephanie Shelton with the EBCA, Cathy Tuttle from Seattle Neighborhood Greenways and David Ramsay from FeetFirst who co-organized this walk and provided great insight into what’s going on in our neighborhood along the walk. Thank-you to Shannon Dunn, Dawn Hemminger and Zack Thomas from the EBCA, Rhys Van Bemmel from UW and Catherine Weatbrook District 6 City Council candidate, for being special guest speakers.  If you didn’t make it out to this year’s Ballard Janes Walk, mark your calendar for the first weekend of May next year and look for walks at FeetFirst’s website.

Check out pics here.

Here’s what you missed!

JanesWalk2015_Map.jpg

Start: Hales Ales: 4301 Leary Way NW 11am
(1) 11th Ave street end park Design-Build (Rhys Van Bemmel/UW)
(2) Future Greenway on 6th Ave NW(Cathy)
(3) Traffic circle, alleys, mini-park with art at substation (Cathy,Dave/save our substations, Shannon)
(4) NW 58th Greenway (Cathy)
(5) 14th Ave NW Park-Boulevard and crossing compliance (Dawn/Zack/Stephanie)
continue on 58th
(6) 17th Ave NW Greenway/Ballard Urban Village Development (Cathy/Dawn)
(7) The SLUG community garden and little library: St Luke’s Urban Garden
(8) Ballard Commons Park/SNAP Emergency Preparedness/Ballard Opens Space Plan (Cathy/Catherine/Dawn)
(9) flashing crosswalk at 58th and 24th (Cathy/Dave)
(10) Ballard Farmer’s Market
(11) boat launch 14th street end (Stephanie)

End: Hales Ales: 4301 Leary Way NW 3pm

Recent UW study shows a low stopping compliance at NW 58th and 14th Ave NW crosswalk

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58thand14thcrosswalk

The EBCA recently invited UW students Qiren Lu & Ranju Uezono to include the crosswalk at 14th Ave NW and NW 58th St as 1 of their 4 studied  intersections in Seattle School Walk Zones to see if drivers stopped for people crossing at  crosswalks.

These students’ findings at this intersection were alarming with only a 15% motorist compliance rate, which means that only about 1 out of 7 people driving cars fully stop for people walking during school arrival & departure hours at this intersection!

Although this study is just a snapshot of stopping behavior at  this intersection, it’s a very good reminder for those of you who drive cars and ride bikes to comply with Washington state law which states that,

“the operator of an approaching vehicle shall stop and remain stopped to allow a pedestrian or bicycle to cross the roadway within an unmarked or marked crosswalk when the pedestrian or bicycle is upon or within one lane of the half of the roadway upon which the vehicle is traveling or onto which it is turning.”

Read the Seattle Greenways article here.
Read the full report here.