Don’t miss the 11th annual Sustainable Ballard Festival next Sunday

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What: The 11th Annual Sustainable Ballard Festival
When: Sunday, Sep. 28, 11am-6pm
Where: Ballard Commons Park
More Info: http://www.sustainableballard.org/festival/

Family-friendly, FREE, and full of surprises, the Sustainable Ballard Festival is celebrating its 11th year! Come sample Ballard craft brews and delicious bites, win prizes, catch live music on the solar-powered main stage, watch cooking demonstrations, test ride a cargo bike, make your own green cleaning product, and meet farm animals! Reuse and Recycling is a dominant theme this year, with trash fashion, car-seat recycling, a kids bike and pet parade (we supply the re-purposed frippery), a local coffee cup campaign and more. Some all-time favorite exhibits will be back, plus more new activities, workshops, and hands-on games than ever before. With more than 75 exhibits, the Sustainable Ballard Festival is a fantastically fun opportunity to learn together, get inspired, and discover new ways to live more lightly on the earth.

POSTPONED: Small Batch Seattle’s 2nd Event August 10th

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Just got a note from Small Batch Seattle that they’re postponing this month’s event:

“We’ve decided to postpone this months Swap until later this summer. It’s been a very busy time of year for all of us, and we feel we can throw a better, more well attended event in late summer/early fall. Thanks for your understanding! We look forward to seeing you at our next swap. We’ll post details in a few weeks”.

Small Batch Seattle is excited to announce that their second swap event will be held August 10! Last month’s event was a great success. Check out some of the pics to see for yourself!  Bring something homemade or homegrown to swap among neighbors, and in return get new items to take home for your own pantry.

While we have had beautiful weather, the group is  scouting out venues for future swaps that will allow them to continue trading through the rainier seasons.  If you know of anyone that would like to host an event (public space, art gallery, store, etc) please let them know!

Where: Kirke Park in Ballard (7028 9th Ave NW Seattle, WA 98117)
When:  Sunday, August 10 at 2pm
RSVP Required: smallbatchseattle@gmail.com

What to expect:
Bring as many or as few items as you want, packaged into portions of ~$5-10 amounts for easy swapping. You can bring any homemade/homegrown consumables like baked goods, jams, fermented foods, natural sodas, yogurt, grown vegetables, etc.  You’re encouraged to bring ingredient lists and samples of your items to try where practical. Non-edible products (soaps, services, art, etc) will be accepted on a case-by-case basis; please email so you can talk about your items.

This will be a fun, casual event where we can exchange goods and ideas. The event is expected to take about 2 hours. You’re welcome to bring friends and family and forward this along to others, but only those that bring items to swap can participate. You must RSVP via email for each participating attendee as table space is limited.

More information can be found on their website at:
http://www.smallbatchseattle.com

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Ballard Neighborhood Greenways Open House Aug 7

 

In March, SDOT hosted a public meeting and gathered valuable input on building a north-south neighborhood greenway in Ballard from Salmon Bay to Soundview Playfield. From their evaluation and the input received, SDOT is recommending a new greenway along 17th Avenue NW from NW 90th Street to Russell Avenue NW and along NW Dock Place between Russell Avenue NW and Ballard Avenue NW.

To learn more about the Ballard Greenways project and about the proposed greenway along 17th, check out SDOT’s website  and then come join your neighbors at the Ballard High school next Thursday Aug 7 from 6-7:30 pm for the Ballard Neighborhood Greenways Open House.

 

August Night Out Next Tuesday

This year marks the City of Seattle’s 30th Annual “Night Out Against Crime” celebration on Tuesday, August 5th. Recently, Mayor Murray laid out a comprehensive public safety plan for Seattle that underscores the importance of providing opportunities for youth and community members to enjoy their streets and public spaces citywide. The Mayor believes Night Out is a great example of the types of opportunities that exist for reconnecting community to Seattle streets.

Night Out, an annual national event hosted locally by the Seattle Police Department, shows that residents and City government can mobilize resources and energy together to move toward a safer and more connected Seattle. We hope you’ll join in making this Seattle’s best Night Out yet!

Check out the website for more information. View the map to find the block party nearest you or look for flyers on telephone poles (we’ve seen a few on NW 58th, NW 60th and 11th Ave NW in the past few days) or register your own event here!

Small Batch Seattle’s first Food and Goods Swap next Sunday July 13

The folks at Small Batch Seattle, a group of friends (a handful from East Ballard)  wishing they had more time to indulge in a homemade lifestyle,  are inviting you to join them next Sunday, July 13th for their first Small Batch Seattle Food and Goods swap. Bring something homemade or homegrown to swap among friends and neighbors and in return get new items to take home for your own pantry.
What: Small Batch Seattle’s Food and Goods Swap
Where: Kirke Park in Ballard (7028 9th Ave NW)
When:  Sunday, July 13th at 2pm

RSVP Required: smallbatchseattle@gmail.com

What to expect:
Bring as many or as few items as you want, packaged into portions of ~$5-10 amounts for easy swapping. You can bring anything homemade/homegrown like baked goods, jams, fermented foods, natural sodas, yogurt, grown vegetables, soaps, etc. We encourage you to bring ingredient lists and samples of your items to try where practical.
This will be a fun, casual event where we can exchange goods and ideas. We expect the event to take about 2 hours. You’re welcome to bring friends and family and forward this along to others, but only those that bring items to swap can participate. You must RSVP for each participating attendee as table space is limited.
More information can be found on our website at: http://www.smallbatchseattle.com

We hope to see you soon!

Small Batch Seattle

7th Annual Phinney Ditch Block Party next Saturday July 12

 

 

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Fellow East Ballardite, Nicky Bradford, and her band of friends and neighbors have been organizing a community block party for the past 6 years that with every new year gets bigger, more outrageous, more fun,  and is starting to attract attendees from far beyond her block.

Next Saturday will be the 7th year for this event and it’s proving to be one that will “rock your socks-in-sandals off”. With activities to attract all ages, including a bounce house, cream pie jousting, BBQ potluck, live music, the Ballard pop-up food garden project, and a Curiosities section that’s bound to intrigue anyone, this is an event not to miss!

The organizers are seeking more local artists, business owners and practitioners who would like to set up a talk about what the love and do in the Curiosities section. Contact them at phinneyditch@gmail.com if you’d like to participate.

Ballard Corners Park Work Party this Saturday

The Friends of Ballard Corners Park invite you to a work party at Ballard Corners Park (17th Ave NW & NW 63rd Street) this  Saturday, June 28th from 9am – 12 noon, rain or shine. This will be a short and sweet work party (am only) with an aim to get the spring weeds under control. If you have your own gloves and weeding tools please bring them. Any questions, please contact Gabriella: gabriella@seanet.com or (206) 782-3238. We’re looking forward to seeing you there!

Sustainable Ballard’s 6th Annual Edible Garden Tour this Saturday

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Now in its 6th year, Sustainable Ballard’s Edible Garden Tour has been an inspiration to hundreds of gardeners every June. This fun walking/biking tour highlights neighborhood gardens, planting strips, containers, raised beds, chickens, bees and all sorts of creative edibles from fruit trees to berries to veggies galore. Each year, the tour visits a different quadrant of Ballard. Northwest Ballard will be featured this year.

Sustainable Ballard’s 6th Annual Edible Garden Tour
June 28, 2014 10am-3pm
Purchase tickets and map $10/person (kids are free) at 
Ballard P-Patch/Our Redeemer’s Lutheran Church parking lot
NW 85th and 25th Ave NW, on the day of the tour.

for more information, visit Sustainable Ballard’s Edible Garden Tour Event Page

Ballard Open Space Plan Discovery Day June 14 plus other ways you can participate

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Potential open space doesn’t have to be a park, it could even be spaces between buildings. Be creative!

Thank-you to the many who turned out for the Ballard Open Space Plan Open House last week. We got a lot of interest, great recommendations on your ideas for open space in Ballard, many surveys were completed and volunteers signed up to join us on Discovery Day June 14. We’d like to add you to the list of volunteers and there are multiple ways you can help that’ll fit your schedule!

Before embarking on 1 or more of these activities listed below, be sure to get an overview about the Ballard Open Space Plan first. It’ll help better inform you on what you’ll be asked to do.

  1. Take 10 minutes to fill out a  survey
  2. If you have a smartphone, download our app to capture your ideas for open space, including pictures! This is a great tool to use when walking the dog, walking to the Farmer’s Market or just a great excuse to get out an explore your neighborhood at your own pace.
  3. Don’t have a smartphone? download a pdf inventory sheet for your neighborhood from this site, fill out as many as you like and contact us at eastballard@gmail.com so we can collect them or mail them to  Groundswell NW, PO Box 17163, Seattle, WA 98127. Here’s a direct link to the East Ballard/West Woodland Inventory sheet.
  4. Join us for Discovery Day on June 14, 10 AM at Ballard Commons Park where we’ll split up into neighborhoods and discover opportunities for open space together! Folks from the EBCA will be leading the East Ballard/West Woodland group, so we’re looking forward to seeing you there! Want to get really committed, then sign up here at VolunteerMatch or click on the VolunteerMatch icon below so we can keep you updated as the event day approaches.

[VolunteerMatch - Where Volunteering Begins.]