Street funds were used to improve crossing and beautification at 14th and NW 58th

The city of Seattle is now accepting proposals to the Neighborhood Park and Street Fund (NPSF) which supports improvements to neighborhood parks and streets proposed by the community. The deadline for applications is February 3, 2014. The NPSF can be used for projects valued up to $90,000.

Examples of park projects include playground improvements, trail upgrades, sport court resurfacing, natural area renovations, and accessibility improvements.

Examples of street projects include crossing improvements such as marked crosswalks, curb ramps, and pedestrian countdown signals; and traffic calming, such as traffic circles and speed feedback signs. The EBCA was awarded street funds, to create the  elevated crosswalk and rain gardens across 14th at NW 58th. The West Woodland community received funds last year to improve the 5-way intersection at 3rd, 56th and 55th. These were all neighborhood initiated projects. What’s your idea? We’d like to hear from you!

To learn more about the fund or to propose a project, visit www.seattle.gov/neighborhoods/npsf/default.htm. Any individual, neighborhood group, or business group is eligible and encouraged to apply. Please contact the EBCA and we can help you with putting your proposal together.

For additional questions, contact your Neighborhood District Coordinator or Wendy Watson at 206-684-0719.

 

On December 17,  Seattle Department of Neighborhoods announced theNeighborhood Matching Fund opportunities for 2014.

All three funding programs of the Neighborhood Matching Fund (NMF) – Small Sparks, Small and Simple Projects Fund, and the Large Projects Fund – support the efforts of community members as they work on projects to build stronger neighborhoods and communities.

The NMF program has staff to advise community groups on ways to develop successful applications and projects. Community members are strongly encouraged to contact a Neighborhood Matching Fund Project Manager before applying at 206-233-0093 or NMFund@seattle.gov.

 

Small Sparks Fund

The Small Sparks Fund which provides awards of up to $1,000 per project accepts applications year-round at least six weeks prior to the proposed project implementation date. This is great funding opportunity for implementing small community projects as well as supporting efforts such as Neighbor Appreciation Day, National Night Out, Earth Day, and others.

 

Small and Simple Projects Fund

The Small and Simple Projects Fund which provides awards of up to $25,000 has three opportunities to apply. The deadlines for applications are February 3, June 2, and October 6, 2014. For those interested in applying in February, NMF staff is hosting workshops about the guidelines and application process. The dates are as follows:

• Saturday, January 11; 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.at Garfield Community Center, 2323 E. Cherry Street
• Tuesday, January 14; 6 – 8 p.m.at Ravenna Community Center, 6535 Ravenna Ave NE
• Thursday, January 23; 6 – 8 p.m. at Rainier Community Center, 4600 38^th Ave S

 

To RSVP, call  206-733-9916 or go online at www.surveymonkey.com/s/NMFWorkshop. Childcare and interpreters can be arranged for workshop participants who RSVP and request these services at least 72 hours in advance. Additional workshops will be offered prior to each Small and Simple Fund application deadline in 2014.

Large Projects Fund

The Large Projects Fund (LPF) which awards up to $100,000 per project is open to applications once a year. The deadline is May 5, 2014. It is mandatory for interested community groups to attend one of the six LPF workshops offered before applying. The workshops will be provided on February 20, 25; March 20, 25; and April 8 and 10, 2014. More details on times and locations will be available on our website in January.

To learn more about the Neighborhood Matching Fund and its support to community-initiated projects, visit www.seattle.gov/neighborhoods/nmf. The website provides details on the criteria and requirements for each fund, along with instructions for the online application process.

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. 

Neighbor Appreciation Day is Seattle’s annual recognition of great neighbors. Celebrate by planning an activity in your neighborhood. It might be eligible for the Small Sparks Fund, which supports projects that connect and engage people in Seattle communities.

Some Community Project Ideas:

·       Neighborhood Clean-up
·       Emergency Preparedness Training
·       Community Resource Fair
·       Sporting and Recreational event
·       Arts and Cultural Sharing

 Small Sparks application for Neighbor Appreciation Day are due January 8, 2014.

For Neighbor Appreciation Day information and ideas, visit Seattle.gov/neighborhoods/neighborday
For information about the Small Sparks Fund, visit Seattle.gov/neighborhoods/nmf

Stephanie and Shannon were out on 14th Ave NW the other day adding new compost to the planters when they ran into this crew raking back gravel for bike safety at NW 59th! Brittany is the fearless leader. It was superhero week at their camp and they were out doing good deeds! Thank-you Brittany and her superhero crew for making our neighborhood safer and to Steph and Shannon for making our neighborhood more beautiful. Thank-you for inspiring us all to be superheroes in our own community!

Seattle is the 2nd city behind Chicago to join Gigabit Squared’s groundbreaking 21st century broadband project

This past December the city of Seattle announced a partnership with Gigabit Squared to bring another option for high-speed broadband Internet access to 12 demonstration neighborhoods in Seattle. Due to high demand from residents and businesses, they have added Central Ballard and West Seattle to the list of neighborhoods, bringing the total to 14. Unfortunately for East Ballard residents, the eastern boundary of the area that will receive service is 17th Ave NW. However, Gigabit Squared has stated that the boundaries are flexible and that the service area will be expanded throughout the city according to neighborhood demand. If you are interested in this service for your home or business, please  sign up here to show your interest and stay informed when it will be available. More signups means a greater chance of East Ballard becoming a high priority!

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=47.669585,-122.360755&spn=0.001324,0.002411&t=m&z=19&layer=c&cbll=47.66967,-122.360755&panoid=QROZLjeDGn3H6kDs3ySXiQ&cbp=13,183.9,,0,-5.01&source=embed&output=svembed&w=425&h=350]

Thank-you to neighbors who attended the Ballard District Council meeting last week in support of a crosswalk at the intersection of 14th Ave NW and NW 62nd. Although we had a lot of community support, we were up against some very strong competition and did not make the cut.

We are excited, however, that an East Ballard project did make it on the Ballard District Council’s top 3 list to be recommended for Neighborhood Street funds. This project proposes street and crossing improvements at the intersection of 3rd Ave NW and NW 56th St. This is a very awkward intersection (pictured above) for both vehicles and pedestrians (including students on their way to and from school). We’ll keep you updated on the progress of this project as we learn more. Please contact us at eastballard@gmail.com if you’d like to directly help and we’ll connect you with the project group.

To find out more about the other projects that made the list, check out the Ballard News Tribune article here.

http://www.ballardnewstribune.com/2013/01/15/news/three-neighborhood-road-projects-chosen-funding-t

Over the years, The Ballard Market has provided incredible support to the East Ballard Community Association by donating food for our events and gift certificates for our raffles. Two years ago, The Ballard Market stepped up their support by also donating 1% back from receipts we collect from the community.

So far, the EBCA has received $4,000 from the Ballard Market (that’s $400,000 worth in donated receipts!) to support projects like the planters on 14th Ave NW and the future 14th Ave NW Park. In turn, the EBCA has donated 6% to Groundswell NW (our fiscal sponsor) to support their general fund. It’s incredible how a little sheet of paper saved from the recycle bin can make such a big difference to the community!

If you shop at The Ballard Market and want to make a difference by supporting the EBCA and Groundswell NW, then please save your receipts and drop them off at Blowing Sands Glass at 5805 14th Ave NW, bring them to the next EBCA or Groundswell NW event or mail them to Groundswell NW, Attn. East Ballard Community Assn,  at P.O. Box 17163, Seattle WA 98127. We’ll do the rest!

If you’d like to make an even bigger difference, please consider  making a tax deductible donation to Groundswell NW today and support their mission to create and preserve parks and habitat in Northwest Seattle.

Now that we’ve “Got the Grant”, I thought I’d explain in more detail what we’re planning to do with the money and how YOU can become a part of this project!

The project: we will be installing three, 5′ diameter/17″ deep Dura Art Stone planters in the north and south end of each median on 14^th Ave NW between NW 59^th St and NW 63^rd St. These planters will be planted and maintained by community volunteer stewards including neighbors, local school groups, and community organization members. School groups will be creating artwork and growing plants, in addition to plant donations from local businesses. The plants will be watered by contract during the first year of establishment, but we’d like to eventually harvest our own water.  Local businesses, individuals and groups will sponsor individual planters in future years to support watering costs during summer months.

Here’s a more detailed work plan to get you thinking about how you’d like to become involved. Don’t miss our kickoff event on December 16th!

December 16th, 2009 – Planter Partnerships Kickoff event 6:30 pm at Nervous Nellie’s Espresso Company 1556 NW 56th St. Like all great projects, ours is starting with a fun and informative kickoff! This event will give you the opportunity to learn more about this project, meet your neighbors, local businesses, schools and organizations who have already pledged their support, and choose how you will contribute to the success of this project. There’ll even be supervised child care at this event!

Mid January 2010 – Collaborate with St Alphonsus Elementary School students to design and create art that will be installed in the planters. We’d like to see this collaboration as an ongoing project with these students so that we can display different art pieces on a regular basis. If you’re an artist, this would be a great opportunity for you to get into the classroom and inspire these kids! We have budget in our grant to kickoff the first art project.

End January 2010 – Kickoff a plant growing program with the Ballard High School Horticulture program. The high school has a great horticulture program and the students are excited about getting involved in a project that is close to school that they can take pride in.

End February 2010 – Meet with plant donors and consultants to develop a plant list, layout and maintenance plan. Swanson’s Nursery has generously pledged $1,000 wholesale worth of plants. We’re also getting help from local professionals, like Plant Amnesty and Seasonal Color Pots for plant selection and maintenance advice.

Februrary/March 2010 – Work with Plant Amnesty and Seattle Department of Transportation to develop a planter steward program.

End March 2010 – Install new gravel in the median ends. Thank you to Salmon Bay Sand and Gravel for their generous gravel donation! We will also be digging out the weeds beforehand, so look for a notice in March for a work party!

Early April 2010 – Planters arrive and get filled with soil. Thank-you to SDOT for donating the planters, and to Pacific Topsoils and Cedar Grove Composting for their offer to donate potting soil!

April 17th, 2010 – Planter steward training and planting event, in conjunction with Adopt A Street Cleanup. We will also have a celebration lunch/party afterward & thank-you to Department of Neighborhoods, volunteers, and  donors. This will also be the kickoff for our planter steward training.

April – October 2010 – Establish plants through the first summer with scheduled watering service, and continued community stewardship per the established program. Our grant covers cost for the first year of watering. We’re looking for a way to harvest our own water for the planters for the following years. If you have ideas, we’d love to get you involved!

If you’d like to find out more about this project, make sure to attend our Kickoff event on Dec 16th! If you can’t make it, but want to find out more, please contact me (Dawn Hemminger) at eastallard@gmail.com.

What are some projects we can rally together on as a community?

This is a blog for our community.