Neighborhood Notes

Three big events in the next week that you might want to attend about future plans for the neighborhood and the city as a whole:

Olympia Comprehensive Plan – Shaping Olympia’s Future

The Imagine Olympia Kick Off on November 14th from 1:00-4:00 p.m. at the Olympia Center is the official launch of the city’s multi-year process to update our city’s guiding planning document, the Comprehensive Plan.

They will feature information on past Comprehensive Plans and the process for the update. Additionally, staff and Advisory Committees members will be available to answer questions about the Plan’s elements and the public involvement process.

This will be no ordinary meeting! They’ll have local musicians, snacks, and plenty of time to mingle with our fellow citizens and staff. We hope you’ll join us!

Want more information? Visit the Comprehensive Plan website, www.imagineolympia.com

Calling All Gardeners (and Community Activists, Neighbors, Fundraisers, Teachers, Learners…)

Exciting plans are underway to develop a cooperative garden at Madison Elementary School and Avanti High School. Our hope is to partner with community members in the Eastside neighborhood to make this project stronger and more sustainable. That is where YOU come in!

We are still in the planning stages but some ideas of how the neighborhood can be involved are to have a community use pea patch space and to establish a student mentorship program using neighborhood garden experts. At our next meeting, we will assess the level of interest from the community so please come to share your ideas and show your support for this important project!

What a wonderful opportunity to connect children in our neighborhood schools with folks in the community who have a green thumb and love of gardening to share!

Monday, November 16 at 6:30 p.m. in the Madison school library (enter on Legion)

RSVP to Katie: [email protected]

The Future of Public Pathways

Public Pathways are short cuts for bicyclists and pedestrians that connect streets to parks, schools, and other streets where no motor vehicle connection exists. These pathways shorten trip lengths and provide more comfortable off-street routes for bicyclists and pedestrians. (In the past, Public Pathways were also called “Neighborhood Connections.”)

There are no City funds identified for improving or maintaining these pathways. Long term, a formal program to construct and maintain pathways would be desirable. In the interim, work by neighborhoods to improve these pathways could be appropriate.

In August of this year, the City Council directed the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) to develop a program that provided guidelines to residents so that they might improve pathways on a volunteer basis.

Draft materials have been developed for this program: an introduction to the program, guidelines, an application, and an agreement.

Input from neighborhood representatives is sought about this program proposal and the draft materials. (Attached as a zip file containing four Word documents: Input on Public Pathways documents)

Please provide input by either:

Attending the Wednesday, November 18, BPAC meeting

6:15 to 8:15

825 Legion Way, southwest corner of Legion Way and Pear Street

Or

Send your comments to Sophie Stimson, [email protected]

Please send comments by 3pm Wednesday, November 18

Neighborhood Notes

A few notes for the neighborhood:


== Stolen car ==
We received this by email:

Kelcy’s car was stolen last night, the 9th!! It was just parked in the road, doors locked no keys inside…. [On Legion Way] A silver, 1993 Subaru station wagon. The most distinguishing marks are the bumper stickers. One says ” I march to the beat of my own accordion” the other sticker says “I love my library.”

Contact the police if you have any information.

== Garden Walk organizing! ==
Heather Hansen has offered to organize an upcoming Garden Walk. She’s looking for 2 or 3 additional volunteers to assist. Leave a comment if you’re interested and we’ll put you in touch!

== Planning Commission Public Meeting ==
The Olympia Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on Monday September 14 at 6:30 pm in the city council chambers on 900 Plum St. They’ll be considering proposed amendments to land use zoning standards.

== Artspace Public Meeting ==
From the city’s website:

Artspace is a national non-profit organization. Their mission is to create, foster and preserve affordable space for artist and arts organizations. They work with cities all over the country to build housing and then Artspace manages it.

Artspace is considering Olympia for an affordable artists’ live/work space project. City of Olympia and the Olympia Arts Commission are preparing for a visit from Artspace on September 16 and 17, when the organization will assess whether Olympia is a good match for a future Artspace project.

Artists and community members are invited to learn about the Artspace organization, its projects and processes at a community meeting on Wednesday, September 16, 6:00pm, at the Washington Center for the Performing Arts, 512 Washington St SE, Olympia. Artspace will make a presentation from 7:00 to 8:30pm and guests will have an opportunity to ask questions. While guests are gathering prior to the presentation, local artists will offer a variety of short performances on the Center’s main stage.

Visit http://www.ci.olympia.wa.us/en/city-services/parks/arts-resources/Artspace.aspx
for more info.

== Waste/Recycle Cart Graffiti ==
From Olympia Public Works:

Does your neighborhood have residential waste or recycle carts marred by graffiti? This is another problem we can tackle together.

Recently, WasteResources committed to help locate and submit work orders for damaged carts they see on their routes. Those will be collected and replaced. The damaged carts are cleaned at the Maintenance Center by the Probation Work Crew and reused.

We’re asking for your help to:

Encourage everyone to bring carts back off of the curb after collection day. Carts are more likely to be tagged if left out.

Spread the word that customers can ask for a replacement cart by calling 753-7368 or emailing Gateway Services ([email protected]).

Report graffiti on other carts in the neighborhood in the same manner. You will need to provide the address and cart color. It would also be helpful if the neighbor is informed of the request so they can leave the cart out for pick up.

Thanks to all of you who continue to help bust graffiti out of our neighborhoods!

(See http://eastside-olympia.org/vandalism/ for info about graffiti cleanup!)

========================

If you have announcements to go out inbetween newsletters, just drop a line to [email protected] and I’ll get it out by email and on the website as soon as I can!

We’re currently getting together the fall newsletter to be distributed prior to October’s general meeting. If you have ads or articles, contact [email protected] by Thursday, September 17.

Announcements for July 29

We’ve had a bunch of stuff piling up in the ENA inboxes, so here’s a few items of note, including a picnic reminder:



1) The Picnic is coming!

The annual Eastside Picnic is scheduled for Saturday August 22, 11 am – 2 pm at Lions Park. The neighborhood association will be providing burgers, hot dogs & veggie burgers, plus beverages. Artesian water will be provided by H2Olympia. Bring a blanket to sit on, a side dish to share, and a non-perishable food donation for the food bank. Look for posters coming soon!

We’re looking for volunteers, especially musical performers. Also, if you are involved with a community group, we’ll have spots available for you to share information about your group. Contact [email protected] to get involved.

2) Stay Cool, Stay Safe

Just a friendly reminder from your neighborhood association to be sure to keep as cool as possible over the next few days. As I’m sure you know, temps are at record levels this week. We got the following notice from the city this morning:

===============
Keep cool Wednesday and Thursday from Noon to 4:00 p.m. at Yauger Park. Olympia Parks will set up a huge agriculture sprinkler for kids of all ages to get wet, while watering ballfields at the same time!
===============

More public locations for keeping cool are listed at http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/em/ – the Olympia Timberland Library will be open tonight until 7 pm, and the Olympia Center downtown is open until 9:30 pm.

3) Camp Quiote at First United Methodist

An announcement from Kerry & Dale Smith  O & E Committee Chairpersons:

I would like to invite you to an informative meeting at the First United Methodist Church on August the 12th at 7:00pm in the Sanctuary.  We will be informing the neighborhood and our congregation concerning the return of Camp Quiote to FUMCO for the months of Sept, Oct, Nov. They were here a couple years ago, so I can’t forsee any problems with
the move this time. If you would like to attend, I look forward to seeing you there.

4) Planning Commission meeting, August 3

The Olympia Planning Commission will hold a public hearing at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, August 3, 2009, in the City Council Chambers at the Olympia City Hall, 900 Plum Street SE, Olympia, Washington, to consider proposed amendments of the City’s land use zoning standards governing maximum review periods for certain types of development proposals. For more information contact Todd Stamm, Planning Manager, Olympia Community Planning and Development Department, P.O. Box 1967, Olympia, WA 98507, e-mail [email protected], or by phone at (360) 753-8597, TTY 753-8270.

Performers, Organizations, and Volunteers Needed for Picnic

The annual Eastside Neighborhood Picnic will be held on Saturday August 22 at Lions Park. We need your help now!

Musicians and other performers: we’d love to have neighborhood musicians.

Community organizations: this year we’re going to set aside space for local community and civic organizations. Get the word out or discover neighborhood volunteers.

Volunteers: help is needed both ahead of the date and at the event. In particular, we’re looking for extra grills.

Contact us if you’re interested in any of these opportunities!

Annual Picnic

The ENA’s annual picnic will be held on Saturday, August 22 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The Association will be providing hamburgers, hot dogs, and veggie burgers, along with buns, condiments, and beverages. We encourage everyone to bring salads, side dishes, and desserts to share!

We’re currently looking for volunteers to help organize the event. This year we plan to have performers, as well as booths from community organizations. Leave a comment on this post or contact [email protected] to volunteer!