Join your neighbors at Mayor-elect Mike McGinn's North Seattle Town Hall - November 30th

Mayor-elect Mike McGinn wants to hear from you. Please join him:

Monday November 30th
7 to 9 pm
Northgate Community Center
10510 - 5th Ave. NE
Seattle, WA 98125

Read more about Mike McGinn's transition process and outreach at: http://new.seattle.gov/

Don't forget: Parent-Child yoga this weekend at Two Dog Yoga

Read more here.

St. Catherine Holiday Bazaar - This weekend!

St. Catherine Church and School in Maple Leaf will be holding its Annual Holiday Bazaar this Saturday 9 am to 5 pm and Sunday 9 am to 1 pm. The Bazaar will feature a bake sale, at least 5 varieties of take-and-bake pies, holiday crafts, and booths.

St. Catherine Church and School
8524 Eighth Ave NE
(206) 524-8800

This weekend's breakfast special at Treehouse Coffee (November 20-21)

From Michele:

A bundle of tender, young asparagus stalks grabbed my attention at the market today and screamed "include me in your quiche!" Coupled with Swiss cheese and crispy bacon we are prepared to tantalize your taste buds this weekend at Treehouse Coffee. Don't forget we have waffles too!

Read more about Treehouse Coffee here and here.

New members sought for the Seattle Pedestrian Advisory Board - Application deadline is December 16th

Help shape Seattle’s future as the most walkable city in the nation

Three volunteers are being sought to serve on the Seattle Pedestrian Advisory Board. Residents are invited to apply to serve on a volunteer committee that plays an influential role in implementing Seattle’s Pedestrian Master Plan. The board advises the mayor and City Council, participates in planning and project development, evaluates policies and makes recommendations.

Board members serve a two-year term, with an opportunity to serve a second term. The volunteers are frequent walkers of a variety of ages, levels of mobility and walks of life, and from areas throughout the city. Members must be Seattle residents and may not be city employees. The group meets the second Wednesday of each month from 6 to 8 p.m. at City Hall, located at 600 Fourth Ave., James and Cherry streets.

People interested in serving on the board are encouraged to submit by Dec. 16 a resume and cover letter explaining their interest to:

Brian Dougherty, Seattle Department of Transportation,
700 Fifth Avenue, Suite 3900,
P.O. Box 34996, Seattle Washington, 98124-4996,
or via e-mail to brian.dougherty@seattle.gov.

For more information, call Brian Dougherty at (206) 684-5124, or e-mail him at the address above.

Stronger enforcement rules for nuisance properties?

Seattle City Councilmember Tim Burgess has proposed new rules for property owners and businesses that are locations of chronic criminal activity. Read more in the Seattlepi.com here.

2009 Holiday Pedestrian Safety Campaign - event this Saturday

Come to Pacific Place Mall in downtown Seattle this Saturday, November 21, at 2:30 p.m., for the launch of the 2009 Holiday Pedestrian Safety Campaign!

Following a “safety fair” with bags and stencils for the kids (beginning at 1:30 p.m.), MC Penny LeGate of KIRO-TV will introduce the campaign as well as speakers from Seattle Department of Transportation and Seattle Police Department.

In addition to the formal speakers and event, there will also be a top-secret surprise that you’ll have to see to believe!

This event is an opportunity to highlight the importance of pedestrian safety as well as the completion of the Pedestrian Master Plan.

Neighbor Appreciation Day Card Contest for Kids - Deadline December 11

Mark your calendar for Neighbor Appreciation Day 2010! February 6, 2010 will mark Seattle’s 16th annual Neighbor Appreciation Day. It is a time to reach out to our neighbors — to create new bonds and to express our thanks for the neighbors in our lives.

Free Neighbor Appreciation Greeting Cards

Seattle Department of Neighborhoods produces free greeting cards available to Seattle residents, schools, and community organizations that want to acknowledge the good work of their immediate neighbors and others who help make their neighborhood a special place to live.

Greeting Card Contest

Seattle Department of Neighborhoods invites Seattle students K-12 to contribute original artwork for a city-wide contest. The winning artworks are featured on the official Neighbor Appreciation Day greeting cards. In addition, the Department of Neighborhoods hosts a special awards event on Neighbor Appreciation Day to honor the winning students and honorable mentions, along with their parents and teachers. The deadline for submittals is December 11, 2009.

Instructions

The contest is open to all Seattle students K-12. The artwork should reflect the theme of Neighbor Appreciation Day, depicting caring and active neighbors. Some visuals from previous years show neighbors sharing meals, helping with child care, talking over the fence or working together on a community project, such as building a new playground.

Art should be submitted on 8 ½ x 11 paper. It is recommended that art be vivid in color. Artwork created with watercolors or magic markers tend to show better, but all formats are welcome. Name, address, school, and complete contact information must be written on the back of the artwork. Artwork will not be returned.

Send entries by December 11 to:

Student Art Contest
Department of Neighborhoods
700 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1700
P.O. Box 94649
Seattle, WA 98124-4649

If you have questions, please contact Wendy Watson at wendy.watson@seattle.gov (206-684-0719) or Lois Maag at lois.maag@seattle.gov (206-615-0950).

Animals Reign

If you care about animals and are not already a reader of Animals Reign blog, you may want to check it out. Animals Reign is written by Vicki Holt, a Pinehurst neighbor, and it has helpful information on pet care, first aid, dog rescue and much more.

Parent-Child Yoga at Two Dog Yoga

Annie Stocker will be leading Parent-Child Yoga at Two Dog Yoga in Lake City on Saturday, November 21st and Saturday December 12 from 12 to 1 PM.

I can attest that this is a fun class for parents and children. My daughter and I had the pleasure of taking this class together in October. Grace has wanted to try yoga for a number of years and she really enjoyed being in the studio, learning some poses and some of the language of yoga. And, she especially enjoyed doing some inversions.

Two Dog Yoga is located at 12549 - 28th Ave NE in Lake City

Click on the image below for more details.

Thanksgiving Day Yoga at Two Dog Yoga

Two Dog Yoga in Lake City is hosting its 18th annual Thanksgiving Day yoga benefit on Thursday, November 26th

All Levels: 9 to 10:30 AM
Gentle: 10:45 AM to noon

Two Dog Yoga is located at 12549 - 28th Ave NE in Lake City

Click on the image below to enlarge

Pinehurst Blog News

"Renee" will soon be transitioning from this Pinehurst Blog.

I started the blog in the summer of 2007 because I hoped to see information better disseminated throughout the neighborhood and to make sure that people know what is happening in land use, sidewalks funding, etc. Since that time, so many smart, engaged, positive and energetic people have stepped up in the neighborhood and have taken on leadership roles.

I have always said that I only have a role until others step up to take over. I hate it when people hang out past their time and muddle in other folks' stuff. Recently, I have felt a little like I am muddling and I see signs that I should move on. This is really really positive because it means that we have many smart active involved and engaged community members in Pinehurst.

It will be great to have others putting their marks on things and to get to watch and learn more in the process.

Don't go away. Stay tuned look for more posts by Phillip, Eric, Erica, and Nancy. And look for more opportunities for you to step up and get involved in the neighborhood and to write for the blog and more!

Nov. 19th Sidewalk Meeting (NE 115th St)

We will be having a meeting on November 19th to discuss the process for the Bridging the Gap Large Project Fund. Specifically, we'll be focusing on the proposal for a new sidewalk along NE 115th St.

We're also collecting information from neighbors to help build the case for why this is such an important project. The North District Council will be voting on our recommendations and this will carry a lot of weight with what gets funded this round. During those meetings each of the seven neighborhoods will make up to two presentations on their projects and the council will select their top three.

When: November 19th Time: 7:30PM

Please RVSP to Maria Fagen at mariafagen@yahoo.com or call 206-818-8664 so we can get a count of who will be attending.

Tragedy in Pinehurst from the history books

Casey McNerthney remembers a shooting that occurred in Pinehurst 41 years ago this week. The incident occurred at the old IGA grocery store that is now home to J&M Automotive. Read the story and be sure to check out the photos - from then and now - here.




This is the scene where Seattle Police Officer Robert Allshaw was shot, Nov. 11, 1968 at the Pinehurst IGA grocery store. (Phil H. Webber/seattlepi.com file)

This weekend's breakfast special at Treehouse Coffee (November 14-15)

From Michele:

Combat the flu n cold bugs by powering up on those dark green, leafy vegetables. In honor of our immune systems, I will be offering a spinach and feta quiche this weekend. For those that pray to the gods of crispy outside and fluffy inside... There will be waffles!

Read more about Treehouse Coffee here and here.

Help Mike McGinn build the city that we belive in

Just to make it easier, I am posting the feedback form on the blog as well.

Mike McGinn wants to hear from you

Mike McGinn, Seattle's mayor-elect wants to hear from folks in our city as he prepares to take office in January 2010. Mike ran a campaign that was a little different and he plans to run his transition into office and to serve as mayor in a way that is a little different than has been done before.

Mike has asked a number of folks throughout the city to reach out to our communities. I was one of the many people who Mike asked to reach out. To make it easy for most folks, I set up a form where you can leave your thoughts here. However, please feel free to call (366-9472) or e-mail your thoughts as well.

Stay tuned for more information on town halls that Mike is planning to hold the week of November 30th.

There is a SLOG post on this as well here.

Some big news

Safeway has confirmed that the new Pinehurst Safeway will be LEED silver certified.

While neighbors have asked for LEED certification since our initial discussions with Safeway, Safeway previously could only commit to the store being LEED silver certifiable. Certification costs significantly more than simply building the store to LEED standards. This decision and the entire Pinehurst Safeway project represents a significant investment by Safeway in our community.

More information on LEED can be found here.

Can someone legally park in front of my house continually?

This question comes up a lot in Seattle. Casey McNerthney has the answer at Seattlepi.com.

Lake City Neighborhood Plan Status Check (give your feedback)

This summer, many Lake City neighbors attended a meeting and many more participated in on line questionnaires to review the Draft Lake City Neighborhood Status Report and comment on changes— good, bad, and unexpected —that have occurred since the Lake City Neighborhood Plans was written in the late 90's. Comments can be reviewed here.

The Neighborhood Plan Advisory Committee (NPAC) and the Seattle Planning Commission want to report back on the trends that emerged so far and to get your help to identify the continuing priorities and new issues that should be emphasized in the final Status Reports and a State of the Neighborhood Report that will be presented to the City Council and Mayor. These reports will contribute to policy decisions including decisions about whether or how to update our neighborhood plan. Your input is important.

There are two ways to participate: attend a meeting (see details below) or complete an on-line questionnaire.

Meeting: Thursday, November 12th, 6-8 pm
North Seattle Community College, 9600 College Way N - Cafeteria

2009 Seattle Parks Denny Awards

Seattle Parks and Recreation Superintendent, Timothy Gallagher, invites you to The 2009 Denny Awards for Outstanding Volunteer Stewardship

Tuesday, November 17, 2009
6 to 9 p.m.
Northwest African American Museum,
2300 S. Massachusetts St. Seattle, WA 98144

WINNERS

SUPERINTENDENT’S AWARDS

• Tribute: Brewster Denny, David T. and Louisa Denny Family
• Special Recognition: The Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center Task Force

2009 DENNY AWARDS

• Park Stewardship Award: Lynn Ferguson, Magnuson Environmental Stewardship Alliance
• Leading By Example Award: Charlie Zaragoza, President Of The Associated Recreation Council Board
• Corporate Giving Award: Bank Of America, Delridge Community Center/Kaboom Playground Renovation
• Lifetime Achievement Award: Lillian Riley, Groundswell Northwest
• Supporting Our Kids Award: Ernie Chatters, Youth Basketball Coach
• Community Stewardship Award: Friends Of Madrona Woods, Daylighting Madrona Creek
• Up And Coming Youth Award: Dallon Martinez, Youth Engaged In Service
• Inspiring Others Award: Stacy Thurston, Seattle Aquarium
• Associated Recreation Council Volunteer Of The Year Award: Steve Garber, Japanese Garden Advisory Council

Go build that Backyard Cottage!

From the Seattle Departmemnt of Planning and Development:

The effective date for backyard cottage legislation, Ordinance 123141, is December 4th, 2009.

Intake appointments are available no sooner than December 4th, and are scheduled through the Applicant Service Center (ASC) by calling (206) 684-8850. You may call now to schedule an appointment for December 4th and beyond.

Upcoming holiday festivals and charitable drives

A number of neighborhood churches and other organizations have craft fairs and food drives planned. If you know of events or if your organization is holding/sponsoring an event, please send details.

Revised new Seattle Public Schools assignment areas

The latest Seattle Public Schools assignment areas were released on Tuesday this week. Apologies for not posting this earlier. It has been a wacky week on my end.

The changes will have an impact on some Pinehurst families. The northern boundary for Olympic View Elementary goes north to 127th and the whole Jackson Park area will now be Ingraham instead of Nathan Hale for high school.

There is still time to comment on these changes. And, note that boundaries will likely change again in 3 to 5 years and again thereafter based on population changes.

There is a Seattle Times article on the changes here and you can read more at the Seattle Public Schools site here and at the Seattle Schools blog here.

Here are the revised maps (click on the images to enlarge):