Major transportation changes are heading to SR 99 as the deep-bored tunnel option to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct moves forward.
Late last month, the Federal Highway Administration, Washington State Department of Transportation and the City of Seattle released its Supplement Draft Environmental Impact Statement (.pdf), which analyzes the bored tunnel alternative, the preferred option for replacing the Viaduct. The SDEIS report outlines the project’s effects on transportation and the environment.
At the most recent Ballard District Council meeting WSDOT representative Mike Rigsby outlined the project for the community. Read the full story at our sister site, MyBallard.
Since the deep-bored tunnel will affect Queen Anne, Magnolia, Ballard, and other north Seattle neighborhoods, we thought we’d keep you abreast of upcoming community meetings regarding the project. This coming Wednesday from 6 to 8 p.m., there will be a hearing at Ballard High School, located at 1418 NW 65th St., to discuss the entire project and the SDEIS. The meeting will be open-house style with display boards and staff to answer questions. Attendees will be able to leave make comments. Until then, read more about the project at MyBallard.com.
(Full disclosure: The Federal Highway Administration, Washington State Department of Transportation and the City of Seattle are sponsors of NextDoorMedia, which owns QueenAnneView and sister site MyBallard.)
The Federal Aviation Administration is proposing to lower the altitude of aircraft flying over Magnolia, which could have an impact on Queen Anne.
The Magnolia Community Club has invited the FAA, Boeing Field and SeaTac management to a public meeting to discuss the proposal, which they say means a potential increase in danger, noise and pollution for Queen Anne, Magnolia and Ballard. The meeting is November 18, at 7 p.m. in the Catharine Blaine School Cafeteria at 2550 34th Avenue West — next to the Magnolia Community Center.
Robert Bismuth from the MCC provides his assessment of the FAA proposal. “This would lower the floor of the airspace from 3000 to 2000 feet over all of Magnolia and potentially parts of south Ballard and West Queen Anne. This is a substantial change and would allow traffic landing to the south at SeaTac to be over Magnolia at altitudes down to 2000 feet. In the past such traffic typically turns from the west much further north and at about 6000 feet and above.
In addition from a safety point of view this proposal reduces the airspace available for non-SeaTac bound traffic as well – compressing that traffic (typically headed into/out of Boeing Field and Lake Union) into a channel from 1500 to 1999 feet high.
It also interferes with the preferred instrument approach into Boeing Field. That approach currently has a vectoring altitude of 2200 feet prior to intercepting the glide slope for descent into Boeing Field. This is typically the altitude at which we see all the large aircraft cross Magnolia. In order to keep that traffic out of the FAA’s revised Class B airspace they are also revising the ILS and lowering the approach over Magnolia by approximately 400 to 600 feet with additional requirements on the aircraft making that approach.
Using a standard formula for the impact of noise based on the distance from the source, a drop of 400 to 600 feet in altitude roughly doubles the apparent loudness of an aircraft passing overhead assuming the same= power settings and configuration of the aircraft.
We learned earlier this week that that FAA in fact are planning on putting the revised ILS approach to Boeing Field into use in late November. This was a surprise to a lot of people – in fact not even the management of Boeing Field were told of this approach change in advance. We also do not believe there has been any adequate period or opportunity for public comment.
In addition to failing to provide adequate notification and comment period for the change to the ILS, the FAA has also decided to hold the initial public meetings on the proposed revision to the Class B airspace in Everett, Burien and Auburn – communities that will suffer no major impact from the proposed changes.
Coe Elementary’s new principal, Stacey Loftin (also known by her nickname Tate) is inviting the community to swing by and meet her at series of weekly drop-in socials the district is calling “Tuesdays with Tate.” Loftin is replacing Coe’s longtime head David Elliott, who is leaving to become the principal at the new Queen Anne Elementary this fall. Current and incoming Coe families are invited to stop by the school, located 2424 7th Ave. W., from 9 to 11:30 a.m. every Tuesday through August 3 to meet Tate. No RSVP is necessary.
Last week Seattle City Light announced a new plan to tackle the cause of Queen Anne’s frequent power outages and prevent future blackouts: injecting the neighborhood’s aging underground cables with silicone. City Light is holding a meeting tonight, Wednesday, May 26 at 6:30 p.m. (at the Queen Anne Community Center, Room 3, located at 1901 1st Ave W.) to brief residents on the project, what the work will entail, and answer any questions or concerns.
Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell sent out this message to community members this week encouraging participation in tonight’s meeting:
Beginning this June, Seattle City Light will begin a 10-week underground cable injection project on Queen Anne that will increase reliability of electrical service and add 25 years of life to aging underground cables. City Light is working with a company called Novinium to inject the aging underground cables with silicone. The process fills cracks that have developed in the cable insulation that can lead to power failures. The project is planned to begin in mid-June and is estimated to last about 10 weeks. On a typical day, crews will work between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Cables determined to be beyond repair will have to be replaced and customers will be notified at least one week in advance of any planned outages which may be necessary to replace the cable.
The silicone injection process is a great alternative to digging up and replacing old cables because it will cost less and be less disruptive to the neighborhood while extending the life of the existing cables. The process has been successfully applied to projects in Leschi, View Ridge, Laurelhurst and Arroyo Beach. When we can employ methods that enhance reliability, cost less and minimize disruption to customers, it is a step in the right direction.
This Thursday, May 6 at 7 p.m. FOLKpark invites community members to participate in an informal meeting and help brainstorm fundraising and event ideas for the next phase of the park’s redevelopment. The meeting will be held at the Ten Mercer restaurant, located at, you guessed it, 10 Mercer St. in Lower Queen Anne, and will last approximately one hour.
“Now that the enhancement plans to Lower Kinnear Park have been finalized, our fund raising efforts will now move into full swing. Your help is now truly needed!” said FOLKpark Volunteer Coordinator Phil Prahst.
Phil asks that anyone planning to attend please RSVP by either emailing him at philprahst@gmail.com, or joining the event on Facebook.
Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson and Rep. Reuven Carlyle are hosting a town hall meeting for residents of the 36th legislative district at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 19 at the Q Café, located at 3223 15th Ave West in Interbay. The main focus of the meeting will be to discuss the 2010 legislative session and the future of our state.
“For the past two legislative sessions, the state has faced fiscal challenges not seen since the Great Depression,” Kohl-Welles said in a press release yesterday. “We will be sharing with constituents how the Legislature addressed these challenges in passing the operating budget with a combination of budget cuts, new revenue and closing of tax loopholes, federal stimulus funds and using some of the reserves.”
“We have a lot to talk about,” Dickerson said.
Kohl-Welles, Dickerson and Carlyle will also discuss legislation affecting the 36th District, which encompasses Queen Anne, Magnolia, Ballard, Belltown, Fremont, Phinney Ridge, Greenwood and Blue Ridge, and will allot time to hear comments and questions from constituents.
“While email and phone calls during session are great, getting together and talking about our community is hugely informative and motivating as a lawmaker,” Carlyle said. “Our state is facing huge issues, and we need everyone involved in the solutions.”
To get an idea of what the final design entails before the meeting, take a look at the enhancement plan (.pdf). As always, the community meeting is open to the public and will be held at Bayview Manor, located at 11 W. Aloha St.
On Thursday, April 8 from 7 to 9 p.m. FOLKpark will hold the third and final community meeting at Bayview Manor, located at 11 W. Aloha St., where they will present the final concept design for the redevelopment of Lower Kinnear Park by HBB Landscape Architecture based on community input from the first two meetings.
According to FOLKpark, the final concept design “coalesced around six major themes” expressed at the first two community meetings:
Activate the park with improved trails to increase accessibility for all and expand ADA accessible areas of the park while opening sight-lines to increase sense of personal safety;
Leverage supplemental funding through the Green Spaces Levy for an off leash dog park;
Respect the park’s historical significance and uses by creating gathering spaces, viewpoints and restoring the tennis court;
Restore the natural environment by removal of invasive plants and addressing issues of drainage and re-vegetation of a dying/changing forest, building a forest for the next 50-100 years;
Enhance the entrances with a common identifying feature/planting and signage to attract visitors; and,
Provide a connection to other trails in the Seattle Parks system and to the waterfront by expanding the trail system to the Helix Bridge and at the same time remove pedestrian and biking traffic from crowded streets.
If you’d like to sneak a peak at the final design before the meeting, take a look at the enhancement plan (.pdf). FOLKpark also encourages those interested in the redevelopment of Lower Kinnear Park to pass out meeting announcement fliers (here and here) to friends and neighbors in Queen Anne.
This Thursday, February 25, FOLKpark will be holding the second in a series of three community meetings on the enhancement and development of Lower Kinnear Park, where HBB Landscape Architecture will be presenting three alternative conceptual park improvement plans, as well as a fourth concerning the north trail link.
FOLKpark held its first planning meeting back in January, asking participants to tell them what they wanted out of Lower Kinnear Park. The alternative plans were drafted based on ideas and input from community members. Now FOLKpark is asking those interested to come back and give their thoughts on what the architects have brought to the table.
“There will be lots of opportunity that evening for the community to comment on what they like and what they see as challenges. The three plans each have different elements that came out of the January community meeting and the public survey (that had 88 responses!) that emphasized expanded and improved trails, connection to the waterfront and a stronger connection to Mercer Place,” said FOLKpark chair Debi Frausto.
Here is an overview of what each of the conceptual plans will entail:
Plan A: Reworking the drainage and slope; gentler trail connection to Upper Queen Anne; replanting the slope with native urban forest vegetation, providing several “activity” nodes/viewpoints; strong Mercer Pl. connection. Download map here (.pdf).
Plan B: Increasing connection with upper Queen Anne; tree house lookout; vertical stair climbs; walking trail/elevated boardwalk through the trees; ADA accessible routes; restore/replant tennis court area. Download map here (.pdf).
Plan C: Relocating tennis court to trailside and interior of park; grassy hill to roll down; connecting stairs; Roy street entrance planting area provides transition into the urban forest with “rain gardens” and sustainable stormwater solutions. Download map here (.pdf).
North Trail Link: Extending a trail to an SDOT right-of-way directly across from the Helix Bridge allowing for greater public access to the waterfront. Download map here (.pdf).
In addition to the draft plans, FOLKpark and HBB will be presenting comments and ideas from PROView (a review board of the parks department), and the Landmarks Preservation Board at Thursday’s meeting. The Department of Parks and Recreation will also give the community an update on the proposed off-leash area in Lower Kinnear Park.
The redevelopment of Lower Kinnear Park is being funded by a $15,000 grant from the city’s Department of Neighborhoods, awarded to FOLKpark last year.
Thursday’s meeting will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Bayview Retirement Community, located at 11 W. Aloha St.
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