The Queen Anne Community Council held its last board meeting at the community center Wednesday night. The council will no longer be able to meet there due to the reduced hours of operation from Parks and Recreation Department budget cuts, but it was announced that future meetings will be held inside Queen Anne Manor located at 100 Crockett St.

Fittingly, the council discussed Jim Cunningham’s membership in the Community Center Advisory Team, spearheaded by Seattle Councilmember Sally Bagshaw to find possible solutions to the financial woes of the city’s community centers. Cunningham discovered in a budgeting statement received at the last CCAT meeting that the QA Community Center looses $700,000 a year. The public has been asked to submit ideas for saving money or generating revenue for the centers. Ideas can be submitted via a link found here.

Conversely, the Parks Committee report by Don Harper announced that the Parks and Green Spaces Levy had an excess of $10 million due to the lack of inflation. The excess funds will go into the opportunity fund and can be spent on projects chosen by community groups.

The disorganization and difficulty receiving public comments at last month’s meeting was also addressed. Ideas were offered on how to do a better job in the event of a large public turnout for a contentious issue, such as: signing up to speak, giving more time to hear public comments, signs to indicate time left to speak, using a timer, giving committee reports by e-mail if time is running short.

Additional council matters:

• Two council vacancies were filled in a vote.
• Board Member Scot Baker met with the owner of the Queen Anne Avenue North 7-Eleven regarding the sale of high-octane alcohol. Council Chair Ellen Monrad said the issue is not yet resolved, but it was a good first meeting in an on-going discussion.
• In the Transportation Committee report, Glenn Avery said that SDOT will give a public presentation of the West Mercer Place portion of the project March 15 at the Seattle Center Rainier Room from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. (link). Also, SDOT is expected to attend the next council meeting.
• According to studies, the Kinnear Park forest is dying, said Harper. The plan is to cut down most of the trees and replace them with a different species. Climate change was cited as the reason.

Correction 3/7: An earlier version of this story misspelled Jim Cunningham’s last name.

Councilmember Sally Bagshaw is looking for candidates to fill three vacancies on the Seattle Parks and Green Spaces Levy Oversight Committee in the coming year. The Parks and Green Spaces Levy, approved by Seattle voters in 2008, has funded $145 million worth of community based projects and programs planned by the citizen advisory group. Here in Queen Anne the levy has backed the Kinnear Park enhancement plan, and allocated funds for a number of neighborhood P-Patches, to name just a few. View all of the projects the levy has funded citywide here (.pdf).

The job of the Parks and Green Spaces Oversight Committee is to help ensure the successful implementation of these projects and programs, and advise the Parks and Rec superintendent, the Mayor and City Council on levy-related issues. Applicants for the three volunteers positions will be reviewed Councilmember Bagshaw, who will then nominate a select few to be confirmed by the City Council.

The oversight committee meets regularly to:

• Advise on expenditures and allocations for each budget year;
• Make recommendations on implementation of particular projects and on any reallocations; and,
• Provide annual reports to the mayor and City Council on progress of expenditures and prepare a mid-point report to Seattle citizens.

Interested applicants should send a letter of interest and resume to the staff representative to the oversight committee Susan Golub at susan.golub@seattle.gov by January 31, 2011. While paper applications will be accepted, electronic submissions are preferred. Paper applications should be sent to: Susan Golub, Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation, 100 Dexter Ave. N., Seattle, WA 98109.

Councilmember Bagshaw is committed to promoting diversity in the city’s boards and commissions. Women, persons with disabilities, sexual minorities, and persons of color are highly encouraged to apply.

For more information contact Susan Golub at 206-684-7046 or susan.golub@seattle.gov.