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Transitions Community Meeting (Nov 10)

Transitions Community Meeting (Nov 10)

Transitions is holding a community meeting tomorrow (Tuesday, November 10) between 6:30 and 7:30pm at the Transitional Living Center.

The community meeting is designed to answer questions from members of the Audubon-Downriver Neighborhood and the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood in regards to a potential housing project on the empty two acres located at the south side of the property at 3128 N Hemlock. It’s also intended for neighbors’ concerns to be heard and noted by Transitions.

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The Office of Neighborhood Services will be moderating the meeting. They’re reserved roughly 15 minutes for background on the project and the progress thus far. The remaining 45 minutes will focus on input from members of the neighborhoods. As basic guidelines to ensure that everyone’s voice is heard, the organizers have suggested that no one speak twice before everyone has had a chance, and that no one speak longer than five minutes at any one time.

If you have any questions about the meeting please contact Melissa Wittstruck of the Office of Neighborhood Services at mwittstruck@spokanecity.org or 625-6087.

Photos from the Oct 31 E-G Community Planting

Photos from the Oct 31 E-G Community Planting

The Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council held a community planting on the morning of October 31 as part of our neighborhood’s successful round of Greening Grants. Its purpose was to remove the thatch and dead brush from the traffic triangles on Northwest Boulevard and to install new native, hardy plants like lilacs and echinacea.

Despite gray skies, about fifteen volunteers from Emerson-Garfield and beyond came out and spent their Halloween morning pulling up thick layers of dried grass, raking the debris, loading the trucks, tilling the soil, and finally (the fun bit) putting the new plants in the ground. The volunteers’ ages ranged from their twenties to their seventies.

Amy Dutton, a neighborhood resident and owner of Garden UP Landscaping, donated her time and skills to oversee the planting. She carefully selected the plants so that they’ll bloom in stages throughout the year. It should look really lovely come spring.

The slight letdown is that the number of volunteers (out of a neighborhood of more than 9,000 people) meant that there wasn’t enough time or manpower to tackle the planting of the second triangle to the south as originally planned. We’re trying to determine if a second volunteer planting event can be arranged this late in the year, or if additional funds will have to be used to hire a contractor.

The neighborhood council would like to offer a huge show of thanks to Alicia Powell at the City’s Office of Neighborhood Services. Under the Greening Grants program, she coordinated the planting, made arrangements for traffic safety, and also set up the installation of an irrigation system with the help of the City Water Dept.

Many thanks to Jonathan Martinez as well for bringing snacks and snapping the above photos during the event!

Materials for the Oct 14 E-G Neighborhood Council Meeting

Materials for the Oct 14 E-G Neighborhood Council Meeting

It’s an action-packed agenda at this month’s meeting of the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council, which happens tomorrow (Wednesday, October 14) starting at 6pm in the Corbin Senior Activity Center Center (827 W Cleveland).

There’s an update from Community Frameworks on the West 315 revitalization at the corner of Washington and Mission. In other development news, one resident will be speaking to her concerns over a proposed 24-cottage facility by the Transitional Living Center.

We’ll also be continuing the conversation on neighborhood crime that we began with Officer Traci Ponto last month.

The council will be voting on the ambitious joint neighborhood gateway project with North Hill Neighborhood near of Monroe and Cora. Plus there will be more info on the proposed Centennial Trail extension along Doomsday Hill here in Emerson-Garfield, as well as a list of available dates for the upcoming community tree planting along W Mansfield.

That will be rounded out by a quick overview of what’s in Mayor Condon’s proposed budget for 2016 along with news on the upcoming neighborhood yard waste/leaf pickup events. October dump passes worth $20 will be available at the meeting for residents.

If you have a tablet or a smartphone, please help keep our printing expenses low by downloading the materials as PDFs:

We try to stick to a strict 90-minute meeting, so please familiarize yourself with the issues on the agenda beforehand.

In the meantime, we look forward to seeing you tomorrow! Those who like to live out their lives in the public eye can RSVP on Facebook or on Nextdoor.

Recap of the August 2015 E-G Neighborhood Council Meeting

Recap of the August 2015 E-G Neighborhood Council Meeting

Typically the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council holds a very casual meeting with a light agenda after the neighborhood’s Summer Potluck, and this year was no different. However, owing to shifts in the annual Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) deadlines, the agenda included preliminary decisions on how the neighborhood intended to allocate its $56,299 for 2016.

Here’s a brief recap of some of the discussion and decisions from the August 12, 2015 neighborhood council meeting. (Click here for a photo gallery from the potluck.)

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Because the proposal due August 31 only needed to be an indication of the neighborhood’s interest in particular projects, the allocations were discussed in broad terms. The CHHS “ground rules” this year are that the minimum amount to be allocated to each project, aside from sidewalk funding, is $10,000. That total can be a combination of multiple neighborhoods. Two of the four projects that appealed to voting members involved such cooperation with another area.

The project with the most interest was a collaboration with the North Hill Neighborhood for the vacant property on North Monroe near Cora Street. Trees and shrubs could be planted in order to beautify the unused land. Funding from other sources could cover irrigation, neighborhood gateway signs, and other planting or beautification initiatives.

The second proposal of interest involved the Fulcrum Institute‘s Ash Street Workforce Training Station. The neighborhood council allocated money to the Lands Council for the training station last year, which would serve to train former inmates for work, potentially reducing recurring crime in our neighborhood. This particular project would be partnering with Chief Garry Park Neighborhood for the third training bay.

The third project voted on was the garage or ADA ramp for the West Central Community Center. As a substantial portion of the center’s clients are residents of Emerson-Garfield, this project was of particular interest to the voting members.

The fourth project voted on was for public safety improvements for Emerson Park. Improvements could involve lighting and a perimeter sidewalk. Transients seem to be a strong problem along the perimeter of the park. Increased traffic, such as walking dogs in a loop, might be a deterrent to those who occasionally sleep in the park.

There were other projects that were discussed, but which received no official votes. One such project was the addition of new sidewalks within the neighborhood. This was not chosen as an official project, because Emerson-Garfield is always in need of new sidewalks. We can use the remainder of the CDBG funding for sidewalk projects, and we may also use traffic calming funds for sidewalks.

Another topic of interest was North Monroe revitalization. This road project has been delayed until 2018, so it would not be ideal to allocate funding that would need to be used within the 2016 calendar year. The neighborhood council still has interest in channeling significant funding this project, but it would be best to use this funding closer to the time of the revitalization.

One last topic was SNAP home repair. Because there is no longer a 2-to-1 matching of funds, members did not rank it as highly.

This was followed by reports from various committees. The first report was regarding Corbin Senior Activity Center. Laura Schlangen reported that the Department of Commerce informed the center that the State Capital Budget includes an appropriation of $300,000 for their elevator project. It will cost more than that, but these funds will need to be used soon.

On Saturday, September 19 the center will be having its annual auction dinner. The cost is $30 in advance. She encouraged donations and attendance.

Barb Biles reported on the Land Use Committee. The cell-tower moratorium was extended to October. Notification must be given in advance to occupants within a wider radius of 600 feet. There is also an effort to make the cell-phone towers aesthetically pleasing.

Carlie Hoffman, the neighborhood’s representative on the Pedestrian Traffic and Transportation (PeTT) Committee, talked about how it is difficult to identify sidewalks needing repairs. They desire more participation from residents in identifying those projects.

Carlie also encouraged everyone to view and make use of the new interactive Spokane transportation maps that have a great deal of visual info on transportation conditions.

Megan Kennedy reported on the West Quadrant Tax Increment Financing (WQTIF) Committee, which she is hopeful to become an official member of in the coming months. The last meeting the committee did not have a quorum, so it involved more casual conversation, but Megan learned that the development of North Monroe was delayed until 2018 primarily because the City wanted to take the time to weigh options as to how best implement the improvements based in part on continued feedback from stakeholders and in part on what they learn from other corridor improvement processes in the meantime.

The last report prior to the conclusion of the meeting concerned the Emerson-Garfield Farmers’ Market. Congresswoman Cathy McMorris-Rodgers came through on July 31 to see how the market is accepting Farmers Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) vouchers  to encourage a healthier diet for low- and moderate-income families.

Sidewalks on North Maple

Sidewalks on North Maple

The Office of Neighborhood Services has passed along a preliminary design for the sidewalk through the traffic island on North Maple.

This, you might recall, was the barren, City-owned property where volunteers from the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council planted trees in 2014 and, more recently, EGNC volunteers planted yucca and juniper as part of the citywide Greening Grants initiative.

N Maple sidewalks

The installation of the sidewalk should make it more attractive and safer for pedestrians, including many schoolchildren, who, for the sake of convenience, tend to walk along the North Maple guardrail instead of crossing further into the residential area.

This project will be advertised for bids by the end of June. Construction is slated to begin on all traffic-calming projects throughout Spokane in August.

If you have any comments or questions about the sidewalk based on the preliminary design above, get in touch.

Also, keep in mind that this wasn’t something that magically came about through the urban improvement fairies. This was a resident-driven initiative that was realized with the help of the EGNC. If there’s a dangerous or unattractive spot near your home or place of business, a little legwork on your part can transform it — so come bring it to the attention to the neighborhood council! The next meeting is on Wednesday, June 10, starting at 6pm at the Corbin Senior Center (827 W Cleveland).