Following a much-needed break in July and last month’s Summer Potluck in Emerson Park, the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council will resume its monthly meetings at the Corbin Senior Center (827 W Cleveland) tomorrow — that is, Wednesday, September 10 — starting at 7pm.
Among other things, we’ll be discussing shifting the neighborhood boundaries, Fulcrum‘s plans for renovating a building on N Ash, the status of our Greening Neighborhoods grants, the current crop of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding opportunities, and voting on the proposed MoU between Project Hope Spokane and the EGNC (which you should download and review before voting) regarding the Emerson-Garfield Farmers’ Market.
If you live or work here in E-G or have a child who goes to school here, one or more of these issues will probably be of interest to you. The EGNC is an all-volunteer organization that welcomes participation from everyone who has a stake in our neighborhood, including residents, business owners and community leaders.
Put your iPad to good use and download the September 10 meeting materials as PDFs here:
One project will use native shrubs and permaculture to complete the area on N. Maple that was planted with nine trees back in April.
The other project will be a “guerrilla” planting that will put street trees in front of homes at 2000–2500 N. Atlantic and 2400–2500 N. Stevens. It’s called “guerrilla” because a band of neighborhood volunteers will conduct the planting themselves over the course of a day or two. They’ll be overseen by a certified arborist.
2400-2500 N. Atlantic
2000-2100 N. Atlantic
2400-2500 N. Stevens
2100-2200 N. Atlantic
2200-2300 N. Atlantic
However, to ensure the grant is successful, we need permission from the owners of the properties that fall within those areas. This means we can either knock on your door in person, or you can get in touch with us (quickly, please!) and say that you’d love to have a street tree in front of your home that will buffer wind and noise, beautify the neighborhood, shade your home from the sun’s heat, and, yes, even help calm traffic.
To see what’s planned in terms of location and scope, click on the aerial maps above. These indicate what planting strips will allow for trees, the number of trees (61 in total), and the proposed tree class (i.e., I, II or III) as specified on the Approved Street Tree List on the Spokane Urban Forestry web page. Residents will be able to determine the choice of trees.
Even if you don’t live at one of those properties, you can still get involved. We welcome volunteer door-knockers who will help us get residents’ permission as well as volunteers who will help us plant the trees on the day. Just contact us to say you’d like to help.
This application is due September 15, so please don’t delay.
What follows is a condensed version of the minutes from the short meeting of the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council that followed the annual Summer Potluck on August 13, 2014 in Emerson Park.
The next generation of Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood planners (courtesy Bri Musser)
Prior to the meeting, during the barbeque, some neighbors brainstormed with Joe Cannon, a restoration ecologist from the Lands Council, about what trees would be ideal to plant throughout the neighborhood as part of the current Greening Neighborhoods grants.
The meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm, and a quorum of 18 voting members was present, along with 10 guests. The June minutes were approved without any changes. There were no additions or changes to the agenda, and there were no guest speakers.
The Greening Neighborhood grants were discussed first. There are three projects in the works, each of which is a volunteer project. These projects include the east side of Mansfield near Washington, Cora east of Monroe, and a continuation of the previous planting project on N. Maple.
A draft of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Project Hope Spokane and the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council was presented in order to identify the roles and responsibilities of each party regarding the Emerson-Garfield Farmers’ Market. It was requested that the EGNC arrive with feedback and be prepared to vote on the MoU at the next meeting. The market saw $3,200 in total sales on Friday, August 8, and there is now a permanent street sign on Monroe.
Safe Routes to School is looking for interviewers for Garfield and Audubon Elementary who will help determine priorities for things like sidewalks and crosswalks. There is an interview outline you can follow — but keep in mind that the deadline for interviews is the end of August. Get in touch if you’re interested.
The traffic circles on Montgomery/Madison and Montgomery/Cedar are out to bid, and they will be installed by the end of autumn. The funding is done with Photo Red dollars, not tax dollars. Emerson-Garfield will also get sidewalks on Adams and Madison, filling in gaps.
For Corbin Senior Activity Center, there is still no arrival date for the van that they ordered in the spring, and they are hoping for September. The center’s biggest fundraiser, the annual auction, will be held there on Saturday, September 27. This year it’s called “Athenian Nights.” They would appreciate donations and attendance, as the fundraiser helps keep their doors open. So please donate!
Also, a mere $24 will get anyone over the age of 18 an annual membership to the Corbin Senior Activity Center. Membership entitles you to use of their facilities (like the Wii) and discounts to businesses all along N. Monroe.
The CSAC also installed cameras throughout the building in order to improve safety and discourage vandalism. The money for the cameras came from a donation by a former board member. There is still a separate cost for the installation.
If you are interested in being a board member for the CSAC, a three-year term will be starting in January, 2015. You can find out more information by calling Christa at (509) 327-1584 (x10).
Megan Kennedy led a toast (of sparkling cider) in celebration of the Neighborhood Plan, which is now complete. The City Council unanimously adopted the plan by resolution on July 28.
Eline Helm reported on Concerts in the Park. The feedback has been very positive; Sarah Brown and her husband clearly did a wonderful job. There were approximately 100 people in attendance, and $55 in donations was gathered in the collection during the event. Donors from the previous year gave larger amounts this year.
The annual Emerson-Garfield Summer Potluck will take place in Emerson Park this Wednesday, August 13 starting at 6pm.
The neighborhood potlucks are open to everyone who lives, works or plays in Emerson-Garfield, so feel free to come for the first (or fifteenth) time and invite other people on your block. These potlucks are a great way to meet your neighbors and members of the community in the relaxed surroundings of our neighborhood parks.
Don’t forget to bring a dish to share! It can be anything — a salad, a bowl of fruit, a bag of snack chips, or your world-famous enchiladas. There will be a limited amount of free hot dogs grilled by our resident BBQ maven as a bonus.
The August meeting of the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council will follow the potluck at 7pm. You can download the minutes from the June meeting (pending approval) for review as well as the August agenda.
