The city has extended the deadline to comment on efforts to update the Crown Hill/Ballard Neighborhood Plan until Friday, Aug. 21.
Learn about this process, review a report concerning the status of plans and complete the on line questionnaire at http://www.cityofseattle.net/planningcommission/.
For more info contact Thomas Whittemore at Thomas.whittemore@seattle.gov.
The city has extended the deadline to comment on efforts to update West Seattle's neighborhood plans until Friday, Aug. 21.
Learn about this process, review a report concerning the status of plans and complete the on line questionnaire at http://www.cityofseattle.net/planningcommission/.
For more info contact Thomas Whittemore at Thomas.whittemore@seattle.gov.
Yesterday evening, Wednesday, Aug. 12, Seattle Public Utilities received a call shortly before 6 p.m. about a water main breaking on the intersection of North 85th Street and Greenwood Avenue North. The break was caused by an eight inch stub that came loose off a 16-inch water main.
“We aren’t sure what caused it, but it came loose and there’s a good chance that when they plugged this thing up back in 1917 or 1920 when it was put in, they put a cap on it and held the cap in place with wood and it’s possible that the wood rotted,” Andy Ryan with Seattle Public Utilities said.
The broken main left 20 customers without water including six or so restaurants and bars that had to close for the evening.
Seattle Public Utilities worked on fixing the pipe all night, dug up the street, capped the pipe back up and the water came back on at 4 a.m., said Ryan.
Who would have ever guessed that just one little four letter word could have such a powerful impact on your future? FICO.
Perhaps one of the most powerful words in the world, your entire financial future is dictated by what your FICO score is, otherwise known as your credit score. You see the advertisements in newspapers, on TV and on the Internet.
You hear them on the radio. You get fliers in the mail, and maybe even calls offering credit repair services. They all make the same claims:
“Credit problems? No problem!”
“We can remove bankruptcies, judgments, liens, and bad loans from your credit file forever!”
“We can erase your bad credit — 100 percent guaranteed.”
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says do yourself a favor and save some money, too. Don’t believe these claims: they’re very likely signs of a scam.
(Editor's note: This letter was sent to Mayor Greg Nickels from the Seattle City Council and outlines the council's highest budget priorities for 2010 in preparation for the spending reductions that will be required to achieve a balanced budget.)
Dear Mayor Nickels,
As you are aware, on May, 11 2009 the Seattle City Council passed Resolution 31134 regarding the 2009 and 2010 budgets, acknowledging the need for immediate spending reductions, establishing the council's highest budget priorities in the context of these reductions, and identifying potential cost savings to be considered in preparing the 2010 proposed budget.
As you continue your efforts to develop the 2010 budget, we wish to further inform you of our highest priorities and offer some specific suggestions for your consideration.
This Sunday, Aug. 16 there will be a concert at Easy Street Records from 8 to 11 p.m. to benefit Team Tracy, who will be walking 60 miles in the Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk Sept. 11 through the 13.
Team Tracy consists of 11 women who will walk beside Breast Cancer Survivor and West Seattlite, Tracy Dart. Each women needs to raise $2,300, with a team total surpassing $27,000.
The proceeds of money raised for the Breast Cancer 3 Day Walk benefit the Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Foundation and the National Philanthropic Trust Breast Cancer Fund. Money raised goes directly to helping spread awareness about Breast Cancer and the benefits of early detection.
It also helps fund grants, research and affordable care for breast cancer patients.
See performances by the Stevedore and the Bend (two local bands). A $7 cover (donation) at the door will go directly to Team Tracy. Beer (donated by Georgetown Brewery and West 5) will be for sale, and will help get Team Tracy closer to its goal.
This is a 21 and over event.
The Seattle City Council Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods Committee is working on updating the city-wide design guidelines, adopted in 1993 and unchanged for 16 years, it was announced at the committee meeting Wednesday, Aug. 12.
They “still provide good base, but we’re also looking into sustainability and compatibility of the neighborhoods,” said Diane Sugimura, director of the Department of Planning and Development (DPD).
Sugimura explained that between the knowledge gained from design reviews over the years and the development of neighborhood specific designs, there is room for change and improvement in the city guidelines.
The new guidelines will be up for council review in 2010.
The city's Design Review Program provides a forum for citizens, developers and the city to review and guide the design of qualifying commercial and multifamily development projects. There are seven, five-member boards.
Board members are volunteer and serve two-year terms; terms may be renewed once. They are appointed by the mayor and city council.
At a special Aug. 12 meeting of the Seattle City Council Transportation Committee, Metro Director of Operations Kevin Desmond laid out the budgetary nightmare facing Metro and King County Executive Kurt Triplett's plan to deal with it.
As the economic recession continues, Metro is facing a substantial sales tax loss of 12 to 13 percent this year, Desmond said. Metro receives approximately 70 percent of its operating budget from the sales tax, he said.
Metro will have to deal with a predicted $104 million revenue gap in 2009 and projected gaps of $98 million and $115 million in 2010 and 2011 respectively, he said.
Triplett has devised a nine point plan for Metro, which is run by King County, that was presented by Desmond at the meeting.
The first point of the plan is to defer bus service expansion. That deferral does not include the planned RapidRide system, which will come to Ballard in 2012.
Under the plan, there will also be capital program cuts that will mostly take the form of purchasing fewer buses.
The bus stop on the south side of Northwest Market Street between 24th Avenue Northwest and 22nd Avenue Northwest was removed for cleaning Aug. 12.
Crews dismantled the two purple structures panel by panel in order to clean and paint them to make them "look like new," a crew member said.
Some of the panels had been defaced by graffiti.
The large crane the crew was using caused the closure of the right, eastbound lane in front of the bus stop for a few hours during the afternoon.
The Ballard News-Tribune is waiting for a call from Metro to see when the bus stop will be reassembled.
The state is looking for volunteers in communities in Seattle and across the state to help count the number of people who walk or bike to their destinations.
The information being gathered this fall will be used to track progress toward the state’s goal of increasing bicycling and walking in Washington and reducing the number of vehicle miles driven, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation.
The department of transportation and the Cascade Bicycle Club are enlisting volunteers and organizations like FeetFirst and the Bicycle Alliance of Washington to count the numbers of people bicycling and walking on paths, bike lanes, sidewalks and other facilities on Sept. 29 and 30 and Oct. 1.
“We had a great turnout of volunteers in 2008,” said Ian Macek, bicycle and pedestrian coordinator for the state. “This effort can not be done without their help, so we hope to see an increase in volunteer support this year.”
