Ravenna-Bryant Community Association meeting tonight, in new location

June 7, 2011 by Leave a Comment

It’s the first Tuesday of June: Time to get your monthly dose of vitamin RBCA.

While the Ravenna-Bryant Community Association is meeting at its regular date and time (7PM), the location is different. Due to the renovations happening at the Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center, tonight’s meeting is being held in Bryant Elementary School’s library (3311 NE 60th Street). The library is straight ahead as you come in through the north (main) entrance to the school.

Topics for tonight’s agenda include:

  • Summary of local transportation issues
  • Discussion and a possible vote on supporting the Wedgwood Community Council’s vision plan for Wedgwood
  • Discussion of problems along the east side of 30th Avenue NE (east side of Calvary Cemetery)
  • Possible visit from Councilmember Tom Rasmussen
Filed Under: Everything counts in large amounts Tagged With: , ,

Ask Ravenna Blog: What’s in a bioswale?

June 3, 2011 by 1 Comment

Inspired by a reoccurring column that our neighborblog, Roosiehood, writes, I am introducing the “Ask Ravenna Blog” post.

The premise of these posts is this: You, dear neighbor, send me a question, and I’ll do my best to find the answer.

Today’s question comes from southern Ravenna resident, Pamela, via twitter. She lives quite close to the Seattle Department of Transportation’s construction zone at the Scramble (NE 55th St/Ravenna/22nd Ave NE) and was wondering…

…what’s going to go in in the “bioswales” and who’s going to maintain it.

I emailed Construction Communications Officer, Bob Derry, who forwarded Pamela’s query to Jessica Murphy, the manager of the 15th Avenue NE Reconstruction Project (which the Scramble project is a part of). Here’s what she had to say:

The bioretention facilities will be maintained by Seattle Public Utilities as they are a stormwater infrastructure. The plants being used are as follows:

Kelsey Dogwood (cornus stolonifera)
Wetland Sedge (carex obnupta)
Baltic Rush (Juncus balticus)
Daylilies (hemerocallis)
Catmint (nepeta mussilinii)
Geraniums (geranium macrorrhizum)
Sword ferns

There are also going to be some new trees – Hogan cedars, black maples and tupelos all maintained by SDOT Urban Forestry.

There you are, Pamela (and anyone else who was wondering about bioswale contents and maintenance).

Have a question? Ask Ravenna Blog! Email me at rebecca@ravennablog.com.

____________________

Ask Ravenna Blog BONUS: The SDOT’s Urban Forestry program’s website has a lot of great information for residents, including street tree planting procedures, a tree pruning guide, traffic circle volunteer information, and much more.

Also, if you have any comments, concerns or accolades for the Scramble construction crew, Construction Communications Officer, Bob Derry, can pass them along for you. You can find his contact information near the bottom of the 15th Avenue NE Reconstruction Project website.

Filed Under: Everything counts in large amounts Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Roosevelt winery pouring new releases starting Memorial Day weekend (update)

May 28, 2011 by Leave a Comment

UPDATE for June 4-5 (via the Eight Bells Winery facebook page): “Bill the oysterman won’t be there but Frank [Michiels, one of the owner/operators] will be shucking…” and “There might be more mystery music appearances such as Chris and Colleen or Guitarman Geoff.”

____________________

After a week of community meeting after community meeting, you deserve a break.

How about some wine, with a side of art? And perhaps an oyster or two?

Eight Bells Winery (6213-B Roosevelt Way NE) is pouring their new releases this weekend (May 28 and 29) and the next (June 4 and 5) from 11AM-5PM. They include (via mailing list email):

2010 Eight Bells Pinot Gris Oregon – grapes from the Methven Family Vineyard, Dayton, Oregon. A fruity dry wine perfect for summer drinking.

2009 Eight Bells Chardonnay Yakima Valley – grapes from the French Creek Vineyard, Prosser, Washington. This un-oaked, French-style Chardonnay has gained texture and length with a bit of bottle age.2009 Eight Bells Roosevelt Red Yakima Valley – a blend of Yakima Valley Merlot. Available only at the winery.

2009 Eight Bells Shellback Red Yakima Valley – a blend of select barrels from Yakima Valley fruit. Shellback has the structure of Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon (40%) balanced with with some softer Merlot (40%) and some richer Syrah (20%).

2009 Eight Bells Syrah Yakima Valley – a blend of Syrah (85%) from “Les Vignes de Marcoux” in Western Yakima Valley, and Grenache (15%) from Red Mountain in Eastern Yakima Valley.

2009 Eight Bells Syrah Red Willow Vineyard Yakima Valley – minimally oaked to emphasize the Syrah fruit with 5% Grenache from Red Willow Vineyard.

Prices per bottle range from $18 to $32.

A few works by Randi Starup on the walls at Eight Bells Winery (used with permission; photo links to more)

Works by local artist, Randi Starup, will be on display and available for purchase both weekends.

Bill the Oyster Man will be on hand to celebrate the new releases on the May dates only. (Aw shucks.)

____________________

Previously, on Ravenna Blog: Eight Bells Winery donated their bottles and their time to last year’s first ever Picardo P-Patch dinner fundraiser.

Filed Under: Everything counts in large amounts Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Roosevelt Station 30% Design Open House (audio and documents included)

May 27, 2011 by Leave a Comment

20110527-120432.jpg

From L to R: Map of Sound Transit's current service and future projects, stickers from the campaign to bring Light Rail INTO the Roosevelt neighborhood, and information on the Roosevelt Station

A crowd of around 150 people attended last night’s Roosevelt Station design open house at the Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center (6535 Ravenna Ave NE), where Sound Transit staff presented the 30% completion designs for the structure and were on hand to answer questions.

Missed the meeting, and would like the next best thing? I recommend viewing the Roosevelt 30 Percent Design Presentation while listening to the Part 1 audio. The rest of the documents, graphics, and audio from the meeting can be found below.

___________________________

A 30-minute informal open house-style period was followed by a presentation (which included a question and answer time).

The presentation portion will be made available by Sound Transit (in PDF form), and are also found on the North Link Documents Library page.

Future meetings about the station will include open houses at both 60% and 90% completion of the design. There will also be a meeting to outline how the construction phase will take place (this fall), and a separate meeting for those people whose property will be tunneled under as construction proceeds (once the tunnel route has been set, also this fall).

20110527-120553.jpg

Graphic showing the footprint of Roosevelt Station (orange) and two parcels to be used during construction to be open to development when construction is completed (yellow).

Puget Sound transit guru Atomic Taco (his internet handle) was in the audience, live tweeting the more major points during the meeting. (You can visit his Flickr site here.) While the audio recording above and the presentation docs to follow will be useful to those who missed last night’s meeting, Atomic Taco’s and my tweets are also worth a read (and are much easier to skim through).

What follows is a selection of our tweets during the meeting. (At the bottom of the window, hit the “Load more…” link to continue reading.)

Filed Under: Everything counts in large amounts Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Night Paving at the Scramble: The Movie

May 25, 2011 by Leave a Comment

If “night swimming deserves a quiet night*,” night paving utterly DESTROYS it.

Over the past two nights, road construction crews have been laying fresh asphalt over the road surface of the “Scramble” (NE 55th St/Ravenna Blvd/22nd Ave NE) in the southeast portion of the Ravenna neighborhood.

This work is a part of the ongoing project to upgrade this intersection and make it safer for cars, bicyclists and pedestrians alike. It’s also a part of the ongoing 15th Avenue Reconstruction Project happening to the west.


View The Scramble in a larger map

Moving the repaving of the road surfaces to the evening has no doubt been a boon to daytime motorists, but quite the curse to the local residents who are trying to sleep. To get a sense of what these folks are putting up with, I dragged urged my brother (and fellow Ravenna resident) to accompany me to the construction site to document the process for all to see.

For a more true-to-life night paving experience, I urge you to play the following video of last night’s night paving with your volume cranked to 11 and a hot bucket of tar under your nose.

Enjoy.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsvLShNMucI

For a look at “Scramble” progress in the daytime (and the project’s final design), check out this post from May 18.

________________________

*My sincere apologies to Mr. Stipe for that one.

Filed Under: Everything counts in large amounts Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center to CLOSE [correction]

May 23, 2011 by Leave a Comment

UPDATE (Tuesday, May 24, 10:25 AM): I was told by Ravenna-Eckstein CC staff last night that the work plan for the building has changed. The floors will remain as they are, but work will be done on the building’s walls and ceilings (including the gym’s ceiling).

Regardless of the work being done, the center will still be closed from May 30 through June 12.

We regret the error.

_______________________

Starting next week and continuing into June, the Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center (6535 Ravenna Ave NE) will be closed while the wood floors are refinished.

20110523-134903.jpg

Between May 30 and June 12, the wooden floors of both the multipurpose room (pictured) and the gym will be refinished as a part of the regular maintenance of the facility.

The center is scheduled to reopen on Monday, June 13.

If you have a class regularly scheduled to meet during this time, please contact your instructor or the community center (684-7534) for more information about rescheduling.

During a quick walk-through of the facility this morning, I saw one notice of relocation posted: Miss Chloe’s dance classes will be moved to the Laurelhurst Community Center (4553 41st Ave NE) on June 1, 3, 8 and 10.

20110523-134942.jpg

___________________

PARENTS: If you’ve got small ones in the house as I do, you may have seen the title of this post and panicked a bit. Have any ideas of where to tucker out our tykes during the closure? Especially if the weather still isn’t cooperating? Please share your leads in the comments!

Filed Under: Everything counts in large amounts Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Community meetings GALORE in and around Ravenna this week

May 22, 2011 by Leave a Comment

This week holds a plethora of community-related meetings, for the civically-inclined:

  • Roosevelt Neighborhood Association general meeting, Tuesday, May 24, 7:15-9:30PM, Calvary Christian Assembly Roosevelt High School, Room 242, 1410 NE 66th St
    Agenda includes an update on the rezoning in the Roosevelt neighborhood.
  • SR 520 Drop-in Information Session, Wednesday, May 25, 6-8PM, Ravenna Third Place Books (public meeting put on by the Washington State Department of Transportation)
  • Coalition for a Sustainable SR 520 and Laurelhurst Community Club, Wednesday, May 25, 7-8:30PM, Laurelhurst Community Center, main floor activity room, 4553 47th Ave NE (more information on this meeting available here)
  • North Link Light Rail Roosevelt Station meeting, Thursday, May 26th, 6-8:30PM, Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center, 6535 Ravenna Ave NE

I will be present at a couple of these (RNA and Light Rail). Regardless, if you attend any of the above meetings and would like to share your thoughts, please do so (via email or a comment below). I would love to hear your impressions of these projects as they move forward.

__________________

One more meeting to note, though it is not being held until the first Tuesday in June:

  • Ravenna-Bryant Community Association, Tuesday, June 7th, 7-9PM, Bryant Elementary School, library, 3311 NE 60th St

Please note the change of venue: Bryant Elementary instead of the Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center. The RECC is closed for floor refinishing during the first Tuesday of June, the regularly reoccurring RBCA board meeting date.

Filed Under: Everything counts in large amounts Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Shoe Zoo lives on, celebrates rebirth this weekend

May 21, 2011 by 1 Comment

When last I visited with The Shoe Zoo‘s “Zoo Keeper,” Bruce Stern, the over two-decades-old local shoe store was going out of business. The fall back-to-school season, normally the Christmas of shoe stores, had seen far below normal sales. It seemed like the end was near, and in late January of this year, Bruce had decided that it was time to call it quits. A going-out-of-business sale started on late January.

Bruce Stern, helping a lucky girl's grandmother during the going-out-of-business sale in January.

And then, over the course of the sale, as customer after customer came through The Shoe Zoo’s doors telling him how much the store would be missed, Bruce decided he would make a go of it after all.

Bruce, via email, talking about the new plan for The Shoe Zoo:

Needless to say, I have heard hundreds of my dearest customers express their sadness about the closing of one of their favorite stores. Trust me, it has been terribly sad for me too. So, after weeks of sleepless nights, I’ve come to realize that The Shoe Zoo can and will survive. We are going to change its format to fit our trying times. The Shoe Zoo is now going to be a store that you can always go to for really great deals on children’s shoes. We will always have sale racks, with ever changing name brand shoes, marked at least 25% off, plus some of your favorite brands always marked less than anywhere else around. The lowest prices always.

A “Grand Reopening” sign has decorated his storefront windows ever since, and this weekend, May 21-22, he invites you back to celebrate.

Via another email:

As you know we are having our Grand Re-Opening sale going on now. This weekend, May 21st and 22nd we are giving away activity books and some other items with your purchases. Also balloons and a special appearance by Simba from the Lion King. You will also be able to enter our drawings for gift certificates and free shoes. It will be a lot of fun for everyone, so I hope to see all of you here.

The Shoe Zoo is located at 2920 NE Blakeley St, Suite B, and is open Monday through Saturday from 10AM-6PM, Sundays 11AM-5PM.

You can also find The Shoe Zoo on facebook.

Filed Under: Everything counts in large amounts Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Looks like perfect weather on Friday for Bike to Work Day

May 19, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Ridden your bicycle for a ride to work yet this year? With a weather forecast of 73°F for tomorrow, how could you NOT?

Besides which, tomorrow is Bike to Work Day, hosted by the Cascade Bicycle Club and title sponsored by F5 Networks.

Details about the event:

More than 20,000 people are predicted to bike to work on Friday. From 6 to 9 a.m., bicycle commuters can stop at one of 41 official commute stations and a dozen DIY stations located throughout King, Snohomish and Kitsap counties to receive free water bottles, maps, snacks, commuting information, and have bikes checked by bike shop sponsors.  From 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. the F5 Bike to Work Day Rally will be held outside Seattle City Hall where there will be music, speakers, and give-aways. In the afternoon, the after-work party will be hopping in Ballard at Bergen Place Park from 4 to 7 p.m.

Which of those 41 official commute stations are closest to Ravenna? Looks like you’ve got a few options:


View Bike Month Activities & Bike to Work Day Stations in a larger map

From left to right, these stations are:

Ravenna (Ravenna Blvd between Roosevelt and 11th Ave NE)
Sponsor: Ride Bicycles

DIY University Christian Church (4731 15th Avenue Northeast)
Edibles: snack bars, cookies, and fresh muffins; juice and water, perhaps also coffee to go. Also bike decals from Bikeable Planet to give away to spread the cause of biking

Burke-Gilman Trail at Blakeley (30th Ave NE & NE Blakeley St)
Sponsor: UW Community, Environment, and Planning Program, Bike Assistance by Counterbalance Cycles

Seattle Children’s Hospital (40th Ave NE and Burke-Gilman Trail)
Sponsors: Seattle Children’s Hospital and Metropolitan Market; Join Cascade Bicycle Club here and get a free gift!

In years past, my pedestrially commuting husband has noticed a station at the north end of the pedestrian footbridge over the ravine (at 20th Ave NE and NE 61st St) on Bike to Work Day; however, this station is not represented on the map. I asked the Cascade Bicycle Club’s Director of Communications and Marketing, M.J. Kelly, if  this station would return again this year. She said, “[S]ome stations come and go, and I’m not sure what happened with this particular station.”

I’ll be heading down to the 20th Avenue NE footbridge myself tomorrow morning, to check out the commute. Sadly, my 1969 Sturmey-Archer will not be coming with me, as I have yet to rebuild it. But ain’t she purty:

__________________

BICYCLER BONUS: Ravenna Third Place Books is holding a special promotion tomorrow, for Bike to Work Day. Walk in with your helmet, and receive a 15% discount.

Filed Under: Everything counts in large amounts Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Meadowbrook Pool CLOSED for emergency repairs (Update: Open Friday morning)

May 18, 2011 by 1 Comment

UPDATE (Thursday, 4:47PM): Just received an email from Dewey Potter saying:

The repairs are complete on Meadowbrook Pool, 10515 35th Ave. NE, and it will reopen at 5:45 a.m. Friday, May 20 for Early Lap Swim. Regular programming will follow. For more information about the pool’s programs and schedule, please go to http://www.seattle.gov/parks/Aquatics/meadowbrookpool.htm.

Set your alarms, and don’t forget your towels.

__________________

Seattle Parks and Recreation Communications Manager, Dewey Potter, sent out the following via email on Wednesday afternoon:

Meadowbrook Pool, 10515 35th Ave. NE, is closed for emergency repairs of the pool wiring and circulation pump. Parks and Recreation expects the repair work to be finished by the end of the day Thursday, May 19 or sometime Friday, May 20.

I’ll update this post when I hear word that the pool has reopened.

Filed Under: Everything counts in large amounts Tagged With: , , , ,
« Previous Page
Next Page »