by Kirby Lindsay, posted 27 August 2014
At the August meeting of the Fremont Neighborhood Council (FNC,) Board President Stephanie Pure announced that she would be stepping down. Her resignation came as a surprise, but the announcement, and pending loss, didn’t appear to slow down the progress and process of this all-volunteer organization.
Events Future & Past
President Pure came to the meeting with a list of upcoming events she thought might be of interest to attendees, including announcing that Park-ing Day will take place on September 19th. This is the day that, world-wide, volunteers pay a nominal fee to convert street parking spaces into mini-parks. Pure also announced that the painting of the Fremont Bridge will cause closures this fall, including shutting down the curb lane for vehicles going northbound starting September 2nd from 7a – 4p, with full bridge closures from midnight to 7a on September 6th, 7th, 13th & 14th.
Pure further forwarded an invite from Starbucks for the grand opening, from 6p – 9p, of the new Fremont store (in the former Peet’s space,) during the Fremont First Friday Art Walk on September 5th. The next day, from 9a – 7p, the Fremont Chamber of Commerce will host the 3rd Annual Universe Classic Wiffleball Tournament – a fundraiser for B.F. Day Elementary School – on the Upper Playfield. In addition to play, there will be a bouncy house, BBQ and other activities, and the new B.F. Day Principal will also be around during the day.
Finally, Pure asked Board Member Linda Clifton for a report on the FNC booth at the Seattle Police Foundation North Precinct Picnic held August 24th. Clifton staffed the booth on her own, and found the location of the picnic – at University Heights Center – made an FNC booth less relevant. Clifton did talk to one past FNC member who had fallen off the mailing list – and said she wanted to get back on. Clifton also refreshed the membership brochure for the event.
While at the Picnic, Clifton spoke with several members of the Seattle Police Department (including meeting Chief O’Toole,) and she gathered helpful information. As a volunteer with the FAWN safety group, she was particularly cheered to hear that crime on Aurora Avenue has moved north, out of Fremont. As she said, “the work we’ve done really matters.”
Moving Forward
The FNC Board did discuss Pure’s resignation (she will be staying on as a Board Member,) after she announced that she won’t be available as she is going to graduate school for her master’s degree this fall. Board V.P. Toby Thaler agreed to step in as ‘Acting President’ for the interim, although all the Board will need to help out. This was also seen as an prime opportunity to recruit new board members – and another president.
From there, the Board brainstormed ideas for future guests/topics to present at its monthly meetings. This discussion showcased the many interests of FNC members present, and their projects currently at work:
NextDoor – this new, private social media site allows neighbors to talk to their geographic neighbors. Thaler objects to the site referring to East Fremont as West Wallingford, but he will be encouraging others to join the site and help get this changed.
Land Use – the FNC sent a letter objecting to the micro-housing project on 3635 Phinney Avenue North, based on reasons brought to the Board by neighbors of the proposed project
Seattle Department of Transportation – the FNC Board would like updates on the crosswalk being installed at N 43rd & Fremont Ave, and the signal light planned for the crossing at N 41st & Stone Way
Urban ArtWorks – this non-profit may be asked for a presentation to better educate neighbors about the work the organization can do decorating signal boxes at intersections. Rather than having ugly rectangular 3D eyesores covered in graffiti, Urban ArtWorks has a program that puts original art on the metal boxes – and protects them from future graffiti.
The Troll’s Knoll Park – the FNC may get an update on this park, being built in Fremont in 2015 by the Seattle Department of Parks & Recreation, due to the grassroots efforts of area neighbors.
Elections – the FNC may ask for information on ballot measures facing voters in the November 2014 election, but next year Seattlites will vote for the entire city council under the new district system. This is a significant change for our city, and the Board agreed that FNC members will want to meet their candidate(s), possibly at the April General Membership Meeting – where elections are held for the FNC Board.
An FNC 501(c)3? – Clifton suggested a discussion (possibly at the Executive Board level) about an FNC policy on donations, and the possibility of creating a 501(c)3 non-profit for this organization.
Fremont Neighborhood Fund – Thaler mentioned that a local 501(c)3, created for the Phinney Street Cooperative, is ready to disband and the money (potentially $70,000) will need to be placed with another non-profit. The fund was created in the 1970s, pre-PCC, as a worker owned, employee managed grocery located where Lighthouse Roasters now operates. The money would need to be distributed to the neighborhood, and the FNC could help with that.
Fremont MLK Day Of Service 2015 – Sarah and Ralph Weathers agreed that they could make a presentation to the FNC in the next few months on their January 19th event, and setting up another partnership.
Ernst (Slippery Slope) Park Addition – previous discussions with representatives from Seattle Parks on developing parks land adjacent to the park at 723 N 35th St gave a lack of funds as reason nothing could be done. With the passage of Proposition 1, and the creation of a Parks District for Seattle, the Parks Department should have more funding and may be able to start work planning for that land. The FNC wants to be part of that discussion.
Wallingford Specific Design Guidelines
Thaler, chairperson of the FNC Land Use committee, mentioned that guidelines about development in eastern portions of Fremont (as far west as Troll Avenue) have been mis-applied. He noticed that Wallingford guidelines were being applied on Fremont projects by the City, and he has spoken with City planners to see about taking more care.
This bit of information showed the hard work done by volunteers – noting this kind of oversight takes time and effort and knowledge. To learn more about the FNC, and projects being accomplished by this organization and its volunteers, attend the next meeting on September 22nd at 7p at Doric Lodge #92. The meetings are open-to-the-public, and provide an opportunity for learning about our community.
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