Tom smiled at me this morning. A three day visit with my grandsons, and the intensity of their presence - Tom smiling, Asa engaging me on logging trucks - reverberates physically in my body. I can feel that I've seen them, held them, talked with them, loved them.
November 14, 2011 | Permalink | Comments (0)
With a great deal of attention focused on the Port of Bellingham these days, we feel next Tuesday’s (May 10) general meeting is particularly pertinent. Our speakers will be District Two Port Commissioner Michael McAuley and Sylvia Goodwin, Port of Bellingham Planning and Development Director.
A lifelong resident of Washington State, McAuley believes our port is well-positioned to become a leader in the Clean Tech Revolution by expanding our regional role in economic development. A green builder and community-spirited person, McAuley’s commitment to public service led him to seek a seat on the Port Commission.
Ms Goodwin has been in her port job since 2005. She is responsible for long-range planning for Port properties and coordinating with regulatory agencies regarding development regulations and permit issues. She holds a degree in Urban Planning from the University of Washington and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planning. Before coming to the Port, she was planning manager for Whatcom County having served as Community and Develop0ment Director for the City of Blaine.
Tuesday’s 7 p.m. meeting will be at Birchwood Presbyterian Church, 400 Meadowbrook Ct.
With the acquisition of a park behind us, traffic has become our number one priority. It’s hardly a secret that West Bakerview Rd. is a particular problem. Everyone, including the City and the State Department of Transportation recognizes the severity of the situation with the economy dictating whether the likely band aid “solution” or something more substantial is utilized. Even the most logical approach, moving the northbound I-5 on-ramp to the east side, is very expensive. Meanwhile, the sheer passage of time means developers of hotels scheduled immediately east of I-5 are that much closer to building while Bellingham International Airport continues to grow. The City’s Transportation Commission will review a draft plan on May 10 and the City Council will hold a hearing May 23. Cordatans are urged to attend the meeting. We have learned from past experiences that a show of hands representing Bellingham’s fastest-growing Neighborhood impresses City Hall
Like so many challenges involving money, that state Department of Transportation focus on Meridian Street between Interstate 5 and Horton Rd. is full of good news, bad news. The good news is that the project aims to reduce congestion while improving safety. The bad news is that but $3.25 million is available in federal border-related infrastructure funds.
Right now, DOT potential plans are being formulated with recommendations realized in late summer. Construction won’t begin until 2013. Biggest factor in the project: the realization that Meridian had 693 crashes during five years ending last December. Your Neighborhood board is determined that the improvements include a turn signal going north at Horton Rd.
Cordata’s desire for a Northside library received a boost of sorts in the Bellingham Public Library report for the past year. Operating with a budget cut of $520,000, the library system (it includes branches in Fairhaven and Barkley Village) doubled the national figure of 10.5 circulation per capita.. Bellingham’s 20.98 number compared very favorably to a Washington State average of 12.14. The Bellingham Library also showed an additional 7,658 cards were issued last year bringing the total to 47,025. A key factor in the library’s success was the prominent role played by the Friends of Bellingham Public Library. In addition to 11,500 volunteered hours, the organization provided $90,000 of support money.
It is Cordata’s point that this area, by far Bellingham’s fastest growing neighborhood, needs the vital resources supplied by a library. Yes, there is a Whatcom Community College library “connection” (so described by the folks downtown) but it’s a place for pick-ups and drop-offs whose hours are limited by those of the college.
Not to put too fine a point on our challenges, but co-founder Julie Guy recently put together a list of subjects currently confronting us. In addition to our ongoing involvement with Cordata Community Gardens and the previously mentioned traffic concerns, the list is of interest not so much for its length (formidable, at that) but its breadth:
Parks, Trails, Open Spaces: Development of Cordata Park and Park Trails; How much money collected by Parks is available for North end parks?
Residential Developments: Tin Rock (Blair Murray) 52 acres across from SeaMar; M:KOV (Ted Mischaikov) 72 acres at end of Cordata; M:KOV (Mischaikov) lots in the Reserve being developed; Ron Jensen 65 acres surrounding June Rd. being developed.
Hotel Plans: Marriott on Northwest & Bakerview (no known date); La Quinta, next to Fred Meyer; to build in 2011; Developer Ron Bartlett (Bakerview Square) to build across from Fred Meyer in 2012
Community: Cross walk at SeaMar; July 16 Trails Walk and Barbecue; Disaster Prep; Library branch in the north end on next bond issue; North end resident on Library Board; Status of PUD for Cordata; Pedestrian Planning for Bellingham.
Deadline Dash….With college basketball dominating the sports scene, don’t forget the Bellingham Slam, the community’s entry (currently 5-0) in the International Basketball League. Finalists in last year’s title round, the Slam plays nearly all home games at Whatcom Pavilion and isn’t it nice to have a pro team in Cordata?....The purse as art is the hook at Whatcom Museum these days and you don’t have to pay to see it. “The World’s Largest Walkthrough Handbag” is the entrance to an exhibit (it runs to September 11) recognizing the ever-increasing size of the purse. Subdued excitement remarks are already being heard….Earthquake retrofitting of Birchwood Elementary, likely to take two years, means youngsters will be schooled at Cordata Elementary starting in September….Cordata is losing one of the stars of our Community Garden, Karie Solomon. She and her two children are moving to Utah. Her contributions and dazzling smile have been plentiful and she shall be missed….Because of a personal problem that will demand an increasing amount of time, I am forced to end both my duties on the board of directors of the Cordata Neighborhood Association and the editorship of The Insider. My decision was difficult to make largely because of my involvement in helping make Cordata an even better place to live. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the challenges, victories, and the many associations made during more than six years service and wish continued success to the organization. It is the desire of the board that The Insider be continued and that someone will step forward. I am more than willing to offer limited assistance to that volunteer.
Bob Sanders
May 07, 2011 | Permalink | Comments (2)
Understandably proud of our fast-developing trails, we’ll focus on them at the April 12 general meeting at Birchwood Presbyterian Church, 400 Meadowbrook Ct. The 7 p.m. session will feature two speakers with outstanding credentials.
Beth Chisholm was hired last September as the Community First! Garden Coordinator for Washington State University Whatcom County Extension. This month, she has also taken on the job of Master Gardener Coordinator for WSU Whatcom County. The two programs complement each other and prompt great garden projects for Whatcom County.
It was our good fortune to be the first recipient of a Community First! Garden Project Grant. That was in 2008 and we are greatly indebted to the Mary Redman Foundation for the $5,000 grant administered by Chisholm’s Community First!
Also speaking will be Jonathan Schilk of Bellingham Parks & Recreation. A landscape architect, Schilk has been with the City since 1998. He’ll speak about the Division Street Trail connection adjacent to Darby Estates on Eliza. That project also is a reminder that the Cordata Park Trail connection to Meadowbrook Ct. is scheduled to start in June. The addition will provide access to the nearby Birchwood Presbyterian Church whose playground is but another contribution to our rapidly improving Neighborhood.
Speaking of trails, we are told that Seattleite and consummate birder Marv Breece has witnessed an impressive number of winged friends while walking the Cordata Park First Trail. Breece, son of Cordata Neighborhood Association member Marylu Breece, observed and/or heard on a second week of March day the following: Song Sparrow, Fox Sparrow, Junco, Towhee, Goldfinch, Pine Siskin, Black Cap Chickadee, Chestnut-Backed Chickadee, Brown Creeper, Winter (Pacific) Wren, Crow, Robin, Varied Thrush, Glaucous-Winged Gull, Flicker, Starling plus Mallard Ducks, and Canadian Geese.
With the water on, the Cordata Community Gardens are open for planting. Coordinator Dee Andrews reports there are seven vacancies among the 50 plats. An early spring delight was the help provided by Birchwood Presbyterian Church youngsters each of whom volunteered efforts consisting of three hours of cleanup.
One of the more intriguing ideas will be a May 21 Scarecrow Day during which youngsters are being asked to dress as creatively as they wish. The idea originated at Hovander Gardens in Ferndale.
Two new garden rules will be in effect this year. Responsibilities beyond care of individual gardens are being done on a volunteer basis with everyone choosing their efforts from a list. So far, the idea has been met by unanimous approval. Locking up the garden each day is now the responsibility of the day’s last gardener.
Disaster Prep Note for April
The disaster in Japan has reminded us all, once again, that we need to be prepared for a great many possibilities. That includes planning for our pets. In preparation for a disaster, be sure all shots for your pets are up to date, that pet carriers and leashes are close by and that collars are tagged. Supplies for your pets should be with your family supplies. For more information: www.doh.wa.gov or 800 525 0127
It’s always pleasant for the neighborhood to get the opportunity to exchange ideas with people responsible for making changes and additions to Cordata. Such was the case in mid-March when your board met with key Whatcom Community College figures who soon will transform plans into an Auxiliary Services Building located immediately north of the soccer field and close to June Rd. It was good to ask questions of Architect Sharon Robinson of The Zervas Group, Director of Facilities Brian Keeley, and Project Manager Sarah Brown. The 15,000 sq. ft. building’s construction is scheduled to begin in the fall.
Deadline Dash….Whatcom County moved up one spot to sixth healthiest county in Washington State. That’s according to a survey conducted by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.….Our May 10 general meeting speaker will be Port Commissioner Michael McAuley, a timely choice because of present concern we have over the increasingly heavy Bakerview West traffic flow to Bellingham International Airport. The Port manages the airport, currently undergoing a $31.5 construction program that will triple the size of the commercial terminal whose completion date is 2013…..It’s official. The extension of the Cordata Trail to Birchwood Presbyterian Church has its permit to build. The Meadowbrook Trail will include a pedestrian bridge and provide mitigation in a wetland buffer….Despite the rain, 30 Cordatans and Western Washington University students participated in our first Trail Workday. That was April 2. The next will be held Wednesday, June 29 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m….If you are relatively new in town, bet you don’t know about the twice-yearly Georgia-Pacific ritual that ended when the paper company left town in 2007 after a 150-year history. In the good old days, cars lined up for six months of free toilet paper twice yearly. In a community that has a penchant for outdoor art, perhaps it’s just as well that a sculpture of a giant roll of tissue has not been proposed as an adornment for our waterfront. A recent rejection of a huge coffee cup, complete with logo, that was being considered by Woods Coffee at the entry to its Flatiron Building location at Prospect & Bay, offered reassurance that good taste reigns in the City of Subdued Excitement.
More later,
Bob Sanders
April 11, 2011 | Permalink | Comments (0)
With Cordata ParkTrail an exciting reality, our Neighborhood now faces the challenges of maintenance. A long-running custom, volunteer cleanup programs are very much in effect in Bellingham parks programs and so it will be here. Our first Cordata Work Trail Day will be held April 2, from 10 a.m. to Noon. Next Tuesday’s (March 8) 7 p.m. general meeting at Birchwood Presbyterian Church will address those challenges. Our first speaker, Rae Edwards, is a Parks & Recreational Environmental Educator who will explain what is expected of us while Becky Hutchins, Retired & Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), will tell us how to go about involving selfless individuals who can contribute so much to the community.
Edwards has had vast experience in Bellingham Parks & Recreation Adopt-A-Trail Program intended to provide opportunities for citizens and groups to help maintain our trails and natural area. Any individual or group may sign on for maintenance of a trail section or natural area with a commitment of at least six months. Agreements are renewable each year in January. Edwards, committed to the outdoors, also is a member of the North Cascades Audubon Society.
Having lived in Bellingham seven years, Hutchins came here from Colorado where, following undergraduate (Colorado College) and graduate work (an M.A. in Anthropology University of Colorado at Boulder), she held positions at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, the Denver Museum of Natural History and the Eiteljorg Museum in Indianapolis. Since moving to Bellingham, Hutchins has worked at the Evergreen AIDS Foundation and Allied Arts of Whatcom County. A dedicated community volunteer, she currently helps Big Rock Garden Park, the Adopt-a-Trail Program, Historic Bellingham, and has been involved in The Small Potatoes Gleaning Project of the Bellingham Food Bank. She also has been a Whatcom Museum volunteer and board member of the Lettered Streets Neighborhood Association.
These are very exciting times for the newly-renamed Cordata Neighborhood. Come to the meeting and get involved.
New Association officers, chosen by members of the board following approval by eligible voters at the February 8 general meeting, are: Co-Presidents Steve Crooks and Beverly Jacobs; Vice-President Bob Sanders; Secretary Julie Guy; and Treasurer Bill Dubay.
A serious laundry list that is constantly evolving has been put in play by your board of directors. Of ongoing Projects & Concerns, the list includes Parks, Developments, Hotels, Community, Traffic and Community Garden.
Parks items at present include: the status of Cordata Park Development while the Cordata Community Gardens, a significant success, does have a lease. We are concerned about the status after the end of the lease. .
At present, there are 174 Cordata acres either awaiting Bellingham approval or an improved economy to prompt construction. Developers include: Blair Murray, 37 acres across from SeaMar; Ted Mischaikov, 72 acres at the end of Cordata Parkway; and Ron Jensen, 65 acres surrounding June Road. These acres are in addition to Mischaikov’s
(M:KOV) 120 lots at The Reserve purchased from D.R. Horton in the Fall of 2008. This weekend will see one and two-story cottages ranging from 1,000 to 1,400 sq. ft.
More about Projects & Concerns next month.
Disaster Prep Note for March
This month’s tip could be very helpful in case of an earthquake, exploration, devastating storm or some other disaster that makes it impossible for help to reach you quickly.
Let’s assume that when disaster strikes, you and your family are busy in different parts of town. One is in school, one at work, one in the grocery story, etc. Phone lines are down and you want to find each other quickly and report on your status.
The suggestion is that each family choose a relative or friend who lives some distance away to act as a clearing house for family information. Each keeps a cell phone handy and, in the case of disaster, calls the person designated far away to report where you are and how you are faring in the disaster situation. This way you will be able to contact your family and figure out where to meet safely.
The Larrabee Springs Project, a dead issue until last November’s elections, is back in the news as a result of a 4-3 vote by the Whatcom County Council. The vote approved a settlement with Caitac USA which has been seeking urban zoning for its land north of Bellingham. Focal point of the land is the North Bellingham Golf Course immediately south of West Smith Rd.
It will take a zoning change to enable Larrabee Springs, a proposed mixed-use community, to include an 80-room resort hotel. The rezone would change one house per 10 acres to “tourist commercial” thus enabling Caitec to build the hotel. Caitec also wants the “tourist commercial” area be given a special designation that under state law makes possible greater home concentration than current rural provisions allow.
The vote was along party lines. Voting for approval: Sam Crawford, Kathy Kershner, Bill Knutzen and Tony Larson. Barbara Brenner, Ken Mann and Carl Weimer voted against it. Next step is a Planning Commission hearing followed by a recommendation to the Council, then consideration by the Council
Declaring the County Commissioners decision as “appropriate to compromise,” developer Mischaikov pointed to 20 years of serious division between City and County regarding the property. One of his points of contention is that a re-zone to R-5 would accomplish what neighbors already possess.
Deadline Dash….It was the dreaded Couch Potato Factor or lack of that helped enable B’ham to finish as this Nation’s ninth most active community in a Time magazine February 18 issue story. The assessments, offered by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, whose analysis used 2008 Census figures, bestowed the honor as the City’s low CPF accounted for the high ranking. Boulder, Colorado won it and Seattle finished 13th….The purchase of Haggen Inc. by the Comvest Group caught the community by surprise although the highly competitive nature of the business in these difficult economic times, suggests at least one more food chain with Bellingham representation will be affected. The industry’s one percent net profit margin all but demands closings….A sign of the times is Joe’s Tobacco, recently opened near the Western Washington University campus and where it’s possible to roll your own cigarettes while cutting the cost of a carton of smokes nearly in half. It takes about eight minutes to roll your own—time to assess risking what is left of your life….From the March Block Watch comes the reminder that Neighborhood crime statistics on the Bellingham Police website that can be reached at: www.cob.org/police. Link to stats….The bad news is that home prices continue to fall with a 1.9 drop measured against five years ago and a 3% slide from a year ago. The good news: those Bellingham prices of the past were considerably inflated….Love the name of that beer Boundary Bay defeated to gain the quarter finals of a national India Pale Ale (IPA) competition that started off with 128 contenders. The defeated beer from Durango, Colorado—Modus Hoperandi—joins that noble legion of oddly-named suds that includes: Sick Duck, Seriously Bad Elf and Moose Drool.
More, later
Bob Sanders
March 03, 2011 | Permalink | Comments (0)
Although the weather has been mild this winter, there was enough threat in the air for us to call off last month’s general meeting. As a result, January’s scheduled speaker, RaChelle (Shelly) Zylstra, has graciously agreed to appear at the Tuesday, February 8 meeting. Zylstra, as Director of Planning for the Northwest Regional Council, is one of those “go to” people so valuable in today’s problems confronted society. Her territory in providing oversight to myriad homecare and senior challenges includes Island, San Juan, Skagit and Whatcom Counties. Her 7 p.m. presentation is titled “Hospital 101.”
Also speaking will be Linda Stewart, Director of the Mayor’s Neighborhood Advisory Commission (MNAC), who will help us celebrate our name change to Cordata and provide an update as Waterfront Redevelopment Project Manager. At press time, all indications are that Mayor Dan Pike will attend the meeting. The March gathering will feature two speakers whose topic will be the volunteer effort.. They are: Rae Edwards, Parks & Recreation Dept. Volunteer Coordinator, who will talk about the Cordata Park Trail volunteer cleanup program and Rebecca (Becky) Hutchins, Volunteer Program Director at the Whatcom Volunteer Center.
This coming Tuesday’s meeting will also give members an opportunity to elect a new board of directors with officers to be chosen from among a volunteer slate of directors. Voting eligibility for board members and any other business at the February 8 meeting is limited to Association members who have paid this year’s $10 dues that were due January 1. Volunteer directors are encouraged to make their interests known.
Nominations for this year’s board include: Steve Crooks, Bill Dubay, Julie Guy, Beverly Jacobs, Vincent Latimore, Adrienne Lederer and Bob Sanders.
Cordata Traffic Problems are probably our most vexing challenge with your Association’s leadership thoroughly involved. The first salvo was fired by CNA Treasurer Bill Dubay in a letter to the Bellingham Herald editor. In it, Dubay called attention to the deplorable situation confronting pedestrians crossing Cordata Parkway from the northbound Whatcom Transportation Authority bus stop to the Sea-Mar and Peace Health South medical centers. Pedestrians, many with impairments, must cross four traffic lanes lacking the benefit of a marked pedestrian crossing.
It is your board’s feeling that the City, WTA, and medical centers must give the problem their highest priority to install at least a marked pedestrian crossing at the location.
Our Cordata Park Trail continues to be developed with exciting plans already executed plus others that can become reality as early as this year. The most recent addition to the new trail are 1,475 plantings of shrubs and trees including Sitka spruce, paper birch, Douglas fir, Salmonberry, Nootka rose, and Pacific ninebark. The main trail was dedicated late last year.
Currently in the design and permitting stage is a trail connection from the existing path that when built will connect to Meadowbrook Ct. near Birchwood Presbyterian Church.
The new trail may be advertised for bid during the coming Spring with construction to begin as early as June, weather permitting. The new trail is visualized as being approximately 700 lineal feet long and will include a 6-foot wide limestone gravel trail, a new bridge crossing at an existing wetland, and installation of native wetland buffer enhancement plantings including trees numbering at least 800 in two major areas.
Disaster Prep Note for February:
Our elected leaders remind us all the time that if there is a major disaster such as earthquake, flood or gasoline explosion, we will be on our own for at least three days and, maybe, five.
For this month, let’s notice if every household in our family, wherever it is, has at least a case of bottled water for emergencies. Take a moment and check your parents, children, cousins, siblings. How many have a case of water handy for emergencies. Do you?????
Author Jim Lynch, whose Border Songs is set in Whatcom County, will speak at Whatcom Community College’s Syre Center on Thursday, February 24 (1:30-3 p.m .)
As part of a three-day “Whatcom Reads! Celebration, novelist Lynch will be the third speaker from the book world to participate in the series. The others were Sherman Alexie (Smoke Signals) and Tobias Wolff (This Boy’s Life). Admission is free.
Deadline Dash….In connection with Tuesday’s (February 8) general meeting, there is room for another member of the Bellingham Transportation Committee. This represents a chance to get involved in one of the most important aspects of the Association….Dee Andrews reports there are 13 Cordata Community Garden plots open. At present, the waiting list numbers 17….Dee also says the Birchwood Youth Group, studying hunger, will again go 30 hours without food to gain greater understanding of the problem….That announcement about Whatcom County having but 1.6% rental vacancies speaks volumes. The Washington Center for Real Estate Research at Washington State University has been keeping tabs on such county matters since 2000. It’s the lowest ever….Here’s one to put on the calendar. There are two Community Outreach Sergeants available to hear Cordata problems that common sense suggests be reported. They are Sgt. James (778-8683) and Sgt. Monson (778-8838)….After all the published (print and Internet) reports intended to bring understanding to the “conflict of interest” firing of Parks and Rec Director Paul Leuthold and City Public Works employee Mark Handzlik, we are asking Mayor Dan Pike if the punishment really fits the crime?
More later,
Bob Sanders
February 03, 2011 | Permalink | Comments (0)
Our new year begins with a January 11 general meeting presentation by RaChelle (Shelly) Zylstra, Director of Planning for the Northwest Regional Council. Zylstra currently provides oversight to the development and monitoring of homecare and senior services of Island, San Juan, Skagit, and Whatcom Counties. Her presentation is titled “Hospital 101”
With health care an increasingly complex and costly challenge, Zylstra’s 7 p.m. presentation at Birchwood Presbyterian Church is certain to provide answers to vexing questions already confronting us and whatever else the future might bring. Election of a board of directors will be held at the January meeting with officers chosen from among directors who volunteered at the February 1 board meeting. Voting eligibility for officers and any other business at the January 11 meeting is limited to Association members who have paid this year’s $10 dues due January 1. Volunteer directors are encouraged to make their interest known.
Our Neighborhood, renamed Cordata (official recognition is imminent), has been reduced in size by nearly one-half, yet our intense involvement has not slowed.
We will be closely following three housing development projects plus three potential hotels near our neighborhood that will affect traffic patterns and congestion. The hotels on the drawing board are Marriott on Northwest just south of Bakerview, LaQuinta on Bakerview plus one being developed across from Fred Meyer by Morgan Bartlett, owner of Bakerview Square.
Blair Murray is working with the Planning Department on his 52-acre site between Stuart and Horton on the east side of Cordata. His planned urban village of 300 residential units will include a park and trail.
Ted Mischaikov continues to bring changes to his 72-acre development at the end of Cordata Parkway. One aspect is certain: an extension of Cordata Parkway with the median restored. Key considerations: how many housing permits will be allowed plus the amount of parklands and wetlands. Then, there is the Ron Jepson group, responsible for 340 units on 65 acres and barely off the dime on June Street.
Bottom line from our Library Committee is that we are not successful at this time. We tried to find free space and money to start, but struck out. We’ll go to bat again this year following a regrouping as we search for other tactics. Meanwhile, many thanks to Bev Jacobs, Janet Kahn, Bill Dubay, Helen Leimbacher, Linda Langey, Karie Solomon, Adrienne Lederer and others who worked on the project.. If you want to participate, please let a board member know.
Nominations for this year’s board include: Steve Crooks, Bill Dubay, Julie Guy, Beverly Jacobs, Vincent Latimore, Adrienne Lederer and Bob Sanders. The Insider, reflecting Board opinion, would be remiss if it didn’t acknowledge the impressive work done by out-going president Adrienne Lederer. Paramount in her leadership has been a unique knowledge of Bellingham, how it works and doesn’t, and who does what and for whom?
A Disaster Prep Update comes from the City of Bellingham urging us to “Map Our Neighborhood.” Our elected leaders continue to remind us that if there is a major disaster such as earthquake, flood, or gasoline explosion, we will be on our own for at least three days and, maybe, five. Be alert to your surroundings and take note near where you live of small children, the elderly or the infirmed. Call Julie Guy (she heads up our efforts) at 738-8466 for more information.
Deadline Dash….That move by Herald political writer Sam Taylor to a Ferndale City Clerk gig was a surprise and another indication of journalism’s declining role in today’s world. There was a time when such a decision by a young and talented reporter would have been close to un-thinkable. Taylor’s high regard by the public is reflected in the 63 reactions registered in his blog about the decision to leave. As we know, blog reaction tends to be decidedly indelicate almost regardless of the subject. While comments about Taylor were all positive, his acceptance by the Ferndale City Council was 4-3—hardly a ringing endorsement.…Board members Bill Dubay and Julie Guy have met with Bellingham Neighborhood Services Coordinator Linda Stewart to discuss details involving our new Neighborhood name (Cordata), details attendant to the name change, and our new boundaries….Our already heavily-used Cordata Park will be the site of a Neighborhood Walk to be held Saturday, July 16. A jazzy name is being sought for the event as Cordata NA Board Members Steve Crooks and Vincent Latimore work out details with Lance Romo of Parks & Recreation….Looking for a book that will explain a great deal about Bellingham to those who either can’t get enough of the place or unfortunate not to live here? The answer is Returning to the Branch by Alan Rhodes whose wit can be read monthly in the Cascadia Weekly. It’s available at Village Books in Fairhaven….Mystery surrounds Paul Leuthold’s firing from his position as Director of Bellingham Parks & Recreation Department. A man with a highly impressive track record, Leuthold is the fourth department head to depart Mayor Dan Pike’s administration. The story, more than a week old, finally was told in the Herald by former employee Sam Taylor in Thursday’s (January 6) publication after the paper was beaten the day before by both the Cascadia Weekly and KGMI whose stories were based on a City Hall release of bare bones substance. All the stories (Taylor’s did have some detail) are full of murk because of Leuthold lawyering and a mayor who won’t talk. In terms of fact, the only obvious consideration is that we’re looking at the tip of an iceberg and City Hall has clammed up like, maybe, never before. Any mention of the mayor prompts the subject of whether he will seek a second term. B’ham buzz has Kelli Linville, a Tea Party victim after serving 17 years in the Washington State Legislature, giving thought to challenging the mayor.
More later,
Bob Sanders
January 07, 2011 | Permalink | Comments (1)
A most important happening will take place Sunday, November 7, when the Cordata Neighborhood’s first trail is dedicated in our new Cordata Park. The West Horton Rd. entrance is the place to be at 2 p.m. when City and County officials plus enormously pleased Cordatans participate in a dedicatory ceremony to be followed by a “first walk” along the 3,000 ft trail featuring two bridges, one of 96 feet positioned over a 21-foot ravine. Leading the walkers to a second ribbon cutting ceremony at the El Dorado Condominium Entrance adjacent to Cordata Parkway will be Mayor Dan Pike and 1st Ward Councilman Jack Weiss. This first phase of the Cordata Park Trail is part of a Northern Trail Plan that will connect future trails in Whatcom County.
With a $7.5 million expansion of the Bellingham International Airport terminal scheduled to begin early this month, it’s particularly timely that our November 9 speaker will be Director of Aviation Art Choat. In his current position since 2002, Choat will speak about present and future construction projects at the airport and update a vexing problem of particular concern to Cordatans: the Bakerview Overpass leading to the airport.
Tuesday’s 7 p.m. meeting will be at Birchwood Presbyterian Church, 400 Meadowbrook Ct. There will be no December meeting. Monthly sessions will resume January 11 when the featured speaker will be Shelly Zylstra, Planning Unit Director of Northwest Regional Council, who will inform us about home and community services available to seniors.
DisasterPrep, a new and regular feature of The Insider, makes its debut this month with the reminder that the time factor is of key importance in all preparedness considerations. Both police and fire departments have made it exceedingly clear that we are on our own during at least the first five days of a disaster. Faced with such a challenge, it becomes imperative that we learn a least the rudiments of preparation by becoming part of various satellite Neighborhood groups already established. We will publish stories of such organizations in future issues of this publication. Well on their way are Corona Court and Heronwood. Meanwhile, questions are being fielded by Julie Guy (738-8466).
Having completed an outstanding second season, Cordata Community Gardens participants have turned off the water, cleaned up garden debris, and planted some winter goodies while beginning the near-painful winter longing that eventually evolves into spring’s good graces and resumption of the joys of organic gardening. Similar to baseball’s Hot Stove League is a series of Community Garden Forums to be held starting December 8, from 5-8 p.m., at the Cordata Food Coop Store. The Community First! Project is held under the auspices of WSU Whatcom County Community Extension and funded locally by the Mary Redman Foundation. Among the subjects being considered for discussion are: ”Composting,” “Seed Saving/Storing,” “Inter-planting Veggies & Flowers,” and “Crop Rotation.”
Deadline Dash….Clay and Marilou Butler, southtown leaders of a consumer fireworks ban in Bellingham, have launched a blog. Those who want to be involved with the 340 folks already on board (your Neighborhood Association is in approval of their efforts) can link at http://freedomfromfireworks.blogspot.com. There’s also a primary e-mail address: freedomfromfireworksbham@gmail.com....With a decided lack of fast-food emporiums in Cordata, one wonders how the Dairy Queen on Cordata Parkway managed to get shut down for being $63,000 in the hole to the State Revenue Department? Dairy Queen stands almost alone in terms of adjacency to Whatcom Community College while DQ parking, adjacent to the WTA, couldn’t be more convenient…Our Community Reading Room Project is currently on hold as we continue to search for a location….Did anyone else get that déjà vu feeling while reading the Herald’s story about yet another possible location for a brand new library? If memory serves, that makes 23 possible spots examined by the well-intended who stumble around like Keystone Cops in a Mack Sennett comedy…..In spite of the economic turndown, the 16th annual Community Food Drive, a third week of October effort, produced a record 255,000 lbs of food and basic household items. That compares to last year’s then record of 220,000 lbs. Distribution is to Whatcom County food banks plus Project Hope in Lynden and Salvation Army in Bellingham….As the New Year approaches, it’s time to remind current and future members of our Neighborhood Association that $10 membership fees will be due in January. It’s not easy keeping the Association afloat and expenses like recently purchased meetings signage continue to pop up. Your board of directors thanks you in advance for accepting this responsibility….The Whatcom Community College Library will hold a book sale December 2 & 3 during library hours. Proceeds will buy supplies and books….If you wonder why you are seeing so many TV commercials of 15 seconds rather than the 30 seconds variety these days, the answer is blowing in the winds of our decreasing attention spans.
More later,
Bob Sanders
November 06, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (1)
When confronted by the word “gleaners,” we tend to think of Jean-Francois Millet’s magnificent painting of three peasant women gathering the last scraps of a wheat harvest.
The story of how gleaning continues today for the less fortunate by the Bellingham Food Bank will be told at the Tuesday, October 12 general meeting by Max Morange, the organization’s Agricultural Programs Coordinator.
The Small Potatoes Gleaning Project is one of four programs under Morange’s direction. The others are: Food Bank Farm, Garden Project and Victory Gardens. The latter provided 50 lbs. of potatoes this year to needy people. Born in Acton, Massachsetts and a graduate of Harvard with a degree in English, Morange did graduate study in landscape architecture at the University of Oregon.
Tuesday’s 7 p.m. meeting will be at Birchwood Presbyterian Church, 400 Meadowbrook Court.
Our First Reading Room/Community Center Meeting, held last month at the El Dorado Condominium Club House, got off to a flying start when committee members were addressed by Sheryl Kindle Fullner. The Everson resident, a librarian and teacher at Nooksack Middle School, used her 13 years of experience to write “The Shoestring Library,” a “how-to” book about administering libraries in difficult times. Fullner and her book proved to be the kind of inspiration we are looking for as we explore the possibility of creating a combination reading room/community center as a precursor to a Cordata library to service Bellingham’s rapidly growing north side. While collecting books will eventually be a major goal of the program, the current emphasis is on a search for space and volunteers with Beverly Jacobs leading an enthusiastic committee that meets every two weeks.
The Cordata Park Trail Dedication, featuring two bridges and a knockout of a trail, will be held (the weather God willing) on Sunday, November 7, at 2 p.m. The date, by the way, is when we turn our clocks back as Daylight Savings Time takes a five month respite. Among those scheduled to participate are Mayor Dan Pike, Councilmen Gene Knutson and Stan Snapp and Dan Tepper, Chairman of Parks & Recreation Foundation.
See next month’s Insider for additional acceptances and further details about the event whose focus will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Horton Rd. trail entrance in addition to a trail walk.
West Bakerview Road, different things to different people, once again has the attention of Bellingham’s City Council as your association board continues to monitor the situation. It was 10 months ago that the Council heard a plan by Richard and Janis Barsetti to rezone 10 acres north of West Bakerview and roughly across from Fred Meyer. This past February, the City asked staff to study the proposal and return it for final council consideration, now set for Monday, October 11. A rezone request, involving the same property and planned for a WinCo Foods store, first was made in 2007 and rejected the following year. Earlier this year First Ward (that’s us) Councilman Jack Weiss went on record in opposition to a big box surrounded by parking lots. Weiss much prefers an urban village mixed use approach.
It was slightly more than a month ago that Morgan Bartlett, builder of Bakerview Square, made application for a four-story, 77-unit motel near West Bakerview and Pacific Highway. Bartlett also envisions a convention center and restaurant that would be adjacent to the motel. A permit for a five-story, 204-room Marriott Hotel is held by 360 Hotel Group of Lynnwood. Its location is slated for the east side of Northwest Avenue immediately south of West Bakerview. Citadel Inc., a Canadian firm, wants to build a four-story 87-room LaQuinta west of Northwest and south of West Bakerview. A pre-application meeting was held in May. As is often the case, a major factor in West Bakerview expansion is traffic congestion. That, and money of which there is little to solve expensive traffic problems as congestion worsens while the area expands.
Deadline Dash….Heronwood, a Cordata satellite community, has a new welcoming statement at its Creekbend Lane entrance. Made of highly attractive limestone, it replaces a pair of metal herons, one of which was stolen. The surviving bird has been paired with the stone in a classy greeting to visitors and residents. Thanks go to Russ Sage who spearheaded the commendable effort….As a follow-up to last month’s general meeting devoted to “Disaster Preparedness,” speaker Bob Jacobson is available for Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) classes. Those interested can reach him at 398-9707….University of California (Berkeley) literary critic Dr. Charles Altieri will speak Saturday, October 9, at 2 p.m., at Whatcom Community College’s Syre Student Center. Hosted by the WCC English Dept., the event is free….The Bike Shop’s Matt Verguth reports 67 youngsters participated in various activities during September. Those wishing to contribute bikes can do so by contacting Verguth at www.thebikeshop1.org as at risk kids learn responsibility through bicycle ownership....The Herald’s recent story about various developers involved in the push west on West Bakerview included a revealing quote from one that easily answers the question: What sets a Bellingham developer’s mouth to extreme slavering? “Even today,” observed one commercial property owner, “you look up and down (Bakerview) and see a lot of vacant land.”…The war in Afghanistan and our sagging economy were underscored recently with odd news of a poppy bust at the nearby Dollar Plus store on Meridian St. Afghanistan’s major export (it produces 93% of the world’s opium) was found in hockey bags belonging to four Canadians (love that Maple Leaf touch) and two Americans. The presumption is that the price was right at the Dollar Plus.
More later,
Bob Sanders
October 07, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (0)
With a couple of meeting-less months behind us, we turn our attention to “Disaster Preparedness” and a September 14 session whose importance continues to gain traction in the public mind. Our featured speakers will include: Bob Jacobson, Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Supervisor; Brock Ward, Whatcom County Condo Association member and GM/CNA member; plus Stacy Rice, Emergency Services Director at the Mt. Baker Chapter of the American Red Cross.
The meeting is one of a number as the State of Washington observes National Preparedness and NOAA Weather Radio Awareness Month. Statewide events include a Drop, Cover and Hold earthquake drill at 10:15 a.m. on September 15 that will be initiated through the Emergency Alert System using the Required Monthly Test for broadcasts. Other projects include the launch of the new Help 9-1-1 Help You! What’s Your Location? Campaign to remind residents and children of the importance of knowing their addresses and locations during 9-1-1 calls.
Our new season of meetings featuring speakers of local significance will begin on the 14th at 7 p.m. at Birchwood Presbyterian Church, 400 Meadowbrook Court. Bring a neighbor. Our October speaker will be Max Morange of the Bellingham Food Bank.
It was GM/CNA’s fourth, best, and last best picnic on August 21 when we celebrated our many successes at Reserve Community Park. Those triumphs include Cordata Park, whose coming together will include the anticipated September completion of Cordata Trail Phase One, and our forthcoming name change to Cordata Neighborhood. Host of our bash, developer Ted Mischaikov, personally grilled delicious hamburgers and hot dogs for all, kids defied gravity in the Dalmation Bounce House (were there really 1,001 \ different bounces?), Mayor Dan Pike and First Ward Councilman Jack Weiss spoke, and we all met Red, mascot of Red Robin, while recorded jazz from the Big Band Era provided toe tapping background music. The most asked questions by attendees: Where are you from? and when did you move here?
Our thanks go not only to Mischaikov and M:KOV for many contributions to the quality of the celebration but to the following participants: Community Food Co-Op, Costco, Cordata Urban Village Development, GMCNA Community Gardens, West Cordata Green Development, GM/CNA Proposed Reading Room, WalMart, Whatcom Community College, Cordata Park Trails, Cordata Proposed Boundary Change, City Gym, North Bellingham Golf Course, Banner Bank, and Billy McHale’s Restaurant. Thanks would not be complete without also directing them to GM/CNA President Adrienne Lederer whose event direction was, as usual, superb.
Catching your Neighborhood Association’s collective eyes was a recent announcement by the Department of Transportation (DOT) that it will investigate congestion over the two mile SR 539 stretch between I-5 and Horton Rd. Congestion helped produce 783 collisions, 247 injuries, and one fatality in six years. A budget of $3,250,000 is available as the City, WTA, the business community and the GM/CNA become involved. Your board, led by members Ralph Wenning and Steve Crooks, will stay on top of this one. Any changes to Meridian St. will impact all of Cordata with a particular emphasis on Cordata Parkway whose increasing traffic is a direct result of Meridian congestion.
Community Education seekers would do well to check in with Whatcom Community College where such disparate classes as “Salsa Dancing,” “How to Choose a Computer,” “Fall Container Gardening” and “Gentle Tai Chi” are available. For those seeking something a bit more strenuous, regular “Tai Chi” also is being offered.
Deadline Dash….Excitement prevails as we anticipate an as yet un-announced Trail Walk Dedication, likely to start at the Horton Rd. entrance to Cordata Park sometime this month. Stay tuned for details. While we’re at it, let’s offer thanks to former Bellingham Mayor Mark Asmundson, instrumental in making the park a reality….One of the delightful surprises at the Cordata Community Gardens August 25 picnic potluck was heretofore closet accordionist/comedienne Dorothy Hopkins who wowed an enthusiastic audience. Kudos to her and Maureen Vaughn for their project leadership. There will be another potluck September 22, at 6 p.m…. Speaking of the CCG, significant sign-maker Karie Soloman has made a No Smoking one for outside the gate and is creating a Foot Traffic Welcome for next season….Those whose eyes have been offended by Whatcom Community College’s “pink building” may rest easy. The garish shell has been removed and breathless anticipation is ours as we await a replacement-- hopefully, anything but puce or any of those colors utilized by Downtown Bellingham outdoor “art” artists….Love that item reported on the Herald’s website by reporter Jared Paben about a recent WTA invitation to three advertising firms’ representatives to discuss a possible expansion of public outreach. The WTA, as we know, is again after .2% of sales tax money to save reduction of services following an initial defeat by county residents who outvoted ‘hamsters. Asked one rep: “Did your ballot measure pass?”….In these challenging economic times, it was good to run into Blair Murray at the August 21 Neighborhood Celebration and learn he expects to be breaking ground a year from now on the Tin Rock Development. That’s the 45.7 acre addition scheduled for Cordata Parkway and Stuart Rd….Then, there’s a story that made it into print about the woman “shopper” at Lakeway Fred Meyer who shopped ‘til she dropped enough goodies into a cart, then attempted to flee the store without paying. Problem was she fled the scene leaving behind both the cart and a fully-completed application for a rewards card. She was last seen sprinting toward CostCutter across the street where, most would agree, the shopping isn’t nearly as rewarding.
More later,
Bob Sanders
September 09, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (0)
With July a fast
fading but decidedly chilly memory, we now turn our attention to party time
as we celebrate five years as the Guide Meridian/Cordata Neighborhood. Party Central will be Wade Street Park where,
on Saturday, August 21 (noon-4 p.m.), we’ll recognize our first five years as part
of the City of
August 05, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (0)
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