Saturday, March 31st, 2007   
HIGHLAND PARK SUMMIT

Speakers, Group Discussion
and Four Breakout Groups

BLAIR JOHNSON, Chair, Highland Park Action Committee 
Opening remarks: What do we all want for our community?  

MARTHA MALLETT, Highland Park Improvement Club

BLAIR JOHNSON: History of Highland Park Action Committee
     HPAC was formed 15 years ago in response to a series of arsons on 16th Avenue SW.
     We have monthly meetings to bring up concerns; we feature speakers addressing issues of interest to residents.
     We sponsor community actions like traffic circle cleanup and beautification.
     Meetings are on the 4th Monday of the month at Highland Park Improvement Club - 7pm.
     Next meeting is Monday, April 23
     Our community website is highlandpk.net - you're soaking in it!

MATT HOUGHTON, Riverview Neighborhood Council
     Matt got involved in his neighborhood council 3 years ago.
     Accomplishments of the Council:
         1. Traffic circles put in place
          2.Riverview Playfield upgrade
         3. Neighbors objected to halogen lights in the Park, stopped them
         4. Riverview Trail Improvement Project (rTrip) came out of Council
         5.  Soundway property saved from development
             We got a a state senator and county officials behind this effort.
             Mayor Nickels was against us at the time; later he supported Soundway.
             No official papers are signed yet.
        Nature Consortium:  A non-profit organization
            Dedicated to preservation & restoration of 500 acres of contiguous forest in West Duwamish Greenbelt
            Replanting at the end of 12th with native species and coordinating with rTrip on trail systems
            Has scheduled work parties
    Riverview Council will join forces with HPAC to accomplish projects in Delridge.

CINDY BARKER, Facilitator from Morgan Junction Community

 QUESTION:  If there was one issue that would get you involved in your community, what would it be?

Comments from residents follow.
Names are mentioned where they are known.

• Martha Mallet: We need a traffic left-turn light at Barton and Thistle SW.
• Rory Denovan: Highland Park Way is a gateway to the neighborhood. Would like to see that maintained. Sidewalk on west side of road is not maintained.
• Pastor Timothy: Are there jobs in the community to support low to medium income residents? Also, the new cluster housing - is it driving up prices? Wants local jobs for youth.
• Alleys are turning into dumpsters. Neighborhood cleanups needed. There's a trail of garbage to the corner store on Holden and 16th - appliances, furniture, cars. Call the Health Department if you see rodents in "nuisance yards" and e-mail the City Council. Can be done anonymously.
• There's a store at 9th and Henderson (Morningstar?) which is an eyesore. Garbage around the store and the building is falling apart and needs to be painted.
• Need Sidewalks on Cloverdale. 6th, 7th, 8th Aves. Currently there are none.
• Need more neighborhood centers that we can walk to - to get people together in a relaxed environment.
• New development and new town homes - need guidelines around construction.
• Need crosswalks painted on 9th and Henderson and additional pedestrian safety.
• Would like to see talent nights for youth - a productive creative outlet.
• Community support for the needy. Rick Jump of White Center Food Bank: Bank needs volunteers. They get a lot of donations in November and December, but little at this time of year. Need people to host local food drives.
• Need Delridge neighborhood re-development at Boren school site (old Madison school).
• Need to encourage the development of dedicated bike lanes. The bottom of Highland Park Way to top is difficult to bike - there's lots of glass on the sidewalk.
• We need to keep this neighborhood affordable.
• There are a lot of absentee landlords that let their rentals turn into dumps. It falls on the citizens to get the ball rolling to get these places cleaned up. Neighbors need to band together to get neighborhoods cleaned up so we can take pride in them.
• Citizen's Service Bureau (684-CITY) will provide dumpsters for neighborhood cleanups. Talk to Tom Gannon at SPU during spring cleanup.
• Need youth activities - creating art for the community, showing local identity.
• Resident of unincorporated area (White Center & Highline) wonders how Highland Park feels about possible annexation of that area to Seattle.
• Barbara Biondo: describes Weed and Seed program, which exists to address increasing crime. Funded by Federal grant. Provides funding for youth programs and neighborhood revitalization. Resources available to reduce crime and rebuild the community - it's a collaboration between the City, County and residents.
• Dina Johnson, director of nonprofit org Citizen Artiste: suggests sponsorship of performance art for youth, possibly to benefit Food Bank.
• Wants tool rental/exchange similar to the Phinney Neigborhood tool rental.
• Brett Johnson wants free tutoring for kids after school. Also working with kids and music. Teach kids to "rock."
• Nature Consortium also does arts outreach - performance art in the Greenbelt. Offices at Youngstown.
• Ron Angeles of the City Neighborhoods Department talked about Sparks grants - available to turn ideas into reality - up to $250. Also neighborhood matching grants for larger projects.
• Carolyn Stauffer, expecting first child, wants outreach and connections to other new moms in the community.
• Wants dancing for life and exercise programs in the neighborhood.
• Repair of Sylvan Way and Orchard Street with the Sylvan town homes being built. Condition of Sylvan Way is terrible. It will be closed two months this summer. How's the closure going to affect traffic?
• Increased density a problem. Condition of Highpoint redevelopment an issue. We need to make our voices heard so money is spent on our neighborhood redevelopment and infrastructure.
• Increased traffic is a problem, especially when the viaduct construction happens.
• Overabundance of produce in the harvest season - we could provide a food exchange & sharing, or donation to the food bank. Rick Jump says Food Bank WILL accept perishable produce.
• We need more outreach towards diverse communities.
• July 14, 2007 is Spring Clean up with Mayor Nickels at the Highland Park Improvement Club. Contact Tom at Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) 206 684 CITY. Look for more details and schedule.
• Reminder to check community website, highlandpk.net, for everything covered today, and think about ways to use the website to implement suggestions.
• Conclusion: Four main areas to focus on in breakout groups today:
  TRAFFIC and TRANSPORTATION
  CLEANUP
  ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT and DIVERSITY
  YOUTH, SOCIAL ACTIVITIES and DIVERSITY
• The Breakout groups lasted about 45 minutes and were very productive.

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