Metro Transit Wants Your Feedback On 2021 Changes

Posted on February 20, 2020 by Ryan

At this month’s meeting of the Victory Heights Community Council, David VanderZee from Metro Transit spoke about the proposed changes to transit service coming in 2021 when link light rail comes to Northgate.

Read the entire minutes of the February meeting.

Many routes in north of the ship canal will be affected by the proposed changes come September 2021 that aims to have much of the service transfer riders to the new light rail service for the final few miles downtown. Read about proposed route changes around Victory Heights.

The hope is the inconvenience of having to switch between a bus and a train will be offset with more frequent, reliable service, particularly during rush hour. To that end, the new stations at Northgate, Roosevelt and Brooklyn in the U District, are being designed so buses can load and unload as close to the station entrances as possible, something not really possible at Husky Stadium (“lessons were learned,” we were told).

In other news, the Lake City Value Village location is going to be replaced with 260 units of affordable housing in a 5-6 story structure.

The Safety committee of the community council is looking at how we can repair and replace the wooden fence that runs along the east side of Victory Heights Park.

Our next meeting is at 7 PM on Tuesday, March 17th at the co-op preschool building in Victory Heights Park.

Please take a minute to “Like” our Facebook page.

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Metro Transit Speaker Live This Tuesday

Posted on February 17, 2020 by Ryan

If the 2021 changes to Metro transit routes interests you, Transportation Planner, King County Metro, Dave VanderZee will present at our monthly meeting of the Victory Heights Community Council on Tuesday, February 18th. The meeting starts at 7 PM at the co-op preschool building in Victory Heights Park.

To recap:

Metro and Sound Transit are considering changes to over 30 routes that serve North King County.

Sound Transit and King County Metro are working together to adjust bus routes so that North King County residents can take advantage of the coming light rail options.  Our ideas include ending some bus routes at the Northgate, Roosevelt or U District stations, where riders could transfer to Link. We’re receptive to feedback, and there’s room for change as we design routes.

Our ultimate goal is to develop a service plan in partnership with King County Metro to consistently connect riders to Link, provide new connections and add additional evening and weekend service.

https://www.soundtransit.org/system-expansion/planning-future-service/link-connections?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery

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Victory Heights February Community Calendar

Posted on February 12, 2020 by Ryan

Here’s what’s going on in and around our neighborhood this month:

Tuesday, February 18th: Victory Heights Community Council meeting. Our monthly meeting to get caught up on neighborhood activities and our plans going forward. Everyone welcome. 7-8 PM, Co-op preschool building in Victory Heights Park.

Thursday, February 27th: Thornton Creek Alliance Meeting. Canceled last month due to the snow, TCA and the Meadowbrook Community Council are jointly hosting this public information meeting.  Come and learn all about the options the Seattle Department of Transportation is developing for the rehabilitation and replacement of four bridges on Thornton Creek. 7 PM, Maple Leaf Lutheran Church, 10005 32nd Avenue NE

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New Drainage System For 23rd Avenue NE

Posted on January 29, 2020 by Ryan

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) will construct natural drainage systems (NDS) at 4 sites in the south Thornton Creek basin including 23rd Avenue NE south of Northgate Way in Victory Heights. The map above shows “Victory sites 113 & 138.”

NDS consist of shallow depressions in the public right-of-way, or “planter strip,” filled with deep-rooted plants and spongy soils that temporarily hold and clean polluted stormwater from streets and sidewalks before the stormwater enters our waterways. Examples of these can be found just north of us on some streets in Pinehurst.

This year will involve design development for selected sites and outreach with construction anticipated in 2021.

Please “Like” our Victory Heights Blog Facebook Page.

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Metro Transit Proposes Many Bus Route Changes Once Light Rail Opens in 2021

Posted on January 28, 2020 by Ryan

Metro Transit (and Sound Transit) have released preliminary plans for how bus routes around Victory Heights will be changing once Link Light Rail service begins in September 2021. For now these are just proposals, this is the public comment period before the new service is implemented.

For starters, Route 75 would be rerouted to NE 125th Street, a new Route 61 would start in Lake City, then cross Northgate Way, stop at the new Northgate light rail station and then continue down to Greenwood and extend all the way out to Crown Hill to provide cross-town bus service.

The suburban buses that pass by our neighborhood’s east side along Lake City Way, the 312 and 522, would no longer provide direct service downtown but instead would terminate at the new Roosevelt light rail station on NE 65th Street. The 372 on Lake City Way would continue to service the Husky Stadium light rail station (via Steven’s Way on campus) and then continue through the U District to terminate at the new Brooklyn station.

The 73 would continue to run on 15th Avenue NE with service to the Roosevelt and Brooklyn stations.

Just south of us, NE 75th Street from 15th Avenue NE through Wedgwood and View Ridge to 55th Avenue NE would have bus service for the first time ever via the new Route 79, which would connect the Roosevelt station with Sand Point Way and continue as the 74.

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Seed Swap February 9th

Posted on January 25, 2020 by Ryan

Join us on Sunday, February 9th, for the Victory Heights Seed Swap. Bring seeds to swap, and your 2020 seed calendars to find others and split the costs of packets.

It will be completely free, starts at 3 PM at the co-op preschool building in Victory Heights Park.

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Northgate Pedestrian Bridge Construction Begins Monday

Posted on January 25, 2020 by Ryan

The long, long gestation cycle for a pedestrian/bike bridge over I-5 to connect North Seattle College and the Link Light Rail station at Northgate turns a corner on Monday, January 27th as construction begins.

Read the complete minutes of the January Victory Heights Community Council.

For many years, this blog has been talking about building the bridge (read about it here, or here, or here), and at this month’s community council meeting we finally discovered there is an actual start date next week. Three support pillars will be sunk into the ground, one east of the freeway, one west of the freeway and one in the median. The bridge span will be prefabricated in two sections and then during alternative 5-hour freeway closures, each span will be swung across to set from pillar to pillar and meet in the middle. Work will continue until the opening of the light rail station in September 2021.

In other community council news: the gingerbread house sale was a big hit, we made $180. The Welcome Wagon is gearing up (know of new neighbors? Let us know). And Lake City has a new community blog: https://enjoylakecity.org/ .

The next meeting is Tuesday, February 18th at 7 PM at the co-op preschool building in Victory Heights Park.

Please “Like” the Victory Heights Blog Page on Facebook.

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January 2020 Events Calendar

Posted on January 5, 2020 by Ryan

Here are things happening in around Victory Heights this January:

Tuesday, January 7th: Northgate Light Rail Pedestrian Bridge Drop-In Session. The first of three opportunities this week to learn more about the pedestrian/bike bridge that will be built over I-5 from the new Northgate Link Light Rail station to North Seattle College. Noon – 1:30 PM at the College (The Grove), 9600 College Way N.

Wednesday, January 8th: The second bridge drop-in will be 8 AM – 9:30 AM at Aljoya in Thornton Place, 450 NE 100th St.

Thursday, January 9th: The third bridge drop-in will be 5 PM – 6:30 PM at Olympic View Elementary, 504 NE 95th St.

Thursday, January 9th: 46th District Town Hall. Meet your state legislators, Sen. David Frockt, Rep. Gerry Pollett, and Rep. Javier Valdez, at this public town hall before the 2020 session begins. 7 PM – 9 PM, Nathan Hale High School Auditorium, 10730 30th Avenue NE.

NEW: Thursday, January 9th: Sound Transit System Expansion Committee Meeting. Will meet to discuss the NE 130th Street Station light rail project. The Committee will hear several options for the construction schedule of the station, and we need to ensure that members of the community are there in support of building the station as efficiently and rapidly as possible.  If you are interested, please RSVP to this Facebook event put together by neighbors working to support the station. 1:30 PM, Union Station, Ruth Fisher Boardroom, 401 S. Jackson St (Pioneer Square).

POSTPONED: Thursday, January 16th: Thornton Creek Alliance Meeting. Updates on Lake City’s newly acquired park/floodplain property on NE 125th St. And the latest news about our Citizen Science efforts to monitor E. coli. 7:00 PM, Maple Leaf Lutheran Church, 10005 32nd Avenue NE.

    Tuesday, January 21st: Victory Heights Community Council meeting. We’re back after a holiday break to help organize events and information for residents of Victory Heights. 7 PM – 8 PM, Victory Heights Co-op Preschool Building in the Park.

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    Victory Heights Carol Sing December 23rd

    Posted on December 16, 2019 by Ryan

    The second annual Victory Heights Carol Sing will be held on Monday, December 23rd at the Victory Heights co-op preschool in Victory Heights Park between 7 PM and 7:30.

    There will be live musicians, lyric sheets provided, just bring your voices and join in!

    Rain or shine, we’ll be there!

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    Gingerbread House Decorating Parties In December

    Posted on December 4, 2019 by Ryan

    Victory Height’s annual gingerbread house decorating event is coming up. We’ve made the houses, you just have to buy them, “assemble” it, and then apply decorations (we provide the materials).

    Sign up to reserve a house and a time slot either on Saturday December 7th (10 AM – 11:30 AM) or Sunday December 15th (10 AM – 3 AM), bring $10 (cash, please) to the co-op preschool building in Victory Heights Park and you’ll get two houses, one for you and one to be donated to the Ryther Children’s Center on NE 95th St. Bring a large plate or tray to transport your finished house.

    Fun for all ages!

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