Amendment Submitted To City Council To Keep Community Center Open By Councilmember Pedersen

City Councilmember (District 4) Alex Pedersen contacted the Laurelhurst Blog following the  Laurelhurst Blog post last week about the potential that the Laurelhurst Community Center could close permanently and no longer offer community services.

The Laurelhurst Community Club learned that "buried in the 2022 Mayor's budget is the closure of one of the City's 26 community centers. Ours." as they wrote in a recent newsletter.

The LCC newsletter also included this information:

In the budget, Parks and Recreation unilaterally changed the center's purpose from a facility that serves the community to that of a "premium rental facility” to generate revenue in support of pop-up activities around the City. This is a complete shut down of community programming at the center.

The process of the proposed closure was not transparent. There was no outreach from Parks and Recreation to LCC or to its Laurelhurst Advisory Committee, no public meetings, no disclosure to our District 4 City Councilmember. It is just buried on page 103 in the City's Budget book.

All City community centers should remain public facilities, not exclusive private rentals for the Department of Parks and Recreation. Closing ANY of the City's community centers to convert them to exclusive private rental facilities sets the wrong precedent that Parks and Recreation can make unilateral decisions about the use and future of the City's public facilities. Closing a center in the community it was established to serve is not just.

Surrounding neighbors donated the original land and community center building to the City by in 1927 as a "recreational" facility for the entire public. For 94 consecutive years, Parks and Recreation has operated center programming.

The next closest center, Magnuson Park Community Center, is completely closed for renovation through early fall of 2022. This exacerbates the elimination of the Laurelhurst Community Center. The complete lack of programming along this Northeast sector of the City for a year is poor planning. If anything, budgets should be increased at nearby centers to provide more needed classes and programming.

 Councilmember Pedersen told the Laurelhurst Blog:

Hi, Laurelhurst Blog,

Thanks for alerting neighbors about Mayor Durkan’s unfortunate decision to try to close the Laurelhurst Community Center! 

I wanted to make sure you saw the amendment I introduced and pitched at our Council’s Budget Committee meeting this week in hopes of restoring the funds to keep the center open. 

It might be helpful to ask readers to ask Councilmembers to support my amendment specifically. Also, they can reach all 9 Councilmembers using the following email address: Council@seattle.gov. Here is the Mayor's email address: Jenny.Durkan@seattle.gov .

The amendment states:

This Council Budget Amendment would add $190,000 GF ongoing to Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) to sustain the current use of the Laurelhurst Community Center. 

The 2022 Proposed Budget ends this facility’s use by the public and its programming and regular staffing by SPR employees and converts it instead to availability for rental. 

The Laurelhurst Community Center is connected by a bridge to the adjacent elementary school, where 45 percent of students are Black, indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC) and 31 percent of students’ families are low income. These demographics are consistent with those of typical users of the community center.

Neighbors were sent this information when sending in comments:

Dear community member, 

Thank you for writing about changes for Laurelhurst Community Center in the proposed budget for 2022. We appreciate what an asset Laurelhurst Community Center has long been for the Laurelhurst neighborhood, with its programs for seniors, youth, and others, and with its signature events like the Salmon Bake. 

For 2022, we made the difficult decision to transition Laurelhurst from a full-service community center to a rental and event space. Some of its historic programming will take place at nearby centers, but it will no longer function as a Seattle Parks and Recreation community center. 

We do anticipate programs and events continuing to be offered at Laurelhurst through the outside organizations that rent the facility. We made this decision in order to prioritize our limited resources toward the goal of EQUITABLE SERVICE DELIVER. 

The funds that had paid for recreation staffing at Laurelhurst are proposed to create a pilot program that provides free, pop-up recreation programming in streets, parking lots, and parks in low-income neighborhoods as an ongoing Seattle Parks and Recreation program.   

Here is more information about the City Council budget process currently considering this change, including information on how to participate in the upcoming public hearings on November 10 and November 18.

Laurie Dunlap Superintendent’s Office, Seattle Parks and Recreation

For more information go here. 

47th Avenue NE Speeding Monitored By SPD

The Laurelhurst Blog recently posted about excessive speeding on 47th Avenue NE that runs on the back side of Laurelhurst Elementary School.

Neighbors report that drivers often reach speeds of 40 to 50 mph.  The existing traffic circle near the school and Sun Park has not been effective in slowing drivers. 

The Laurelhurst Community Club (LCC) recently published in its monthly newsletter that neighbors from the 4700 block of 47th Avenue NE met with District 4 Councilmember Pedersen in mid February about the very  consistent high rates of speed on 47th Avenue NE between Sand Point Way and NE 45th Street.  

Neighbors added that Councilmember Pedersen was very responsive and contacted SDOT to address these concerns. 

On Monday of last week a speed radar machine suddenly appeared on the corner of 47th Avenue NE and NE 50th Street. Then by Friday morning it was gone.

The Laurelhurst Blog contacted Councilmember Pedersen regarding the radar machine.

He said: 

I asked our Seattle Police Department to place that speed trailer there and they had motorcycle patrol there as well, as a follow up to requests from 47th Avenue NE constituents. It is common for some speed trailers to be placed temporarily unless they are on a major city arterial such as 15^th Ave NE or Highway 99.  It’s likely SPD had to use the trailer elsewhere for a hot spot during Memorial Day weekend. 

I also asked SDOT for several other, more sustainable solutions to calming traffic on 47^th Avenue NE between Laurelhurst Elementary and Sand Point Way. 

Here’s where I left it with SDOT very recently: 1) SDOT will remark the crosswalks at 47^th and 47^th this spring 2) SDOT will re-stripe the diagonal lines on 47th Ave at 47th Street, just north of the elementary school 3) SDOT will also replace the crosswalk sign on the west side of the crosswalk for southbound traffic as it appears to be missing 4) SDOT is scheduled to begin work on speed limit changes [down from 30 MPH in that area in the Fall of 2020. Ideally the speed limit signs are posted BEFORE Sept 1, before the elementary school is back in session.

Neighbors also reported an unmarked police car on 47th Avenue NE with a hand held speed radar stationed for several days at different hours recently.

LCC told the Laurelhust Blog:

We have worked on that stretch for years.  We even submitted a street fund grant for improvements a few years ago.  We were not part of the meeting with Peterson or behind the speed sign.

One neighbor told the Laurelhurst Blog that he "was thrilled to see the radar guns out and thanked the officer stationed near my driveway."

Also Councilmember Pedersen said he submitted a request to have the sign on 47^th Avenue NE at NE 50^th Street repaired that he noticed on a recent drive-through in the neighborhood.

Alex can be reached at alex.pedersen@seattle.gov.

(photos courtesy of Streetsmart.com and Alex Pedersen)