Ravenna-Bryant Community Association

Our city is booming. Last year, 21,900 people moved into Seattle. By 2035, the city is expected to grow by 120,000 people and 115,000 jobs. Between 2000 and 2010, the population of Ravenna-Bryant increased by 1,810 people.

As is evident by the multiple cranes that are now part of our skyline, the boom in population is leading to a boom in development. We see it downtown, in South Lake Union, and in Ravenna-Bryant. Change is everywhere, including along 35th Avenue NE.

In addition to changes to The Theodora and the development of Bryant Heights in the southern area of R-B, the “Big Green House” where R-B and Wedgwood meet provides a good example of changes in our community.

Where the Big Green House used to stand, town homes are being built. Those town homes will have very little to no commercial space, which is not what the community said we wanted. Neighbors have repeatedly reported wanting places to walk to and an inviting business district with destinations like bookstores and restaurants. To do this, more commercial space is needed.

Community change prompted many R-B and Wedgwood neighbors to participate in Wednesday evening’s meeting hosted by the Department of Planning & Development (DPD) in partnership with RBCA and the Wedgwood Community Council.

During the meeting, DPD shared recommendations they have for changing zoning along 35th from NE 65th Street in Ravenna-Bryant up through Wedgwood. Their recommendations were guided by a plan the community developed over the past few years. Since a community can only go so far in turning plans into reality, DPD was asked by community members to step in and help move plans forward.

At NE 65th Street and 35th Ave NE, DPD recommends that instead of increasing the heights of buildings, the area could be designated as a pedestrian zone, like the area around NE 75th Street and 35th Ave NE.

In pedestrian zones (P Zones):

• Residential uses may occupy no more than 20% of the street-level street-facing building facade.
• Buildings cannot have large blank facades on the street-facing pedestrian level.
• A parking lot on the building site cannot be in front of the building or abut the street. Parking must be under the building or behind it.

These regulations are meant to encourage businesses to open and increase pedestrian activity.

The R-B and Wedgwood communities can reject DPD’s zoning suggestions along with zoning recommendations in the community-developed plan, which are much more ambitious than DPD’s. This is the time for the community to decide: do we want development along 35th to keep happening like it has been, or do we want to encourage development that creates a vibrant, walkable business district? Either way, change is afoot.

What do you think? Provide feedback to DPD via their online survey.

At the urging of the Future of 35th Ave NE Project, supported by both the Ravenna-Bryant Community Association and the Wedgwood Community Council, Seattle’s Department of Planning & Development (DPD) is considering zoning changes to the neighborhood business districts along 35th Ave NE at the cross-streets of NE 65th, 75th, 85th, and 95th Streets, to provide more opportunities for retail goods and services. This rezone could involve changing some areas currently zoned for low rise development to neighborhood commercial, increasing the height allowed in existing neighborhood commercial zones from 30 feet to 40 feet, and designating the business districts at NE 65th and 95th Streets as pedestrian zones.

DPD will hold a meeting on Wednesday, June 24th, to gain input from the community. This meeting will help the City evaluate whether the community is supportive of the proposed zoning changes and their effect on the way 35th Ave NE functions. Come and share your thoughts about how to make 35th a more vibrant commercial experience.

Meeting details:
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Congregation Beth Shalom
6800 35th Ave NE
Seattle, WA 98115

5:30 – 6:00 p.m. — Open house
6:00 – 6:20 p.m. — Presentation and general questions
6:30 – 7:30 p.m. — Open house, recommendation-specific questions, and comments

Feedback is also being sought through an online survey.

Community input will be shared with the Mayor and City Council, and DPD will report back to the community afterwards. Out of respect for the venue, please do not bring any food to this meeting.

What is a pedestrian zone?

In Ravenna-Bryant, the pedestrian zone designation has been applied to the 35th Ave NE and NE 75th Street intersection, the 25th Ave NE and NE 55th Street intersection, the 40th Ave NE and NE 55th Street intersection, and the NE 65th Street business district. The pedestrian zone provides for minimum ceiling heights on the ground floor (13 feet), prevents live/work units, and requires that ground-floor retail spaces have tenants that attract and encourage pedestrian activity, such as restaurants, shops, and gyms. The pedestrian zone also requires ground-floor retail to have amenities such as overhead weather protection (a canopy for pedestrians when walking along the sidewalk.)

Seattle 2035 is a yearlong, citywide conversation about change – where we’ve been, where we are now, and where we want to go over the next 20 years. By 2035, the city is expected to grow by 120,000 people and 115,000 jobs.

As part of this conversation, a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) was released and includes outlines of four growth alternatives. Community members are encouraged to provide their thoughts for how Seattle should grow over the next 20 years. Click here and provide your input by June 18.

Three types of urban villages
The drafted plan builds on the current Urban Village model and creates 3 types of urban villages.

1. Urban Center: very dense villages with housing and a high number of regional jobs. The University District is considered an urban center and includes the U-Village area, which is the southern part of Ravenna-Bryant.

2. Hub Urban Village: dense villages with a balance of housing and jobs.

3. Residential Urban Village: the least dense urban village with housing and local jobs. Roosevelt is considered a residential urban village. On average, residential urban villages are designated and zoned with a balanced mix of commercial/mixed use (31 percent), multi-family residential (33 percent) and single family residential (33 percent) zones. As with hub urban villages, land use designations and zoning vary between individual residential urban villages.

Four alternatives for growth
The DEIS proposes four different ways that the city can grow. Each would affect Ravenna-Bryant differently.

Alternative 1: Continue current trend (no action)
Growth will generally follow current market trends. Residential growth will continue in the urban village neighborhoods that have experienced significant growth in the past 20 years, with a relatively low level of change in other urban villages. New jobs would occur primarily in Downtown and South Lake Union.

For Ravenna-Bryant, this plan would continue residential growth patterns that we are currently witnessing. This alternative would increase residential growth.

Alternative 2: Guide growth to urban centers
Urban centers, like the University District, will become magnets that more strongly attract new residents and jobs faster than over the last 20 years. This change may lead to a significant rise in the number of people walking or biking to work, and a corresponding decline in driving and car ownership. Alternative 2 represents a significantly more concentrated pattern of new growth in the urban centers compared to past trends.

Since the southern part of R-B around U-Village would be part of an urban center, this alternative may significantly increase development in that area. Growth could be particularly substantial considering the area’s proximity to the Husky Stadium light rail station, the Burke-Gilman Trail, two major employers (UW and Children’s) and easy-to-access shopping.

Alternative 3: Guide growth to urban villages near light rail
This alternative puts an emphasis on growth in urban centers but also in urban villages near the light rail stations. It includes boundary adjustments to urban villages with light rail stations to encompass a 10-minute walk to the station.

Under alternative 3, the growth anticipated in urban centers would likely be a mix of mid-and high-rise development while growth in transit-oriented development nodes would likely be mid-rise. Areas of expanded urban villages would likely convert from existing lower intensity to higher intensity development. For example, if a light rail station is planned for an area currently zoned predominantly single-family, future land use actions would likely rezone the areas within a ¼ or ½ mile of the station to accommodate low-rise multifamily and possibly local-serving commercial uses.

Expansion of urban village boundaries could increase Roosevelt Urban Village to include Ravenna to about 22nd Ave NE (10 minute walk from Roosevelt Light Rail). Alternatives 3 and 4 project that housing would grow for 1500 people and jobs would increase by 1600 in the Roosevelt Urban Village. In areas outside of the urban villages, including the rest of Ravenna-Bryant, the overall development character and pattern would likely remain as currently exists. This means that residential growth would continue in most of R-B.

Alternative 4: Guide growth to urban villages near transit
Growth would take place in areas with the greatest number of transit-oriented places—served by either bus or rail. In addition to areas covered in alternative 3, more growth would also be concentrated in other urban villages that currently have very good bus service. Relatively more urban villages would be subject to increased growth and possible boundary changes.

Potential Impact on R-B:
• Expansion of urban village boundaries could expand the Roosevelt Urban Village to include Ravenna to about 22nd Ave NE, a 10 minute walk from Roosevelt Light Rail. See Alternative 3 above.
• The rest of Ravenna-Bryant would see a smaller share of residential growth than is currently occurring.

On Tuesday August 4, the City of Seattle will celebrate the 31st Annual Night Out Against Crime. The registration link for Night Out 2015 is: http://www.seattle.gov/police/nightout/default.htm.

Night Out is a national crime prevention event to heighten crime prevention awareness, increase neighborhood support in anti-crime efforts, and unite communities. Neighbor participation in Night Out continues to grow every year. In 2014, over 1,400 Night Out events were registered city-wide. It’s fun, it’s free and it’s a great chance to reconnect with neighbors and share information with each other while learning more about crime prevention. Getting together with your neighbors, re-committing to watch out for each other, and reaffirming you will report suspicious activity to police are ways to show you care about your community. You do not need to be in an active Block Watch to hold a Night Out event.

If your neighborhood plans to participate in the 31st Annual Night Out on August 4th, the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods has a fund to support your event. The Small Sparks Fund provides matching dollars for neighborhood-initiated projects that promote community engagement. Community groups can request up to $1000 to help fund Night Out planning and activities such as outreach efforts, educational fairs, bike parades, and neighborhood cleanups, to name a few. The deadline for applications is Monday, June 22 at 5:00 p.m. but you must register first by June 19 to apply.
For information on the application process, visit www.seattle.gov/neighborhoods/nmf/smallsparks.htm, or call 206-733-9916.

As anyone concerned with the overcrowding in NE Seattle schools can tell you: the number of children living in our community has grown over the past several years. Between 2000 and 2010, Ravenna-Bryant households with people under 18 years old increased by 14%, compared to 9% citywide. One quarter of R-B households now include one or more persons under the age of 18 living in them, compared to 20% citywide.

At the same time, households with people 65 years or older increased by 2% and make up 17% of the R-B population, similar to citywide population. The total population of our neighborhood increased by 8% to just over 24,000 people.

Why is this important? Because our neighborhood, along with our city, is expected to continue growing for the foreseeable future. It’s a rather safe bet that the number of households with children will continue to grow. Ravenna-Bryant is fortunate to be home to desirable schools, is relatively safe, and scores high for walkability, making it attractive to families.

In fact, Ravenna is listed as one of the city’s ten best neighborhoods in the April 2015 edition of SeattleMet magazine in part because of good schools and parks:

Not only was Ravenna the most competitive Seattle housing market in 2014, it was one of the top 10 hottest neighborhoods in the country, according to a Redfin report. Homes stayed on the market for an average of just seven days, with an overall 11 percent increase in home value from the previous year.

Its old age in part makes the neighborhood so desirable, with its Craftsman and Tudor homes built mostly before 1940. Close proximity to the University District doesn’t hurt either, nor do the parks and highly ranked schools.

As a city, we are planning for significant population and job growth over the next 20 years. Ravenna-Bryant will need to do the same. And since every neighborhood it unique, it’s important that we create plans that meet the needs of specific neighborhoods — one size does not fit all. Knowing that families find R-B a desirable place to live, planning efforts can ensure that the needs of children and families continue to be met.

Join your neighbors who receive the RBCA’s brand new monthly eNewsletter. It’s a compilation of all of our posts, delivered to your email inbox.

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Don’t miss out! The next eNewsletter hits inboxes early next week.

-Your RBCA Communications Team

May was Bike Month in Seattle, a time when people are encouraged to try biking to and from work.

This year, statistics were shared about who biked and where they biked. It turns out that a large number of people in Ravenna-Bryant and surrounding area (zip codes 98105 and 98115) biked to and from work in May.

In 98115, 821 residents participated in Bike Month (pledging to bike at least four round-trips during the month) and logged 8,900 total trips. In 98105, 505 residents participated and logged a total of 5,656 total trips. The adjacent zip code of 98103 had the largest number of participants in the city: 1,148.

In addition to a large number of cyclists living in our area, 98105 is also where a large number (784) of Bike Month participants work. The large number is mostly linked with UW and Children’s; they were the businesses with the most participants in the city.

The Seattle Department of Planning and Development (DPD) issued the following Save the Date, to be accompanied by a postcard mailing to many residences within the vicinity of the 35th Ave NE business district.

Are you interested in a more vibrant 35th Ave NE?

Would you like to see more retail at the 65th, 75th, 85th, and 95th Street business districts?

Come discuss your thoughts with representatives from the City of Seattle’s Department of Planning and Development (DPD) on June 24th from 5:30-7:30pm at Congregation Beth Shalom (6800 35th Ave NE).

DPD staff will provide a brief overview of potential zoning changes intended to foster a more eclectic retail environment along 35th Ave and be available to both answer questions and take individual comments.

To sign up for our (e)mailing list and receive email updates click here: http://eepurl.com/bn15Af. For more information contact Ryan Moore at 206.233.2537 or ryan.moore@seattle.gov.

Why is DPD hosting this meeting? Last year, the 35th Ave Committee requested the city include funding for a legislative rezone of the 35th Ave Business District following the zoning recommendations that were presented in the final Future 35th Ave NE Plan, which was approved by the Ravenna-Bryant Community Association and the Wedgwood Community Council. The zoning recommendations presented in this plan were developed following significant community feedback and engagement.

As part of our request to the City and the City’s legislative rezone process, the Department of Planning and Development reviewed and revised community zoning recommendations based on their technical analyses and zoning standards. On June 24th, DPD will present the results of their review and solicit additional feedback on their legislative rezone proposal. The City’s proposed rezone differs from the recommendations presented in the Future 35th Ave NE Plan.

Please help get the word out by letting your neighbors know about this upcoming meeting and opportunity to be involved. Our city and our neighborhood are going to change within the next twenty years.  This is one opportunity to have your voice heard about how a part of our community changes.

The Seattle Department of Transportation is hosting open houses to solicit feedback on proposed routing for high-capacity transit from Northgate to Downtown. Your input will help inform the results of a year-long study of all the different options for North-South high capacity transit in our area. The corridor SDOT is looking at specifically is Northgate-Maple Leaf-Roosevelt-U District-Eastlake-SLU-Downtown, and includes options for walking, biking, driving transit and freight.

The open house is next Tuesday, May 19th 6-8pm at the UW Tower, Cafeteria North.

More information at www.seattle.gov/transportation/roosevelthct.htm.

Next Tuesday, May 5, the Ravenna-Bryant Community Association’s annual meeting will focus on public safety. In addition to hearing from new Assistant Chief Wilske, leaders from the 9-1-1 call center will provide information about how the 9-1-1 system works and take questions from community members.

One topic they will discuss is when and how to call 9-1-1. Following is some information from their website.

You Should call 9-1-1 . . .
• When you have a Police, Fire or Medical emergency.
• There is a situation that could, or does, pose a danger to life, property or both.
• There is a suspicious activity involving a person(s) or vehicle that appears to have criminal intent.
• Any situation that requires immediate dispatch of an officer.

Remain calm and patient while the 9-1-1 calltaker asks you questions. 9-1-1 calltakers are trained to ask specific questions that quickly determine what is wrong, and what type of assistance to send.

Be Prepared for the following questions . . .
1. WHERE did this occur? Did it happen on the street, inside, outside, in front or in back, etc?

• An exact street address is best. Look at numbers posted on buildings around you. View the street signs to provide hundred-block or intersection information.
• If you are driving, be aware of the road or highway on which you are traveling. Look for landmarks or businesses that are very near to your location.
• It is a very good idea to post your address and phone number near your telephone. In an emergency situation is it easy to forget the most basic of information.

2. WHAT happened?

3. WHEN did this occur? Is the event still in progress?

Let the 9-1-1 Calltaker ask the questions
Even if the calltaker’s questions seem unrelated or repetitious, let the calltaker lead the conversation and answer their questions. Calltakers are trained to gather information in a certain order to quickly assess the situation and decide what assistance is best to help you. They may need to clarify a previous answer, or may already be aware of the situation you are reporting and need to find out if you have any additional information.

To learn more and have your questions answered, participate in the annual meeting on Tuesday, May 5, 7:00 p.m., at the Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center. All RBCA meetings are open to the public.