Council of Neighborhood Associations

March 2024

Meeting summary for CNA Meeting (03/12/2024)

Attending:  

Bob Jacobs, Gov. Stevens NA; Tim Smith, (City Staff); Melissa Allen (Bigelow Highlands), Dana McAvoy (East Bay Drive NA), Jeffery Showman (Wildwood), Karen Sweeney (Eastside NA), John Newman (Burbank/Elliott), Larry Dzieza (Nottingham NA), Sue Hedrick (South Capitol), Justin Belk (SWONA), Jim Rioux (Eastside), Leslie Wolff (NWONA), John Saunders (South Capitol), David Ginther (City Staff); Karen Messmer (Guest Speaker), Michelle Horaney (Evergreen Pointe), Marian M(Evergreen Pointe Treasurer), Clark Gilman (City Council), Marty Worcester (Redwood Estates), Judy Bardin (NWONA)

Agenda:           

  1. Neighborhood Reports
  2. Council Liaison Report
  3. Drive Through Ins and Outs – Karen Messmer
  4. Triangle Update – David Ginther
  5. Development Update and How to Track Developments in Your Neighborhood
  6. Chair Reports         
  7. Work on new CNA Website
  8. Rental Registry topics for a quarterly forum
  9. Grant Update
  10. Minutes approval and future meeting agenda Ideas

Summary

Neighborhood reports

  • Marty, Redwood Estates – They have several new board members. She had questions for the City about Fones Road and sidewalks and received a quick response and gve a big thank you!  

    There is extensive tree removal along Eighteenth Avenue and Woodland trail, which Marty believes is negatively affecting the aesthetics and noise level of the neighborhood.

    Melissa suggested merging the several smaller neighborhood associations into one association, but Marty raised logistical concerns. The discussion also touched on the issue of homelessness and its link to tree cutting.
  • Bob Jacobs, Governor Stevens – Will hold their spring egg hunt in Trillium Park and will be working with the Wildwood neighborhood to renovate a pathway if they get a neighborhood matching grant funding.
  • Melissa – Neighborhood requested matching grant funds to use for a celebration to include music and food, because those help bring people together.  She is interested in the rental registry, because almost half of their neighborhood’s rentals. If the registry can benefit renters, then it may help to involve these neighbors in the RNA.
  • Sue Hedrick and John Saunders, South Capitol – Their annual meeting was very successful, in part due to sending a flyer to every household, including renters in apartments.  Over 40 people attended, and they have several new board members. At their next board meeting, they will hear a report about Capitol Way traffic and have invited Mayor Dontae Payne.
  • Jeffrey Showman, Wildwood – Capitol way traffic is also a big issue for Wildwood neighbors, so would like to work with South Capitol folks. They will be working with Governor Stevens to improve the pathway that connects our neighborhoods.
  • Karen, Eastside – The neighborhood held a clothing swap event held at the First United Methodist Church on Legion Way, but it had less participation than they’d hoped. They plan to improve advertising and are considering holding the event annually. The Lions Club has contacted them about potential events and they are considering hosting a fishing event for kids in Lions Park.  New Bridge Church has offered financial support; one possibility may be putting holiday lights on Central Street.
  • Dana, East Bay Drive – Their board heard a presentation by the Port about Budd Bay remediation project, which must be carried out before the shipping channel can be dredged.  Their website is up and running.  Two of their board members have been injured on sidewalks, so Dana suggested adding information about injuries in the new sidewalk application.
  • John – Said he talked to Danny Stusser, editor of the JOLT, about increasing coverage of neighborhood issues.
  • Michelle, Evergreen Point – They have two new board members: there’s still some bad feeling among residents about the previous board’s unsuccessful proposal for a $60,000 assessment for playground equipment.  Snow removal is a big issue, since their neighborhood isn’t a city priority, so they have learned about a snow removal service out of Rochester.  City permit requirements may have scared away bidders on this.
  • Larry Dzieza, Nottingham – The board approved an increase to the annual dues. He had a fence blown down in a recent windstorm and appreciated the help of his neighbors to clear it off the sidewalk.
  • Judy, Northwest – They will be holding their first board meeting of the year next week.

Council Liaison Report, Clark Gilman – The council approved neighborhood matching grant requests, except for Cooper Crest’s proposed new playground at Hanson Elementary.  Clark outlined a few things on the City Council’s agenda that may be of interest to neighborhoods.

  • Drive-Throughs on Plum: a developer has proposed a new drive-through on Plum Street.  Since the city is currently reviewing its comprehensive plan, Clark would like a vision of the Plum Street/Eastside corridors, apart from narrower zoning decisions or transportation plan.
  • Renter protection is on the Council’s agenda, with a March 19 public hearing, a March 21 information briefing, and April 9 decision scheduled. Judy inquired about the contents of the rental registry page, which Clark confirmed included draft amendments to the ordinance, sample tenant screening policies, and a schedule of upcoming public meetings.
  • The Olympia police department received a grant for cameras to detect stolen vehicles by reading rear license plates and the make/model of cars.  The proposal is to put them on high-volume traffic routes (Martin Way, and the West Side).  Clark has concerns about privacy, and whether data would be used in other ways.
  • Clark expressed his appreciation for city planner Leonard Bauer on his retirement who made many rounds of improvements to city processes, and was a good manager/leader, empowering his front-line staff.
  • Melissa noted one of her neighbors had mail theft, and a responding officer said that there may be an organized group from one of the homeless camps.  Is that true?  Clark said that many neighborhoods suffer from “mailbox grazing”, so a single gang seems unlikely.  John Newman noted that they never put checks in mailboxes anymore.

Drive Through Ins and Outs – Karen Messmer

Karen is a former member of the Olympia planning commission and is a transportation advocate for pedestrians and bicyclists.  A developer has asked for a zoning change to allow drive-in businesses on Plum Street between Union and 5th.  City staff is considering the proposal IF developments are built with two-story housing above them. However, a change in zoning language would apply to the whole city, not just this corridor. 

Karen highlighted potential problems with drive-through businesses, such as low tax revenue generation, traffic problems, safety issues for pedestrians, vehicle emissions, and the general unattractiveness of large parking lots. She suggested alternatives such as curbside pickup or parking lot delivery, and emphasized the need for a comprehensive plan that aligns with walking, climate, and housing goals, rather than focusing solely on car-oriented solutions. Karen asked attendees to contact city council members individually since this is on their agenda on April 9th.

Capital Mall Triangle Sub-Area Plan Update – David Ginther https://engage.olympiawa.gov/capital-mall-triangle

The city’s 2009 comprehensive plan had three focus areas for higher-density growth: downtown, Martin Way, and the Capital Mall. The idea was to do a master plan and encourage higher density development in those areas, but it hasn’t happened in the Capital Mall area.  

The issue is how to achieve a vision for the area to gradually convert into an urban neighborhood with a mix of land uses, and to provide more housing and still support existing businesses.  The city received a $250,000 grant for this planning project; so far, there have been different development scenarios, and then a process to choose which scenario to focus on for an environmental impact statement (EIS).  The EIS is out now, so the next step is getting feedback on that to help shape what draft ordinance language might be.

There has been excellent RNA input, including Northwest, Southwest, and Burbank neighborhoods. Their desired outcome is a healthy, diverse regional center that includes local businesses, not just big-box stores.  The existing development was built according to 1970-80 ideas, e.g. parking lots that are over-built for current traffic. Business owners have said they would like flexibility to redevelop with less parking.  The current recommendations are:

(A) focus on a central core of taller buildings (up to 8 stories), with public investment to achieve the vision (e.g., an attractive half-acre plaza);

(B) Improve mobility, e.g. coordinate with transit (signals, hub locations, frequency, hours, etc.) and improve biking and walking opportunities (e.g. smaller block distance, better bike lanes, corridor studies on Harrison and Black Lake Blvd.);

(C) Affordable housing:  Partner with organizations, and consider strategic land purchases (e.g., the city now owns a couple of properties on Fourth);

(D) Economic development: consider funding to improve buildings and facades.

There will be a series of upcoming meetings, including planning commission (March 18), bicycle and pedestrian advisory committee (March 20), and a planning commission hearing (April 1).

Melissa said she would like to hear from affected RNAs.  Judy (NWNA) said that the parks/open space ideas rely on developers, and she fears greater density without amenities for people living there.  Bob and Marty both wondered what qualified as “Affordable” housing.

Development Update and How to Track Developments in Your Neighborhood

Olympia has a portal (link above) that anyone can use to see what developments have been proposed in the city. Tim gave a demonstration of the web site, and explained the categories of project status: pre-applications, land use review, development review, under construction, and complete. He showed how to access more detailed information on project status and documents submitted for it (e.g., shoreline permit, building permit, and critical report for wetlands).

It was noted that the map used for that portal is ARC GIS, the same as used by the new sidewalk application, and that there are many layers of data that could be applied (e.g., crime or census tract data such as home ownership, household types, etc.). This might be informative if we could have neighborhood boundaries applied to it.

CNA Chair Reports         

  • Work on new CNA Website: Larry is learning to use WordPress by working on improving the website and is open to suggestions for its improvement.
  • Rental Registry topics for a quarterly forum: City staff will meet with CNA on 3/13 to discuss topics for forum.  The objective is to provide information and an opportunity for dialogue.
  • Sidewalk app: Larry offered to attend neighborhood board meetings to demonstrate how to use it, and Jeffrey accepted for Wildwood on March 26  Dana suggested that a YouTube video might be a good way to train folks, and made a demonstration.

Minutes approval and future meeting agenda Ideas

Last meetings’ minutes were approved. Trees and tree-trimming has been a topic in several recent meetings. Tim offered to speak about the urban forestry program within his department (which involves planning, parks and transportation), touching on the history, goals, responsibilities, and issues of the program.

To do and Follow-ups

  • Jeffrey will attend the South Capitol monthly meeting about Capital Way traffic safety.
  • Larry will meet with the rental registry staff on March 13th to discuss ideas for the Forum.
  • Larry will send a link to the video about sidewalks.
  • Larry will send a link to the email addresses of the city council members and the agenda for the April 9th meeting.
  • Tim will prepare a presentation on the city’s urban forestry program.