January 13, 2025 CNA Meeting Minutes
Attending:
Tim Smith, (City Staff), Karen Sweeney (Eastside NA), Gerald Apple (South Capitol), Larry Dzieza (Chair and Nottingham), Keegan Wulf (Downtown), Jeff Kean (Wildwood), Lisa Riener (Burbank/Elliot), John Saunders (South Capitol), Peter Gutchen (Northeast), Jim Rioux (Eastside), Stu Olshevski (SWONA), Jaron Burke, Brittany Gillia (City of Olympia), Melissa Allen (Bigelow Highlands), Judy Bardin (NWONA), Fire Chief Morris (City of Olympia), Dana McAvoy (Eastbay Drive), Michele Horaney (Evergreen Pointe), and Bob Jacobs (Gov. Stevens).
Summary
The meeting focused on neighborhood updates, ongoing projects, and emergency preparedness strategies. The team discussed various neighborhood initiatives, including food insecurity, traffic issues, and architectural control committee updates. The importance of community preparedness, risk identification, and resource allocation.
Neighborhood Reports
Karen from the East Side shared about their annual neighborhood meeting, which focused on food insecurity and had a great turnout.
Melissa from Bigelow Highlands reported on their new board members and upcoming work plan.
Jeff from Wildwood discussed their quarterly meeting, which would include a presentation on solar panels and ongoing efforts to calm down South Capitol Boulevard.
Dana from East Bay Drive Neighborhood Association highlighted their committee’s work on traffic issues, including speeding and people using the center turn lane. Dana discussed the ongoing issues with pedestrian crossways and the formation of a committee to address them. He also mentioned a meeting scheduled for the next day to discuss various projects.
Bob Jacobs reported on the Trillium Park situation, mentioning the loss of several alder trees and the subsequent work by the parks staff.
Michele Horaney from Evergreen Point shared updates on their architectural control committee booklet and new resolutions passed. She also mentioned the potential changes in HOA law and condo law.
Stu from Southwest Olympia discussed their quarterly meeting, the neighborhood yard sale, and the fruit gleaning program.
Lisa from Burbank talked about the upcoming police chief’s presentation on disaster preparedness and the city’s efforts to regulate RVs in Burri Park.
Gerald from South Capitol Neighborhood Association discussed their annual meeting, the application for a matching grant, and the issue of houses being used as businesses.
Judy from Northwest Olympia Neighborhood Association shared updates on their holiday party and new board members.
Peter from Northeast shared about their work at the neighborhood center, planting, and an upcoming art installation project with 5th graders. Peter discussed the limited funding opportunities available for neighborhood projects, including the Neighborhood Matching Grant program and potential funding from Inspire Olympia and Thurston County. He noted that the Neighborhood Matching Grant program’s funding becomes available in April and must be spent by the end of the year, while Inspire Olympia’s funding allows for more continuity and future planning.
Chair mentioned the upcoming annual meeting of the Nottingham Association, where the budget will be adopted, and the need to manage sidewalks and other neighborhood issues.
Gerald offered to take photos and write articles about neighborhood activities for the CNA website.
Judy thanked the city for funding the holiday party and an art installation in Volunteer Park.
Emergency Preparedness and Fire Risk
Chief Matt Morris, the fire chief of Olympia, joined the meeting to discuss emergency preparedness and answer questions about the fire department.
The chief discussed emergency preparedness for potential large-scale disasters like earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, or wildfires. He emphasizes the growing wildfire risk in Western Washington, though it is less severe than California. The chief recommends hardening homes against fire by clearing vegetation, replacing combustible roofs, and creating defensible spaces. He advises being prepared to evacuate with essential supplies for 3 days until outside resources arrive. The chief stresses individual preparedness through training and self-sufficiency initially, until first responders can prioritize serious emergencies. Olympia’s robust water system is noted as an advantage for firefighting and public health.
Emergency Preparedness and Response Strategies
The meeting discussed emergency preparedness and response strategies. The Chief emphasized the importance of having a plan in place for emergencies, such as earthquakes, and the need for community involvement.
Michele raised the issue of CERT training, which she had previously attended and found valuable. However, the Chief explained that due to resource constraints, the city couldn’t sponsor a CERT class in 2025.
Melissa suggested a shorter version of the training, but the Chief confirmed it remains a multi-day course. Karen asked about the availability of shelters and the possibility of working with the county and city to provide training, to which the Chief responded positively.
The Chair suggested that the neighborhood should be prepared to assist in climate-related disasters and that funding for neighborhood-level responsiveness would contribute to the “resilience” objective in the city’s Comprehensive Plan.
Preparing for Large-Scale Earthquakes
The team discussed the challenges of responding to large-scale disasters, particularly earthquakes. Bob Jacobs expressed concern about the lack of preparedness for a major earthquake, highlighting the potential for widespread damage to infrastructure, including water and sewer systems, roads, and bridges. The Chief emphasized the importance of community resilience and the need for a coordinated response from local, regional, and state resources.
The team also discussed the potential for clean air shelters and the importance of community preparedness, with Chair suggesting that neighbors could benefit from basic training offered by Thurston County Emergency Management. The conversation ended with a focus on the need for a solid plan to provide continuous water supply during such events.
Strategic Goals and Community Assistance
Chief Morris discussed the strategic goals of the fire department, which include exceeding community expectations, being sustainable and resilient, focusing on firefighter health and wellness, and building healthy relationships in the community. He highlighted the importance of risk identification and resource allocation to meet community needs. He also mentioned the introduction of a new program called CARE, which provides community assistance and referral education, and the addition of two ambulance transport units to improve response times and availability.
Mall as Evacuation and Fire Department
Lisa raised a question about the possibility of using the mall as a warm shelter during emergencies, which Chief Morris acknowledged as a potential solution.
In the meeting, Chief Morris discussed the potential use of the Mall as an evacuation or community assistance center, emphasizing its importance as a safe and habitable space.
Bob Jacobs raised a question about renaming the fire department due to most calls now being medical rather than fire related. Chief Morris explained the critical role of the fire department, even though firefighting is the least frequent task, it involves the most severe and critical events in the community. He also compared the fire department’s response system to Amazon’s distribution centers, highlighting the need for additional resources as the city expands.
The Chair emphasized the importance of knowing neighbors, especially in emergency situations, and encouraged neighborhood associations to engage with their communities.
Chief Morris also addressed misinformation surrounding the recent Los Angeles fires about resources being withheld due to emissions testing and the challenges of managing water supply during large-scale fires, which was untrue.
City Projects and Neighborhood Development
Tim provided an update on various city projects, including the West Bay Yards, South Puget Sound Community College, and the Briggs development. He also mentioned the hiring of a new Economic Development Director and the continuation of the neighborhood match grant program. Brittany gave an update on the match grant process, including changes to the reimbursement process and insurance requirements.
The group also discussed the importance of neighborhoods in the city’s planning and governance, with a focus on social infrastructure and community building. They proposed language to recognize neighborhoods in the city’s civic design and policies to support neighborhood development.
Comprehensive Plan Progress and Future Plans
In the meeting, the team discussed their progress and future plans regarding the Comprehensive Plan (Comp Plan). They highlighted the importance of integrating neighborhood ideas into the plan and emphasized the need for performance indicators to track progress. The team also discussed the need to avoid reinventing the wheel and to focus on essential areas.
They mentioned the upcoming transportation section of the Comp Plan and the need for an update on sidewalk conditions. The team also discussed the upcoming presentation by Joyce Phillips on housing and rental issues. Lastly, they discussed the timeline for the Land Use Committee and the need to share their work with the committee.
Next steps
• Larry and team to integrate their proposed language about neighborhoods into the Land Use chapter of the Comprehensive Plan.
• Neighborhoods to attend Planning Commission meetings and give brief presentations about their role and value to the city.
• CNA Land Use Chapter team to integrate proposed ideas into draft language for the Land Use chapter.
• Tim to update CNA on timeline for Land Use chapter draft release.
• CNA to send draft Land Use chapter recommendations to David for review.
• Karen to submit comments on the climate and resilience chapter of the city’s website, suggesting funding for neighborhood-level responsiveness and resilience.
• Neighborhood associations to consider applying for Inspire Olympia funding for community projects.
• Neighborhood associations to explore potential funding from Thurston County for community gardens.
• Neighborhood associations to encourage residents to prepare emergency kits with 3 days of supplies.
• Neighborhood associations to consider organizing CERT-like training programs within their communities.
• Residents to create defensible space around their homes and remove flammable materials from roofs and near structures.
• Tim to work with the developer on improving street signage and striping in the Briggs urban village area.
• Tim to provide update on sidewalk condition analysis timing for CNA discussion.
• Joyce to present on middle housing phase 2 implementation at next CNA meeting.
• Larry to coordinate with Casey on setting up communication channels between CNA and Planning Commission.
• City to recruit for new Economic Development Director position after hiring permanent Community Planning and Economic Development Department Director.
• Brittany to follow up with Gerald regarding updates to grant insurance requirements.
• Michele to send the link to the pre-filed bill about HOA law changes to Larry.
• Larry to add neighborhood association websites, Facebook pages, or other communication methods to the CNA website list.
• Residents to consider taking CPR and first aid training.
• Chief Morris to provide his contact information for future questions or ideas from CNA members.
Council of Neighborhood Associations 