Author: Scott Morris

Neighborhood Meeting – September 7 at 7pm – St. John Vianney Church

Posted by | Sep 4, 2011 | , , , |

An important neighborhood meeting is coming up this Wednesday, September 7. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the formation of a Finn Hill neighborhood association. It is open to all Finn Hill residents. We hope you will make every effort to attend. Time and Venue: Wednesday, September 7, 7:00 p.m. St. John Vianney Church, 12600 84th Avenue NE Agenda: Introductions / Purpose of the Meeting General Announcements (Denny Fest, Council Candidate Forum, etc.) Overview of Neighborhood Services & Association Roles  Update on Park Funding Exploratory Committee  Review of Draft Bylaws (click to view draft FHNA bylaws) Background: As you may know, each neighborhood in the City of Kirkland has a neighborhood organization. These organizations provide a convenient venue for citizens to meet city officials regularly and informally; and they can also be effective advocates for neighbors’ concerns at City Hall. Since the annexation of the Finn Hill area into Kirkland in June, Finn Hill residents – some of whom are DCNA members – have been meeting to discuss what the Finn Hill neighborhood association should look like. One proposal is that DCNA should become the recognized association for the Finn Hill area (see map), changing its name to the Finn Hill Neighborhood Alliance and expanding its mission to embrace not only environmental stewardship issues but also other matters of interest to community at large (for example, zoning,...

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Sandburg/DCS Natural Playground Update and UPCOMING EVENTS

Posted by | Aug 27, 2011 | |

This summer, generous volunteers and donors made fantastic progress toward completing the Sandburg Elementary / Discovery Community School Natural Playground that will serve as the schools’ outdoor play area for recess during construction this year. A 100-year-old Douglas Fir stump was salvaged from a neighboring homesite, along with some large boulders from the existing school grounds. Several Sandburg/DCS families donated tree rounds, landscaping rocks, and a large dead cedar tree to be used for nature trail borders and features. And, wooden play chips were salvaged and relocated from the old playground, when it was demolished to make way for construction of the new school building. In addition, a beautiful outdoor reading pod / classroom of granite boulders was created with the help of Cynthia Hudson, Maranakos, and Hendrikus Landscaping. And, on July 30th, volunteers from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on Finn Hill organized a work party to weed, rake and remove blackberry roots in preparation for trail-building. Although much progress has been made, volunteers are still needed to make sure that the Natural Playground is ready for use when school starts on September 6th. Here are some ways that you and your family can help: • SUNDAY, AUGUST 28th, 10 AM to 3 PM — NATURAL PLAYGROUND WORK PARTY: All ages are welcome. We will be preparing trails and protective planting beds around tree...

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Summary of review process for lacrosse field project in Big Finn Hill Park

Posted by | Aug 18, 2011 | , |

Kirkland Youth Lacrosse (KYL) wants to convert an unimproved field in Big Finn Hill Park, now used for soccer practice in the dry months of the year, into an all season lacrosse pitch with lights for nighttime use. KYL’s proposal has been supported by some residents of Finn Hill and opposed by others. DCNA has not taken a position on the matter, other than to raise questions about certain aspects of the field’s likely impact on neighbors at night and on surface water drainage. (See below.) However, DCNA has urged both KYL and the relevant governmental authorities to conduct the approval process for the project in a manner that is open to public comment. The field is in a park owned and operated by King County, which itself is located in an area that was annexed by the City of Kirkland on June 1, 2011. As a result, sorting out the processes for reviewing the paperwork necessary for this project has been somewhat challenging. The County and the City have had to negotiate a division of responsibilities between themselves, so the decision-making path was not clearly prescribed until recently. Based on discussions with County and City representatives, DCNA believes that the following is an accurate summary of the approvals that KYL must receive before it can break ground on its proposed lacrosse field project in Big Finn Hill Park:...

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Finn Hill hits the airwaves! DCNA’s Jeff Hoerth talks to Kirkland TV about our neighborhood

Posted by | Aug 8, 2011 | |

DCNA past president (and current board member) Jeff Hoerth talks to Kirkland TV about Finn Hill. Check it out here: http://kirkland.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?publish_id=729 Jeff provides an overview of our parks, covers some of the neighborhood’s history, and puts in an appropriate plug for DennyFest, which occurs on Sunday, September 18. If you are interested in DennyFest (and we hope you are), this video clip will give you a good taste of what’s in store next...

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City of Kirkland celebrates partial re-opening of Juanita Beach Park on August 5, 3 p.m.

Posted by | Aug 4, 2011 | , |

The City of Kirkland has issued this long-awaited announcement regarding Juanita Beach Park: Kirkland, WA –The Kirkland City Council and Kirkland Park Board will host banner unveiling celebrating the partial re-opening of Juanita Beach Park on Friday, August 5, at 3 p.m. Significant improvements and restoration have been completed in recent weeks by Marshbank Construction including new walking paths, extensive landscaping, and benches and picnic tables. As of August 5 park users will have access to the beachfront areas of Lake Washington, although newly-seeded lawn areas in the park will be protected to allow complete establishment. Additional construction activity in the park will occur through September, including restoration of Juanita Creek located on the western side of the Park. “We’re thrilled to celebrate the recent renovation to one our City’s favorite keepsakes and look forward to when all enhancements are complete,” notes Mayor Joan McBride. “We invite the community to this celebration and to tour all of the wonderful enhancements.” The Juanita Friday Market, located on the northern portion of the Park, will be open from 3 to 7 p.m. For more information, contact Marie Stake, Communications Program Manager, at 425-587-3021 or...

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