There will be a 12th Avenue Neighborhood Meeting this Thursday, March 26th at 6:30pm at the S.U. Facilities Bldg., 1218 E Cherry (red building behind the Shell Station on 12th Avenue). Please join us, there will be beverages and snacks provided!

Representatives of Capitol Hill Housing will be there to discuss their proposal for a mixed-use workforce housing project on the corner of 12th and Jefferson (500 12th Ave). Representatives of the City of Seattle Office Housing, Department of Parks and Recreation, and Department of Neighborhoods will also be there to discuss the history of the site. All with an interest in the 12th Ave. Neighborhood are encouraged to attend.

Background Info: The Mayor’s 1992 12th Avenue Plan calls for the sale of City-owned property on and near 12th Ave. and the investment of the proceeds in capital improvements in the 12th Ave. area. Following the 12th Avenue Plan the City sold approximately seven parcels of land between 1992 and 2001 receiving approximately $1.8 million. The City received approximately $360,000 from leasing some of those parcels pending their sale. Most of the money received from the sale and leasing of the property has been spent— producing street and sidewalk improvements including the pedestrian-scale lights, street trees, textured crosswalks, and curb bulbs all on 12th Avenue, and traffic circles in more than a dozen locations between 12th and 15th. The amount paid for these improvements is $1,113,697. The other major payments, mostly to the Dept. of Planning and Development for a rezone analysis and to the Dept. of Neighborhoods for administration of the money have been $404,106. Money remaining in the 12th Avenue fund is approximately $397,000. Also two 12th Avenue parcels remain in City ownership. One at 12th and James Ct. has been transferred to the Parks. Dept. to become a park — the 12th Avenue Gathering Place. At community meetings there was consensus that money remaining in the 12th Avenue fund be spent on park design and development. The other 12th Avenue Plan parcel still owned by the City is now controlled by the Office of Housing. That 9,791 sq. ft. parcel at 12th and Jefferson is assessed at $1,128,000. Recently the property was leased for the staging of equipment for a repaving project on Madison Street but no lease money was paid to the 12th Avenue Fund for this use. The Office of Housing has determined that the best course of action would be to transfer that property for development as a mixed-use building with apartments for moderate income persons (workforce housing), and that such a development requires the property to be transferred for no money. This would produce a desirable building on a site vacant for decades. However, transferring for no money will mean no additional funds from 12th Avenue property sales for neighborhood capital improvements such as park development or street improvements. Questions about 12th Ave. meeting? E-mail Bill Zosel at [email protected]

There has been some posting on CHS about Capitol Hill Housing’s work along 12th Avenue, especially in regards to the Police Lot at 12th and Pine. For more info on CHH’s 12th Avenue Initiative and the 12th Ave community in general, you can now check out this blog:  http://www.capitolhillhousing.org/12thave/

 Seattle Parks and Recreation Department: New Parks  The property at 12th and James Ct. is scheduled to become a new park  — the 12th Avenue Neighborhood Gathering Place, part of the Pro Parks Levy Opportunity Fund.  The site is owned by the Parks Department.  Several conceptual designs were presented to the community.  Earlier discussions had the park, and the street right-of-way James Ct., being developed in concert with the new mixed-use building to be built by Seattle University immediately north of the site.  That project has been delayed.  We’ll discuss the current situation and how to get to the next steps.  Also, the recently-passed parks and open space levy includes funding to purchase another new park for the 12th Avenue Urban Village.  No location has been identified for that new park.  Donald Harris of the Parks Dept. will attend to help lead a discussion about these two park projects.

 Seattle Department of Transportation: Sound Transit is paying for a new Capitol Hill/First Hill streetcar line to be built by the City. This streetcar line will travel between the International District light rail station on Jackson Street to 12th Avenue and then north on an undetermined route to the light rail station at Broadway and John.  In some ways this is seen as a substitute for the eliminated light rail station at Broadway and Madison that would have served much of the 12th Avenue neighborhood and the Central Area.  Sound Transit will pay for building and operating this streetcar line (without significant contribution from property owners on the route, as was the case with the South Lake Union Streetcar.) The streetcar line will be the engine of future property development along its route.  Ethan Melone of SDOT will attend for this discussion.

 Capitol Hill Housing will present the 12^th Avenue Initiative, a community development project recently funded by the City Office of Economic Development and Impact Capital. Working with community members, the Initiative has four broad goal areas: increasing community engagement, improving the pedestrian environment, supporting local businesses and developing affordable commercial and residential projects.

 Community input is needed on these important issues!  Please join us.