The proposed design for the new King County facility to be built in Fremont in 2014. Photo provided by KC Wastewater Treatment Division

At the Fremont Fair, on June 22^nd & 23^rd, the King County Wastewater Treatment Team will have a booth.  Team members will be able to talk to Fremonsters about the new facility that will be built in West Fremont in 2014, as well as giving a ‘virtual’ sewer pipe tour and showing how King County inspects over 350 miles of pipes with sewer camera robots and closed circuit television.  Learn how you too can help protect water quality by being ‘stewards of the sewers.’

A key to the design drawings of the Fremont Siphon facility. Provided by KC Wastewater Treatment Division

As part of its on-going dedication to stewardship, King County Wastewater Treatment will replace the 100-year-old Fremont Siphon starting in 2014.  In addition, the project includes construction of an odor control facility at NW 36^th St & 2^nd Ave NW.  Based on public workshops and open houses held earlier in 2013, the site design will feature a historic-looking building with landscaping done in a Northwest Coastal palette.  At the Fair, team members will answer questions about this project and continue to take input from our community about how to mitigate impacts from this large-scale construction project.

The Fremont Fair hours are:

• Friday, June 21^st – 4p to 11p (no booths, just music & a beer garden)
• Saturday, June 22^nd – 10a to 8p
• Sunday, June 23^rd – 11a to 6p

Come down, and learn more!

The 'People Waiting For The Interurban' (by Rich Beyer) ready to celebrate the solstice! Photo by K. Lindsay, Jun '13

Please help spread the word – like these expressive, and considerate, Fremonsters have!  The 25^th Fremont Arts Council Solstice Parade will take place next Saturday, June 22^nd at 3p.

The 2013 Parade promises to have plenty to see and talk about for months to come!  Do not miss this massive celebration of summer, the solstice and art in all its color, creativity and chaos!

For more information – and to donate – visit the Fremont Arts Council website.

Residential street closures, like this one in East Fremont, give neighbors a chance to gather for block parties on 'Neighborhood Night Out', in 2013 on August 6th. Photo by K. Lindsay, Aug '12

The Seattle Department of Neighborhoods has Small Sparks Funds available for producers/organizers of neighborhood-based ‘Neighborhood Night Out’ events to be held August 6^th.  The annual ‘Night Out’ program is designed to heighten crime prevention by giving neighbors a chance to meet – and talk – through local, social activities.

The Department of Neighborhoods wants to help organizers pay for events for their blocks, or neighborhoods, through its Small Sparks Fund.  This fund, available all year long, provides matching dollars for neighborhood-initiated projects that promote community engagement.  Community groups can request up to $1000 to fund ‘Night Out’ planning and activities including public concerts, bike parades, neighborhood clean-ups, informational fairs, etc.

The deadline for the Small Sparks Fund applications is July 8^th, but groups must register to apply by July 1^st.  For more information on Small Sparks, and the application process, go online or call 206/733-9916.  For more information on ‘Neighborhood Night Out,’ visit the Seattle Police Department website.

Two more Community Block Parties are scheduled for July 20^th (also in the B.F. Day Upper Playfield,) and August 17^th (location to be announced.)

The Hallows Church also will host its first kids’ summer camp, called Play Dayz, for July 18^th – 20^th.  The recreational camp will accept children ages 5 – 12 years old, and will take place in the B.F. Day Upper Playfield.  For more information, or to reserve a space, contact info@hallowschurch.org or 206/428-7644.

In addition, the couples can take a ‘Fan Favorite Award’ based on audience votes – so please consider voting during the competition at the South Lake Union street fair, ‘Art On The Fly.’  This dance and music celebration also kicks-off a two week Seattle International Dance Festival.

Tommy Smith's 'Lotus Eaters (EP)' has a limited run (June 18th - 20th) at West Of Lenin.

The always provocative West of Lenin welcomes back a favorite playwright – with a very unusual, hallucinatory work. For three nights only (June 18th – 20th,) in a new upstairs studio space, limited audiences can experience Tommy Smith’s multimedia piece, ‘Lotus Eaters (EP)’. This dark and intense treat features the music of Reggie Watts and the voices of Neil Gaiman, Reed Birney, Mary Jane Gibson and Marin Ireland. Smith, the author of ‘White Hot’ and ‘Demon Dreams’, has said of ‘Lotus Eaters (EP)’, which he wrote and directed, “You have two responsibilities, the first is to watch or close your eyes. The second is to listen.” This audio-fueled, ‘extended play’ explores loneliness, depravity, and the intrinsic failure of all human contact. Purchase tickets for one of the three 50-minute journeys into the dark depths of human consciousness through Brown Paper Tickets.

FREE paint (in white, brown, or gray) will be supplied by the City of Seattle, along with rollers, brushes, scrapers, and gloves.  Sign up today on-line, or e-mail daniel.sims@seattle.gov or 206/684-7790.

A John Nordstrand production, this concert series benefits from the sponsorship of a community grant from the Fremont Chamber of Commerce.  This free series also depend upon generous donations from other community supporters.  For 2013, these donors so far include B.F. Day Elementary School, Milstead & Co, Blue Moon Burgers, FreeRange Cycles, Fremont Brewing Co, Peter Glick Restaurants, The Ballroom, PCC Natural Markets, U-Park System, Brown Bear Car Wash, Nancy Nordstrand Design, Cougar Mountain Productions, Standing Stone, KBCS 91.3 FM, Union Bank, Theo Chocolate, Kylie’s Chicago Pizza, 4Culture King County, El Camino, City of Seattle, Fremont Dock Co, Starbucks Fremont, The UPS Store, Victory Music, and Homegrown.

For more information on the concert series, and the artists still to come, see the website or the Facebook page.  For more information about donating to this series, contact john@historyhouse.org or 206/675-8875.

The Seattle City Council and the Mayor have begun the process to build a new SPD North Precinct on a new site. Photo of the existing North Precinct by K. Lindsay, Jan '10

The existing Seattle Police Department North Precinct is slated for replacement.

In 2012, in the budget process, Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn proposed funding planning for land acquisition as part of the 2013 budget, and purchase of the land in 2014.  The Seattle City Council agreed, and accelerated the schedule to have acquisition done this year.

Work has already begun to find and purchase a new site by December, as well as selecting architecture and engineering teams for pre-design.

The existing North Precinct was built in 1984 to house 154 staff people.  The current staff numbers 254.  Officially statements report that the current site does not have adequate space for expansion.  Other, non-official reports, have mentioned a slow sinking of the current North Precinct building, built on wetlands.

More information on this project, and on any future public meetings, can be found on-line.