The Mayor's Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs is teaming up with the Department of Neighborhoods to invite Seattle students, kindergarten through 12th grade, to submit original artwork for a contest as part of Neighbor Appreciation Day. Feb. 7, 2009 will mark the city's 15th annual celebration of the event.

The winning artwork will adorn the 2009 Neighbor Appreciation Day greeting card. Free cards—perfect for recognizing the contributions of your neighbors—will be available at City Hall, neighborhood service centers, community centers and libraries throughout Seattle. The winner will receive $100.

The artwork should depict caring and active neighbors, reflecting the theme of Neighbor Appreciation Day. Past artwork has shown neighbors sharing meals; exchanging plants; and working together on a community project, such as building a new playground, painting a mural, or beautifying school or park grounds.

Art should be submitted on 8 1/2" x 11" paper. It is recommended that art be vivid in color. Pieces done in watercolor or magic marker tend to show better, but all formats are welcome. Student artwork must be received by 5 p.m., Friday, Dec. 19 at the Department of Neighborhoods. For more information, contact Peter McGraw vog.elttaes|warGcM.reteP#vog.elttaes|warGcM.reteP , (206) 615-0950.

Peggy, a Southerner, calls Columbia City a cute little area in South Seattle, gets gobsmacked by the smells and flavors coming from Jones BBQ, is reduced to drooling, gets weak in the knees, shrieks when she discovers that they've got "fried freaking okra!", and introduces major girlfriend/boyfriend tension.

I'm not a Southerner, haven't had fried okra, and haven't eaten at the new Jones. How can I make my amends?

So I read that Amazon.com has a home grocery delivery service, AmazonFresh. They serve Columbia City now. Orders over $25 get free delivery.

Has anyone tried AmazonFresh? What's the experience like? How's Safeway or the other on-line grocers compare? Note that I'm not asking about C.S.A.s.

This could be a better solution for some than the 10-mile round-trip to the E Madison ST. Trader Joe's.

This performance will feature Red Eagle Soaring, International Capoeira Angola Foundation, Abráce, Global Heat & Adefua Cultural Education Workshop. See all of the 2008 Arts Gumbo events at the SEEDArts website.

For more information about the 2008 Arts Gumbo Series, please contact Jerri Plumridge at (206) 760-9846.

While comments are mostly static, almost all pages are available for your input. Take a look around. What's missing? What could you improve? What would you like to share?

Here's a brief how-to. If you need help, just ask.

Thanks to Johnny U for pointing out a spot that's been right under our noses for years. If you've got that hunter-gatherer urge and blackberries are your quarry, then this is for you.

The alley running E-W, between Edmunds and Ferdinand, 42nd and 39th — it's flanked by two solid rows of large, ripe blackberries. It's just the right mix of sunny, watered, overgrown, and public!

In less than an hour, the boys and I picked a couple gallons (net).

You can post that feedback here, or email me via the Wiki software by clicking on my name.

Thanks so much!

Over the past year, many people have participated in this experiment in community building, the wiki. It's time for a wider discussion to share ideas and impressions.

Let's get together and talk about the future of the wiki.

Where: The Alehouse
When: Monday, August 18, 7pm

n.b. laptops and libations don't mix. Leave yours at home.

There are so many angles, so let's make this a free-form discussion. Here are a few questions to think about beforehand.

• What do you want to do with Columbia Citizens?
• What's working? What could work better?
• What's motivated you to participate so far?
  • What would make the experience more fun?
  • What might motivate other neighbors?

In the meantime, here are some numbers.

• ~4000 monthly visits
• ~12 000 monthly pageviews
• ~30 comments per week
• ~270 total pages
• ~440 subscribers to Wikli alerts
• ~75 Citizen members

If you have ideas or questions you'd like to share, please use this comment thread. If this conversation is something folks enjoy, then maybe we can have it more regularly.

Dear Community Friends,

Light Rail Testing
As reported in this morning’s Seattle Times, Sound Transit will begin testing link light-rail trains in Rainier Valley on Thursday August 14, adding a new to the traffic on Martin Luther King Jr. Way South. The trains will share streets with cars, buses, motorcycles, bicyclists and pedestrians.

The Light Rail tracks pass through 18 intersections and 10 pedestrian signals, plus three stations in the median. Trains will run as often as every six minutes in each direction, at a top speed of 35 mph. Although engineers have designed state-of-the-art signals and walkways, the sheer volume of activity makes this a hazardous five miles.

Left turns from MLK are allowed only on left-turn arrows, to reduce conflicts with trains going straight. Electronic signs show a train icon whenever trains are approaching. There are several "Z-crossings," where short fences channel pedestrians and force them to look in the direction of approaching trains. There are refuge islands in the median where people can stand, if they can only make it halfway.

Safety During Testing and Operation of Light Rail
With light rail testing and the start of service in the summer of 2009, Sound Transit has launched a safety education and awareness campaign for community members and students. To spread the safety message, Sound Transit has bought billboard space, talked with school and community groups, and hung fluorescent warning signs at crossings. Safety brochures have been produced in 12 languages. A light rail safety brochure should have already arrived in your mailbox. The light rail safety education is designed to:
• Bring awareness that light rail trains are quiet, so people should always be alert and look both ways before crossing the street
• Explain the function of the overhead electric power lines, called OCS (overhead catenary system)
• Demonstrate safe pedestrian behavior and light rail crossing safety signs and signals
• Inform the public about safe pedestrian and driving habits and signals.

The key safety messages that Sound Transit wants to impart for South Seattle residents are:
 Link light rail trains move faster than they appear and can’t stop as quickly as a car: cross only at designated crosswalks
 Trains have the right-of-way; obey all signals and warning signs
 Trains are quiet; always look both ways
 Tracks are for trains; never walk or play around trains or tracks

The Sound Transit community outreach team is also available to speak to small or large groups. Please call Carol Doering at 206-398-5095 to schedule a time, day or evening. You may also email her at gro.tisnartdnuos|gnireod.lorac#gro.tisnartdnuos|gnireod.lorac. You can also call and/or email to get the safety brochures in the various languages.

Why Traffic Safety Information is in a Police Department Newsletter
We want to give you information that is pertinent to community public safety, not just crime related information. Nothing is more important than the safety of the members of our community. So, if it means we advise you regarding traffic issues so we can raise awareness and hopefully prevent accidents or fatalities, seems like a good use of ink for us.

Until next time, Take Care and Stay Safe!

Mark Solomon, South Precinct Crime Prevention Coordinator

Columbia Citizens have come to the wiki by the thousands. Having found it, some are scratching their heads, wondering what's this all about?

Photo by dadsmonkeyshine
More images in the Citizens' gallery
Add yours!

This site is about life as we know it in Columbia City, Seattle. Like many good things here, you and your neighbors get to pitch in and help make it work. It's about connecting, sharing information, and making good ideas happen in our community.

Columbia Citizens can make stuff happen. The wiki is a space to work together. It's a way to get the word out. It's a venue to have a public discussion. You can learn about your place and its people. It is what you bring to it — and you're welcome to share what you know and care about in Columbia City.

Twelfth Night

Playing at Seward Park on Friday, August 15 at 7pm, and Saturday, August 16 at 3pm

The Seattle Weekly called Twelfth Night, “A charming production with an excellent cast.”

Hamlet

With Shawn Law in the title role. Playing at Volunteer Park on Friday at 7 pm, and Saturday at Seward Park at 7pm.

The Seattle Times says “Shawn Law makes the role his own with such zest and intensity that resistance is futile.”

GreenStage's mission is to inspire our audience to engage with live theater as part of their recreation.

Our neighborhood committee of the Landmarks Preservation Board meets on Friday afternoon. The link to the agenda is at right. Note the change in venue — this time they're meeting at the Royal Esquire Club.

Retroactive Kids' signage… Rainier Valley Historical Society facade upgrades…

The third item is a briefing on demolition of a house at 3834 S Edmunds St, to make way for a triplex designed by Pb Elemental.

When I first came across the plea for donations, I bristled at the idea of helping out somebody who, judging from his arrest record was some kind of thug. But the RVP's editor got it right, responding to a comment which made the same point:

I'm not sure whether Pierre had an arrest record or not, but where I come from, a person's life isn't defined by some poor decisions and poor decisions don't make anyone - especially a child - unworthy of a proper burial.

Only good can come from citizens of the Valley circling the wagons and helping their own.

Dear Community Friends,

When we send out our informational newsletters and alert bulletins, we want to keep you up to date regarding significant events that impact the residents of the South Precinct. We want to give you a complete picture, not just one that scares you, spurs you in to action or pats us on the back. To that end, we wanted to alert you regarding some significant events that occurred over the past 24 hours.

Significant Events
At approximately 10:30pm on Tuesday August 5th, Seattle Police officers responded to call of someone having been shot at Rainier Avenue S. and S. Graham St. Upon arriving to the scene, our officers found a 15-year old victim lying on the sidewalk on the 6300 Block of Rainier Ave S. He had a single gunshot wound to the lower torso. We located witnesses that were with the victim when he was shot.

Although it uncertain what exactly occurred, we believe the victim, who had a known history of gang and criminal involvement, was confronted by a group of individuals as he was walking home with the witnesses. Supposedly nothing was said and there were no warnings. A single shot was fired and struck the victim. The suspects then fled in an unknown direction. The witnesses were running when the shot was fired and, either did not see, or would not tell us what they saw. The 15-year-old victim died as a result of his injuries. The Seattle Police Gang Unit initially responded but turned the scene over to the Homicide Unit.

Later in the evening, just after midnight, a number of calls came in to 911 regarding shots fired in the area of Othello Park. Upon arriving, officers located a victim who had been shot through the upper thigh and a car that he was using for cover had numerous bullet holes in it. Officers learned that the victim and a friend had been at a local convenience store where they saw a group of males starting to assault a woman. The shooting victim apparently knew the assailants. When he and his friend came to the aid of the woman, the males voiced their anger at the intervention. Not long after this confrontation, this same group of males walked by the victim’s residence, stood across the street from his home and fired several shots, striking the victim and the vehicle. The suspects fled. The victim was transported to Harborview Medical Center for treatment. Gang Unit detectives processed the crime scene and recovered 45-calibre shell casings and spent rounds.

Night Out 2008
It may seem incongruent to talk about Night Out Against Crime in the face of the tragic incidents mentioned above. But while these tragic incidents were happening, neighbors from all over the city were coming together. There were over 1000 registered Night Out events throughout the city - the most we have seen in the 25-year history of the Night Out Against Crime. The South Precinct area had 115 registered Night Out events – also the most ever had recorded. Police officers and Firefighters appreciated the warm welcome and hospitality as they tried to stop in at as many events as they could. Whether the group was an long-time established block watch, or just got together for the first time, the important thing was seeing neighbors connecting with neighbors and commit to each other to reduce crime and violence in their neighborhoods.

In looking at these and other incidents that happened on the same day as Night Out, neighbors coming together to support each other is more important than ever.

Until next time, Take Care and Stay Safe!
Mark Solomon, South Precinct Crime Prevention Coordinator