Columbia Citizens

There have been a few grass roots neighbors spearheading this project. (Hurray, Marin, and the others!) Is there a webpage that is devoted to this project specifically? If so, please point me there.

If not, can this forum post be that?

There is a second community meeting coming up. Here are the details for that, which I got from Dylan's post to the Hillman City Yahoo Group.

Pomegranate Columbia City / Hillman City Gateway Project
Neighborhood Meeting
Tuesday, October 23rd
6:30-8:30pm
Whitworth Elementary School
5215 46th Ave South

Snacks & Childcare available

This is the second community meeting to plan a gathering/art/connection
space to bridge the two neighborhoods. All are welcome!

This project is organized through the Pomegranate Center:
http://www.pomegranate.org

As one member of the Hillman City list attested after the last
meeting: It should be fun!

Hope to see you!

(The notes below were just passed along to me. I did not write this. Thanks to the person who did!) - Jenn

Meeting Notes from Sep 25 ad Sep 30, 2007:

Join in the fun! We will be clarifying the ideas that were brainstormed at the last community meeting. The Pomegranate Center will help us hone our collective thinking into a clear strong idea that will be “feasible, creative, and reflect our values. Help us figure out what that is. See you at the Whitworth School.

Below is a smattering of the ideas shared at Community Meeting on Sept. 30, 2007.

Traffic/Pedestrian Safety

1. Rumble strips @ crosswalks
2. Green-ing the street
3. Making rainier more walkable (art, structure, inviting to children)
4. Hand-touched & lit bus stops
5. Curb cuts @ 90degrees
6. Slow traffic down
7. Repetition, safety culture
8. Bike lane on rainier
9. Partner with road reconstruction (re-striping)
10. Widen sidewalks and slow traffic

Honoring Diversity

1. Design that requires participation of diverse groups
2. Faces & people of everyday
3. Make neighborhood stories more visible – daylight faces)

Interactive

1. Kinetic crosswalk
2. Inlaid mile markers w/ walking map
3. Meandering impact
4. Inlaid pavement stories
5. Treasure hunt a long rainier
6. Lights, storytelling , sound
7. Repetitions, performance art
8. Evolving, changing, living artwork
9. Physical space connections (pushpins)
10. Interactive, replay / focal points on rainier
11. Inter-gathering place communication (fire)

Identity Distinction

1. Permeable boundary between Hillman & Columbia city
2. Signs that orient people to their community
3. Repetition, safety culture
4. Zipper (pulling apart & joining)
5. Annual match up

Connecting 2 Neighborhoods

1. Inlaid mile markers w/ walking map
2. Continuing of banners for Columbia to Hillman
3. Series of gathering places
4. Rest area between Hillman & Columbia
5. Glowing orbs along rainier
6. Light totem artwork
7. Zipper (pulling apart & joining)
8. Series of youth art installations (high quality)
9. Inlaid pavement stories
10. Treasure hunt a long rainier
11. Meet me at the (identity piece)
12. Light element as art
13. Gateway joining neighborhoods
14. Banner that spans Rainier
15. Annual match up
16. Focus on area between Hudson /Brandon
17. Permeable boundary between Hillman & Columbia city
18. Signs that orient people to their community

Inclusiveness

1. Faces & people of everyday
2. Series of youth art installations (high quality)
3. Repetition embracing drivers and pedestrians
4. Symbolic visual message

Landmark

1. Banner that spans Rainier
2. Signs that orient people to their community
3. Restore Hillman city fountain (Orcas & Rainier)
4. Meet me at the (identity piece)

Honor History

1. Restore Hillman city fountain (Orcas & Rainier)
2. Daylight historic brick crosswalks

Alternative Transportation

1. Bus shelters, benches, bike path & flex car
2. Free bikes with space /racks
3. Bike lane on rainier

Urban Nature

1. Green-ing the street
2. Flowering plants off posts (plants that attract wildlife)

Evolution/ Transformation/ Flexibility

1. Evolving, changing, living artwork

Collaboration

1. Partnerships with storeowners and occupants of Rainier
2. Encouragement for store owners to beautify streets

Beautification

1. Beautification /maintenance along rainier

The next Meeting: October 23, 2007.

Here's a wiki page to get the word out a bit more: http://columbiacitizens.net/gateway-project

I am told that there will be signs near the entrance of Whitworth School which is on 46th, more signs leading you up the stairs, then left down the hall, up some more stairs and left again a few doors to the 3rd floor Library.

Nov. 6th : 6-8pm @ SEED, 5117 Rainier Ave S - Planning Group Meeting
Review 2nd Community Meeting experience/process/list of proposals generated.

Dec 4th : 6-8pm @ SEED, 5117 Rainier Ave S - Planning Group Meeting:
Plan Community Design Workshop / Charrette.

All interested parties are welcome to attend, even if you are not in the Planning Group.

"Project seeks to unite Columbia and Hillman City neighborhoods"
in the Beacon Hill News & South District Journal
By Josh Sabrowsky
10/31/2007

In many ways, Columbia City and Hillman City exist as two unique and autonomous communities - bridged only by the lone road that connects them. Rainier Avenue South functions as the most convenient link between the two areas, yet community members are still hesitant to traverse the roadway on foot.

Read more at the Beacon Hill News & South District Journal online.

Slow the traffic down.

Continuous street trees all down Rainier, and maybe box planters in the parking strip to give a feeling of some shelter from the traffic.

Slow the traffic down.

A neighborhood circulator shuttle bus from the light rail station to downtown Columbia City, Hillman City and Seward Park

How will the new developments make the street better? I hear concern about this. Maybe the Pomegranate folks could reach out to the developers and help influence their plans?

Street crossings like City Repair in Portland:
http://www.cityrepair.org/ir.html

How can the new transitional housing be made to feel less intimidating than it obviously does to some folks?

Is there some way to extend Beat Walk down the street? Is there a space for an outdoor stage somewhere?

Something with lights, lighting the way — maybe using solar lunar-resonant street lights (the kind that only come on when the night is dark, and stay dim when the moon is out)?

Create an annual neighborhood block party that shuts down Rainier and spans Hillman and Columbia Cities.

Widen the sidewalks

Add crosswalks and stoplights

Add street parking

Add a bike lane

Slow the traffic down! (which is really the biggest part of all this, I think. This is the elephant in the room — it's pretty unpleasant to walk on Rainier when the traffic's tearing by at 20 miles over the speed limit).

Summary of the Nov 6 meeting (from Bree)

The goal: To synthesize all the findings from earlier meetings and identify a preferred approach.

Guiding Principles – reviewed the project criteria and explained how the values expressed by the community members should mold the final approach.

Refine Project Criteria - talked about the importance of defining short-term vs. long-term impact, originality vs. familiarity, and quirky vs. elegant design in addition to the guiding principles so that an early success could be achieved.

Review of Proposals that Emerged from Community Meetings - discussed the ideas that had emerged from previous meetings and challenged the steering group to brainstorm around these proposals. Encouraged the group to visualize specific concepts that would build on these suggestions instead of creating new ideas.

The two ideas that were presented were:

1. Dr. Suess Plant: an imaginary, created plant that would reside at 42nd and Rainier (the geographic middle of the project). Remnants of it could be scattered throughout Columbia and Hillman cities in some of the following ways:
   • Reflector pods stuck on buildings, bus stops, etc
   • Inlaid pods/shapes in the sidewalks
   • Other elements that could be incorporated
2. Alternative Powered Tree: a structure that would resemble a real tree featuring the following qualities:
   • Metal armature (pristine or recycled)
   • Lights (solar panels/leaves)
   • Interactive/kinetic elements

The concept of a zipper has been intriguing in these meetings:
- Imagine Rainier Avenue as a zipper.
- It connects the communities, block after block, all along it's length.
- It pulls the 2 sides (east and west) together.
- Conversely, it sometimes separates them.

The main page is now here:
http://columbiacitizens.net/gateway:welcome