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Notes from LFP City Council candidate forum

Friday, October 18, 2019

Candidates on the stage, from left Lorri Bodi (standing), Catherine Stanford,
Phillippa Kassover, Tom French, Tracy Furutani. At the podium is LWV
moderator Amanda Clark
Photo by Mike Remarcke


On Tuesday, October 15, 2019 Third Place Commons held a forum with candidates for Mayor and City Council. Around 110 people came to hear what they had to say. The moderator, Amanda Clark, and timekeeper were from the Mercer Island League of Women Voters.

City of Lake Forest Park, Mayor
Jeff Johnson - incumbent, unopposed
City of Lake Forest Park, Council Position 2
Catherine Stanford - incumbent
Lorri Bodi - challenger
City of Lake Forest Park, Council Position 4
Phillippa Kassover - incumbent
Brett Newsham - no show
City of Lake Forest Park, Council Position 6
Tom French - incumbent
Tracy Furutani - challenger

Mayor Johnson is running unopposed, so he gave a report and left the stage to the council candidates. Brett Newsham, who filed against Phillippa Kassover, was a no-show.

Mayor Johnson said that when he won a tough election for Mayor eight years ago, he thought he knew everything. The reality is very different and he appreciates the opportunity to spend four more years in the office. The city is doing well. This is an important election. This council will be dealing with big issues, including decisions for mall and parking garage.

Attendees browsed the tables of information before the forum.
Photo by Mike Remarcke


Position #2

Catherine Stanford appreciates that LFP is different. She said that we have the challenge of being a small city in the middle of the fastest growing area in the county and we need to accept the challenge. Her strengths are her experience with council and community and relationships outside of the city.

Lorri Bodi said it's time for a change. We need a new voice on the council. She was an environmental attorney for NOAA. She has worked with the PTA, and in her job negotiated with state and local agencies and tribes on water and stormwater issues. She can manage budgets and negotiate. She said that the city process has been complicated and hard to follow.

Position #4

Phillippa Kassover talked about finding LFP over 12 years ago and how happy she is with a community full of smart, engaged people. As a councilmember she reads, researches and asks the tough questions. She said that council needs to do better to help people learn what we do.

Position #6

Tom French has lived in LFP for 50 years. He went to Brookside, Kellogg, and Shorecrest. He said that growth needs to be in line with our values. He would accept 150-200 apartments at Town Center. He strongly supported the September moratorium. His priority is public safety for pedestrians and bicyclists and he advocated for the first new sidewalk in LFP. He is a champion for the environment and the values of LFP.

Tracy Furutani filed in part because feels that races should be opposed. He is most concerned about the climate crisis and thinks solutions should start at the municipal level, that they will percolate up to state and federal levels. How can we preserve what we have for our kids in the future?

Question: In the redevelopment of Town Center how would you protect Third Place Commons (TPC)?

Tom: we need to talk to Merlone Geier Partners (MGP). If that doesn't work, the community needs to step up.

Tracy: we don't want to alienate MGP - they could just walk away. The city buying the land is the only way to have what we want. Otherwise we have to negotiate carefully.

Phillippa: we have a partnership with MGP and need to work together to preserve TPC.

Catherine: I will fight to keep The Commons and the farmers market in LFP. She was instrumental in getting the market started.

Lorri: The Commons keeps our community unique. MGP should be our first effort. The agreement says that MGP has to provide 10,000 ft of indoor and 10,000 ft of outdoor space.

From left: Lorri Bodi, Phillippa Kassover, Tom French,
Tracy Furutani. Out of frame, Catherine Stanford.
Photo by Mike Remarcke


Question: PSRC recently reclassified LFP as a Small to High Capacity Transit City. Do you support this reclassification?

Lorri: We are doing a good job of meeting the GMA (Growth Management Act) objectives for 2035. There are opportunities to do more over time so we can grow in balance and in scale with our values.

Catherine: She doesn't support LFP being a high capacity city. LFP was put in that category because of the Bus Rapid Transit. She's on the PSRC Executive Board and will tell them what we will tolerate.

Phillippa: We are the culmination of two watersheds and sitting on an aquifer. We are the last remaining urban forest in the area. These sensitive areas can't tolerate much more growth.

Tracy: No. He said he's horrified that we were put in that category.

Tom: He agrees with all of Vision 2050 from PSRC. Bothell Way has capacity for growth.

Question: What are your plans for keeping small businesses in the area, particularly Town Center?

Phillippa: MGP is the landlord. We don't control what goes on here. We need to build a good relationship and partner with MGP to encourage them to bring in the businesses we want.

Catherine: We need to keep the small businesses and encourage more. Council discusses it a lot. Small businesses have challenges and struggle.

Lorri: Town Center is the community hub and so much more. The City needs to make its expectations very clear and not be a pushover when it comes to our values.

Tom: We need to work with MGP and as a community to incentivize the small businesses. We created zoning to allow specific businesses in a special area, which creates walkability.

Tracy: Businesses need to pay for licensing and B/O taxes. We need to look into the city regulations and make them less onerous.

Question: The environmental impact statement was flawed and driven by development interest. Comment.

Tom: the DEIS (Draft Environmental Impact Statement) needs to be reflective of our values. It's critical to adhere to the vision statement. We need more conversations with the public.

Tracy: The council needs to communicate what's going on with the process.

Phillippa: For the DEIS the developer asked the consultant for studies of 1500, 1000, and 700 new apartments. There was no other input so that's what they studied.

Catherine: The DEIS was a shock to everyone. We don't have to listen to the consultant. The Planning Commission makes recommendations and the council decides.

Lorri: The DEIS process was seriously flawed. There should have been some direction from mayor and council and a wider range of options studied. The "no change" option was for 700 units.

110 people attended the forum
Photo by Mike Remarcke


Question: Would you support a parks bond to improve parks and acquire more land?

Catherine: I would support one if other groups would partner, as was done with 5 Acre Woods.

Lorri: We are Lake Forest Park with no access to the lake and few parks. She wants to expand and improve parks but would explore other options before going to a bond issue.

Phillippa: We are underserved for families and it's a tragedy that we have no lake access. A bond is premature. We need to study and seek outside funding.

Tom: we opened a fund for open space and trails. A bond issue is on the table but we don't want to shortchange public safety and other priorities.

Tracy: Bonds are expensive and have to be paid back. More parks would require staff to maintain them. Can't rely on volunteers only. We have to make sure we can maintain what we acquire.

Question: You want a walkable city but our streets are unwalkable and very dangerous. Would you put in sidewalks?

Tracy: Sidewalks are needed but we have to prioritize. Need to find outside money. And would we take people's property?

Tom: Need to separate traffic from where people walk. As the region grows there will be more traffic and people need to be safe.

Phillippa: the Safe Streets study was very revealing. Safe routes to school need to be the highest priority. We need to set our priorities and work on a long term funding plan.

Lorri: When the transit stations open we will have people driving through LFP to get there. We need to find funding sources and do what we can, like lower the speed limits.

Catherine: The council included Safe Streets as one of the Big 5 projects. There's a list of priorities but these are expensive issues. Safe routes to school is the first priority.

Question: What would you do to improve communication with citizens?

Incumbent councilmembers pointed out that they cannot speak for the council until a vote is taken, only for themselves. The City Administration is different and council doesn't control it. The city has no communication department - they were let go in the downturn and have not been replaced. They need to have a communications strategy and staff it. Perhaps hold quarterly town meetings.

Challengers mentioned Seattle's Office of Neighborhoods, office hours for councilmembers, meetings with neighbors and community.

Question: What does our city do to meet the climate challenge?

Phillippa: The city joined the C4C - Caring for Climate organization which helps municipal leaders take steps on climate action. We need to look at the city's carbon footprint, take steps to reduce it, then reach out to everyone to do the same.

Tracy: The C4C has assessable, measurable goals. We can create ordinances about zoning, better building practices, and reducing our carbon footprint.

Tom: Our tree canopy has actually increased a bit in in the last few years. We need to work as a community to reduce our footprint.

Lorri: We can use examples from other cities - change building codes, use alternate energy like solar cells.

Catherine: We have tree ordinances that protect our canopy. Trees pull carbon out of the air. Automobiles create the most carbon and Sound Transit and public transit will get people out of their cars. We have set backs from our streams.

Ballots have been mailed out and are due back by November 5. There is a drop box for ballots by City Hall and no postage is required to mail in ballots.




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Parker's leveled to the ground - grand history a pile of splinters

Sunday, November 18, 2012


After the demolition equipment, Parker's is a pile of rubble
Photo by Steven H. Robinson

The venerable Parker's Ballroom, home to Seattle's rock and roll history, was recently leveled to the ground. Most recently a sports bar, Parker's had a glorious past as one of the homes to early Seattle rock and roll.


By Peter Blecha, June 05, 2002


Parker's Ballroom

Seattle’s venerable Parker's Ballroom (which opened in 1930 on the "New Seattle-Everett Highway," now known as Aurora Avenue N) held a unique place in Northwest music history. Like a few other local dancehalls, it spanned all of the sequential musical era’s from the wild jazz days of the Prohibition Era right on up through the forties swing scene, from the rise of rock ‘n’ roll in the fifties, to the psychedelic sixties, and onwards to the heavy metal, disco, and punk rock scenes of the seventies. Unlike most other historic dancehalls, Parker’s survived into the twenty-first century before being demolished in 2012.

A Remarkable Architectural Marvel

The roadhouse was founded by its namesake, Dick Parker (d. 1940), a meatpacker by trade, who purposefully limited his search for a building site to those located just outside of Seattle’s northern city limits (then drawn at 85th Street). This was in an effort to escape various harsh city ordinances that restricted public dancing and other nightlife activities. In the end Parker acquired a 5-acre plot at 170th Street on the "New Seattle-Everett Highway" and in 1929 construction got underway.

Parker's self-built hall was some sort of a remarkable architectural marvel: the thing was basically a 20,000 square foot wide-open dance floor with absolutely no posts obstructing. When Dick Parker's Pavilion opened for business in 1930, they kicked off a long streak of booking popular local acts (including Putt Anderson & his Dixieland Band, and orchestras led by Frankie Roth, Burke Garrett, and Max Pillar) and a number of national stars as Tommy Dorsey’s, Guy Lombardo’s, and Jan Garber's orchestras.

With alcohol Prohibition still in effect and the Great Depression dragging the economy down, times were so tough that by 1932 Parker had resorted to advertising his dancehall as “Dick Parker’s Roller Rink” in order to attract a different clientele -- skaters. Sometime after Parker passed on in 1940 (and with his wife Dodie following soon thereafter) the hall was inherited by family and one sister, Kelma Shoemaker, took over as manager.

Seattle's Segregated Music Scene

The years went by and the big-band dances continued, but by the mid-fifties a younger crowd was developing an interest in the new rockin’ R&B sounds that were gaining momentum. Although Seattle had a couple pioneering R&B acts active at the time, they were not being booked at Parker’s nor at other major halls. The main reason being: This was still a day and age when the town was saddled with two different -- and racially segregated -- musicians unions, each of which had their turf well marked. The bigger, and white, union (AFM No. 76) claimed the lucrative downtown hotels and ballrooms and north-end rooms while the other, black, union (AFM No. 493) necessarily settled for the nightclubs in the central city and the strip of rooms south of downtown spread along Jackson Street.

Times were changing though -- and in fact the two unions finally merged in 1956 -- but not without a few skirmishes. It was that year that KCPQ-TV (Channel 13) decided to produce a new teen-dance show, Rock 'n' Roll Party. The problem was, they’d chosen a black band (Billy Tolles & the Vibrators) as the program’s host band and they wanted to broadcast it live from Parker's -- a room that was traditionally within AFM No. 76’s “zone.”

The late Dave Lewis, another local black bandleader, once recalled that Parker’s also wanted to hire his combo for some shows, but the white union balked and pointedly reminded the hall’s management that the north-end was still their area and that the booking of black acts there just couldn’t be allowed without risking the mounting of a boycott picket-line. Parker’s brave reply was nonnegotiable: Either the union would overlook their hiring of Billy Tolles’ group and the Dave Lewis Combo or the hall would never hire local white musicians to perform there again. To Lewis’ recollections, accommodations were suddenly made and a new era began with the Rock ‘n’ Roll Party.

One Legendary Night

Meanwhile the top white teen band in town, the Frantics, became the first combo to sign a recording contract with the new local label, Dolton Records. Dolton had just gotten off to a remarkable start by issuing a No. 1 national hit by the Olympia-based teen vocal trio, the Fleetwoods. Then the label signed the Frantics (who also cut a few 45s that became national hits) and began booking the two acts together at live shows – including one legendary night at Parker’s. It was on February 21, 1959, that the Fleetwoods and Frantics both performed there as opening acts for a visiting star, Bobby Darin. And, in fact, the Frantics were actually hired to play with Darin who came out west without a band. The Frantics’ bassist, Jim Manolides, once recalled that:

“We got this job at Parker's on a Sunday night. We knew for several weeks that we got this big gig coming so we already knew his [hit] songs -- “Splish Splash,” “Plain Jane,” “Queen Of The Hop” -- but in this case we learned both sides of all his records! So, he brings his own piano player with him, Dick Berke, and we play Parker’s. He loved it! He was just thrilled! The place was packed! There were 1200 people. And after he does his little show he came and joined the band! He sang Ray Charles' "I've Got A Woman" with us and then he started playin' the piano a little bit and he was singin' -- and playin' the drums! He just loved it and had a really good time” (Interview).

Jerry Lee's Dance Shoes

By that point Parker's Ballroom was the hottest dancehall around, but then something occurred that caused the hall to suddenly ban rock 'n' roll shows outright. The last straw for management was the night that that Jerry Lee Lewis performed there. Besides whipping the crowd into a riotous frenzy, the maniacal Lewis also had the poor judgment to leap upon the house's new piano (as per his usual live routine) to dance. Well, so the story goes, Mrs. Shoemaker rushed out on the stage mid-song driving the rockabilly wildman down with a broom and publicly scolding him for scratching her instrument with his shoes.

As a direct result of that incident the management swore that there would henceforth be no more rock 'n' roll dances at Parker’s. This turn of events was a sore loss to area teens, but after a year passed one ambitious young band, the Viceroys, somehow convinced the house that their crowd was well-behaved and around late 1960 they were given one shot. The Viceroys -- and an audience that apparently understood what all was at stake -- managed to successfully pull off a dance that went without any untoward altercations. Rock 'n' roll was back to stay at Parker’s.

For years (after Prohibition ended in 1934) Parker’s existed as “bottle club” whereby customers brought in their own booze (kept in a brown paper bag under their tables) and the house sold them “set-ups” -- a glass half-full of ice and perhaps some mixer. This arrangement was the legally prescribed way of running a club right up until 1961 when political leaders (in anticipation of the throngs of visitors expected to attend the upcoming 1962 World’s Fair) loosened a number of overly-restrictive old laws pertaining to nightlife, including strict noise ordinances and rules for liquor establishments. As a result, Parker’s was among the many local rooms that were finally free to sell beer and/or other alcoholic beverages.

Teen-Dances of the Sixties

Around that same time, Parker’s and Shoemaker’s nephews, Vern Amondson and Skip Horn, took over management and teen-dances became a weekend staple there for years. Many nights saw crowds in excess of 1,000 show up to dance to hit acts like the Beach Boys and Them (w/ Van Morrison).

But mainly, it was the Northwest stars like Paul Revere & the Raiders, the Kingsmen, the Sonics, and the Wailers who fueled so many dances there over the years. But it was another local combo, the Dynamics, who were the hottest draw at the hall and after recording a gig there, the resultant The Dynamics with Jimmy Hanna LP was issued in 1964 to great success. The album’s liner notes (as penned by label head, Tom Ogilvy) accurately noted the band’s significant influence on locals:

“If you were at Parkers’ Ballroom in Seattle recently, then you witnessed a new trend. The Dynamics were present and smokin’ with a big band sound. This has become a regular event for various kinds of fans whether they be listeners, members of other musical groups or just people who like to burn by knee-poppin’ across the dance floor.”
The Dynamics were a genuine phenomena, their LP became an essential in the record collection of every fan of the horn-driven “Northwest Sound,” and Parker’s Ballroom became solidified as the center of the north-end’s teen-dance action.

From the Sixties to Psychedelic

As the years went by Parker’s would successfully weather the changing times -- but only by going through radical updates. In 1970 the hall was recast as the psychedelic black-light drenched Aquarius Tavern. And although its first scheduled dance in this new incarnation was a flop -- the Buddy Miles Express was a no-show -- the place succeeded very well over the years bringing in such acts that ranged from A–Z, including (to name but a few): Aerosmith, America, BTO, Badfinger, the Byrds, Albert Collins, the Guess Who, Albert King, the Ohio Players, Johnnie Otis, the Righteous Brothers, Al Stewart, George Strait, Muddy Waters, Koko Taylor, Toots and the Maytals, the Ventures, and Warren Zevon.

In addition, a whole new generation of local bands – including Burgundy Express, Bighorn, and a group called Heart -- developed sizeable fan-bases in part because of their Aquarius appearances. In fact, one of Heart’s shows there in 1975 was captured live on tape and a few years later (after they’d broken out as an international hit act) those recordings were issued on the Magazine LP. But there were many other legendary nights at the hall including the time several years later when Motown superstar Stevie Wonder made a surprise visit to sit in and sing a few songs with Bernadette Bascom and her funky dance band, Epicentre.

Reincarnations and Further Reincarnations

By 1980 the hall required some spiffing up and the owners committed themselves to a $1,000,000 remodel in an effort to revamp it as a full-blown "supper-club." With an all-new commercial kitchen, the renamed Parker’s Restaurant also continued to bring in major touring stars like Elvin Bishop, Blue Oyster Cult, Ray Charles, Joe Cocker, Crowded House, Joan Jett, B. B. King, Marshall Tucker, John Mayall, Simply Red, and Tina Turner.

In the 1990s, the building reincarnated yet again -- this time into a gambling joint called Parker’s Sports Bar & Casino. That business was closed in 2012, and the building was demolished that November. 

Sources:
The Dynamics with Jimmy Hanna LP, The Dynamics, Bolo Records (BLP 8001), 1964; Sally McDonald, "Now It’s Parker’s Again and Dancing Cheek to Cheek," North Times, July 2, 1980; Rick Nelson, "Headliners At Parker’s Since ’71," Tacoma News Tribune, March 30, 1993; Pete Blecha Interviews with Skip Horn, October 5, 1989; Billy Tolles (The Vibrators), 1993, 2000; Dave Lewis, 1983-1995; Ron Woods, Terry Afdem, Jimmy Hanna (The Dynamics), 1983-1988; Jim Valley (The Viceroys), 1983; Jim Manolides, Ron Peterson (The Frantics), 1984-1998; Ann & Nancy Wilson (Heart), 1998; "Parker's Casino and Sports Bar May Be Headed for Demolition," Shoreline Area News, August 21, 2012 (http://www.shorelineareanews.com/2012/08/parkers-casino-and-sports-bar-may-be.html); Skip Horn, email to HistoryLink.org, November 13, 2012, in possession of HistoryLink.org, Seattle, Washington.
Note: This essay was updated on November 14, 2012. By Peter Blecha, June 05, 2002


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November theft of trees from Southwoods Park

Sunday, March 28, 2010

By Janet Way, Of Paramount Importance
In November 2009, at least 16 significant trees were cut in Shoreline's Southwoods Park.


The incident took place originally in November 2009. On Thanksgiving, a citizen observed trees being removed from the park by at least two individuals, a truck loaded with logs leaving the Shorecrest Parking lot next to Southwoods. This new park was created with funds from the 2006 Shoreline Parks Bond, after many years of advocacy from citizens to protect the nearly 16 acre site which is an unusually large forested area, formerly owned by Shoreline Schools ad Shoreline Water District.

The witness had taken down the license plate # of the truck and noted that many of the trees were freshly cut near the main trail crossing the park.

So, on Thanksgiving Day, Charlie and Bettelinn Brown called to report the incident to the KC Sheriff's office and a deputy came out to their home to discuss what happened. Charlie had walked the park and counted at least 16 stumps and sawdust showing recent cutting of the logs nearby. The Sheriff's Deputy investigated and spoke to the witness.

Apparently, the license plate check revealed that the plate was stolen. So City staff and police have been unable to identify the perpetrators of this theft.


You can see by the above photo depicting SWPG member Charlie Brown demonstrating the size of this tree which was cut, that this was a very deliberate and significant theft of our publicly owned trees, which were of a very "significant" size. This particular double trunk tree appears to have been about 2-3 ft in circumfrance. (Charlie is holding up a "weed wrench" on loan from the City to measure the size of this tree cut. These devices are available to citizens who would like to remove such weeds as Holly or Scots Broom).

We attended an "Ivy Out" event at Southwoods last weekend and photographed the damage and also witnessed the dedicated work of SWPG (South Woods Preservation Group) and neighbors who have been doing careful stewardship work there for the last 5 years, to remove invasive plants such as English Ivy, English Holly, Himilayan Blackberry, Laurel hedge and other invasive plants which had taken over a large percentage of this park property over the last 50 years. The Ivy and Holly are especially destructive, by crowding out natives and smothering the native growth there.

If anyone has information about this incident, please call the Shoreline Police Department and/or Shoreline Parks Director Dick Deal 206-801-2630 or Parks Maintenance Superintendent Kirk Peterson 206-801-2610 and report it.
Call 911 FOR EMERGENCIES and POLICE ASSISTANCE
Shoreline Police Station
1206 N 185th St
Shoreline, WA 98133
206-801-2710
After Hours: Call 911 or non-emergency 206-296-3311
Office Hours:  Monday - Friday 8:30 am to 5 pm

Or, if you ever witness any similar incidents of tree cutting or vandalism, please report them to the City and Police.

All trees in Parks are protected under the City's care, though if a tree should be deemed a "hazardous tree" it can be removed by City staff. Please help us care for our parks. Citizens are the "eyes and ears" for City staff. If you see something, say something.

These trees belong to the taxpayers and residents of Shoreline.  Vandalism is a crime YOU can help solve by reporting incidents and documenting what happened. Thanks for caring.


Photos and article courtesy Of Paramount Importance

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