Showing posts sorted by date for query 5 acre woods. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query 5 acre woods. Sort by relevance Show all posts

LFP City Council - 5-Acre Woods

Tuesday, June 27, 2017

5-Acre Woods
Photo by Jerry Pickard
By Diane Hettrick

The Lake Forest Park City Council will meet on Thursday, June 29, 7pm, City Hall Council Chambers, 17425 Ballinger Way NE, in a meeting postponed from June 22.

Main item on the agenda is Resolution 1620 /
Authorizing the Mayor to Sign a Letter Requesting a Waiver of Retroactivity from the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office for the Seattle Public Utilities Property Known as 5-Acre Woods

The 5-Acre Woods property is the largest piece of undeveloped property in Lake Forest Park.  A citizen group spearheaded by the Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation is raising money for purchase of the property and lobbying the city to take it over as a natural park. See previous article.

According to the citizen group, "Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) acquired the land many years ago for a water reservoir site but never developed it for that purpose, so they intend to sell it; the property hasn’t been used by anyone for forty years - except the wildlife!"

The City is considering alternatives to acquire the property. The agenda item pertains to paperwork necessary to acquire grant monies.

Should the City be successful in acquiring the properties, the City must submit a Waiver of Retroactivity request to the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office  (RCO) to remain eligible for RCO funds that could be used to reimburse acquisition costs. If granted, the City will be eligible for two RCO grant cycles (two year cycles).

What is not clear is whether the LFPSF and the City are in sync about development on the site. The citizen group wants to keep the entire property as woods with nature trails. The City may be considering development on part of the property.

Stay tuned.



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LFP Elementary PTA passes resolution to support preservation of 5 Acre Woods

Friday, June 16, 2017

5 Acre Woods
Photo by Jerry Pickard
At the Wednesday meeting of the Lake Forest Park Elementary PTA Board, a resolution was discussed and passed to support the preservation of our neighborhood urban forest, 5 Acre Woods.

See the resolution here



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Walk to 5 Acre Woods on Saturday - listen to the birds sing

Sunday, June 4, 2017

5 Acre Woods
Photo by Jerry Pickard

Learn About Community Efforts to Create an Urban Forest Park with Trails

The Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation (LFPSF) invites the community to join us for “A Walk to 5 Acre Woods Event” at 10:30am on Saturday, June 10, 2017.

The month’s event features a bird walk and talk by Ben Pedigo. Ben is a Lake Forest Park native and birding enthusiast who is an active member of the University of Washington’s Birding Club.

Ben will lead a bird walk on the way to the woods, so bring your binoculars and bird guides and join the fun. Learn about the feathered residents of our urban forest and how to recognize their songs. Families are welcomed and encouraged. We will also provide updates on the latest progress for the project.

The 5 Acre Woods site is the largest remaining mature forest within the area. It includes a wetland, a tributary of Lyon Creek, and serves as an important wildlife corridor.

The Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation (LFPSF), a community based nonprofit association, advocates strongly for the City of Lake Forest Park to purchase this property to develop an urban forest park with trails.

The Foundation has spearheaded grant writing and fundraising activities to assist the City toward meeting that goal.

Community matching funds for those grants are key to successful acquisition of the land.

If you would like to contribute to our fundraising efforts, contact Brad Keefe (keefeba@gmail.com) to donate, pledge or volunteer for fundraising.

Seattle Public Utility, the current property owner, plans to sell the property later this summer, so community support for the project is critical to our success.

Meet in front of the Lake Forest Park Elementary School, 18500 37th Ave NE, Lake Forest Park – parking available in the school parking lot, and proceed along the pedestrian walkway on 40th Place NE, to take a short walk to 5 Acre Woods.

Refreshments will be provided at the end of the walk courtesy of Honey Bear Bakery and the Seattle Green Space Coalition

The walk will occur rain or shine at 10:30am on Saturday, June 10, 2017.

Remember to save the date for the July 8, 2017 walk featuring wetland biologist Sarah Cooke, who will speak about the importance of wetlands. See the 5 Acre Woods Facebook page for more information.

If you are interested in volunteering, contact Lisa Pedigo.



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5 Acre Woods – Urban Forest - Natural School

Tuesday, May 23, 2017

We Love 5 Acre Woods
Photo by Jerry Pickard
By Donna Hawkey

A little 5.6 acre of urban forest has remained untouched for forty years and the Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation (LFPSF) is leading an effort to help acquire it.

The goal is to preserve “5 Acre Woods,” as it is lovingly referred to by residents, and to establish public trails within this nature gem.

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) acquired the land many years ago for a water reservoir site but never developed it for that purpose, so they intend to sell it; the property hasn’t been used by anyone for forty years - except the wildlife!

The 5 Acre Woods vision is for low impact trails and a small playground, but the entire forest is a natural school or laboratory for both children and adults, and a sanctuary for many wildlife species.

Tony Angell leading the May Event with 5 Acre Woods
Lead and LFPSF board member Natalie-Pascale Boisseau.
Photo by Jerry Pickard


The LFP Stewardship Foundation and “Friends of 5 Acre Woods” held a May educational event with a walk to the SPU property led by resident Tony Angell, master sculptor and past supervisor of environmental education in the Office of the State Superintendent of Schools.

“Kids glued to a computer screen are facing the possibility of atrophy of the muscles that are required for full vision, not to mention those large muscle groups that allow us to walk and run and do something with our eye to hand coordination that is beyond punching buttons,” said Angell. "We have never seen anything quite like these potential changes in our children.
“This is a perfect place," Angell continued, "for kids to develop and strengthen their senses – sight, touch, smell and auditory capacity. And here is a laboratory location to apply some of the classroom facts, figures and mechanisms for these measurements first hand. These sensory moments are pathways for discovery of what’s going on in our natural world and will be of singular use throughout our lives. The forest gives us all these free services!”

You can almost hear the birds singing
Photo by Jerry Pickard

This is undoubtedly a nesting place and corridor for many wildlife species since it has been undisturbed for so long. Hawks, eagles, owls, coyote, deer, mountain beavers and even long tailed weasels have been found on this site.

“Steep slopes, a stream, riparian wetland, and hillside seep wetlands all serves as a restorative nursery for the wildlife of our community. Other free forest services are the water purification and containment of run off, the CO2 absorption and noise abatement,” says Angell.

As a master artist and author, his home in Lake Forest Park, where he has lived for half a century, has served as a source of inspiration and type of outdoor studio for his work, so he has a passion for the city’s forest.

So far the LFP Stewardship Foundation has contributed to raising close to $300,000 in conservation grant funds and private donations to purchase 5 Acre Woods so that it can remain a City of Lake Forest permanent nature school and park.

Laura Swaim from Friends of 5 Acre Woods
discovering the giant old growth forest.
Photo by Miguel Esteban
The property is the largest undeveloped site remaining in Lake Forest Park. More grant applications, donations and other sources of funding are pending.

LFPSF’s current activities include continuing monthly walks to 5 Acre Woods to educate the community about its environmental and community value.

Some residents are holding their own house parties to assemble neighbors and discuss how more money can be raised and to bring about further awareness of the project.

And in the summer, there will be other activities such as block parties to continue the efforts.

Another strong community connection and support for 5 Acre Woods took place in 2015 when the Seattle Green Spaces Coalition (SGSC) decided to help facilitate efforts along with the Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation.

Mary Fleck from SGSC said when she heard of this property and knew of the history and culture of Lake Forest Park and how it has valued its connection to nature, she knew it could be a win-win situation.

“And when residents, strong organizations, and local government work together like this, anything is possible,” she says.

Tony Angell said “we really don’t know what the full diversity of life is in this forest. Clearly not only an abundance of song birds and raptors but reptiles, amphibians, insects and many plants have yet to be inventoried. 
"There’s an old Joni Mitchell song I used to sing when I went out to schools to share stories of nature. There’s a wonderful line that sums up what we’re looking at and it says… ‘Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone. They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.’”

5 Acre Woods property is located just north of where 40th Pl NE and 45th Pl NE intersect in Lake Forest Park.


The next two summer walk events are currently scheduled:
  • June 10th with Ben Pedigo, a birder who grew up in Lake Forest Park, will speak to his passion and knowledge of birds.
  • On July 8th Sarah Cooke, a wetland biologist, will discuss the benefit of wetlands.
  • The walks start at 10:30am from the Lake Forest Park Elementary School on Ballinger Way. See the 5 Acre Woods Facebook page for more information. 
Honey Bear Bakery provides complimentary pastries and coffee!
Seattle Green Space Coalition provides juice and fruits!
Come join the fun and learn!

If you want more information about the 5 Acre Woods project, see the projects tab on the Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation website. LFPS is a 5013C non-profit and has been in existence for over 20 years.

~~~
Donna Hawkey, author of this article, is a 20-year resident of Lake Forest Park. Thank you to Tony Angell for his contributions.



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A Walk to 5 Acre Woods - learn about community efforts to create a new park in Lake Forest Park

Friday, March 3, 2017

The Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation (LFPSF) and its group of volunteers and friends supporting the efforts of the project 5 Acre Woods invites the community to join them for “A Walk to 5 Acre Woods Event” at 10:30am on Saturday, March 4, 2017.

As the population of Puget Sound continues to grow, many urban forests are disappearing due to increased development pressure.

Deep within the heart of Lake Forest Park lies a rare opportunity to save one of the last remnants of mature second growth forest.

In 1975, Seattle Public Utilities purchased 5.6 acres located on 40th Place NE with the intent to build a water reservoir. An alternate site was eventually chosen for the reservoir and now the City of Seattle will sell the property.

Because of this the City of Lake Forest Park has a chance to purchase the largest remaining undisturbed second growth forest within its borders.

The site includes steep slopes, a stream and critical areas and their buffers which cover approximately 90% of the property. The forest is home to over 800 trees, mostly native, with dense stands of Douglas Fir, Big-Leaf Maple, Western Red Cedar, Spruce and Pacific Madrone. They provide high carbon sequestration, and flood mitigation for Lyon Creek.

The site has become an important wildlife corridor and deer, coyotes, raccoons, fox, mountain beavers, along with over 20 bird species have been spotted there.

The Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation (LFPSF), a community based nonprofit group, would like to preserve the parcel as wildlife habitat, develop the open space for low impact passive recreation, and create an area for active recreation as a playground.

LFPSF was successful in shepherding a grant application to King County Conservation Futures, and $250,000 has been awarded to the city for acquisition of this land, if matching funds are obtained.

A second grant application to King County Conservation Futures is due March 8th and it is likely that further funds can be allocated. LFPSF is committed to assisting the city of Lake Forest Park with additional grant applications and a capital fundraising campaign for matching funds to purchase the property.

LFPSF has a successful track record of purchasing land for public green space as they were instrumental in the acquisition of the Grace Cole Nature Park for the city of Lake Forest Park. The LFPSF continues to provide volunteer based maintenance and restoration for the property and they envision a similar model for the 5-Acre Woods site.

The community is invited to join for their first monthly “A Walk to 5 Acre Woods Event” at 10:30am on Saturday, March 4, 2017 to walk along the property and learn more about the efforts to conserve this parcel as a park and wildlife sanctuary.

Meet in front of the Lake Forest Park Elementary (18500 37th Ave NE, Lake Forest Park) and proceed along the pedestrian walkway on 40th Place NE, to take a short walk to 5-Acre Woods for a brief tour. Refreshments will be provided at arrival. LFP Elementary School has allowed us to use their parking lot.

If you would like more information about this topic or are interested in volunteering, contact Lisa Pedigo,



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LFP City Administrator's Report March 10, 2016

Thursday, March 10, 2016

By Pete Rose, City Administrator, Lake Forest Park

 I. Intergovernmental and local issues update

Meetings: The City Administrator attended the SCA Manager and Administrator meeting on March 2. The University LINK light rail station will open March 19 to Husky Stadium. The light rail from there to downtown Seattle will be an 8 minute ride. PSRC is planning an upcoming meeting on the UW campus to test the line. The opening will also feature a huge test of the integration strategy between Sound Transit and Metro Transit.

There was a brief legislative update at the same meeting. Final budget negotiations are underway. The houses are at cross purposes as to the use of the rainy day fund to assist in balancing the supplemental budget. City issues are once again taking a back seat to budget balancing. Stormwater grants and toxic clean-up are funded from the same tax on petroleum. There is a huge shortfall due to oil prices, and there is some wrangling over which program will receive the greater burden of the cuts. The public records legislation (reasonable hour limits) has died, but made it further than any other bill that would limit the reach of the PRA has ever made it. Police Body camera legislation is still moving and may pass.

II. Internal City Information: 

Acting City Administrator: The City Administrator is off site to a major risk management training and Frank Zenk will be Acting City Administrator from March 4-9.

Long time Police Support Officer Jackson Beard has resigned to pursue a career in fire service. Beard was very instrumental in helping Police work through its staff shortage in 2015, and is a certified trainer in some officer skills, such as firearms qualification. The position is covered by Civil Service.

Both robberies that occurred last month in LFP have been solved. The same suspect committed both crimes. Witness and citizen information was critical in developing the leads resulting in the arrest and recovery of significant evidence. Another example of our partnership with the community.

The School zone camera on NE 178th is back on line.

Municipal Services: 
Passport services processed almost a thousand
applications in two months

To date, the Lake Forest Park Passport Office has processed 948 passport applications and $32,000 in processing fees and photo revenue in just the first two months of 2016! We anticipate we will exceed the projected income revenue if this trend continues for the remainder of the year. In an effort to reduce the wait time during this rush for passport renewals, the City has hired five part-time passport agents from neighboring cities to meet the demand on Saturdays. Lake Forest Park Passport Office is one of two passport acceptance agencies open on Saturdays for passport applications. Passport Office hours are Monday and Friday, 12-5pm, and Saturdays, 10am-4pm.

One of the major driving forces behind this upswing in applications is the 10-year anniversary of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI). WHTI first went into effect in 2007 requiring U.S. citizens to have passports to travel to Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean, and Bermuda. In 2007, 18 million people applied for U.S. Passports, and many of them will choose to renew early in 2016 to avoid the rush and additional costs!

Public Works:

Metal art sculpture outside of City Hall was cleaned this week. 

Rodger Squirrell crafting a prototype
of the original piece in front of City Hall.
Rodger Squirrell is a Lake Forest Park resident and artist. He won a competition for the development of a “signature piece of public art” for the City’s 50th Anniversary. Mr. Squirrell works in metal. His pieces range from small mushroom art that is in his garden to eight feet tall metal scriptures. 

The piece for the City is a collection of five pentagon pillars of various heights that have a water motif. This gift from the Garden Tour will be located on the City property at the intersection of Ballinger and Bothell Way.

Additional shoulder work will be needed prior to the street overlay this year. Team members are preparing this year’s overlay roads. Street sweeping routes are under way and general shoulder cleanup is in progress.

Public Works has restocked all the First Aid kits throughout City Hall and Public Works Operations Facility as well as the city vehicles.

Slope mowing and vegetation management is ramping up.
The team is doing their best to keep on it with limited resources

Elevator, sprinkler and general security alarms have been recertified for the year by their respective companies. This includes the Sonitrol emergency panic buttons throughout the different departments. 

Drainage culverts are being cleaned from this winter’s weather events as well as vactor service cleaning will happen later this year. The vactor service is cleaning the catch basin in certain zones and assists with water quality for our streams. This program is a proactive measure that also helps to meet the city’s required NPDES II permit activity. 

Numerous street signs repaired throughout the city due to the wind events in the last several weeks.

Park maintenance is also beginning to ramp up with the trails, vegetation, drinking fountains, irrigation, garden areas, playground equipment inspections, asphalt trails, parking areas, lighting, and tennis court maintenance, etc.

III. Council Information: The upcoming PIC meeting at SCA will include a discussion of the ST3 process, which is of significant interest to Lake Forest Park.

Staff has reviewed the grant application provided by the Stewardship Foundation for the SPU surplus utility property (5 Acre Woods). This application will be submitted to Conservation Futures with a couple of procedural amendments to conform with City processes. It has been signaled to the leadership of the Stewardship Foundation that this is an agreement to apply, and that further deliberation and planning would be needed by the Council to consider accepting the property. 

Shoreline 145th Preferred Option: Mayor Johnson, City Administrator and Councilmember Kassover attended the “reveal” for the corridor plan. The concept between Bothell Way and I-5 can be described as having some widening at the signalized intersections to improve transit access and enable queue jumps for the busses when the signal starts its green phase. There is limited widening for the four blocks between the signals, but a little to improve transit passage, sidewalks and a treed green strip. Bicycle corridors will be moved outside the 145th corridor. The Shoreline City Council will consider the proposal at its April 4 meeting. The Shoreline Council has proposed a joint meeting with the LFP Council on June 11.

Joint Meeting Proposed: The City of Kenmore has proposed a joint meeting with the LFP Council and Northshore Fire District Board on April 4, to discuss the emergency management coalition and several matters of joint interest, including SR 522 and ST3.

Legislative Steering Committee Update: 
  • State: The City’s request to transfer the $475,000 in the State Capital Budget from a park and ride to a corridor study has been included in the proposed House, Senate and Governor’s supplemental capital budgets. This is very encouraging news and it appears likely that the transfer will be included in the final capital budget. March 10th is the last day of the session. The Senate and the House are also working on a supplemental operating budget. The Senate’s proposed operating budget is traditionally not friendly to cities and includes eliminating the $2 million in funding for Municipal Research and Services Center (MRSC). There are discussions of not passing a state supplemental operating budget but the Governor has indicated that he will call a special session to ensure a supplemental budget is passed. The only policy bill on the City’s legislative agenda that has not died is the police body camera bill related to public records. The bill is on the Senate floor but seems unlikely to pass this year. 
  • Federal: A new bill called the Green Stormwater Investment (GSI) Act has been introduced. It would codify a Green Stormwater Reserve Fund in the EPA’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund. This would establish a permanent 20% reserve within each state’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund dedicated to projects with a green stormwater component and make funds available for operation and maintenance associated with projects. The GSI act would also prioritize projects that utilize GSI for competitive federal transportation grants and infrastructure grants. It would also extend the duration of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems Permits (NPDES) from five years to ten. City representatives are travelling to Washington D.C. on March 21 for meetings with the congressional delegation to discuss the City’s federal legislative agenda. Senate will not be in session during the meetings so the City representatives will meet with Senate staff. The House will be in session. 


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Lake Forest Park Council Committee of the Whole meeting Monday

Saturday, January 23, 2016

Lake Forest Park Council Committee of the Whole meeting is Monday January 25 at 6:00pm at City Hall, 17425 Ballinger Way NE.

Items up for discussion:

  1. Tree Ordinance Update:  Consideration of Tree Board Recommendations and Referral to Planning Commission
  2. Joint Discussion with Mayor Johnson regarding Commissions
  3. Council Feedback Regarding Engagement in 5 Acre Woods
  4. City Attorney Contract: Deputy Mayor Stanford Proposal
  5. Seattle King County Economic Development Council: Deputy Mayor Stanford
The meeting will adjourn at 8:00pm.



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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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