THE VOICE -- May 2010
The Newspaper of Neighborhood House
Bellingham: City of subdued excitement — That’s what one of the many murals that are on the walls of the city’s downtown says. It fits, too. I took this trip on a Friday, forgetting my own advice to the bus tourist: Travel midweek if possible.
Fridays are less bothersome than Mondays for travel (a fair number of shops/ museums are closed Mondays) but just as bad on the bus. You are competing for seat space with dozens of students and workers who are traveling to and from home or school on the weekend — it is also a good idea to avoid morning and afternoon commute times if you can — not always possible if you are going far. Plan to get on the bus at the nearest convenient stop to where the bus run begins. Standing up for 30-plus miles is not fun.
The buses: 510 to Everett ($3/$2.50/$1.50, accepts ORCA, honors Metro transfers) from Fourth and Washington at 6:45 a.m. The 510 also picks up passengers at 45th Northeast and 145th Northeast at the stops by I-5. There’s enough time at the Everett station for a coffee/restroom stop.
Skagit Transit Bus 90X ($2/$1/$1 — no transfers) leaves Everett Station at 7:50a.m.
At Mount Vernon, the connection to the northbound 80X ($2/$1/$1) is direct at 8:45 a.m. and arrives in Bellingham at 9:30 a.m.
It is possible to leave 30 minutes later from Seattle — but you will be spending 90 minutes in Mount Vernon waiting for the next bus, which gets into Bellingham at 11:30 a.m. Afternoon travel is also possible if you want to stay overnight.
The bus travels on the freeway, and the last part of the trip has pretty farm, woods and mountain scenery.
Around town: First, stop in Downtown Bellingham, the office at Bellingham Station, for a bus schedule brochure and a most excellent map, which shows not only the bus routes, but street maps and walking trails throughout the city.
Wander around downtown. There are two bakeries across the street from Bellingham Station — it’s hard to pick one! Avellino had a lovely hazelnut cinnamon bun — but Bread & Café’s offerings looked and smelled just as delicious!
Look at the public art downtown, including many murals, some of which are strangely realistic — and some of which are really strange.
Check out Maritime Heritage Park, 500 W. Holly Street. There’s a fish hatchery, and it is the downstream end of the Whatcom Creek trail. Old Whatcom Museum, in an ornate 1890s building that was once the Bellingham City Hall, had — and probably still has — a good set of historical exhibits, but it is open Thursday afternoon only, thanks to city budget cuts.
The recently opened Lightcatcher Museum is a beautiful, and yes, light-filled building, showing contemporary art and photography. The reflections on the glass of framed art are distracting however, and $10/$8.50 admission is pricey for a small museum.
And oh, yes — thrift stores downtown are excellent! They include Assistance League of Bellingham Thrift & Gift, 1415 Cornwall Ave.; Pace’s New & Used, 413 W. Holly St.; Wise Buys Shop, 401 Holly St. (The haul: A blue-and white dessert plate, an almost-new white eyelet shirt, a big beautiful [and very heavy!] gardening book, and an Eddie Bauer bag to carry it all in, for a little under $10.)
Whatcom Transit ($1/$.50) has some good sightseeing routes — a transfer will allow for an hour off the bus and continuing in the same direction: If it is a clear day, Mount Baker will be out. #3 or #4 Cordata route goes north along the bay through the Eldridge Historic District, a neighborhood with no hills, century-old homes and churches and fine gardens.
Another nice old-house-and-garden neighborhood — with steep hills — is the Garden Street area between downtown and Fairhaven, on bus route 401. This bus also goes through the Western Washington University Campus, which has an outdoor sculpture garden and arboretum. Fairhaven, at the end of the 401 line, is a shopping district in pioneer-era buildings with fun but pricey gift stores and a good bookstore, the Colophon, with a soup-and sandwich café.
On a good picnic day, pick up a box lunch from one of the bakeries or from the big and bountiful delis at one of the Community Food Co-ops (1220 N. Forest St. downtown, or across the street from the Cordata bus mall north of town), and catch the 525 Barkley bus (hourly service, ten past the hour) to Whatcom Falls Park (in the woods — picnic tables, restrooms, playground, big waterfall and hiking trails, including a three-mile trail downstream to the downtown Maritime Heritage Park). Or try Bloedel Donovan Park (lake-side, sunny beach, crowds in the summer, playgrounds, picnic tables, restrooms — and a locomotive). Do not miss the 4:45 p.m. bus back into town, unless you plan to stay in Bellingham.
Heading home: Take the same buses in reverse order. The buses leaving Bellingham Station at 3:15 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. make good connections at Mount Vernon and Everett, getting you home in about three hours. Do not miss the 5:15 bus — it is the last chance to connect with the Mount Vernon to Everett service.
By Tyler Roush
The Voice editor
Matthew had never earned above a C in any of his classes. The eighth-grader was especially struggling in his math class.
Enter Rachel Smith, an AmeriCorps member working in Neighborhood House’s CASASTART program. Smith began mentoring Matthew in his math class. She said she tried to instill in him the idea that hard work is rewarded with better results. His work began to improve, and when this past semester concluded, his grade came in: He’d earned his first A.
“His drive, his determination was half the battle,” she said. “I was just support — he was the one that earned that grade. So this could be the first of many A’s to come.”
As an AmeriCorps member, Smith said that it’s making that difference that gives her the most satisfaction.
“I like having an impact on the kids, and thinking about their lives changing for the better, I feel like I’m having an impact,” Smith said.
Neighborhood House honored the individuals working in its AmeriCorps posi-
tions with a luncheon at the Rainier Vista
Center last month.
“The connections you have in the community are really phenomenal,” said Catherine Verrenti, Neighborhood House’s Director of Education and Community Services. “We could not do what we do without your work.”
Including Smith, Neighborhood House has utilized five AmeriCorps and Ameri-Corps VISTA positions to serve its clients in an array of programs.
Kat McGhee has helped get the Neighborhood House Technology Center at Rainier Vista up and running. The center’s grand opening was in March.
“Kat has left her mark on the Technology Center and we’ve been fortunate to have her valuable input and efforts on this project,” said Kate Farmer, the Rainier Vista site manager.
McGhee’s hard work has brought many new visitors to the Technology Center, thus allowing low-income residents, at-risk youth, immigrant and refugees unlimited access to computers while offering them an opportunity to gain valuable technology skills.
“Having recently moved to Seattle, it’s given me a better understanding of the community,” said McGhee of her AmeriCorps work. She added that she wants to become involved in community activism, and that the work has taught her “how to listen to the community and then learn how to get them what they want.”
Michelle Harn has been working with Neighborhood House’s White Center tutoring program since September 2009. She grew up in Seattle and is a recent graduate of Washington State University.
Harn’s primary role is to support the tutoring program, working individually and with small groups to help children succeed in school.
In addition to working with after-school programs, Harn serves as a classroom assistant and Lunch Buddy mentor with one of our neighborhood elementary schools.
Of her AmeriCorps work, Harn said, “It has been a challenging year, but I think when you’re challenged you learn a lot more.”
Also on the tutoring side, Sara Veth has been working with Neighborhood House’s Auburn tutoring program since February. She is a recent college graduate from California and spent part of childhood in Alaska. “Sara has made immediate connections with the youth in Auburn and has helped move our groups and projects forward in amazing ways,” said Neighborhood House Community Learning Manager Colin Sexton.
“This is an opportunity to learn but also show an employer I have the skills necessary to succeed,” said Veth, who intends to pursue a career in education.
In the High Point neighborhood in West Seattle, Chris Andree, AmeriCorps VISTA, helped set up the docent training program at the High Point Center, which so far has trained almost a dozen volunteers to act as tour guides of the High Point Center. Hundreds of community members and Neighborhood House clients, staff and volunteers have taken the tours, which last about 45 minutes and detail the many social services and environmental features of the center. The tours are also offered in a variety of languages — including German, Vietnamese, Somali, Spanish, among others — to meet the needs of the diverse High
Point community.
“AmeriCorps has provided me with the
opportunity to work with a wide variety of
amazing colleagues and clients,” Andree
said. “Finding that type of opportunity
would have been much more difficult without
AmeriCorps.”
Neighborhood House staff members Kate Farmer, Colin Sexton and Alex Wang contributed to this story.
By Jim Bush
SHA Resident
County (if I’m coming from South King County, I make the connection between bus and train at the SODO station, located south of downtown).
How are the trains for accessibility? To me, they are very good, even though I was initially concerned about the horizontal gap between the platform edge and the interior of the trains (I am still concerned about that, because that gap can be just enough to “trap” the casters found on many manual chairs, along with walkers, strollers and canes or crutches).
Inside each two-car train there are four spaces for wheelchair users (two per car) that can accommodate any sized mobility device (they don’t have tiedowns, so you’ll need to be aware that unless you lock your brakes or turn the power for your mobility device off, you’ll move when the train does). It should be noted that, while the spaces are identified as “priority spaces” for wheelchair users, many passengers have started to use them as “storage” for their baggage while riding (because LINK is now the only public-transit service directly serving Downtown Seattle and the airport, this could become a problem). The trains also have electronic reader boards and automatic voice announcements, identifying the next station on the route and when the train arrives at one.
As for where to get on LINK, all stations are wheelchair accessible, with elevator access to all boarding platforms downtown (the trains use the 20-year old transit tunnel, but do not serve Convention Place Station), along with the Beacon Hill, Mount Baker, SeaTac/International Boulevard, and SeaTac Airport stations (access to street-level transit service going northbound is via skybridge and elevator at the north end of the Airport station; if you want to take a bus southbound on International Boulevard to Federal Way or anywhere south of the Airport, use the Tukwilla/International Boulevard station).
All stations in the SODO busway and along MLK Way (in the Rainier Valley) have ramped access and audible pedestrian signals and warning bells (with flashing signs) at all train crossings. There are also reader boards and automatic voice announcements of when a train is due to arrive, which direction it is travelling, and when it arrives at the station.
by Laura Gentry
Seattle Housing Authority
Construction is scheduled to start in 2011, with the line opening late in 2013. The Seattle City Council’s final decision on the route of the streetcar is expected some time in April or May and the Environmental Review process will follow.
For more information, visit http://seattlestreetcar.com/firsthill.asp.
Link light rail
Several Link light rail-related decisions are currently underway as city, county and state lawmakers decide how to integrate it with other existing and planned transportation projects.
“Light rail is a huge step toward our ultimate goal of connecting our region’s most important economic centers with fast, reliable service,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine in a recent news release.
State route 520 Bridge
Due to safety issues, the Washington State Department of Transportation currently has plans to replace the existing 520 Bridge with a six-lane bridge, which would include two lanes reserved for high-occupancy vehicles.
Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn recently proposed a change to the state’s plan that encourages the WSDOT to include Link light rail as part of the bridge replacement. McGinn included findings from a report he commissioned to determine if the bridge replacement could support light rail tracks.
“We only have one chance to get this right,” said McGinn. “If we continue on with the state’s current plan, then we will miss that chance. And that would be too bad because this report shows that it is possible. We can design 520 from the outset to include light rail. The question is whether or not the leadership exists to make that vision a reality.”
The city had until April 15 to submit comments and recommendations to the WSDOT and they are expected to make a final decision in late April.
Interstate 90 Bridge
Meanwhile, Link light rail support is already planned and underway for the I-90 Bridge. Sound Transit and WSDOT have started the second phase of adding high occupancy vehicle lanes to both directions of the I-90 Bridge. Eventually, the HOV additions to the bridge will allow for the center lanes to support light rail tracks.
The East Link light rail line is scheduled to begin construction in late 2013 or early 2014 and is expected to serve Mercer Island and Bellevue by 2020 and Overlake by 2021.
University of Washington Station
Scheduled to open in 2016, the next stretch of Link light rail is currently under construction and will extend from Westlake to the University of Washington, with a stop on Capitol Hill. The UW station is being built next to Husky Stadium.
North and South link extensions
The Link light rail will eventually extend North beyond the University District into the Roosevelt and Northgate neighborhoods by 2020. By 2023, it is expected to have reached Shoreline, Mountlake Terrace and Lynnwood. A South Link extension is also planned for 2023 that will reach Federal Way.
Alaskan Way Viaduct
Construction is also about to begin on the State Route 99 viaduct, which currently poses a safety risk in the event of an earthquake. The southern portion of the viaduct between Holgate and King Streets will be replaced with a side-by-side roadway. Work on this portion of the viaduct is expected to be complete by 2013 according to the WSDOT project schedule. The viaduct’s central waterfront section, between King and Battery Streets, will also be replaced, but the decision of what to replace them with is currently on hold while an environmental review is underway. Construction is expected to begin on this section of the viaduct by 2011.
More information on this project can be found at: www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/Viaduct.
A column devoted to your well-being
By Public Health – Seattle & King
County
The U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services and the U.S. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention announced
today that Public Health – Seattle & King County has been awarded
two highly-competitive federal stimulus
grants totaling $25.5 million dollars over
two years to address obesity and tobacco
use, two of the leading contributors to
premature illness, death and health care
costs in the United States and locally.
“It’s a huge credit to our Public Health
staff and partners that we were able to get
such a competitive grant to improve our
community’s health,” said King County
Executive Dow Constantine. Over 250
communities applied for approximately 40
grant awards through the federal stimulus
initiative.
“This funding will support our community
partners in accelerating changes
that will reduce the human and economic
costs of obesity and tobacco use,” said
Dr. David Fleming, Director and Health
Officer for Public Health – Seattle & King
County.
“Fighting obesity and tobacco use is
a big part of improving Washington’s
health,” Governor Chris Gregoire said. “These funds will go into communities
where they’re greatly needed and can
make a real difference. This is a wise and
welcome investment in our state.”
The grants will primarily fund community
agencies, schools, businesses and
local governments in working to change
policies, systems and environments to
make healthier choices easier and more
accessible for everyone. The majority of
the funding will be targeted to those communities
in King County most affected by
obesity and tobacco.
Examples of activities include supporting
corner stores in offering more healthy
options, providing healthier foods in
schools and childcare settings, restricting
tobacco marketing and providing smokefree
environments, and promoting city
planning, zoning and transportation that
is pedestrian and bike friendly.
Goals of the grant include:
• Increase levels of physical activity and
healthy nutrition
• Decrease rates of overweight and
obesity
• Decrease smoking rates, smoking
initiation by teens and exposure to secondhand
smoke
• Reduce health inequities by focusing
on communities with the greatest
disadvantage
In upcoming weeks, Public Health
will issue request for proposals (RFP) for
community agencies, schools and local
governments to apply for grant fund projects
for policy, system and environmental
change.
More information about the grants, the
community information meeting and the
RFP process will be available at www.kingcounty.gov/health/cppw. To learn
more about national Communities Putting
Prevention to Work, visit www.hhs.gov/recovery and www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/recovery.
Northwest Kidney Centers will hold
its Eighth annual Kidney Health Fest for
African American Families on Saturday,
June 5. The free event runs from 9 a.m.
to 2 p.m. at Van Asselt Elementary (formerly
the African American Academy),
8311 Beacon Ave. S., in Seattle. Co-hosts
are Mount Zion Baptist Church and First
AME Church.
With the theme of “From Surviving
to Thriving: Healthy People, Healthy
Communities,” this event features free
health screenings and private consultations
with a doctor, healthy food made
by local celebrity chefs, and a discussion
about healthy living with Angela Russell,
KIRO 7 Eyewitness News anchor,
as the emcee.
The day also includes entertainment,
music, exhibits, a Kids’ Korner and a
chance to win prizes. For more information
about the event and Northwest
Kidney Centers — a nonprofit provider
of dialysis therapy, health education and
kidney research — go to www.nwkidney.org/nkc/aboutUs/news/KidneyHealthFest.html.
By PameLa Wilcox
SHA Resident
Greetings apartment and condo residents!
Simply because you don’t have a yard
to put a garden in, doesn’t mean you can’t
grow fresh, organic herbs and vegetables.
Whether you use your window sill,
shelves by the window, your balcony or
porch, with the right tools and knowledge
you can grow fresh, healthy food and flowers.
In March, Madison Market at 1600 E.
Madison offered to its members a free class
about container gardening, taught by Carey
Thornton of Seattle Tilth.
Carey said that a south or west window,
with four to six hours of sunlight a day,
works best for container gardening. But any
window that gets some sunlight during the
day is worth a try.
Consider the conditions
you have to work with, then check with
your local garden nursery to see what would
work best for your circumstances.
It’s important to have drainage holes in
the bottom of your container. If you use
plastic or metal pots, make sure they are
safe to grow food in, and won’t leach any
chemicals or toxins into your food.
It is also a good idea to ask the sales clerk
where you buy your pots if they are safe for
growing food in.
The size of the pot must be adequate to
house the fully grown plant. Terracotta pots
need to be watered more often, unless they
are glazed inside.
It is important to keep the soil moist,
without waterlogging the plant. It is not
necessary to put rocks in the bottom of the
pot — they just take up valuable space.
Organic soil is recommended for gardening.
Cedar Grove is a local brand that uses
the area’s municipal waste.
Dirt from your yard is not a good substitute.
It is not as nutritious as potting soil,
which is perfect for growing fruits and
vegetables.
When filling the pot with soil, leave a
couple of inches at the top. This allows the
water the space and time to soak in, without
running over the sides of the pot.
It is best to water in the morning, so the
plant has time to warm back up during the
day. Take care to keep moisture off the
leaves, to prevent fungus and mold spores
from forming.
Seeds are cheaper than starter plants.
Plus you can rotate the harvest by planting
more of something every couple weeks or
so, to assure you have the crop throughout
the season. Seeds also give you more
choices and varieties.
Don’t plant seeds too deep — they should
be two to three times as deep as the seed is
wide. That’s not very deep!
Seed packets will include information
on how long it takes the seed to germinate
and mature. For indoor gardening, shorter
maturation periods work best.
Smaller fruits with the shortest growing
period are best. For example, cherry
tomatoes are a better option than beef steak
tomatoes. You would need more room than
you likely have to grow the larger beef steak
variety. Smaller is better in this case!
If you do buy starter plants, make sure
they are not root-bound. Root-bound
plants are not as healthy, because they are
stressed.
You can also grow faster growing plants
along with slower growing ones. Annuals
are plants that only live one year, while perennials
live many years. Some plants that
can grow in partial shade include parsley,
chives, and wheat berries. When sprouted,
wheat berries are very healthy for both pets
and people.
Believe it or not, healthy plants are more
susceptible to pests — especially when they
are young, tasty and easy to chew.
There is an organic solution to this
problem, too. It’s called row covering. It’s
a white cloth that the plant can breathe
through. Sunlight gets in, too.
Row covering keeps the plant warm and
holds in moisture. You can cut this cloth to
the length you need, then use a rubber band
around the pot to secure it.
As for fertilizing, you want to read the
instruction on the potting soil bag. Most
potting soils come with fertilizer in them. If
you add more fertilizer right after planting,
you can kill your plant.
Anywhere from two to 12 weeks wait
time will be needed before you fertilize, depending
on what potting soil you use. Make
sure your potting soil is for growing fruits
and plants in, and preferably organic.
Seattle Tilth has been teaching organic
gardening and composting for 32 years.
This year, the City Council and Mayor
Mike McGinn have proclaimed “The Year
of Urban Agriculture.”
For resident councils and community
leaders, Seattle Tilth would be a good option
to teach a class to your community.
They offer classes for adults, as well as for
children as young as one year old.
They have many locations throughout
the Seattle area. They can even teach you
how to raise chickens and goats in the city — which might not be the best idea for an
apartment dweller!
To contact Seattle Tilth, write to Good
Shepherd Center, 4649 Sunnyside Ave. N., Seattle, WA 98103 or call 206-633-0451. You can visit its Web site at www.seattletilth.org.
To meet its goal of counting every resident
of the United States, the 2010 census
is making a special effort to count all immigrant,
refugee, and non-English-speaking
residents of Seattle and King County.
The numbers from the census are used by
government officials to figure out how much
money to give each community for schools
(including school breakfasts and lunches),
food stamps, child care, help for mothers,
public housing, teaching people to speak
English and many other programs. Census
information plays a role in the distribution
of more than $400 billion a year in federal
aid, and on average, each completed form is
worth $1,400 annually per listed household
member to a resident’s community.
In short, filling out your Census form
helps your community.
Census questionnaires were mailed to
homes in March. The 10-question form is
the shortest since the first census in 1790;
the U.S. Constitution requires a census
every 10 years.
If you already filled out the form with the
requested information about you and each
of your household members and mailed it
back, you’ve already been counted.
If you haven’t mailed in your form,
please do so right away.
All census information collected, including
addresses, is confidential and
protected by law. All Census employees — including temporary employees — take
an oath for life to keep census information
confidential.
For more information, visit www.census2010.gov.
Be Safe
By Seattle Neighborhood Group
Seattle Neighborhood Group envisions crime-free communities where people work together to solve problems, children play without fear and businesses thrive. Here are two examples of neighborhoods working together for safety and developing strategies for strong and healthy communities.
20th Avenue (Pratt Park) traffic calming project
Living next to Pratt Park is like having a huge backyard. But not too far from kids having fun in Pratt’s play area is 20th Avenue S. On 20th many car drivers appear to be in a hurry and in January, 2010, there was an injury accident at an intersection.
A resident near Pratt Park checked with the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) to see what could be done to slow traffic down. The resident learned SDOT has a traffic calming program that requires neighborhood involvement and approvals. The process encouraged Pratt Park neighbors to work together for a solution.
Traffic calming devices are used in Seattle Housing Authority’s new mixed-income communities (High Point, NewHolly and Rainier Vista) to create safer streets for pedestrians. Narrow residential streets are typical in these communities and are designed to slow traffic.
Community gardens
Gardening may not seem like a crime prevention activity, but in many ways it is. P-Patches in SHA communities, such as Yesler Terrace and High Point, and around the city of Seattle provide people with an opportunity to work together in beautifying their neighborhoods. Community members working in the garden together get to know one another; they discuss many of the issues in the community that are bothering them, including crime issues.
It doesn’t end there; when the fruit of their labors (pun intended) are ready for harvesting, gardeners can share their bounty with their non-gardening friends and neighbors.
It’s another chance to bond, learn to trust and exchange information, as well as tomatoes, zucchinis and jalapeños.
One neighbor can grow zucchinis; another neighbor can bake it into bread, and then give it to a third neighbor. Every time something from a garden is shared, words are exchanged and the bonds of community strengthened. Gardens sow the seeds of community and the community reaps the bounty of friendship and trust.
Building community is not the only way gardens make neighborhoods safer. A well-tended garden and yard sends a message to everyone that people are paying attention and caring for that space. Most criminals would prefer to be some place where people are not paying attention and don’t care. Keeping open outdoor spaces cleaned and well maintained encourages families to bring their children to play and learn.
Would you rather play a game of catch in an open space close to flowers and vegetables or in a field with broken beer bottles and graffiti on the play structures?
The more people use a space for positive purposes, the less likely that space is going to be used for less desirable purposes.
Allan Davis (206-323-7094) and Kelly McKinney (206-323-7084) are Community Education Coordinators for Seattle Neighborhood Group. Call Allan or Kelly for crime prevention information or help with your safety and security concerns.
One to grow on
Garden tips for community gardeners
Planting culinary herbs will add flavor to your cuisine and some health benefits to your garden
By Anza Muenchow
Special to The Voice
This month, the perennial garden is producing abundant herbs for our favorite recipes. In our region we have a wide variety of culinary herbs that are simple to grow. Many of these herbs are beneficial in a garden, because they attract the beneficial insects that fight the region’s garden pests.
Sage, rosemary and thyme are the best perennial herbs for our maritime gardens. If you start them from seeds, they take a long time to germinate, so now would be a good time to plant. Give them well drained soil in the sunniest spot.
Once established, they take little to no care and will be productive for years to come. Starting now in late spring, they have a growth spurt. The blooms attract early beneficial insects, especially bees.
I begin picking and drying the leaves in June to fill my spice cabinet for winter months. We choose the taller cultivars with larger leaves for our culinary uses, but low to the ground cultivars make great ground covers and can still be used for seasoning. And they make an excellent addition to your drought-tolerant garden.
Marjoram is practically a perennial in our climate, but usually referred to as a tender perennial. Start from seed in late spring in the same sunny location. It dies back in the winter though. And, in very cold winters, like we have had the past two years, it will completely die off. But with little effort you can grow a lovely border of marjoram in a sunny garden, providing ample flavoring for your Thanksgiving dinner.
One of my family’s favorite herbs is parsley, which we often cook with as a vegetable, adding a cup of chopped parsley to our favorite recipes for soups, salads and casseroles.
If you missed planting it in February, there is still time to get parsley seed in the ground. First place the seeds in an air tight container in the fridge for three weeks. Then plant in a rich, deeply prepared bed, and keep it watered for a couple weeks as it takes a while to germinate.
You will enjoy lots of parsley throughout the summer, fall and winter. It tolerates crowding as long as it gets all the water it needs and is in full sun.
Last year’s parsley plants should now be sending up its flower stalks and will form seed heads in early summer. Tie these stalks to a stake and let them fully mature. Later in the summer when the seeds are dry, they can be harvested in a paper envelope, kept in a cool dry location and plant next January or February.
Parsley’s cousin, cilantro, also known as Chinese parsley, is an annual, unlike the biennial parsley. Cilantro is a challenge to plant in June and July as it prefers cool weather. Cilantro seeds, also known as coriander, have a round form that actually contains a couple of seeds. Cracking the outer shell of the round form accelerates germination.
After planting, keep cilantro cool and moist and protect from slugs. Slugs will travel great distances to munch on cilantro seedlings and are often the culprit when people say their cilantro seeds didn’t grow. Some people hate cilantro, but I love it to garnish many of my summer dishes. And, I need it when I start making fresh salsa in August. I will sometimes chop and freeze cilantro leaves to have it in the winter, though it loses some flavor. Allow some of the plants to bolt in the summer and save seed like you would parsley. The coriander seeds are delicious and unique, and can be ground or used whole, like in Indian cuisine.
Both parsley and cilantro are in the Umbelliferae family, meaning the flowers are umbrella shaped. The large, flat cluster of small blossoms particularly attract the beneficial Syriphid fly. Also know as a hover fly, this insect eats many aphids during the summer, especially in its larval form.
Though the larva looks like a mini green caterpillar, it doesn’t eat plants, just aphids and mites and other harmful critters. Keep a healthy population of these beneficial insects in your garden by planting umbelliferae plants and you will enjoy a healthy and abundant bounty from your garden this summer.
Anza Muenchow is a farmer and a volunteer with P-Patch. You can reach her by e-mail at anzam@whidbey.net, or online at www.mahafarm.com.
Residents at Greenbridge take charge in getting intersection fixed
by Jen Calleja
Neighborhood House
For a couple of years, King County Metro bus number 128 to Southcenter has had trouble making a turn at the narrow intersection of Eighth Avenue Southwest and Southwest Roxbury without entering the lane of oncoming traffic.
This spot is the main access point to the Greenbridge community coming from West Seattle. Often, the bus driver had to drive over the sidewalk to avoid upcoming traffic. This was an unsafe situation for pedestrians, bus riders and other vehicles.
Thanks to a joint and determined effort of Greenbridge residents and their supporters, this past March the King County Department of Transportation made road modifications to fix this problem.
This didn’t happen overnight. In the fall of 2009, the Eighth and Roxbury intersection problem was identified by a group of Greenbridge residents as part of a walking survey organized by Neighborhood House’s Be Active Together (BAT). Walking surveys are ways for community members to identify needed neighborhood improvements. With guidance from the BAT program, a group of Greenbridge and Park Lake neighbors came together to address the traffic safety issue.
After community members voted the issue as a priority, BAT staff member Bao Nguyen contacted the various entities in charge of this intersection. Meanwhile, residents sought support from the King County Housing Authority via the BAT project.
KCHA Community Builder Tracie Friedman diligently brought the issue to the appropriate parties on the construction side. It was not a smooth process, but with persistence and good communication between residents, BAT staff and the housing authority, the King Country Department of Transportation resolved the issue by moving the stop line back to allow turning room for the buses.
This intersection is safer now thanks to the Greenbridge residents who stood up and voiced their concerns. “I am very happy that something was done because we asked for it. I couldn’t believe it.” said Spomenka Novakovic, a member of the Greenbridge Community Action Team.
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TRANSLATIONS
Translated Articles from The Voice
Complete the 2010 Census
Завершите перепись населения 2010 года
С целью подсчёта каждого жителя Соединённых Штатов перепись населения прилагает специальные усилия посчитать всех иммигрантов, беженцев и не говорящих по-английски жителей Сиэтла и округа Кинг.
Сведения о количестве населения используются правительственными организациями, чтобы определить, сколько денег получит каждый район для школ (включая школьные завтраки и ланчи), для продовольственных талонов, детских садов, для помощи матерям, на общественное жильё, для обучения английскому и для многих других программ. Результаты переписи играют большую роль в распределении более 400 миллиардов долларов в год на федеральную помощь и, в среднем, каждая заполненная форма переписи стоит 1400 долларов в год на каждого члена семьи для нужд района, где он проживает.
Короче, заполнение формы переписи населения помогает вашему микрорайону.
Формы переписи населения были отправлены по домашним адресам в марте. Форма, состоящая из 10 вопросов, самая короткая со времени первой переписи населения в 1790 году; Конституция США требует проведения переписи каждые 10 лет.
Если вы уже заполнили форму с требуемой информацией о себе и всех членах своей семьи и отправили её обратно, то вас уже посчитали.
Если вы ещё не отправили свою форму, сделайте это немедленно.
Вся собранная информация, включая адреса, сохраняется в секрете и охраняется законом. Все работники, занимающиеся переписью населения, включая временных работников, принимают присягу на всю жизнь о неразглашении информации о переписи.
Для дополнительной информации посетите вебсайт www.2010census.gov.
HÃY ĐIỀN MẪU ĐƠN THỐNG KÊ DÂN SỐ 2010
Để đạt mục tiêu cho việc đếm đủ từng người dân trên đất Mỹ, ban thống kê dân số 2010 đang thực hiện một cố gắng đặc biệt để đếm tât cả người di dân, người tị nạn, và người không nói tiếng Anh mà cư ngụ trong thành phố Seattle và trong quận King.
Những con số từ cuộc thống kê được chính phủ sẻ dùng để qui ra số ngân khỏan dành cho các cộng đồng trong việc tài trợ cho trường học( gồm các bữa ăn sáng và ăn trưa ở trường) phiếu thực phẩm, dịch vụ giữ trẻ, trợ giúp cho các bà mẹ, gia cư công cộng, lớp dạy Anh Văn và những chương trình phục vụ khác. Những thông tin từ việc thống kê dân số đóng vai trò trong việc phân phối $400 tỉ đô hàng năm, và tính trung bình, cứ mỗi đơn thống kê được điền vào , có giá trị đến $1,400 cho mỗi hộ dân trong cộng đồng.
Nói tóm lại, điền vào mẫu đơn thống kê dân số sẻ giúp ích cho cộng đồng qúi vị.
Mẫu đơn thống kê dân số với các câu hỏi đã được gửi ra hôm tháng Ba. Mẫu đơn với 10 câu hỏi là mẫu đơn ngắn nhất kể từ khi có cuộc thống kê dân số lần đầu tiên vào năm 1790. Hiến Pháp Mỹ đòi buộc phải có cuộc thống kê dân cho mỗi 10 năm.
Nếu qúi vị đã điền vào mẫu đơn và đã gửi trả lại, thì coi như qúi vị đã được đếm vào rồi.
Nếu qúi vị chưa điền, xin vui lòng điền ngay lập tức.
Mọi thông tin cho việc thống kê dân số thu thập được, kể cả địa chỉ, đều có tính cách bảo mật và được luật pháp bảo vệ. Mọi nhân viên làm việc thống kê dân số -kể cả các nhân viên tạm thời – phải tuyên thệ suốt đời giữ kín những thông tin.
Để biết thêm chi tiết, xin vui lòng vào trang mạng www.2010census.gov
No Somali translation
The Voice did not receive a Somali translation for this section before the print deadline. We are very sorry for the inconvenience.