Sweetheart Potluck at Evans Pool

Kerrie Stoops, Assistant Aquatic Center Coordinator at Evans Pool (7201 E Green Lake Dr N), asked us to share news about two upcoming events at the pool:

Neighborhood Appreciation and Sweetheart Potluck at Evans Pool
Saturday February 11^th noon-2:30pm
Bring a dish to share at this free event!  Live music, family fun, friends, and food!  Everyone welcome.

Date Night at Evans Pool
Tuesday February 14^th 6-10pm
Children 6-13 years old are invited to join us for activities, playing SKWIM, watching a movie, and enjoying a snack while parents have a night out.
$25/child – registration can be done online, over the phone (206-684-4961) or in person.
Note:  Please pack suit and towel.  We are only serving snacks during this program.  Child should eat dinner prior to being dropped off.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2012.

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Post tags: bargain alert, building community, kids, parks and rec, swimming, valentine's day

Volunteers are needed to help visitors to Green Lake Park follow the nesting cycle of bald eagles. Photo credit: shannonkringen

Seattle Parks and Recreation shares the following information about the city’s Volunteer Naturalist program:

Do you love sharing nature with others? Are you interested in learning more about the flora and fauna of Seattle’s many public green spaces and parks? If so, you are the perfect candidate for the Seattle Volunteer Naturalist program. Volunteer Naturalists participate in 10 weeks of training and commit to providing 12 programs a year at Environmental Learning Centers and in parklands near schools throughout Seattle.

Seattle Parks and Recreation’s Volunteer Naturalists provide hands-on learning opportunities for school groups and nature programs for families and adults at Discovery Stations, destination locations throughout parks that present visitors with a theme and natural objects that help them discover their backyard parks. For example, volunteers would have a spotting scope at Bald Eagle nest locations and at Green Lake Park so visitors could follow the nesting cycle of Bald Eagles or Pied Billed Grebes. Another is a station at Me Kwa Mooks Beach or Discovery Park Beach with shells and information about intertidal creatures. One could be a Forest Station to introduce people to the many plants, mammals and birds that make the forested parklands home.

Volunteers’ backgrounds are as varied as the students they teach – the common thread is their desire to share nature with the greater Seattle community.

The goal of the Seattle Volunteer Naturalist Program is to enhance, promote and foster appreciation of nature by connecting citizens and students with their Seattle parklands, by providing educational opportunities for all.

Training begins on March 8, 2012. Deadline for applications is February 10, 2012.  For more information and to get an application, please email Penny Rose at penny.rose [at] seattle.gov or call her at 206-386-4250.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2012.

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Post tags: parks and rec, volunteer

Maria Yamaguchi is currently working on different room models and is soliciting feedback from families and caregivers. Do you have suggestions or ideas that she can use? Please email her at Maria.Yamaguchi [at] seattle.gov.

The Green Lake Community Center Toddler Play Center is available to children aged 6 months – 5 years and their caregivers. Its regular operating hours are Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. It is available for rent on Saturdays and Sundays.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2012.

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Post tags: kids, parks and rec

The Seattle Pacific Table Tennis Club and the Green Lake Table Tennis Center (GLTTC) will present a Table Tennis Showcase and Exhibition at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 11, 2012 in the Green Lake Community Center gymnasium (7201 E Green Lake Drive N). Over 200 spectators are expected to attend.

The event will feature 60 local students and six professional athletes from China. Spectators will get to see how the students train, from the youngest to the most advanced. The highlight of the evening will be an exhibition by the six Chinese professionals. According to a press release from the Parks Department, the professional players will put on a show “full of lightning smashes, sky-high lobs, sizzling chops, and unbelievable athleticism.”

A limited number of free tickets are available for spectators. For more information, please call (425) 644-7833 or email ttshowcasedebuts [at] gmail.com.

Event sponsors include Seattle Parks and Recreation, US National Table Tennis League, TableTennisOnly.com, Butterflyonline.com, USA Table Tennis, Paddle Palace, Pacific Sports Exchange, Pa Tang Table Tennis, and the Green Lake Community Center Advisory Council.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2012.

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Post tags: parks and rec, table tennis

Work on the path began today (Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2012) and will continue throughout the week, according to Seattle Parks and Recreation Operations Crew Chief Colleen Hackett.

The new gravel will eliminate the lip between the asphalt and crushed rock. Tractors, groomers, rakes and flaggers will be used.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2012.

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Post tags: construction, parks and rec

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: parks and rec, traffic

The facility will be open:

Mondays - 1:30 – 9 p.m.

Tuesdays - 1:30 – 9 p.m.

Wednesdays - 1:30 – 9 p.m.

Thursdays - 1:30 – 9 p.m.

Fridays - 2 – 9 p.m.

Saturdays - 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Sundays – closed

Currently, the Green Lake Community Center is open Mondays-Fridays, 1 to 8 p.m. and closed on Saturdays and Sundays (note, however, that is is closing Dec. 18-26  for maintenance.)

A Seattle Parks and Recreation press release sent earlier today (Friday, Dec. 16, 2011) read as follows:

In response to challenging budgets and a directive from City Council, Seattle Parks and Recreation spent 2011 meeting with community stakeholders and staff to develop a new plan for operating community centers in 2012. That work has resulted in a new tiered system for operating community centers that reduces operating costs, while maintaining essential services.

In the new system, community centers are grouped into five geographic areas of five centers each. They are managed and programmed in a coordinated fashion. The new system partially or fully restores the current limited use sites. Five limited use sites were established in 2011, which involved a significant drop in public operating hours. The new tiered system for 2012 saves approximately $1.23 million in the 2012 budget.

Background

In January 2011, Seattle Parks and Recreation convened a Community Center Advisory Team, consisting of community members, representatives from the Board of Park Commissioners, representatives of employee unions, employees, the Associated Recreation Council, and City Council and City Budget Office staff. The team met throughout the spring to discuss options for moving forward.

They recommended nine possible options. After taking the nine options to the public via community meetings and an online survey, the tiered geographic recommendation floated to the top.

Then, Parks staff held 27 public meetings to hear from communities about what activities and hours they would like to see at their nearest community center. The results of those meetings helped inform the new operating hours.

City Council approved the new tiered operating model in its 2012 budget.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: parks and rec

Due to the nature of the work being done, the entire facility will be closed to the public. The public restrooms will be available for use, and can be accessed from the outside restroom doors.

Until Evans Pool reopens, patrons can use Ballard, Madison, Meadowbrook or Queen Anne pools:

Ballard Pool, 1471 NW 67 St. Seattle, WA 98117  206-684-4094

Helene Madison Pool, 13401 Meridian Avenue N. Seattle, WA 98133   206-684-4979

Meadowbrook Pool,  10517 35 NE Seattle, WA 98125   206-684-4989

Queen Anne Pool, 1920 1 Ave W Seattle, WA 98119  206-386-4282

The schedule of programs for other locations can be found here.

The Lifeguard Training class scheduled to begin December 21 has been moved to Medgar Evers Pool for the first week of class. Medgar Evers Pool is located at 500 23 Ave E. Seattle, WA  98122. The phone number is 206-684-4766. The class times will change slightly:

Wednesday, December 21, 3 – 8 p.m.

Thursday, December 22, 8 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Friday, December 23, 3 – 8 p.m.

The community centers nearest to the Green Lake Community Center are Northgate, Ravenna-Eckstein, Bitter Lake and Loyal Heights. Check here for schedules and programs.

For more information, contact Green Lake Community Center at 684-0780 or Evans Pool at 684-4961.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: parks and rec, swimming

Registration is open for spring season rowing with Green Lake Crew.

The season runs Jan. 30-May 21, 2012. There are courses for experienced boys and girls, novice boys and girls, and beginning/intermediate/competitive adults.

Class registration is through the Seattle Parks Department’s SPARC system.

The Green Lake Crew operates out of the Green Lake Small Craft Center (5900 W Green Lake Way N) and hosts the Green Lake Spring Regatta, the Summer Rowing Regatta, and the Frostbite Regatta every year.

Thanks for the tip, Jill!

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: boating, parks and rec

Staff at the Green Lake Community Center continue preparations for the 35th Pathway of Lights, the annual lighting of the path around Green Lake.

The luminary walk is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 10, 2011, 5-8 p.m., rain or shine.  Details are available here, a facebook page for the event is here and the following poster will soon be printed:

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: parks and rec, walking