When I was first approached about writing this column, the guidelines given were to capture the essence of Georgetown. I envisioned covering an array of topics, from the character of the neighborhood to the characters that call this part of Seattle home.
I imagined writing about the peeing man who exits the 4:20 bus and turns the corner to relieve himself in our laurel hedge, or the veteran who constantly walks around the block with his hands behind his back, sporting his rainbow suspenders. Sometimes he scatters soda pop cans around the turnabout so cars can smash them for his recycling bin. There is also the jogger who passes through the alley with her three Greyhounds in tow, all managing to run in unison.
Hopefully, I will get to cover these people someday because they are stories waiting to be told. In the few months I've put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), I had hoped to write about these characters but that hasn't happened yet. Instead I've written about issues that we are facing, like Southwest Airlines or the proposed red light district. This column will be no different.
Looking at my calendar and the activity that is occurring on Georgetown and South Park's listservs, there are many issues needing action in the next few weeks. Many of them are worthy of a column, but for now a mention will hopefully do them justice.
A public hearing will be held on April 12 regarding the proposed rezoning for adult cabarets. The Seattle Department of Planning and Development has proposed legislation to allow these clubs in an industrial area south of downtown adjacent to I-5. This issue has been discussed several times in this paper, but it is important enough for another mention.
South Park, Georgetown and the Duwamish River Clean-Up Coalition deserve huge kudos for the countless hours that have been devoted toward the Duwamish River.
The Duwamish, deemed an EPA Superfund site in 2001, is in the midst of a transformation. It is the hope that the river will again be home to a lively salmon populatio with neighbors gathering on its restored riverbanks.
And then there is the issue that has cost me hours of lost sleep, the intermodal transfer station. Earlier last year, I attended some public meetings about the possibility of a new waste station. The city was looking at five different options, and after listening to the evidence presented, I actually left the meeting thinking there was no way Georgetown would be picked.
I was wrong.
Though city officials have publicly stated that no decision has been made, insiders say that Georgetown is where Seattle Public Utilities would like to site the waste station.
And just as "adult cabarets" is a nice way of saying strip clubs, "intermodal transfer station" is a fancy way of saying dump.
Apparently it doesn't matter that nine businesses will be displaced, and the proposed truck route goes past our city hall with its notorious, awkward turn for larger vehicles. It doesn't seem to matter that this waste station would be sited about 600 feet from our closest residence. It also seems irrelevant that 200 trucks a day would drive through our business district and completely thwart the Georgetown revitalization we are experiencing.
For the last couple of months, we have been mobilizing to fight this issue.
Like so many other neighborhoods in the South End, Georgetown has made huge strides toward improving our community. A proposal like the waste station would dramatically alter the character of our neighborhood.
I am hoping, one day, to write about the characters that live in Georgetown rather than the issues that threaten the character of Georgetown.
Kathy Nyland, a Georgetown resident, may be contacted via editor@sdistrictjournal.com.
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