Friends of Marymoor Park

July 23, 2014 Meeting Summary

-- see also the June 25, 2014  meeting summary 

a) Birdloop: Asphalt Trail and Boardwalk repairs: Likely for 2015-16 budgeting cycle. Probably will be done in phases. Michael suggested that, in the interim, EAS might use some of the county’s gravel to patch some of the bigger holes in the asphalt. Norah suggested that EAS and one of the maintenance guys work with EAS on the repairs, which would occur on the first Saturday in August.

Norah inspected the Poison Hemlock problem with the lead from the King County noxious weed team. They are getting a good handle on the problem, and hopefully there will not need to be any widescale treatments in the future. EAS may therefore be able to put in some new plantings.

b) Garden Loosestrife Control Project: Purple and Garden Loosestrife treatments performed last week by Parks vegetation management crew. They are concentrating on the slough to prevent further spread downstream.

c) Community Gardens: ADA ramp construction ongoing.

d) Interpretive Lot (Lot G) improvements: Looking to the 2017-18 funding to do more major work. Most of the small items have been completed, but Norah would like drainage solutions that would reduce the need for grading, as well as a more formalized parking situation with parking stops and drainage ditches.

e) MacNair Field lighting: Installation of three lights on hold, due to archeological reasons. Charred rock was found only about 18” down, that might indicate campfire use. However, it’s beginning to look like the char layer was caused by something like a brush fire or a volcanic event instead. However, it will take an appeal of the archeological determination to

f) Lot B Drainage: See last month’s notes for design details. Work is underway.

g) Sammamish River Transition Zone: Next meeting of the Shareholder Advisory Committee, September 11

h) Clise Mansion repairs: There is some funding in the 2015-2016 funding cycle for the Clise Mansion. Window repairs may take first priority, so there may or may not be money available to upgrade the kitchen. Glenn posed the question as to whether it’s worth maintaining Clise Mansion. Norah noted that it’s a Historic Landmark building, and we had a good discussion of the situation. The kitchen improvements should make it easier to find a management company willing to handle hall rental and catering.

i) Concert Venue: Roof renovation design concept going to the Landmarks commission. The existing tent roof would be replaced by a slanted shed roof (low in the back), similar in look to the WashSpot building next door. The roof structure would require replacement of the corner vertical girders. The existing ones are surface mounted. The replacements would be piles anchored in the ground.

Here are Norah's sketches of the proposal:

2) Other

Michael complained about there being no access to the restroom that is inside the concert venue on days without concerts.  Previously, there would be temporary fencing which allowed the gates to be open, allowing people to use the restroom, but this year that isn't happening.  Norah said something could probably be done.  Michael stressed the importance of this, as there are only three real restrooms in the park, so to close one for the entirety of the busy summer season seems unreasonable.

Laura and others complained about portapotty conditions. This is apparently an ongoing issue, and Parks is quite interested in reports of bad situations as they work on sanitary contracts.

Next Meeting: August 27, 2014, at the Art Barn

These notes do not constitute an official record of the meeting.  They may have inaccuracies and omissions.  If anyone has any complaints about the content of these notes, they should direct them to Michael Hobbs at fomp@marymoor.org, and he will endeavor to correct them.