Green Lights a Go!

Good news! The mayor and the city’s art commission gave us “the green light” for our intersection art project. The design submitted by Fairhaven Middle School student Willow Hughes, won neighborhood and city approval. After approval Willow said, “I’m very excited about my art being chosen for the Happy Valley Community Crossroad project. Now a piece of my art can be presented to everyone, those who live in the Happy Valley neighborhood and others. I’m also excited that something I’m good at will make a difference in Bellingham.” With the weather turning wet and colder, it has been decided to plan on a spring 2014 paint day. This will allow us as a neighborhood to prepare, working with the city to determine logistics for the day, a paint day strategy, and festivity preparations.  If you are interested in helping organize the day, contact Aaron. But for now, hurray for another step toward a successful paint day!

Green Light from the Arts Commission!

Good news! Last night the city’s art commission gave us “the green light” for our intersection art project. It now goes to the mayor for final approval. Now we need to discern if we can paint this fall or if we should wait for the spring. Pray for a long stretch of dry weather!

There will be some steps that need to take place before paint day. If you want to help with the process let us know. But for now, hurray for another step toward a successful paint day!

Successful 1st Presentation to Arts Commission

Last night we presented our proposal to the city’s arts commission. It was a great meeting, where we were able to share our vision and hopes for our intersection mural project. The arts commission is a group of respected local artists entrusted with helping to bring quality art into the public arena. This group is a great resource for our city, and offered excellent suggestions to improve our project. Their primary suggestion to us was to involve a muralist to help bring our community approved design to scale on the pavement. Between now and our final presentation to the arts commission (in early October), we will be working with this muralist in how to successfully move the awesome design (by Willow) onto the street, where we as a neighborhood can paint together. All in all, we are excited to partner with the city in continuing to achieve our goal of bring neighbors together around cool stuff. Viva comunidad!

The Site

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Proposal Submitted!

Our proposal to the city has been submitted! After some great suggestions from Wendy, Michael, and Jeff, we turned our proposal into the Department of Public Works. They then passed it to the Arts Commission. It will be to the Arts Commission that we will give two presentations; the first presentation will be on September 3rd. After the second presentation in October, they will make a recommendation to the mayor.

As we wait for these presentations, we can take a breath and celebrate what we've accomplished thus far: moving a neighborhood desire into action, organizing all the pieces to create a solid proposal, and most importantly gathering together as neighbors and building relationships around a positive project. Here's to an already successful project!

Update From the City

Our intersection project is moving forward! Here's an update: We are now in the city's scheduling. After meeting with city planning, we got the thumbs up from public works. So now we need to enter the process with the Bellingham Arts Commission (BAC). We will present initially with BAC on September 3rd to conceptually discuss the project. Then on October 1st we'll make a final presentation. After they approve it goes to the mayor's desk, and we'll get approval within the week. This means two things: 1) our proposed painting day (Sept. 28th) will not happen, which is a bummer. We'll hopefully paint under a dry clear sky in mid October (pray not for rain), 2) that the city believes this is a viable, repeatable project, which is good news for Bellingham and building neighborhood connections. So, great things are happening. Thanks for your support and work!

We Have a Design!

We are proud to announce that we have a design! At our July 30^th meeting we had a great turn out of diverse neighbors. After two rounds of voting and eighteen designs to choose from, a design by Willow Hughes was chosen. Willow will be a 6^th grader at Fairhaven Middle School in the fall, coming from Larrabee Elementary. Way to go Willow!

The next step is to gather signatures from neighbors, approving of our proposal and the design. Then we will submit our proposal to the city. To help with this, join us on Thursday, August 8^th, from 6pm – 8pm at the Samish School (2113 Harris Ave.) for a potluck BBQ. Will show off the design, eat and visit together, and provide opportunities to look at and sign the proposal. So grab a friend and some food, and join us!

Here’s to our great neighborhood and doing cool things together!

Let's Decide on a Design Together, July 30th

It's time to gather as neighbors and decide on the intersection mural design we're going to submit to the city. Join us at the Samish School (2113 Harris Ave.) on Tuesday July 30th at 6pm. We'll look at the designs that were submitted, then together vote on our design. Light refreshments will be provided.

There is still time to submit a design. Print off the template, fill in your awesome design, and drop it off at the Firehouse PAC (1314 Harris Ave.). See you soon!

Time to Design

We are in the design stage of the Happy Valley Community Crossroads. By "we" I mean ALL of us. Print off the sketch of 22nd and Harris (below) and draw/color in a possible image for the street. Submit your design to the Firehouse Cafe (1314 Harris Ave.). In late-July we'll gather as a neighborhood and decide together the design we will submit to the city. Everyone is welcome to submit a design (young, old, artist, doodler, whoever!). So join us, submit a design, tell a friend, submit another design, and look out for information on our next meeting in July! Have fun!

More Press on Our Project

Paint The Town

by Communities First Association Staff Laura Jean Harris

(communitiesfirstassociation.org/)

“Let’s paint the street!” Is essentially what artist Dan Tucker suggested at his neighborhood meeting. He shared what he had seen on his trip to Portland; intersection art.

Intersection art in Portland, OR

The whole idea for the intersection art project was inspired by a nonprofit called City Repair. The idea is that a low-traffic intersection can become like a town square. As a square, the intersection can be blocked off for a plethora of events and/or attract some local business street-side venders. City Repair’s goal is firstly that communities come together and secondly that the community actually accomplish the intersection art itself.
“It all starts with a potluck.” (cityrepair.org) City Repair explains. At this potluck neighbors are encouraged to share what it is that they care about, what they want to see for their neighborhood. If they desire to do so, neighbors can work together to rally supplies, volunteers, and seek city approval using a legalese letter provided by City Repair.

Dan Shares at the Firehouse Coffee shop

The group desired to do so. They titled the project, “Happy Valley Community Crossroads.” Now they just had to rally everything except funds. Happy Valley Neighborhood has a wonderful problem- instead of trying to find money for projects, they needed to find projects for the money. How did this happen? Aaron Walters, pastor of The Table, and barista at Firehouse Coffee shop is very committed to serving his community and had applied for and received a grant for community development project that uses ABCD (Asset Based Community Development). They also received five “small and simple” grants for their county.
Now they needed an intersection with just enough, but not too much traffic. Aaron and Dan scanned the neighborhood for the best intersection.
They both independently agreed on Harris Avenue and 22^nd Street. This is a diverse intersection. The four corners of this intersection are comprised of: The Samish Preschool, a rental complex comprised mostly of college students, a single family home, and a duplex comprised mostly of retirees.

Meeting at the Samish Preschool

Neighbors met at the Samish preschool, sitting on tiny preschool chairs to further discuss the project that they hoped would take place just outside.
Jeff Littlejohn describes the meeting thus, “Very naturally people got comfy and started sharing other neighborhood issues both positive and negative, like at a kitchen table. They went up a couple of notches in intimacy, trust, and ownership in just an hour and a half’s time.” It was a time of sharing interests and dreams, and for allowing people to self-declare what they may never have before. It was the fulfillment of City Repair’s first goal.
It was also a key meeting in planning. They determined to gain more community involvement, deciding to send a template of the intersection to two local elementary schools: Larrabee and Happy Valley. The students will be given the opportunity to submit a design for consideration. This will bring awareness of the project to parents as well.
This is a great start to a beautiful dream of creating space for neighbors to meet and work together.
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Here is a link to the story as told by John Servais of the Northwest Citizen Newspaper http://www.nwcitizen.com/entry/intersection-art-comes-to-happy-valley

Here's what it could look like!

Happy Valley Community Crossroads article in Northwest Citizen

Happy Valley neighbor, John Servais, wrote and posted this article (below) in the Northwest Citizen. Enjoy!

Intersection Art Comes to Happy Valley

Sun, Jun 09, 2013, 10:37 pm  //  John Servais

  The leaders of the project, from left, Aaron Walters, Jody Guenser and Pam Sinnett. Standing, of course, at Harris and 22nd. Missing is Dan Tucker.

 
The Happy Valley Neighborhood has taken on a project to paint an entire intersection with a colorful design.  It is to help create a fine community place.  As a resident of Happy Valley, I have watched this idea get circulated and grow these past few weeks and the idea seems just superb.  The "Happy Valley Community Crossroads" is the name for the project.
Aaron Walters, one of the leaders of the effort said, "The primary goal is to bring people together."  Jody Guenser added, "The neighborhood is what we want to bring together."
 
Now a location has been selected - by the residents of the neighborhood.  It is Harris Avenue at 22nd Street - in the very heart of the valley and almost central to the entire neighborhood.  Over the month of June, people - young and old - can submit colored design suggestions.  In July there will be a neighborhood gathering to decide on the best design. Then the proposal will be submitted to city hall for approval.
 
Attached is a pdf file of the coloring design sheet - which anyone can download and use to design a suggested scheme for the street corner.  The designs can be submitted at the Firehouse Cafe at Harris Ave and 14th Street.
 
It started with Dan Tucker - as he discovered these street corner developments in Portland, Oregon.  You can google "intersection art portland" and see for yourself.  Aaron Walters picked up on the idea and the two of them brought it forward to others in the neighborhood association.  And people liked it.  The residents near the intersection have been supportive.
 
Let us hope the city encourages and approves this proposal.  Perhaps other neighborhoods will like the result and choose corners in their neighborhoods for the same sort of project.
As Pam Sinnett said about the project, "We hope it makes people smile and maybe slow down a bit."