It might be winter, but the citizen neighborhood greenway organizers are still moving full speed ahead, and their numbers are steadily growing. They held a meeting for residents of Phinney Ridge and Greenwood Wednesday, they are organizing a community bike ride on the Wallingford Greenway route to the UW bike stations Saturday, they are presenting to the Madison Park Community Council Monday, and they have a meet-up at the Beacon Hill Library 6 p.m. January 10.

Neighborhood Street Fund applications are due February 1, and several neighborhoods are planning to get some greenway projects in the pool. If you want to learn more, you will definitely want to make the Tuesday meeting.

From the Facebook event:

Seattle’s Neighborhood Greenways movement is attracting many newcomers to bike advocacy who are eager to transform Seattle into a city where everyone can bike and walk safely. Come join us to learn about the history of bike advocacy in Seattle, and how our growing Neighborhood Greenways movement can complement the hard work that’s already been done to make Seattle one of the nation’s most respected cities for bicycling and walking.

We are privileged to welcome Blake Trask as our featured speaker for this meetup. Blake is the chair of the Seattle Bike Advisory Board (SBAB) and is the Statewide Policy Director of the Bicycle Alliance of Washington (BAW). He’ll be providing us with the context for Seattle’s current (2007) Bicycle Master Plan: who was involved in it? What was the vision? What were the biggest challenges? And how can Neighborhood Greenways be incorporated into the 2012 update to the Bicycle Master Plan?

Blake brings a wealth of knowledge and many years of experience in improving bike safety “from the inside”. By learning from Blake where we’ve already been as an advocacy movement, we will be even better equipped as Neighborhood Greenways organizers to “work within the system” to make bicycling and walking safe and attractive for all Seattle.

We will also be discussing the upcoming neighborhood project fund grants (deadline Feb 1). This is a great and easy way to get some Greenways built in your neighborhood NEXT YEAR!

SCHEDULE:
– 6:00-6:30: Potluck dinner
– 6:30-6:45: Neighborhood updates + Bob’s new greenway system mapping tool
– 6:45-7:45: Guest presentation by Blake Trask

POTLUCK DETAILS:
– Bring a dish or dessert of your choice to share.
– Sorry, but alcoholic beverages are not permitted by our venue.

Neighborhood Greenways presentation to Madison Park Community Council

From the MPCC:

Next Madison Park Community Council Meeting
Monday, Jan 9, 2012, at 7:00 PM
Madison Park Bath House, 1900 43rd Avenue East

On Monday January 9th, 2012, join us for an introduction to Seattle’s approach to the concept of Neighborhood Greenways. Bob Edmiston will be speaking about the goals of Seattle Neighborhood Greenways and how they might further enhance the livability of Madison Park.

Neighborhood Greenways are dedicated residential streets, often paralleling an arterial, with low traffic volume and traffic speeds. Neighborhood Greenways are intended to be connections between parks, schools, residences and neighborhood businesses, while providing a quieter, slower paced place where bicycles, pedestrians and neighbors’ safety are all given priority. Cars are still able to drive and park on Neighborhood Greenways though by implementing various traffic calming measures the streets become safer for non-vehicular users also.

Spokespeople ride Wallingford Greenway to UW bike stations

Very welcoming ride for beginners. Starts at N 42nd St and Densmore Ave N at 2 p.m. Saturday.

From the Facebook event:

Please join SPOKESPEOPLE, http://twitter.com/Spokespeople, on the first Saturday of every month for a fun, low-carbon, family-friendly community ride. On this ride, we’ll go to the UW Self-Service Bicycle Repair Stations and learn more about visions for the future of the UW Bike Community. http://f2.washington.edu/ess/content/self-service-bicycle-repair-stations-encourage-uw-bike-commuters

Our ride will feature David Amiton, Transportation Analyst for UW Commuter Services, who will ride with us and chat about the repair stations, UW’s bicycle programs, and future efforts general improvements for bicyclists and pedestrians, bicycle connections, infrastructure, programs, and more once we get to campus. All Spokespeople rides meet at the south end of Wallingford Playfield at 42nd & Densmore and ride on the road to an adjacent urban center. New riders welcome! Please come by 1:45 if you are new to riding in groups or if you need help with adjusting your helmet or bike. All ages and skill levels welcome! All rides are on the road with traffic, and include expert commuters who accompany us to offer encouragement and model good road riding techniques for new, returning and reluctant cyclists. Please join us! This is a Bike Smart Seattle ride. All are welcome!