Friends of Marymoor Park

January 23rd, 2008 Meeting Summary

-- see also the November 28, 2007 meeting summary

1) Introductions:

Greg Helland, FOMP President, SODA representative
Herb Bone, FOMP Board, Marymoor R/C Club representative
Christine Merton, FOMP Board, Marymoor Community Gardeners Association representative
Michael Hobbs, FOMP Secretary, East Lake Washington Audubon representative
Norah Gaynor, King County Parks
Frana Milan, King County Parks Strategic Partnerships & Enterprise Initiatives Section
Matt Stevenson, GIS guru

2) Marymoor Map:

Matt is a GIS guru that Frana has recommended to develop the Marymoor Park map. The City of Redmond Tourism Grant did not come through, but Redmond Town Center has agreed to contribute $1500. Whole Foods may also contribute. Production goal date is the beginning of Cirque du Soleil. Greg suggested that ConcertsAtMarymoor might want to contribute, and Christina suggested the vendors (Subway, Blazing Bagels, etc) might want to as well.

Frana laid out some ideas about the map, so that we could discuss them. It was pretty well agreed that a 23.5” x 16.5” size (twice the old map size) would be appropriate, and there was no opposition to her ideas about the goals, target audience, or minimum specifications for the map.  

One thing Frana asked about was whether there should be a grid system overlaid on the map, so that points of interest could be referred to by coordinates. Redmond Police already use such a grid, w.r.t. Marymoor. However there was a feeling that there isn’t probably necessary, as there are not that many points of interest, and most are concentrated in just a couple of areas, making them pretty easy to find on the map.

Michael requested that the off-leash area be better delineated (making it more obvious what was inside vs. outside the area) than on the old map, and that a statement appear that dogs must be on-leash except within the OLA.

Matt asked about color schemes. Norah pointed out that the parks signs are blue with white, and that might be good to use. For the map itself, everyone was leaning towards muted colors, less intense than the colors the old map used.

Christina suggested that the defibrillators be marked on the map, though Norah was concerned that they are a theft target.

3) Project Updates:

  • Marymoor Connector Trail – Last week, the Marymoor R/C folk met with the trails staff. They discussed rotating the flying field 10 degrees, and they’re shrinking the length of the flight zone from 2200 feet to 2000 feet. This alleviates much of the conflict with the trail, and slightly improves the conflict with the proposed East Meadow bird trail. Parks will assist with the grading and planting required to shift the runway area, but work is expected to be minimal.

    Herb mentioned that their sighting poles will be replaced with banners, and two barrier banners would be placed at the east end of the flight zone so pilots know not to fly beyond , over the trail. Michael suggested that one of these barrier banners be installed at the northwest end of the flight area as well, to protect the East Meadow.

    The previously mentioned idea of planting trees to “protect” the trail, may not be a good idea. Trees would change the nature of the wetland meadow. Herb also mentioned that trees don’t necessarily stand out visually, given that the background is also trees. Red-osier Dogwood was suggested as an alternative to trees.

    Norah also mentioned that they investigated the idea of engraved pavers as a fundraiser, and it doesn’t pan out for the connector trail project. The trail itself is not suitable for a site for paver blocks because of the uneven surface they’d produce, because of increased maintenance, etc. They investigated making some side pullouts with pavers, but those would not be cost effective. The idea has not totally gone away – Norah is investigating whether there is a place for engraved pavers or tiles within the park.

    Estimated trail construction timeframe: July 1, 2008 through January 2009.
     
  • Ballfields 1&2 Multi-use Project – Estimated construction timeframe: July 1, 2008 through January 2009.
     
  • Clise Electrical – Mostly complete, and going really well. Norah was very happy that they managed to avoid using a lot of exposed conduit.
     
  • Pet Garden – still not finished, but much, much improved.

4) Event/Activity Updates:

  • Velodrome Practices – start February 28th
  • Softball/Baseball Practices – start March 1st
  • Evergreen Gala – Tentative – Saturday, March 8th
  • Company Picnic/Easter Egg Hunt – March 15th
  • Cirque du Soleil – Setup begins March 31st. Run dates April 24th – May 18th www.cirquedusoleil.com/CirqueDuSoleil/default.htm
  • American Diabetes Association - Tour de Cure – Tentative – Saturday, May 17th

 Next meeting, Wednesday, February 27, 2008.

These notes were made by Michael Hobbs, and they 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.
 

 

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