INGRAHAM
Blog: http://www.saveingrahamtrees.info/
July 2010
The Department of Planning and Development determined there would be no long range environmental loss at Ingraham High School when the 100 ft + Douglas Fir, Madrone and Cedar are cut down to allow the proposed "west compressed version" of the addition to be placed in the Northwest Grove.
Because of the DPD decison, Save the Trees-Seattle appealed to the City Hearing Examiner. The Hearing was on June 23 and 24. The closing statements were delivered a week later. It will be at the end of July or beginning of August when we learn the City Hearing Examiners decision. Will She decide that the addition must be built outside the grove to protect the uncommon plant habitat?
We will let you know the answer to that question soon...in the meantime we will be preparing to go to the King County Superior Court.
April 2010
Thank you, for writing to Mayor McGinn requesting that he respond to the community and the need to keep native, rare and uncommon habitat. The following is the response that most of us have received from the Mayor's office. A form letter, sending our request to DPD, the very department that has NOT acknowledged the Directors -Rules or the Seattle Municipal Code to retain native habitat in the City of Seattle.
From this reply it is obvious that the Mayor and his office have determined that the health of the Environment will have no effect on the health of the City. As one looks at the long list of changes that are occurring that remove mature, native plant habitat and the Mayor that stands silently by allowing the destruction, one can say goodbye to an emerald city, a livable city and hello to air pollution and lung disease.
Please note the following 2 emails. First is the form letter reply from the Mayor's office. The 2nd is the request by Mr. Scully to the Mayor.
Dear Mr. Scully:
Thank you for contacting Mayor McGinn with your concerns about the Ingraham High School expansion project and its effect on the nearby trees. The mayor recognizes the value of trees in our urban landscape, and is committed to maintaining and expanding our tree canopy when possible.
Seattle Public Schools has submitted three applications to Seattle
Department of Planning and Development (DPD) related to future improvements at the school:
.A Master Use Permit (MUP) Land Use application to demolish detached
structures and construct a classroom addition (DPD #3009549);
.A demolition application to demolish eight detached structures (DPD
#6193971); and
.A construction application to build the classroom addition and exterior
alterations (DPD #6192654).
As you are probably aware, this project has been through several rounds of proposals, appeals and reviews by the Hearing Examiner. DPD is currently revising its latest decision, which will be available by the end of April. Your concerns, identified in your email, have been forwarded to the assigned Land Use Planner, Tamara Garrett for her review and consideration. We are confident that DPD's review of the submitted plans and materials will verify compliance with all applicable code provisions. If you would like to provide additional input to Tamara, you may contact her at tamara.garrett@seattle.gov or (206) 684-0976. Questions about the status of the review should be directed to (206) 684-8467. You will receive written notice of the final decision.
We appreciate your input in this process.
Sincerely,
Nathaniel Merrill
Correspondence Staff
Office of the Mayor
(206) 684-4000
------------------------------
Dear Mayor McGinn:
Thank you for helping us protect a rare plant association at Ingraham High School. Brendan Donckers contacted you about this issue, and you asked us to send a summary via email.
In a nutshell, my clients are neighbors to Ingraham and concerned citizens seeking to save a rare plant association, a grove of massive Douglas Fir trees, madrone, and salal, that grows on School District grounds. The District is asking the Department of Planning and Development to approve a master use permit that allows them to destroy a majority of the grove. As described below, DPD has the authority to deny this application, but to date has failed to do so.
The District is seeking to add one additional classroom to Ingraham and replace portables with internal classrooms, and has considered numerous
different options for doing so. One option, adding on to the existing building to the North of the school, would leave the grove alone, and meet the District's expansion needs. Inexplicably, the District has chosen a different option, which ignores vacant land to the North and on other areas of the campus and instead requires destruction of a majority of the grove by building to the West.
A previous iteration of this plan, which would have destroyed the grove almost completely, was approved by DPD but then rejected by the Hearing Examiner. The current version was approved again by DPD, but again rejected by the Hearing Examiner for failing to provide for adequate public comment. Currently, DPD is considering the revised proposal again, and we ask you to intervene and direct them to deny the application until it is revised to leave the grove intact. Former Mayor Nickels spoke against the proposal, and the City Council enacted Seattle's current tree protection ordinance in part because of it, but no elected leader to date has had the courage to simply tell DPD to exercise their discretion to deny it.
As an initial note, this grove would be automatically protected under Seattle's current tree code. The District rushed to file its permit application before the new code came into effect. Fortunately, the version of Seattle's code governing this proposal gives discretion to DPD to protect the grove. SMC 25.05.675(N)(2)(a) provides:
When the decisionmaker finds that a proposed project would reduce or damage rare, uncommon, unique or exceptional plant or wildlife habitat, wildlife travelways, or habitat diversity for species (plants or animals) of substantial aesthetic, educational, ecological or economic value, the decisionmaker may condition or deny the project to mitigate its adverse impacts.
This grove is of inestimable value to Seattle, and should be preserved. The combination of Douglas Fir, madrone, and salal growing together is listed as a known high quality or rare plant community for King County by the Washington Department of Natural Resources. Very little of Seattle's original forest at all remains, let alone examples of this rare plant community; a report commissioned by the District noted that outside of major parks, the next closest example of a healthy intact association was Tiger Mountain State Forest. As you are well-familiar, massive Douglas Firs like those at Ingraham provide virtually incalculable air quality, stormwater, and water quality benefits. The rare plant association provides shelter for wildlife and for other native flora. Bandtailed pigeons, a priority species, forage and nest in madrones, and a panoply of other wildlife currently either nest in or regularly use the Douglas Fir trees in this grove. The grove also provides other benefits - among other benefits, for the neighbors, it is a valuable screen from the noise and light pollution of living adjacent to a large high school.
This email provides only the barest tip of the iceberg on the reasons why this grove should be preserved, and why the District's plans make no sense. My clients and I would be delighted to spend half an hour of your time explaining why your personal intervention to save this rare plant
association is necessary. We ask that you move quickly, before DPD issues its decision, and these citizens must again spend money and effort fighting this ill-conceived plan on appeal.
Thank you again for your consideration,
Keith Scully
Attorney at Law
Gendler & Mann, LLP
1424 Fourth Avenue, Suite 1015
Seattle, WA 98101
Once more the Ingraham Trees need the help of the Activist. Please write to the Mayor and ask for the intervention to keep the Ingraham Trees and move the Project proposed by the School District to another site on campus. It is not to late to have both Education and Trees. It is not to late to have an ecological classroom, living breathing, valuable to both the school and the neighborhood. It is not to late to save an Urban Forest, with uncommon and rare plant habitat. It is time for the City Mayor and the DPD to stand up to the School District and hold the School District accountable to follow City Ordinances, and plans for the future. Ask the Mayor to save the Ingraham Trees. Click here to send a message to Mayor McGinn.
Thank You for your help.
With the School District resubmitting plans, and calling them the "west compressed" version it has declared war on the Northwest Grove. The School District has declared war on those whose goals are to protect the trees AND add to the educational values at Ingraham High School.
The Kiosk that shows the "west compressed" plans for Ingraham High School once more shows wasted space, large hallways and a forum, where the now majestic and magnificant 100 foot Douglas Fir, Western Red Cedar and Madrone trees now stand.
The entire idea of removing native trees with the stature and significance to the habitat and wildlife, as the Northwest Grove has; when a lawn and small shrub/trees that are classified as horticultural/non-native exists to the North East is ludicrous at the least, irresponsibly insane more likely. But then, we are talking about the Seattle School District.
What, you ask are the tree advocates going to do about this act of piracy by the School District? Fight, until we can fight no longer!
The School District has an unlimited budget to fund their acts of Piracy, the Tree Advocate's have generous hearts that give from their very roots. We will interlock our roots, joining together...as one we will fight for Ingraham. Check out the WALDO WOODS page. That Battle has been won. Now, we battle for Ingraham.
Force the School District to be environmentally responsible and move the addition to the North Lawn (or some other environmentally resonable area). To remove any part of the Northwest Grove of Trees will cause Fragmentation, loss of Habitat and loss of different species of birds...chestnut backed chickadees, nuthatches, bandtailed pigeons and others will be lost...no place to roost, nothing to eat, no place to nest...all will be lost. All because the School District is too stubborn to move around the corner, or to think about the future.
But, the future doesn't stop at the wild critters, and their habitat. The future includes all of us. The cost to clean up Puget Sound due to storm water runoff increases with every tree removed. The cost for electricity to cool homes in the summer and keep them warm in the winter...including classrooms at school will also increase with the removal of every tree. The dangers to our health increase with every tree removed. This includes the dangerous lung diseases from small particulates in exhaust fumes and industrial dust both of which border Ingraham's campus which is snuggly situated between I-5 and Hwy 99, next to a recycler of asphalt, cement and other road debri. These health care cost will rise with each tree removed. The 75 year old Douglas Fir, Western Red Cedar and Madrone cannot be replaced in 20, 40 or even 75 years. Why? Because these current 75 year old trees will be 95, 115 and 150 years old, and with each year they will remove more toxins than the younger trees. And over the next 20 years our pollution in the Puget Sound region will go up, with the removal of every tree and the increase in density of people....And as time goes by those increase will multiply...the only way to stay ahead of the game is to keep our 75 year old trees and to add more trees around them. As we increase in density of people, we must also increase in density of trees...the natural filters for all the pollutants made by humans...
So help reduce your carbon footprint; Fight the removal of the Ingraham Trees,
Help the Students of Today become the Environmental Stewards of Tomorrow,
Donate to the Ingraham Trees Defense Fund...a Washington State Non-Profit--where we Save Seattle's Trees and educate future generations.
or Mail a check to:
Save The Trees-Seattle
C/O Steve Zemke,
2131 N 132nd St,
Seattle WA 98133
Questions: 206-306-0811
November-- Public Comments needed NOW
It is time once more to get the pen, pencil or keyboard working. A NEW Land Use Sign has been placed on the Ingraham High School Campus. The School District is still planning to build in the Ingraham Tree Grove. We need your comments to flood DPD. The Deadline for Comments is now November 29th.
If you know the story and only want the comment link here it is: Tamara.Garrett@seattle.gov or PRC@seattle.gov Permit # 3009549, you may also write: DPD/attention Tamara Garrett, 700 5th Avenue, Suite 2000, Seattle WA, PO Box 34019, Seattle WA 98124. Here is the permit website: Here is the Hearing Examiners Decision from the City of Seattle Remanding the project back to DPD for evaluation of the Environment: http://clerk.ci.seattle.wa.us/~scripts/nph-brs.exe?s1=&s2=ingraham&s3=&S4=&Sect4=AND&l=20&Sect3=PLURON&Sect5=HEAR1&Sect6=HITOFF&d=HEAR&p=1&u=/%7Epublic/HEAR1.htm&r=1&f=G Here is the environmental checklist for the project: http://www.seattleschools.org/area/facilities/BEXIII/Ingraham/2nd_revision_IngrahamSEPAChecklist.pdf Here is the addendum to the environmental checklist: http://bex.seattleschools.org/docs/ingraham/Ingraham_SEPA_Addendum_06102009_Checklist.pdf Here is the environmental policies and SEPA laws for Seattle: 2nd decision by DPD, remanded due to NO public comment period or notification. http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/LUIB/AttachmentProject3009549ID34483009549rev.pdf The Design Team Guidelines of the Seattle Public Schools: http://www.seattleschools.org/area/facilities/DesignStandards/SchoolDesignManual.pdf The DPD on their website gives the following suggestions for making comments: http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/Notices/Public_Comment/How_To_Comment/default.asp#Tips Please pass this message/email along to others who will comment on the importance to keep Conifer Forest in the City of Seattle. We have less than 2% Conifer Trees left in Seattle and they are being reduced daily. The Ingraham trees work year round to cut pollution from I-5, and 99. The air, water and light filtration of these trees is remarkable, and truly will not be fully known until they are gone…when it is way to late. The City of Seattle wants to clean up Puget Sound and cut drainage costs, trees that are conifer, 77+ years old, 115+ feet high do just that. To remove them only adds to water pollution In Haller Lake, and other areas to the South of Ingraham, including Northgate. The City has spent over 8 million dollars in the Northgate area to buy land and begin to change a parking lot into a park again, but the DPD will not save 2.1 acres of habitat and trees to remain as a pocket park in a neighborhood. The Seattle School District will not even consider this as a viable alternative to killing the trees. Our health, our welfare are at stake—the more trees, the more parks the greater the value of homes, the better we are as a society, the healthier we are, not only in the North end, but throughout the City. We must flood DPD once more with letters and emails asking to save the Ingraham Trees. All correspondence is due by November 15, 2009. You are allowed to ask for an extension, which if you are not able to correspond by the 15th we ask that you write and ask for an extension tamara.garrett@seattle.gov or prc@seattle.gov …it is extremely important to get emails and letters in NOW. An Extension was granted until November 29, 2009. PLEASE get your comments in as early as possible. Thank you. Please write the permit number on ALL correspondence #3009549. Please CC this email address: savethetrees@live.com DPD often misplaces emails, and we need to have copies for our appeals. Please make each email individualistic…Don’t COPY and PASTE. Make the email your own, make it your passion…(see above for directions on how to comment). Thank You Shelly Save The Trees-Seattle We do our best to allow for all information that has been used in the decision process to be available to our supporters, if you have questions or need further information please contact us: savethetrees@live.com. We want people to be informed and to make up their own minds, not be our puppet. So please, if you need more information or need to know where to find something email savethetrees@live.com or call 206-306-0811. This is an opportunity for Public Comment…please Comment.
If you would like other information perhaps these sites would help.
http://web1.seattle.gov/DPD/permitstatus/Project.aspx?id=3009549.
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Onward Into Battle
July 22, 2009
Howdy,
Yesterday (July 1, 2009) I attended the fire hazard inspection at Ingraham High School. This was the first opportunity for the public to gain access behind the locked gate since the school district refiled plans to build a smaller building footprint within the Ingraham forest grove.
I noticed Madrone tree #53 is alive (click for photo). This tree is noted as 'Dead' as of June 1st on the districts documents.
Also Madrone trees #126 and #127 are alive, while they are listed as 'Hazard' on the districts documents. (click for photo.) The proposed 'Snag' treatment is, according to SMC 25.11 a form of tree removal, which is not allowed under the Order by the Hearing Examiner.
Also, I noticed a baby Flicker woodpecker being fed by 2 adult woodpeckers in a nest inside of a hollow Western Red Cedar tree #9. Please see attached Youtube video and click for photo. Please note that the SEPA Checklist and subsequent addenda failed to identify any occupancy or nesting by any animals in the grove.
I feel the re categorization of the live Madrone trees to new terminology of Dead or Hazard designations does not change the habitat value of the forest. This game of wordsmithing only allows the district to say they are proposing to remove zero Madrone habitat, while in fact, they plan to cut down 9 Madrone trees and 30 native conifer trees. Cutting these 39 trees is not allowed by the Order of the Hearing Examiner.
Also, the SEPA addendum incorrectly says that the Order of the Hearing Examiner requires reduction in impact on habitat. The Order actually states that the impact must be eliminated by moving the project site out of the grove, or reduced.
By reducing the number of trees proposed for removal from 72 to 39, there would still be a significant impact on essential habitat. These 39 trees are an average of 100' feet tall. Each of these trees are 75 years old. This is a strip of trees 60' feet wide by 135 feet long, or about 9,000 square feet. No new planting areas equaling 9,000 square feet of essential habitat is proposed to be substituted for the grove to be lost.
Several of these trees are over 24" in diameter. The SMC 25.11 code requires replacing such trees with trees in a design that will allow the replacements to achieve the same size stature. This would equal a circle about 25 feet in diameter for each of the trees. Squeezing new saplings in against the building foundation will not provide adequte root space to accomplish this requirement because the roots would eventually bump against the concrete.
Removing over 3 dozen mature native trees in a contiguous stand is not consistent with the 2008 Seattle Comprehensive Plan provision that canopy loss be arrested starting in 2008, and reversed to add 1% per year of new canopy coverage per year for the next 30 years. Representatives of the City of Bellevue recently testified at a Seattle City Council committee hearing that 6% of their canopy was lost to development in a single decade. The Ingraham High School proposal would continue this trend in Seattle, and must be stopped to comply with our obligation to provide intact ecosystem services to future generations.
Arboreally yours,
Michael Oxman
(206) 949-8733
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June 21, 2009
Welcome to Ingraham Gate where recently the School District filed "new" plans for building an addition. Plans that will once more invade the Northwest Grove. (Things to digest on the path of Ingraham Gate: City Hearing Examiner Decision, Introductory Letter by the SEPA official of the School District and finally the SEPA addendum.)
Of course the District is trying to paint a "pretty" picture of the destruction it is about to cause; only a few trees will be cut down (29 plus some hazardous trees, determined by the School District Arborist), we are saving more trees than before, only dead and hazardous Madrone will be removed (according to the District a leaning tree is hazardous).
What the District doesn't say is that the largest trees in the Northwest Grove will be cut down. The ones that are protected by the Interim Tree Ordinance. There will be 7 trees over 110 feet that will be removed immediately. Another 4 will likely die in a year due to the construction occurring within the critical root zone (closer than 20 feet to the base of the tree). One tree with a 30 inch dbh (or greater) is going to be encircled by the construction and what appears to be a rockery, this will be in the middle of all the construction. Yet on the plans by the School District this tree will be considered a live tree. The chances for its survival are none. Thus by the time construction is finished, there will be only one Exceptional Tree in the way of the "Next" addition project of the School District. And instead of 29 trees being lost the true count is closer to 40. There are 7 majestic, 110 foot trees that will be removed immediatly. There are more than the 4, 110 foot trees within the critical root zone that would be lost. The School District agrees to Best Management Plans (page 62-rule of thumb) when working on School projects, but when it comes to the Environment
those plans are ignored.
The School District has said that building on the North brings the students too close to the street and the windows are too close to the ground. But building a two story addition, dug into the ground doesn't bring the windows too close to the ground?
And having the students walk North to South or South to North in the building through 3 hallways is too difficult, to much of a maze. The students can only handle walking East to West or West to East through 2 hallways. And if the students walk too far they won't be able to learn...
I personally do not believe this type reasoning. Ingraham High School Students are very intelligent and capable of figuring out how to move from one side of a building to another, doesn't matter in it is 2 or 3 halls. 3 halls would be less crowded than 2, and would be easier to move in. So, what is the Seattle School District teaching our students?
Alternative designs are not further or more dangerous or even that different than the current layout of the High School, but to read the SEPA addendum one would think that we were asking the students to go to Mars to get to classes. When in reality we are asking for the District to be Environmentally responsible and save the Northwest Grove.
Donations are gladly accepted to fight the good fight. We tree huggers get wrapped up in the words of the fights and sometimes forget it costs money. It costs to save a tree, it cost time, it cost energy and it cost money. I have been told that the Ingraham trees are worth at least $5,000 a tree. The District now wants to remove 29 (District #/40 more likely) of them, so I guess the question is:
are 29 trees worth $20,000 in court costs?
I think so. What about you?
DONATIONS
or the old fashioned:
send to Save the Trees-Seattle,
%Steve Zemke, 2131 N 132nd Street
Seattle, WA 98133,
any questions please contact 206-366-8011.
A side bar: The way trees are counted has once more been changed, there are now 123 trees in the grove. We are not sure what happened to 10 trees. There also once were 22 Madrone trees. 4 were removed in March of 2008, 5 are slated for removal outside the proposed building plan, and 2 are inside the proposed plan. By my calculations that leaves only 11 Madrone.
But the School District says there will be 19 left.
I guess it is the new math, I just can't "discover" those 8 Madrone trees.
Or the 10 trees from the 133 to 123.
JUNE UPDATE
Seattle School District Loses a Third Time on Cutting down Trees at Ingraham High School
The Seattle School District has lost a third time in their effort to clearcut trees in the Northwest Forest area at Ingraham High School. The first time the Seattle School District lost was an attempt to use a loophole in Seattle City law to clearcut the forest area in August of 2008, when they withdrew their construction permits. This attempt was stopped by an Injunction issued by the King County Superior Court.
They lost a second time before the Seattle Hearing Examiner in a May 4, 2009 decision. In that decision, Ann Watanabe- the Seattle Hearing Examiner , ruled that the northwest forest area was "uncommon on account of the conifer/madrone/salal plant association which is present, and the relative scarcity of that association ... Given the difficulty or impossibility of replacing this amount of habitat on the site, avoidance or reduction of impacts on the grove is required if such measures are reasonable and capable of being accomplished....the decision will be remanded to DPD to require additional mitigation in the form of relocation outside of the grove, or at least reduction of the building's intrusion into the grove."
On May 13, 2009 the School District filed a Motion with the Hearing Examiner asking for Reconsideration of her decision. They argued that the Northwest Grove is not an uncommon plant habitat; that the city is foreclosed from mitigating the impacts to the Grove under the SEPA policy of SMC 25.05.675.N.2 because the impacts were not shown to be more than moderate and that DPD did mitigate the adverse impacts to the Grove.
Their third loss came on May 27, 2009 when Ann Watanabe, the Seattle Hearing Examiner denied the motion, noting that "The District's motion disputes the findings and conclusions of the decision, but does not identify mistakes as to material facts. The motion is denied"
What the Seattle School District will do next in unclear. The Seattle Hearing Examiner stated in her May 4, 2009 decision that "Any request for judicial review must be commenced with 21 days of issuance of this decision in accordance with RCW 36.70C.040"
The Hearing Examiner Rules of Practice and procedure effective March 24, 2008 states that "Unless otherwise provided by applicable law, the filing of a motion for reconsideration does not stop or alter the running of the period provided to appeal the hearing Examiner's decision."
RCW 26.70C.040 states”
“A land use petition is barred, and the court may not grant review, unless the petition is timely filed with the court and timely served on the following persons who shall be parties to the review of the land use petition" and (3) "The petition is timely if it is filed and served on all parties listed in subsection (2) of this section within twenty-one days of the issuance of the land use decision."
Unless I am missing something here it appears that they have missed their deadline to appeal the Hearing Examiner's May 4, 2009 decision in King County Superior Court.
Of course we do not know what kind of deals that are trying to work out with DPD, but considering that they have previously on numerous occasions said that they have reduced their footprint for the project the maximum amount, it is hard to see what other option they have except to move the project to another area like the open lawn area on the North side of the school.
Curiously this whole effort to save the trees may save the Seattle School District several million dollars even considering new architectural plans, because the latest bid to build the proposed project came in over 30% under their projected costs due to the local economy being so bad.
Certainly e-mails to Seattle School Board members and Superintendent Goodloe-Johnson would be a welcome reminder to them that moving the Project to another location on the campus like the North Lawn area is what the public prefers rather than their continued efforts to cut down the trees.
Here is their contact information:
District I - Peter Maier peter.maier@seattleschools.org
District II - Sherry Carr sherry.carr@seattleschools.org
District III - Harium Martin-Morris harium.martin-morris@seattleschools.org
District IV - Michael DeBell michael.debell@seattleschools.org
District V - Kay Smith-Blum kay.smith-blum@seattleschools.org
District VI - Steve Sundquist steve.sundquist@seattleschools.org
District VII - Betty Patu betty.patu@seattleschools.org
Superintendent Goodloe-Johnson - superintendent@seattleschools.org
The above is also posted on www.MajorityRules.
Steve Zemke - Chair
Save the Trees-Seattle
206-366-0811
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
May Update
WRITE to DPD:
The City Hearing Examiner ruled to remand the Ingraham Project back to the Department of Planning and Development. The Department of Planning and Development failed to treat the Northwest Grove as a rare or uncommon habitat under SMC 25.05.675.N.2. The Decision was also returned to DPD because the Department did not look at alternatives to building in the grove. Therefore the Department of Planning and Development has been ordered by the City Hearing Examiner to look at alternative designs that will reduce the footprint of the structure or build outside the Northwest Grove.
Save The Trees-Seattle is excited about this tentative victory. The School District has 21 days from May 4th to appeal this decision. Save The Trees -Seattle will be consulting with an attorney to make sure they are doing all they can to protect the Northwest Grove.
Once more a request is being made for emails, letters and phone calls. The Department of Planning and Development, and the Seattle School District must both be put on notice, the citizens of Seattle, expect their government and School Board to protect rare and uncommon habitat and to act as exceptional stewards of the environment and natural resources that we have here in the Northwest.
Email the School Board:
Sherry Carr: sherry.carr@seattleschools.org
Harium Martin-Morris: harium.martin-morris@seattleschools.org
Peter Maier: peter.maier@seattleschools.org
Cheryl Chow: cheryl.chow@seattleschools.org
Steve Sundquist: steve.sundquist@seattleschools.org
Mary Bass: mary.bass@seattleschools.org
Michael Debelle: michael.debelle@seattleschools.org
DPD at 700 5th Avenue,
STE 2000, P.O. Box 34019,
Seattle WA 98124-4019
Regarding permit #3009549
Donations:
'width' is a duplicate attribute name. Line 1, position 36.
or the old fashioned:
send to Save the Trees!-Seattle,
%Steve Zemke, 2131 N 132nd Street
Seattle, WA 98133,
any questions please contact 206-366-8011.
Ingraham High School, SAVE THE TREES-Seattle!
hired Keith Scully of Gendler and Mann to assist in getting a Temporary Restraining Order for Saving the Trees. Keith also helped to file an Appeal in King County Superior Court which is still in limbo, waiting on the School Districts next move. Keith has also been very instrumental in answering questions about Appeal Hearings and what to expect. He is also our attorney for the next step of the Ingraham Trees case, should the School District decide NOT to place the addition elsewhere on campus. Staying out of the Ingraham Trees.
April Update
For the Ingraham Crew it has been a long month. April started with an appeal hearing, before the City Hearing Examiner. The first day was April 1, 2009...and it lasted 3 days.
Then the Crew was given 10 days to write closing arguments. Which were due on April 13, 2009. The main Argument is that the School District did not consider the fact that the Ingraham Trees are unusual, uncommon, unique, and have Substantial Environmental value. There was testimony given to the value of the trees for habitat, education, aesthetics, light and noise filtration, drainage control and social/psychological values. All the points that have been brought to the forefront before. Only this time there were many more "Degrees" (Bachelor of Science, Masters, and PhD.) Along with many years of Experience and knowledge not learned with a "Degree".
The final verdict from the Hearing Examiner is due this week (April 28th or so) I will let you know what we find out.
In the mean time, we are preparing for the worst..expecting to go to the Superior Court of King County. To do this we need $$$$.
The REALLY GOOD NEWS is that we have a donor, who has put out a challenge to all of our supporters. He will match dollar to dollar all donations up to $2,500. Sounds like a GREAT deal to us at Save The Trees- Seattle. If you donate $25 we get $50. We will be well on our way to paying off all of the past bills (attorney and witness's) and be preparing for the next battle.
And SHOULD WE BE SO LUCKY, and the verdict from the Hearing Examiner is in our favor, well, we will have money to educate the next generation --our future--to the importance of Trees to our well being. And we can help fight other battles.
So try out our new item today:
A donation Button!
or
by Check:
Made out to: Save The Trees-Seattle
Send to: Steve Zemke
2131 N 132nd St.
Seattle WA 98133
See you all at the Festival of Trees in May.
Check out the Events and Lectures Page.
MARCH UPDATE
Currently the Ingraham Trees, are set for a City Hearing on April 1, 2009 at 9 a.m. before Deputy Hearing Examiner Anne Watanube, at 700 5th Avenue Suite 4000 (one of the hearing rooms) downtown Seattle.
Anyone is welcomed to attend the Hearing.
At this time Save the Trees-Seattle is preparing expert testimony. The group is in full swing to SAVE THE INGRAHAM TREES!
We had a pre-hearing conference, in which Mr. Hill the attorney for the School District made motions for a partial dismissal of the appeals. In Short the School District is trying to throw out issues in regards to the Environment and the Impacts caused by tree removal.
Mr. Hill's motions were partially granted under NOT being in the jurisdiction of the Hearing Examiner. I don't know who has jurisdiction over those issues but we will find out!
We can still go forth regarding the conditions for the project to be built under. One conditions can be to move the project to another place on the campus. This is where all appeallants stand united.
There were 4 appeals, due to the complicated nature of this case the appeallants divided to ensure that all issues are covered. However, the Hearing Examiner consolidated the appeals into one and we all have the same hearing date.
The Ingraham Tree Grove is first for our group. The battle cry is to SAVE THE TREES by moving the addition to another place on campus.
We area joined in our appeal by Chris Jackins, Chair for Seattle Committee to Save Schools. Concerned with the issues of schools, neighborhoods and taxpayers. His representative is a parent that has a son who graduated from Ingraham.
Other issues that will be addressed at the hearing are for local residents regarding parking, traffic, grievances regarding health, safety, recreation and so forth, which are being appealled specifically by local neighbors who also are members of Save The Trees-Seattle.
Save the Trees-Seattle is Registered in the State of Washington as a non-profit organization.
Donations are being accepted to cover legal expenses and expert witness expenses for the trees. (Testimony in regards to local resident problems which will exist no matter where the building is built will be payed for by the appeallants dealing with those issues). If you can help with the experts and legal expenses for the trees, we would greatly appreciate it.
Checks should be made out to:
Save The Trees--Seattle
Mail to :
Steve Zemke
2131 N 132nd Street
Seattle WA 98133
Thanks for your help, support and emails,
Shelly
savethetrees@live.com
http://saveingrahamstrees.info/
Below is information regarding the DPD decision being appealed and links to the decision.
If you have questions please email: savethetrees@live.com
The Department of Planning and Development has made the decision to allow the Seattle School District to move ahead with the cutting down of 72--100 ft, 75+ year old native WA trees to make an addition that could be placed elsewhere on campus.
To view the decision: http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/LUIB/
AttachmentProject3009549ID31883009549.pdf
Save The Trees-Seattle is for Education and Environmental stewardship. We believe, and ask the School District and the DPD to keep the trees and move the addition. It is the only way to keep the Habitat for Eagles and Hawks, and a park for the neighbors, and a living classroom for the students. The Ingraham Trees are a unique and valuable woodland, made up of Douglas Fir, Western Red Cedar, and Madrone.
This unique habitat will be lost forever if the School District continues in its stubborn ways.
Please help Save the trees to continue the fight with your: emails to the Superintendent of Schools, Seattle School Board, and the City Council.
Thank you
Please donate to our legal defense fund:
Save The Trees-Seattle
%Steve Zemke
2131 N 132nd Street,
Seattle WA 98133
Call: 206-306-0811
FEBRUARY 11, 2009 UPDATE: Fight Continues to Save Ingraham High School Tree Grove We need your help now to continue our efforts in 2009 to save the Ingraham Tree Grove. We are also working to enact a strong Sustainable Tree Preservation Ordinance in Seattle. We are asking for your help to retire our remaining $5000 legal bill which will let us start the New Year free of debt. Save the Trees-Seattle has had a busy year in 2008 working to save trees in Seattle. We started in February with our efforts to save the Ingraham Tree Grove of 75 year old 100 foot tall Douglas fir, western red cedar and madrone trees in the picture above. The tree battle at Ingraham High School is now before the City of Seattle’s Department of Planning and Development (DPD) for environmental review. A decision is pending and could be announced any day now. The environmental review of the Seattle School District’s construction project at Ingraham High School is only happening because Save the Trees-Seattle successfully petitioned the King County Superior Court for an Injunction to prevent the School District from cutting the trees down. The Seattle School District was trying to use a loophole in the city’s permit process to evade further environmental review and just cut the trees down. The uproar over the attempted destruction of the Ingraham tree grove helped prod the Seattle City Council to draft an emergency ordinance to close the loophole. The City Council just held a hearing last week on the proposed ordinance. We testified in support of the ordinance and worked to get citizens to contact the City Council to pass the ordinance. The City Council will vote in January. There is no need to cut the trees down at Ingraham High School. The building addition could be built on the open lawn area on the North side of the school shown in the picture above, without having to cut down any old trees. There can be both trees and education at Ingraham High School. The fight to save Ingraham High School has brought us into contact with others fighting to save trees in Seattle, including the efforts of those fighting to save the Waldo Woods trees in the Maplewood Community and other struggles to save trees across the city. Citizen efforts to save Seattle’s urban forest and tree habitat are critical. Since 1973 the tree canopy of Seattle, according to the City of Seattle itself, has decreased from 40% to 18%. Seattle has an ineffective tree preservation ordinance. According to a recent staff report to the Seattle City Council, it currently classifies less than 1% of Seattle’s trees as exceptional and worthy of being saved. Unfortunately even being classified as exceptional does not stop the city from allowing the trees to be cut down. And it does not take into account the interrelationship between trees like in a grove. Save the Trees – Seattle is committed to doing everything we can to save the Ingraham Tree Grove from being needlessly cut down when other viable building sites exist. We also see the urgent need to expand efforts to enact a new sustainable tree preservation ordinance that protects our urban green habitat from continued destruction. Such an ordinance needs to give protection not just to individual trees but also tree groves and the total habitat to provide a sustainable urban green canopy for our future. Such a strengthened tree protection ordinance would bring Seattle in line with what other cities are doing in the Puget Sound region, including requiring permits to cut down trees and protecting groves of trees. We need your help to continue our work. It has been costly going to court to get a stay of execution for the Ingraham trees. We still owe $5000 to our lawyers who helped save the trees so far. And we expect another round before a hearing examiner with the City of Seattle and then back to court to resolve our initial complaint with the Seattle School District’s inadequate environmental review process. Sincerely, Steve Zemke – Chair - Save the Trees-Seattle You can read more about our efforts to save the trees at Ingraham High School and strengthen the Seattle tree protection ordinances at: www.MajorityRules.org/blog and http://saveingrahamstrees.info/
Ingraham High School, SAVE THE TREES-Seattle!
On February 5, Save The Trees-Seattle and 3 others filed appeals with the Department of Planning and Development regarding the decision to cut down the 72 trees at Ingraham High School and move ahead with the addition project as designed.
The request to have the addition moved to elsewhere on the campus was ignored. As were many other concerns regarding the Trees, Habitat and Environment that will be changed should this project go forward as planned.
Currently all appellants are waiting for hearing dates. We will post those dates when available.
We appreciate and welcome the input of our many supporters as we move forward into battle for the Ingraham trees. This is not a light or easy decision for Save The Trees-Seattle. It will require dedicated time and labor to gather, sort, and organize the facts, figures, testimony and relevant information needed to present to the Department of Planning and Development Hearing Examiner. Information provided to the Hearing Examiner must be verifiable, accurate and reliable beyond a doubt. The question of substantial environmental destruction is on the shoulders of Save The Trees-Seattle to prove.
Save The Trees-Seattle has accepted this challenge and is marching ahead in preparation.
Volunteers are still welcome to join the Ingraham team in battle. Please call 206-306-0811, or email: savethetrees@live.com
with your availability and specialties in assisting in this project.
Thank You
INGRAHAM HIGH SCHOOL
has hired Keith Scully
of Gendler and Mann.
Donations for the Lawyer Defense Fund may be
sent to Save the Trees!-Seattle,
%Steve Zemke, 2131 N 132nd Street
Seattle, WA 98133,
any questions please contact 206-366-8011.
Thanks to all your support and help, there has been raised
over $13,000. This is due to the generosity, and sacrifices of
our neighbors, friends and tree supporters. We greatly
appreciate all of you. We still have expenses, $3,800 for the past attorney fees. We also have future expert testimony at the City Hearing examiner $1,000+ (uncertain due to length and time of hearing). And with high probability there will be a King County Superior Court appeal.
(OF COURSE WE CAN ALL KEEP OUR FINGERS CROSSED THAT THE CITY HEARING EXAMINER SEES THE BEST WAY TO DEAL WITH THE INGRAHAM PROJECT IS TO PROTECT THE INGRAHAM GROVE AND MOVE THE ADDITION TO ELSEWHERE ON THE PROPERTY).
Thank you!!
BLOG:
http://www.saveingrahamtrees.info/
www.MajorityRules.org/blog - numerous posts
Thank you!!
WEB SITE:
http://saveingrahamstrees.info
One of our supporters has created video's on his blog site of the Ingraham trees,
court decison and his creative views of what is happening Please visit http://unvain.blogspot.com/search/label/protest
A hearty Thank You to all who
attended the Public Meeting at Ingraham High School.
November 18, 2008 at Ingraham High School, the DPD held a public meeting on the Ingraham construction project. As you know Save the Many neighbors and others turned out to support the trees and to urge that the project be moved. There was also a very large contingent of vocal students and parents and teachers frustrated by their long standing grievance of classes being held in rundown mold infested portables for too many years. The Principal at Ingraham stated that he made a concerted effort to turn out students and parents and teachers to support the project. With his encouragement the students basically staged a pep rally for the project. This was not unexpected considering what they have had to put up with in a substandard learning environment. The meeting comments basically turned out to be a rehash of both sides positions with little new emerging. Those of us opposed to needlessly cutting down the trees on a campus that at 28 acres is the largest in the Seattle School District, sympathized with the frustration of the students and parents and teachers that for many years have been forced to take classes in substandard portables The Seattle School District has let the situation get out of control and is now trying to make the neighbors the villains for their negligence. The Seattle School District’s approach has been to deny they have any responsibility for delaying the project and blame neighbors who love trees more than students as what is preventing the project from going forward But Save the Trees – Seattle and the neighbors support the long overdue upgrading of the classrooms. We are not, however, the villains just because we also don’t want to needlessly destroy a unique urban forest when viable alternatives exist on the campus for building elsewhere. One location we suggested was the North lawn area which Ingraham actually picked as the site if a future addition was to be built after the current project. It is rather ironic that the Ingraham Master Plan produced as part of this project can propose building on this North lawn location in the future but it is somehow not possible to build there now and spare the grove of trees. They are serious enough about retaining the North lawn area for a future addition that in the current proposal it is the only area on campus where they do not propose planting trees. Two wrongs do not make a right. Not upgrading or maintaining the school in a responsible way for students and teachers in the past and proposing to cut down 68 Douglas fir, Western red cedar and Pacific madrone trees to now do the upgrade is only compounding the past mistakes by avoiding responsible stewardship of both our schools and our natural urban habitat. The Principal testified that he went around to different student groups to recruit them to come to the public meeting to support the project as is. It is very hard for any students to take on the Principal publicly and say they opposed cutting down the trees. I have spoken with both students and teachers who opposed cutting down the trees. At least one teacher was told to stop any efforts to get students to oppose cutting down the trees because that was political and not education. The teacher felt threatened and that her job was at stake. The Principal is the authority figure at the school. Student recommendations for college frequently come from the Principal. Is it Unfortunately the process set up by Martin Floe excluded the community and neighbors from the initial selection of the site and design of the project. Meetings of the School Design Team were held in secret with a ew parents and teachers personally selected by Martin Floe. The public’s only chance to comment on the proposed project was earlier this year after the building site had been chosen and the design done. And we were then told we could not comment on the site anymore since that decision was already made. At last night’s meeting as I publicly stated, I do not think anyone there opposed the decaying portables being torn down and replaced with modern classrooms. Unfortunately it was obvious that the only option given to students and others to get new classrooms is to build in the tree grove. And blame the neighbors, rather than the School District for its inadequate review and closed review process, for preventing them from getting new classrooms. The issue at this point is a legal one, whether or not the project is in compliance with city and state SEPA laws. We are pursuing the legal process afforded the public to review the project. The meeting was part of the public process for approval of land use http://web1.seattle.gov/dpd/LUIB/CommentEmail.aspx?BID=358&NID=8971&P=3009549&D=10/16/2008 More detailed information on saving the trees at Ingraham HS and reasons why they should be saved and tips on commenting can be found at this link: http://www.majorityrules.org/blog/2008/10/seattle-school-district-refiles.html You can see the Ingraham construction permit #3009549 here: http://web1.seattle.gov/dpd/luib/Notice.aspx?BID=358&NID=8971 If you would like to review the SEPA and the Appeal Hearing Decision by http://www.seattleschools.org/area/facilities/SchoolProjects/
Steve Zemke – Chair Save the Trees – Seattle 206-366-0811 Send comments to: Tamara.Garrett@seattle.gov
Trees – Seattle and others in the community are opposed to the Seattle School District cutting down 68 trees on the west side of the High School when other locations exist on the campus where the addition can be built without cutting down any large trees.
that are in terrible shape and have mold. Teachers and students complained of getting sick. Some of the portables house special needs students but do not have running water or bathrooms.
any wonder that teachers and students who oppose cutting down the
trees might feel intimidated or threatened if they spoke out. I remember when I contacted Martin Floe about our arborist looking at the trees he personally told me to not talk to the students. I guess he was afraid of them hearing anything contrary to his position. So much for an open dialogue at Ingraham.
What Floe has forgotten is that he is acting in a capacity of public trustee for the school. He has tried to make us NIMBY’s which means he doesn’t even understand the term. We are not opposed to renovating the school and in fact believe it is long overdue. I am aware of no one in our group or neighbors and other tree advocates that are opposed to the renovation. We voted for the BEX bond issue. Our tax dollars are paying for the project and we have the right to express our views as much as anyone else.
permits for building in the City of Seattle and is proceeding on the
normal timetable, except for the delay caused by the School District withdrawing their permit application in August in an attempt to just cut the trees down. The King County Superior Court issued an injunction to stop the trees from being cut down without any review by the City of Seattle.. The City of Seattle is expected to make a decision in the next few weeks. The City does have the authority under the city’s SEPA laws to move the project to save the trees. We will let you know when that happens.
Here is the link to comment on Permit # 3009549 for Ingraham HS:
the School District the following web site links you to all the information:
IngrahamLink.htm
Tips for Making comments to DPD:
http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/Notices/Public_Comment/How_To_Comment
/default.asp#Tips
