On this Ides of March:

* Chris emails that the Mug Bugs Coffee stand at 5th Avenue Northeast and Northeast 85th Street (at Rick’s Chevron) was robbed on Friday.

A Seattle Police report confirms that a “robbery business bodyforce” occurred at that location shortly after noon. The map also shows assorted burglaries and car crimes around Maple Leaf.

* More candidates emerge running for district seats in Seattle’s new City Council scheme. Nearly all of Maple Leaf is in District 5, where there are currently six candidates: Sandy Brown, Mercedes Elizalde, Debora Juarez, Mian Rice, David Toledo and Halei Watkins.

In a roundup, our news partner The Seattle Times notes that Brown leads that pack in fundraising, at $35,753.

One campaign contribution of note: super-rich Seattle venture capitalist and big-time Democratic donor Nick Hanauer last November gave $700, the maximum amount allowed, to 5th District candidate Sandy Brown. Hanauer’s wife, Leslie, also gave $700…. The Hanauers live in the 5th District.

The southernmost toe of Maple Leaf is in District 4, candidates Jean Godden, Rob Johnson, Taso Lagos, Michael J. Maddux and Tony Provine. The fundraising leader is longtime council incumbent Godden at $47,678.

* Finally, it’s of neighborhood interest that the blighted properties down 15th Avenue Northeast near Roosevelt High School are back in the news, as Seattle Mayor Ed Murray and other officials float the idea of tearing down houses belonging to Hugh Sisley and developing a pocket park. The Times’ story is here.

Nancy emails: “This male poodle was found wandering on Northeast 105th Street between Roosevelt Way Northeast and Eighth Avenue Northeast early Tuesday evening, March 10.

“Blue collar, no tags. I’m hoping owner claims him before he goes to Seattle Animal Shelter. Thanks!

Change has arrived in Maple Leaf — $1.3 million houses, traffic gridlock on arterials (Roosevelt Way Northeast, 15th Avenue Northeast, Fifth Avenue Northeast), our new park! — and the city wants to know what we and other neighborhoods think about these changes.

Examining population or job growth is one way to measure change but what about lesser-known measures like transit ridership, tree canopy cover, or academic performance?

We want to hear from you! Tell us what you think tells us the most about how your neighborhood is changing by taking our quick poll to indicate which five topics are most important to you. It’s impossible to measure how a city neighborhood changes with just one measure.

The survey suggests 21 different topics, from crime to farmers’ markets, and also has the option to write in a different topic. The link to the poll is: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SEA2035

The poll, by the city’s Department of Planning Urban Development, is tied to Seattle’s Urban Village Strategy and the city’s Comprehensive Plan.

As as it happens, our news partner The Seattle Times has an updated interactive tool: Mapping King County’s Disappearing Middle Class.

Keying off newly released data — “since 2000, 95 percent of new households in King County have been either rich or poor. A mere 5 percent could be considered middle income” - The Times has broken down new growth by census tract.

Of interest, in southwest Maple Leaf (census tract 20) 57 percent of new growth has been in high-income households. By contrast, just across Interstate 5 from Northgate (census tract 210) 100 percent of growth has been low income.

Two of Maple Leaf’s most visible residents are stepping down after years on the Maple Leaf Community Council - an organization that played a major role in shaping our neighborhood.

The ubiquitous Donna Hartmann-Miller (seen rousing the 12th Man) is stepping down from her council position when her term expires next month. (She’s also ubiquitous here.)

Her husband, David Miller - who has served as council president for nearly six years - will step down from the president’s position in May, but remain on the council until his term expires in 2016.

With the additional departure of Lori Phipps, council secretary, Miller writes:

“With the two existing open seats (Positions 8 and 9) and the departure of Donna and Lori from the Board (Positions 1 and 3), our nine-person Board will be down to just five members. I have been writing with ever-greater urgency in our quarterly newsletters about the need for other Maple Leaf residents to come forward and join the Executive Board – and now that need is even larger.”

Miller’s remark came in an email to the neighborhood last week. In it he also says:

I feel I must make crystal clear these three changes all result from personal reasons. There is no issue dividing the Board, our Board members get along really well, and Maple Leaf is not facing any major crisis (knock wood).

New volunteers need not worry about stepping into a toxic or frantic situation. Furthermore, all three of us will remain involved to pass along knowledge, expertise, and our spirit of neighborhood service – we won’t leave Maple Leaf, new volunteers, or our existing Board members hanging.

The Maple Leaf Community Council was formed by active neighbors in 1983. “We need to remember that the community we live in did not just happen,” Jack Remick, a former council member, wrote in an obituary for one of the founders.

Barbara Maxwell, another former council member, wrote:

“I completely agree with Jack that the Maple Leaf of today did not just happen but instead reflects hundreds of volunteer hours dedicated on behalf of the Maple Leaf neighborhood.”

That 2011 obituary, for Puni Hokea, is here. It also quotes HistoryLink:

Maple Leaf did not become active until 1983 when, under the leadership of Puni Hokea and Peter Orser, they formed the Maple Leaf Community Council.

Quietly, persistently, the group worked to improve services, yet preserve their sense of community. Without confrontation and without blocking a single building permit, the group managed to scale back the zoning of Roosevelt Way NE so that businesses had to provide off-street parking. The group was “articulate and well organized” (The Weekly).

To serve on the council (technically its Executive Board) you must be a resident of Maple Leaf. Other formal requirements are in the council’s bylaws. If interested, send an email to [email protected]

Miller adds:

The top informal requirement is you must love Maple Leaf. A close second is you have to be willing to represent the neighborhood, not just your personal views, during Executive Board discussions and votes. You need to be good at reading and responding to email, have interest in neighborhood issues, and be able to spend an average of a couple hours a week (sometimes more, sometimes less) to devote to serving Maple Leaf.

A rollover crash on 15th Avenue Northeast drew more than a dozen fire units to Maple Leaf overnight.

KOMO-TV reports: “An SUV sideswiped a parked truck, flipped over, and blocked traffic around 12:30 a.m. Two people were inside the SUV, and one person was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.”

The accident occurred near the intersection with Northeast 91st Street.

Dog note: Seattle DogSpot posts the news that the state Legislature passed a bill making it illegal to leave a pet locked in a car under dangerous conditions.

Calvin as shark this past Halloween.

Sorry, Maple Leaf.

Despite repeated assertions over years that Maple Leaf (or at least the 98115 zip code) has more Dog Density than any neighborhood in Seattle, we don’t.

Not even close.

We know this thanks to our news partners The Seattle Times, whose FYI Guy has crunched the numbers by zip code.

Green Lake, Ballard - even downtown - top the Dog Density list, with more than 800 dogs per square mile.

The Maple Leaf Dog Oasis, a prime protector and feeder of local canines, regrets to learn this.

(HOWEVER we can report, anecdotally, that dog traffic at the Oasis has doubled - perhaps tripled - since the opening of the north entrance to the Maple Leaf Reservoir Park. We know this because the treat jar at the Oasis now has to be refilled daily.)

In Maple Leaf, Dog Density is between 400 and 600. In the 98115 zip code, that’s 80 dogs per 1,000 residents.

One zip code north of Ballard boasts 116 dogs per 1,000 two-legs.

The Dog Oasis is neutral on the Times’ finding that the most popular dog name here is “Lucy.”

There are a total of 490 dogs named Lucy in the city, and that’s not including variants of the name, like Lucy Latte (could a dog name get any more Seattle?).

If you go to the Times’ dog map, note that it’s interactive.

Also: “In Seattle, one out of seven dogs is a Lab, and the breed dominates all but two Seattle ZIP codes: Downtown’s 98101 and Pioneer Square’s 98104 — Chihuahuas hold court in both.”

Robin emails this afternoon:

Just wanted to alert our neighbors that our home (we live on Northeast 102nd Street here in Maple Leaf) was broken into in broad daylight yesterday morning.

There were at least two intruders, possibly three in a gold-colored car with tinted windows and they smashed two windows and ultimately just bashed in the front door. Some valuables and our safe were stolen.

Thanks to the quick response from Seattle police and the Burien police, our safe was recovered, though broken, within an hour or so in Burien and we got back most of our personal papers.

Also, John emails a link to Washington’s Most Wanted: “He was involved with two others in the robbery of a patron met at Roosevelt 7/11 you reported on January 17. Post the video link, and maybe we get him busted.”

Update March 5: The Seattle Times has coverage of City Council candidates here and here today.

——————

So far we know more about the three Seattle City Council members who are leaving the council than we do about the candidates who remain.

And there are a lot of them.

In Seattle’s new district, or ward, system, the vast majority of Maple Leaf is in Council District 5.

Our neighborhood’s southernmost toe, south of Northeast 85th Street, is in Council District 4.

Councilwomen Jean Godden is the incumbent in the 4th District. There is no incumbent in the 5th District.

Only two of the nine council members will run at large (citywide).

A forum for 5th District candidates is set for Wednesday, March 11, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

It’s hosted by the Broadview Community Council at the Bitter Lake Community Center, 13035 Linden Ave. N.

Calling all community council members, neighborhood activists, business advocates, political junkies, civic troublemakers, citizens with a beef, and all other North Seattle voters!

This is the time to meet candidates for Seattle City Council in

YOUR VERY OWN District 5.

* Sandy Brown

* Mercedes Elizalde

* Debora Juarez

* Mian Rice

* David Toledo

* Halei Watkins

Learn about their background and experience, ask them questions, grade them, and challenge them to be transparent. Decide who might get your donation and/or your vote.

Another forum, for 4th District candidates, will potentially be held in late June and again in October, and is being organized under the auspices of the Northeast District Council.

Our news partner The Seattle Times is tracking the council elections here. The Times also has an opinion piece here, which argues the council may well move further left.

The Seattle Weekly, meanwhile, is arguing the election may well give Mayor Ed Murray more power.

The official city candidate list is here.

John emails overnight: “Found baseball glove, Olympic View Elementary School, 2/20/2015.

Ashley emails:

We found a large set of about 15 keys in the gravel dead-end street of Northeast 91st Street and 20th Avenue Northeast (in front of Grunge City Crossfit and near the Stratford Assisted Living).

If someone is missing them, they can be retrieved by commenting below.

Grace emails:

I’d like to give a shout out to a local who really helped me out yesterday with a thorny situation. I love our neighborhood. People are so nice!

Walking my dog Luna on Northeast 90th street near Maple Leaf Ace Hardware, and as dogs do she was sniffing around the front edge of a neighbor’s yard ( 2-3 feet off the sidewalk but admittedly in their yard).

Suddenly she was covered with sticky, thorny cactus stickers. They were all over her face and paws. I couldn’t touch them. They needed leather gloves or tweezers.

Two ladies were walking by with their dog and one came over to help me. She calmly used her fingers to pull them off my dog. It took a good five minutes while I held my upset dog and wasn’t easy. I’m sure she poked herself a lot. The stickers burned and itched.

I was so upset that I thanked her profusely but didn’t get a name to thank her appropriately.

Luna and I then went right to Maple Leaf Vet where they were able to squeeze her in and pulled fifteen thorns out of her paws.

So a big thank you to a local, whose name I don’t know but would love to, and to the vet for squeezing her in. I’ve thanked them. And paid them. But the local I probably would not even recognize if I saw her.

Did we mention it’s gonna be 54 degrees and bright sun this afternoon of Feb. 15th?

Moving along, this bag was found Saturday afternoon on 15th Avenue Northeast. Anybody know the owner?

Maple Leaf’s own feral flock of Scarlet-fronted Parakeets have returned.

At least a half-dozen of them were spotted (and heard!) at noon today near Northeast 88th Street and 12th Avenue Northeast.

They flew off to the northeast. (Minutes later, an American Crow chased a Merlin off a conifer near 15th Avenue Northeast. It flew off southeast.)

We last posted about the feral flock in 2011. Then, and more recently, only a few birds were seen.

We first wrote about them in 2010:

The flock has been around for decades, at least since the early 1990s, and possibly got started when bird-lovers discovered their pet parakeets were too loud to keep in the house. Local lore has it that the birds winter in Maple Leaf and spend summer vacations at Seward Park.

The size of the flock varies, but there don’t seem to be as many now as eight or 10 years ago, when a dozen or more parakeets would descend on the neighborhood. Over time they have been called parrots, Crimson-fronted parakeets, Red-fronted Conures and Mitred conures.

(Aratinga wagleri photo courtesy Dennis Paulson.)

Our news partner The Seattle Times posted two stories this week that should interest many, perhaps most, of us.

Today’s piece is on a pilot program in Seattle to reduce speeds on some arterials streets from 35 mph to 20 mph. As for major streets,the plan calls for: “Review arterial speed limits and reduce to 30 mph or lower.”

Seattle will try limits of 20 mph for streets in five to 10 residential areas this year — including a swath of Lake City around the library, and a piece of Seward Park Avenue South at Rainier Beach High School.

Cities may lower speeds under a bill sponsored by Rep. Cindy Ryu, D-Shoreline, that passed the Legislature in 2013.

This has been frequently discussed in Maple Leaf, but until the new legislation passed there was no legal authority for local officials to make the change. The argument is that many more pedestrians (or bicyclists) can survive being hit by a car at 20 mph than at 35-40 mph.

None of Maple Leaf’s streets are directly involved in this year’s change, but proposed future changes include part of Lake City Way Northeast in our neighborhood (green lines).

The plan, dubbed Vision Zero, involves a number of other changes:

The city’s broad traffic-safety effort will include slower speeds, more school-zone cameras, fewer right turns on red and targeted enforcement. The name, “Vision Zero,” refers to a statewide effort by law enforcement, government, urbanist and safety groups to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries.

The Times story is here. The full Vision Zero plan (pdf) is here.

The Times’ “FYI Guy” earlier this week posted an interactive look at commute times throughout the city under the headline: “What times does your neighborhood leave for work?”

Locally, the FYI Guy says:

Very few of us leave for work in the late morning or afternoon, but it’s not uncommon in areas with a large concentration of people who do shift work, such as food service or retail jobs. The University District has a high percentage, as do Northgate, downtown Seattle and many areas in south King County.

The story and map are here. Below is the 10 a.m. commute from Northgate.

Judy emails:

Is there a way to post a lost backpack? Maybe someone found it. Lost this morning between Northeast 86th Street and Roosevelt Way Northeast and Roosevelt and Northgate Way.

It was accidentally set on the outside of our work truck, so it fell off somewhere. Thanks if you can help!

The story thus far:

* There WAS a plan to spend around $20 million to connect the neighborhoods across Interstate 5 to Maple Leaf and the Northgate transit center and light rail station via a pedestrian and bike bridge from North Seattle College to the station. Got that? (It entirely avoids the word “interagency.”)

* It ran out of money. Specifically, Sound Transit set a July 2015 full funding deadline, after which it would withdraw the $5 million it committed. Seattle failed to get a federal grant, leading to a cliffhanger going into the new year….

* Now the Seattle Bike Blog reports:

In a recent response, Sound Transit staff say they will recommend that their Board extend the deadline to February 2016. While not a huge amount of extra time, it will give leaders more opportunities to identify funding options.

That letter from Sound Transit is here.

As Charles B. commented late last month: “Stay tuned….”