newrainiervista.com

The Computer Lab at the NRV Neighborhood House is seeking volunteers. Do you have a couple of hours a week to donate?

• Assist youth with homework and learning activities.
• Help adults and youth to improve technology skills.
• Monitor computer lab.
• Flexible hours and days.
• Meet people from your community!

Please call Kate Farmer if interested: 206-461-4568 x 211 or email: “katef (at) nwha (dot) org“.

The Voice Resident Advisory Committee meets monthly to discuss The Voice newspaper.  If you read The Voice, you’re already a VRAC member!

The next meeting of the VRAC will be at 2 p.m. April 1 at the Epstein building, 905 Spruce St.  We’ll meet in the first-floor conference room; an accessible entrance is located on the east side of the building.  Please ring the buzzer for entry.

Note: Copies of the April issue will unfortunately not be ready at the time of the meeting, as the print deadline is on April 1.  We’ll use the meeting time to discuss the May storyboard.  The other option would be to schedule the meeting for April 8, but that’s much too late in the month to start on the May storyboard.

Mark your calendars for our first NRV community cleanup, Saturday April 4, beginning at 10 am in the central Park. Come on down, meet some neighbors, pick up litter and oh, by the way, enjoy a cup of
coffee and a donut (while they last.) Bring gloves if you have them, we’ll provide bags, grabbers and some gloves.

Also, make plans now for our second cleanup Saturday April 25. We’ve usually been doing just one a month, but the 25th is a wider community volunteering day and we thought to piggy-back on that.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the planned meeting of the Family Support Group for Friday, April 3, “How to talk with NRV community kids when there’s an issue,” has been postponed.  Hopefully, the meeting to present and discuss this topic will occur at the May 1 meeting.  Thank you for your interest.

The larger Rainier Valley community is having a neighborhood clean up day on Saturday April 25. Join a team for a clean up project from 9am to 3pm; projects are listed at the Rainier Valley Post, which is also the place to go if you have a project in mind. Post clean up, there will be a celebration at Othello Park (S Othello St @ 45th Ave S) from 3pm to 6pm. Food, music and prizes!

Attention Gardeners! Spring is, well, springing! Time to get the garden going. Need a hand? There will be a Plant Exchange and free soil and seeds available at the Rainier Community Center on Saturday, March 21 from 10am to 12 noon. Bring plants to exchange with neighbors and/or get a free bucket of compost, garden seeds and instructions on how to make your own mini veggie garden.

Need more info? Contact Diana at “diana (dot) vinh (at) kingcounty (dot) gov“.

Last year during the focus groups, several respondents expressed interest in a sewing program. Now, in response to the focus groups, a new Sewing Program is in the initial planning stages at NRV’s Neighborhood House. Do you want to learn to sew? Or maybe you have sewing skills and abilities that you would like to improve or share? We are looking for people interested in joining this group. Sewing is a fun and a creative hobby for people of all ages. It is a good way to make new friends, learn new skills and discover talents you never knew you had!

This is a class for Rainier Vista residents and for people of all sewing level abilities. Interested? Call Kate Farmer at 206.461.4568 ext. 211 or email at “Katef (at) nhwa (dot)org” for information on this new exciting program!

Come build community through food! A new program will offer neighbors a chance to get together and prepare healthy home cooked meals to take home to their freezer. Learn new cooking skills (canning, baking, etc.), discover healthy recipes and make new friends! Community Kitchens improve the health and social well-being of the community.

This is a program just getting off the ground. Want to get involved? Have a skill or a recipe to offer? Want to learn one? Just want to cook with neighbors and get to know each other better? Call Kate Farmer at 206.461.4568 ext. 211 or email at “Katef (at) nhwa (dot) org“. Interested parties will be contacted regarding an initial info meeting.

Impact will be fertilizing turf areas at NRV in March. The fertilizer is Sanctuary 8-3-6, “a blend of protein meals inclusive of feather, fish, meat & bone and blood meals plus other natural fertilizer materials.” From the manufacturer:

The Sanctuary is a family of natural-based fertilizers that are designed to provide the foundation for healthy turf and soil. The Sanctuary products combine the synergistic benefits of high quality organic ingredients and essential mineral nutrients to feed both the soil and the turf. This unique approach to turfgrass management brings solid agronomics and sound economics together.

The landscape committee has a copy of the product label. If you’d like to review it, please email the committee at “landscape (at) newrainiervista (dot) com“. The committee hopes to be able to give the community a few days advance notice before the application, but for now, all we know is “sometime in March”, probably on a sunny day.

Do you want to contribute to your community? This is your chance. We need YOU on the HOA board of New Rainier Vista! You can make difference! On April 1st, the New Rainier Vista (NRV) board will transition to full homeowner control. To this point the board has been managed by the Seattle Housing Authority (SHA). Please consider running for our new board and help shape the future of our neighborhood!

Board Roles:
The Board is made up of four officers (President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer) and one at-large member. Once elected by the community, the board members will determine the officer positions and the length of terms. As this is the first all-homeowner board, term lengths will range from one to three years. Future elections will be for three year terms.

Board Responsibilities (What is the time commitment?):
Ultimately, the role of the Board is to protect the property value of our homes. This is achieved by a) managing the HOA and its budget to protect HOA assets; b) ensuring maintenance of common property; and c) developing, implementing and overseeing association governance and policy. It is a volunteer effort that requires attendance at scheduled board meetings, review of meeting agendas and minutes, consistent participation in email communication between meetings, and assisting on Board committees and/or with special projects. It is anticipated that Board members will contribute about 10 hours of service per month. Currently, the board meets monthly. It will be up to the new board to decide whether to keep this pattern or meet less frequently.

How do I announce my candidacy?
All interested board candidates must submit a paragraph of no more than 250 words that expresses their desire to serve the community and briefly outlines their experience and qualifications. The deadline for candidate submission is March 9th. Please email your statement to Ken Beebe, our Community Association Manager at the CWD Group: “Ken (at) CWDGroup (dot) com”. Alternatively, you may mail your statement to Ken Beebe; CWD Group, Inc; 2600 W. Commodore Way # 2; Seattle, 98177

Voting process:
Ballots will be sent to all homeowners via mail by March 16th. Candidates will be able to meet the community at a social event on Saturday March 21st (location TBD). Each household can submit one ballot and must vote for five candidates. The five candidates with the most votes will be seated on the board. Ballots must be returned by mail to CWD Group by March 25th. You may also drop your ballot at Christina and Ian Gilman’s house. The new HOA board will be announced on April 1st.

Questions or concerns:
Email Ken Beebe: “ken (at) CWDGroup (dot) com”, Transition Committee chairperson Tad Bradley: “tadbrad (at) gmail (dot) com” or current board member Sander Viegers: “sanderviegers (at) hotmail (dot) com”.