Month: April 2010

Another freshly-minted 737 leaves Renton for Boeing Field

How cool is this!? MSNBC has chosen Boeing, our city’s largest employer, and our own Renton factory as a shining example of American business staying on top. We are extremely fortunate to have Boeing in our region and our city. I’m lucky to work there.

Here is the MSNBC story . Be sure to watch the video– there is some great footage of the inside of the factory.

In this journal entry I roughly estimated that from a value standpoint, typical Renton airplane production compares to making about 2,500 new cars per day. And the existing 737 backlog, not counting future orders, extends for about 7 years. This highly successful factory, squeezed between the Landing, Lake Washington and the Renton Airport, pumps billions of dollars into our local economy.

Lindbergh high senior Kathy Chou has been missing for nine days, and her family and friends are desperate to find her. Police are also very concerned.

KIRO TV ran a story tonight which you can read or watch on video here .

Everybody please continue to keep an eye out for Ms. Chou, and let the Renton police know immediately if you have any clues to her whereabouts.

Great new from the Teamsters and Waste Management tonight. A contract agreement has been reached, so there is no more risk of disruption to our garbage service. Here is the email we received this evening from Waste Management;
_______________________________

From: Robinson, Susan [srobinson@wm.com]
Sent: Tuesday, April 27, 2010 8:58 PM
To: Don Persson; Greg Taylor; King Parker; Marcie Palmer; Denis Law; Randy Corman; Rich Zwicker; Terri Briere
Cc: Jay B Covington; Gregg A. Zimmerman; Lys L. Hornsby; Linda R. Knight; Preeti Shridhar; Kathleen Johnston
Subject: WM & Teamsters Reach Agreement!

Dear Mayor Law and Renton City Councilmembers,

I am pleased to announce that Waste Management and the Teamsters reached agreement tonight on a new five-year Union contract. The Union leadership will fully recommend that their members approve the new contract at a ratification vote scheduled for this Sunday.

The contract offers a solid compensation package to our hardworking and professional drivers, and recognizes the valuable service that our drivers provide in our local communities.

I want to thank you all for your support during the past month. We are glad to put this behind us and to focus on our daily operations.

Collection service will be on schedule the rest of the week!

Regards,

Susan Robinson
Waste Management, PNW and British Columbia
Phone: (206) 264-3073
Cell: (206) 915-9183

The actors, directors, stagehands, producers, staff and their supporters at Renton Civic Theater have entertained us and made our city a nicer place for over two decades. Their shows, which include both original productions as well as familiar favorites, are outstanding.

Tonight they have moved a step closer to making yet another huge contribution to the city of Renton…they are working to save Renton’s Summer Teen Musical.

At Renton Civic Theater’s request, and consistent with city policy for non-profits seeking to contribute to the public good, Renton City Council agreed to waive fees for six nights of performance for a summer teen musical, this June and July, at Carco Theater.

Renton Civic Theater has asked for this waiver as part of a plan to ensure that the “show goes on” for Renton teens who enjoy participating in our annual summer musical.

As a reminder, council had made the bleak decision to eliminate city funding for this musical after city revenues had dropped and we had to prioritize what was left for public safety and programs used by greater numbers of people. But all of us on council hated to make the cut. This cut was especially painful given that this year will be the 25 year anniversary for this program.

Renton Civic Theater is working to save the day, by putting together a plan to keep this musical in operation.

Anyone who wants to help can do so by buying tickets for Renton Civic Theater’s excellent productions. Season tickets are an especially outstanding entertainment value.

And if the team at Renton Civic Theater is successful at bringing back the teen musical this summer, be sure you buy tickets for that summer teen production. Our city has some extremely talented youth, and they never fail to put on an excellent show. And with the Renton Civic Theater sponsoring them, their talent will continue to grow and their shows will flourish.

Sadly, the body of Jerry Seldon, a Renton man who had been reported missing, was discovered in the Cedar River. The Renton Reporter has a recent story on this tragic loss here .

Those of us in city hall extend our condolences to Mr. Seldon’s family and friends.

The Municipal League is seeking citizens who can help rate political candidates and issues in the next election cycle. The Municipal League has been helping evaluate candidates for a century, and their evaluations are widely broadcast. By joining this effort, you can have a positive and direct effect on the public’s selection of their public servants.

While the Renton Event was held on Thursday…I was in Oklahoma City so I missed posting it :-(… there are still great opportunities to go to other nearby get-togethers or email the Municipal League that you are interested.

For a press release with the event schedule Click Here

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More info from coordinator Brit Sojka:

For more information about the CEC program or to download a 2010 Candidate Investigator application, please visit the Municipal League website and don’t hesitate to contact the Municipal League via email (cec@munileague.org) or by phone at (206) 622-8333 with any questions. Candidate Investigator applications are due May 28th. All registered voters in King County are encouraged to apply.

The Municipal League of King County Facebook Group is also another great place to learn about upcoming MuniLeague events and other great community networking opportunities. We hope you will also join us there, if you haven’t already.

Police are asking for help to find a missing 19-year-old woman. Click here for the Story

A sad, tragic incident on our Cedar River Trail.

——————————————-
From: Kevin Milosevich
Sent: Monday, April 19, 2010 1:34:17 PM
To: Council; Jay B Covington; Denis Law; Terry Higashiyama;
Gregg A. Zimmerman; Alexander Pietsch; Larry Warren; Mark Peterson;
Nancy Carlson; Iwen Wang; Preeti Shridhar
Subject: Pedestrian-Bicyclist accident update
Auto forwarded by a Rule

The pedestrian from yesterday’s accident on the trail passed away.

Renton Police Department
Media Release

On April 18th, 2010 at 4:47 pm the Renton Police Department responded to a bicycle vs. pedestrian collision on the Cedar River Trail approximately a quarter of a mile east of Hwy 405.
The initial investigation revealed that an 83-year-old female was walking eastbound on the Cedar River Trail and that two bicycle riders were also traveling eastbound behind her and off to her left side. As the bicycles began to pass the pedestrian she stepped in front of them and was struck by one of the bicycles. The cyclist and the pedestrian were both knocked to the ground as a result of the collision. The 57-year-old male bicycle rider was treated at the scene for minor injuries. The female pedestrian is a Renton resident and was transported to Harborview Hospital in critical condition with head injuries.
The Renton Police Department Traffic Division responded to the scene and is investigating the incident.

Commander Paul Cline
Patrol Operations Division
Renton Police Department

The City of Renton has established a Real Estate Sign Kiosk program in partnership with the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties. Council had been considering this action for many months. We had provided preliminary concept approval last year.

Twelve kiosks have been installed in major traffic corridors within the city. Our intention is to provide a nice-looking wayfinding mechanism for locating residential developments while eliminating a proliferation of illegal real estate signs that have contributed to sign clutter.

As stated in our press release below, the city is interested in reducing this clutter and helping stimulate additional home-buying and development activity in order to further its economic development goals for the community. The signs will also include directional panels to major public facilities, an additional benefit to the community.

You can read the city’s complete press release here

Renton officials have been working with the developer of Southport for several years to establish regular commercial lake tours out of the beautiful docks at Southport.

We are very pleased that regular cruises will begin this spring. These are bound to be great fun for residents, and bring a lot of additional new visitors down to Southport and the Landing.

The Waterways Cruises website was recently updated to reflect the Renton offerings.

Click here to read more about the Renton Mother’s Day cruise.

View from the Water of Southport, between Coulon Park and the Landing

A family of racoons visiting my front yard last summer

Renton is one of several suburban cities that has been warned about a distemper outbreak spread by racoons. Keep your pet food inside, your garbage cans covered, and stay a safe distance from urban wildlife. If you or a pet gets bitten, be sure to seek immediate professional care.

Click here for the story

Should Renton and Fairwood get hitched?

The King County Boundary Review board recently posted it’s decision regarding the potential Fairwood Annexation. Here is the conclusion of their report:

click here to see the whole decision

Next, this issue will go the the voters of Fairwood for a decision regarding whether they wish to annex to the city of Renton. This question will be on the November ballot. The City of Renton has so far remained neutral on this issue, although we’ve heard opinions from all sides including residents from Renton and Fairwood who want this to go forward, and residents from both of these areas that do not.

If you have an opinion you would like to share with other readers on this topic, feel free to share in the comment section below.