Park Enhancements Ahead of Schedule

Due to the recent bought of favorable weather, the Angle Lake park enhancements which include the hillside regrade, the addition of two new picnic shelters and installation of a spray park are now reported to be progressing extremely well. So well, that the project may complete ahead of schedule and significantly under budget.  

The overall project costs are calculating out to be considerably lower than the original estimate, thus creating a substantial excess of unspent capital in reserve! According to city officials closest to the project, there is now absolutely no reason of concern for project cost overruns – in fact the issue now is more about what to do with the remaining unspent funds.  

One aspect of rating a project success is in regard to budget.  If a project comes within a 5% variance, plus or minus, it is deemed successful. Currently all quality metrics for the project are indicating well above the established benchmarks except for the area of budget where a significant surplus exists due to the early  completion of several major construction milestones.

In attempt to address the budget imbalance, officials are currently considering the addition of an unplanned feature to be added to the project that will bring the total costs back within a desired 5% variance. The proposed amendment to the project is to build an underwater observation room just east of the swimming pier. The declared reasoning is this would provide an excellent opportunity for any non-swimmers to discover the experience of being underwater, similar to what a skilled swimmer enjoys, however to do so in a safe and dry environment. “This is expected to provide the non-swimming population of our city an equal opportunity to enjoying our natural lake resources, the same opportunity our swimming population enjoys today” the official is quoted as having said.

When questioned about the source of the idea, the official indicated that the idea for the additional scope was based on the concept of the water spray facility being installed in the upper portion of the park. “The spray park offers our non-swimming population the opportunity of getting wet in a safe and secure environment – the underwater observation room will provide an opportunity for everyone to enjoy the waters of the lake without getting wet! It’s a perfect Yin/Yang combination!”  

If implemented, the platform will be open to the public throughout the week and will also be available for group and individual to rent for private events, much in the same way that our picnic shelters may be reserved for private affairs. This will generate additional revenue for the Parks and Recreation Department bottom line and provide yet another highly admired facet to the jewel of the City – Angle Lake Park. 

Discussions are ongoing with a decision on this new portion of the project expected to be reached on Monday, April 1st. Please contact the City of SeaTac at (277) 453-6657 for more information; to offer comments and/or opinions on this project.

(Postscript:  This is an April Fools Joke)

Open House: Angle Lake Station

You are invited to participate in the next Sound Transit Open House featuring the latest information and designs of the Angle Lake light rail station and elevated guideway. The project is now in the final design stage with ground breaking activity beginning this spring.

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

6-8 p.m. – presentation at 6:30 p.m.

Madrona Elementary School Gym

20301 32nd Ave S, SeaTac

At the open house you will have the opportunity to:

• Review the current design of the Angle Lake Station, elevated track and public art elements
• View a 3D animation of the project
• Learn about construction schedules and phases
• Comment on future station plaza design
• Learn about proposed parking elements and roadway, bicycle and pedestrian improvements

Light rail service between Sea-Tac Airport and the new Angle Lake Station at S. 200th Street will start in 2016 and when opened will extend to the University of Washington.

Easter Bunny Dock Hop

On Easter Sunday, between 9:00 and 11:00 AM, the Easter Bunny will be circling the lake by way of pontoon boat, hopping from dock to dock with his basket full of eggs to hand out treats to any eagerly awaiting children and their families.

If you have small children at home and/or will have visiting grandchildren on Easter Sunday and would like to ensure a visit from the Easter Bunny, please contact the Zylkowski family via email no later than Saturday, March 30^th to request a stop.  Send email to poobear439@gmail.com providing your name, address with indication of how many children are to be expected.

Thank you to the Zylkowski family, Rosalyn and Nick, for introducing and continuing to grow this annual memorable community offering at Angle Lake.

Its Here, Its Here! Did You Get Yours?

We had reported in an earlier blog post that the club is planning to shake things up on the communication front by retiring some old platforms (i.e. community forum) in favor of introducing what we hope to be more interactive, entertaining and effective forms of communication.

To date, we've had 23 neighbors sign up for AngleLake.Nextdoor.com and we continue to receive new requests from our neighbors who want to join in for secure and private communications to share things like events, classifieds, lost and found and crime watches, among the many other subjects available.

  

Today we’re excited to announce that we've just sent out a copy of our new ONLINE VERSION of the Angle Lake Shore Club Spring Newsletter to all active members who have indicated having a preference of receiving the newsletter via email.  This new online version allows us to create a more visually pleasing design offering more photos and color graphics and dynamic formatting than what our printed edition allows.  The goal is to offer a much more entertaining and desirable edition that members will request the emailed edition instead of choosing for the hard copy black & white version, drastically reducing production costs over the print and snail mail option.

Any of the following may be reason why you did not receive an electronic copy in your email in basket Thursday evening:

• You are not currently an active member of the Angle Lake Shore Club
• You have not previously indicated a preference to receive email over snail mail
• We do not have your current or correct email address on file
• Or our email to you may be lying in your spam filter folder!

If you did not receive a copy of the online edition but would like to – please send an email with your request to the Shore Club email box at anglelakesc@gmail.com

If you have received your copy, we’d love to hear your feedback! Leave a comment here by clicking on the "comments" link below or feel free to send us an email.

In Memory of Bud Jones

It is with a heavy heart that we report to the community one of our pioneering Shore Club leaders and beloved neighbor, Charles Arthur Jones, or better known to most simply as Bud, had passed away on March 7th at home in the presence of his large and loving family.

Bud, a native of the Northwest, raised in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle and a graduate of Cleveland High School. After the attack on Pearl Harbor Bud enlisted in the U.S Marine Corp and shortly after transitioned to the Marine Infantry. Serving as scout sergeant and forward observer, he and his comrades of the 4th Marine Division fought through the South Pacific, participating in the bitter fighting on the islands of Roi-Numur, Saipan and Tinian, where the Division earned a Presidential Unit Citation “for outstanding performance in combat.” It was also on Saipan that Bud earned a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star for valor, where, “…in the face of heavy enemy small arms and mortar fire, he, in company of another Marine, and with complete disregard for his personal safety, went to the aid of a wounded marine…and carried him to a place of safety.” Finally, Bud’s luck and courage carried him through the historic battle for Iwo Jima.   

Upon his return home, Bud met Billie Day, a beautiful Okanogan County girl just back from serving our country as a secretary in Washington D.C. Courtship followed, and on April 13th, 1947 they were married.  They bought a small house on Angle Lake and together they started their family. A settled life was not yet to be had however. For an extra thirty-five dollars a month, Bud re-enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve. In 1951 he was called back to active service and sent this time to Korea.  There he fought with the 1st Marine Division, making the landing at Inchon, was wounded in action at Sudong, Korea, on the way to the Chosin Reservoir. Bud was awarded another Purple Heart and subsequently recovered from his wounds in Yakasuka, Japan, and finally return home again to family and civilian life.  

Bud enjoyed a long and successful career in the meat business and earned the respect of small meat market owners, restaurateurs, and large grocery operators alike. Bud’s home and community life were remarkable too, where he and Billie raised their three children, Nancy, Andy and Kacey. His generous spirit was legendary, and he is fondly remembered by literally decades of kids and neighbors around Angle Lake. We can thank Bud for his time as the unofficial boating safety “sheriff” on the lake, and so many of his generation for the memorable traditions of the Angle Lake Shore Club, including the evening  fireworks, floating flares, and races on the 4th of July. Bud played Santa Claus at the Angle Lake fire station for many years, was instrumental in initiating and supporting the annual fishing derby, mentored young men in prison, and served on countless committees. Bud and Billie loved to sail, swim and play among family and friends in the waters of Angle Lake.  

The Jones children invite friends and neighbors to join with family at any of the three special memorial events on Friday, March 22nd. Memorial Service and reception will be held at St. Philomena’s Church, Des Moines, 9:00 a.m followed by Military Honors at Tahoma National Cemetery, 1:30 p.m.. Later that day you’re welcome to join the family at their home on Angle Lake for an afternoon Celebration of Life, 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. 

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Wounded Warrior Foundation.

”Good night Sarge…have a great trip”

New Hyatt Place Hotel at Angle Lake

Just as renovation activity begins to ramp up with mounds of earth being pushed about at the public park, Seattle-based Ariel Development announced their plans Tuesday to build a new $25 million Hyatt Place hotel near the shores of Angle Lake.

The hotel will be located at 19518 International Boulevard in SeaTac, between the Hughes Property and Angle Lake Park, and will feature 150 rooms, a pool, fitness room and 2,500 to 3,500 square feet of meeting space. When open in early 2016 the hotel will recruit 60 to 80 employees, according to Ariel Development.

“The City of SeaTac is an epicenter for our region, and is an ideal site for this new property,” Shimon Mizrahi of Ariel Development said in a statement. “Its central location between Seattle and Tacoma provides an easy access point to freeways and the airport, as well as the city itself. We see a lot of potential on the scenic Angle Lake waterfront.”

Seattle-based Linardic Design Group Architects will work on the project.

UPDATE: A reader submitted comment noted mention of 'scenic Angle Lake waterfront' in the story above and asked if the hotel will actually be situated on the shore.

A closer inspection of the site plans that were included in the January 22nd Council Study Session Agenda when compared against a Google map satellite view reveals the hotel to be located immediately south of Angle Lake Park currently where an open parking log and one building exists today. It appears that the eastern edge of the new hotel building will stop far short of the waters edge with the public park boat ramp and access road between it and the shoreline.

(Click on the photo below for a closer view).