City of Lake Forest Park

17425 Ballinger Way NE
Lake Forest Park, WA 98155
www.cityoflfp.gov
206-368-5440

September 2022

Mayor Jeff Johnson

Mayor’s Corner – We’re Changing Seasons…from Summer to Budget

As we wrap up our summer activities and look toward fall, I’d like to say how much I really enjoyed meeting with people this summer at the recent Family Day at the Farmer’s Market and Battle of the Bands, and I look forward to the upcoming Picnic in the Park and the culvert crossing mural painting on the McAleer Creek 178th Bridge adjacent to Pfingst Animal Acres Park. One of my other favorite chances to meet with residents and talk about what’s on their mind is Coffee with the Mayor. I will be scheduling another Coffee with the Mayor in the fall, so keep an eye on the eNews, newsflashes, and our social media for details.

As budget presentations begin in September and Council deliberates before approving a balanced budget later this year, I encourage residents to please take time to attend meetings and review budget documents. The Council wants your feedback as it makes these important budget decisions. There are several budget-related council meetings coming up in September and October that can be attended in person at City Hall or virtually via Zoom.

Please support your Council as they deliberate on the future of the city.

--Mayor Johnson

Picnic in the Park - September 10, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Picnic in the Park is Back on September 10!

Help the City celebrate our Lake Forest Park community on Saturday, September 10, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Pfingst Animal Acres Park! Bring family and friends and enjoy music, community, and educational booths, a petting zoo, kids’ attractions and activities, food trucks, Public Works “big rigs,” and more!

This year’s Picnic in the Park will also feature a culvert crossing mural painting on the McAleer Creek 178th Bridge adjacent to Pfingst Animal Acres Park! The Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation, along with the City, ShoreLake Arts, and Urban ArtWorks, are collaborating with 17-year-old high school artist Austin Picinich (https://www.austinsart.net/) to paint a 188-ft-long “Save Our Salmon Mural” around the corner from Pfingst Animal Acres Park. The project is a “mural with a purpose” with the goal of raising awareness for salmon restoration in McAleer Creek.

Learn more at the mural’s website: https://www.austinsart.net/salmonmural/lfp.

Emergency Manager Kevin Lowery

Welcome Our New NEMCo Emergency Manager

This summer, the City of Lake Forest Park welcomed Kevin Lowery to its team. Kevin is the new Emergency Manager for the Northshore Emergency Management Coalition (NEMCo). Kevin began his career in public service in 2002, volunteering as a firefighter while studying as an undergrad at Massachusetts Maritime Academy. He next served in local law enforcement, and later joined the United States Coast Guard. He most recently served as the Assistant Operations Officer on the Coast Guard’s only oceanographic research vessel and as a Command Duty Officer in Seattle’s Joint Rescue Coordination Center.

Kevin holds a Master of Administrative Science as well as a Master of Emergency Management. In his hometown, Mr. Lowery volunteered with the Cranbury Township Fire Department, Board of Recreation, and as the Chairman of the township’s Municipal Alliance Committee on Drug Abuse and Alcoholism. He spends his free time exploring public lands, reading, and spending time with his family.

Under Kevin’s leadership, NEMCo has started to reengage its volunteers, both Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES), by taking an active role at recent events such as LFP’s Safety Day in July, August’s National Night Out festivities in both Lake Forest Park and Kenmore, and the dedication of the West Sammamish Bridge. During these events NEMCo shared preparedness information and helped to provide basic first aid to the public. Our community can keep an eye out for the CERT and RACES groups at the upcoming Picnic in the Park event on September 10 at Pfingst Animal Acres Park and can find more emergency preparation information on NEMCo’s website. Anyone interested in volunteering can email Kevin directly.

We welcome Kevin and are happy to have him on staff!

Council Corner – Budget and Speed Limits

It is hard to believe that our seemingly very short summer is coming to a close. As is tradition, the Council took the last couple of weeks of August off before diving back into our very full fall schedule of meetings.

The Council has held three Council Committee of the Whole meetings over the past few months, with the primary topic being safety on our roadways and state routes. This is a prime focus for all of us as there is an urgency to find ways to make our community safer for walkers, bicyclists, and other multi-modal transportation users.

As policy makers, we are aligned in the path forward to making our community safer for everyone. We will be taking action on adopting a Lake Forest Park-appropriate methodology for setting local speed limits that is mandated under state statutes. The method under consideration is NACTO’s (National Association of City Traffic Officials) very comprehensive and wholistic “City Limits” document.

City Limits prescribes three categories for setting speed limits:

Default Speed limits: Set default speed limits on many streets at once.
Slow Zones: Designate slow zones in sensitive areas, such as schools, parks, and churches.
Corridor Speed Limits: Set corridor speed limits on high priority major streets using a Safe Speed Study.

The Council is also considering moving forward with a reduction on many neighborhood streets at once. This method has shown to dramatically reduce speeding and increase safety simply through this action alone and without increases in enforcement. Seattle; Cambridge, Massachusetts; and several other cities have shown great success in reducing the number of serious accidents by a whole-scale reduction in neighborhood speed limits.

It is also our intent to lower the speed limits on our two state routes using safe speed studies as prescribed by City Limits. Preliminary conversations with the Washington State Department of Transportation and Sound Transit have been positive and support our approach. This process is more involved and will take a year or more to complete, but in the end our community will be much safer for the effort.

A quick reminder that our 2023-2024 biennial budget season is underway. Check our website for a detailed calendar of Budget and Finance Committee meetings, where the public is always welcome. With the excellent guidance of the Administration and city staff, our community has weathered the pandemic well, despite very uncertain times and challenging economic stresses. However, this budget will be a lean one, with very little room for additional programs or policies and the community will have to make some tough choices and compromises.

--Deputy Mayor Tom French

The Cities of Shoreline and Lake Forest Park Present... Salmon SEEson!

The Salmon SEEson program helps everyone in the community witness amazing salmon as they migrate upstream at locations throughout King County. Check out these salmon viewing locations that provide the chance to potentially see salmon in Lake Forest Park:

Signs are posted in each of the three parks. Check out the Salmon SEEson website for other viewing locations in King County.

September Council Meeting Schedule

With the 2023-2024 biennial budget in process, September is a busy month for city council meetings. To help you keep track, here is a recap of dates and times:

September 8, Thursday

Work Session, 6:00 p.m.
Regular Meeting, 7:00 p.m.

September 12, Monday

Budget & Finance Committee Special Meeting, 6:00 p.m.

September 15, Thursday

Budget & Finance Committee Regular Meeting, 6:00 p.m.

September 19, Monday

Committee of the Whole Regular Meeting, 6:00 p.m.

September 22, Thursday

Special Work Session, 6:00 p.m.
Regular Meeting, 7:00 p.m.

September 26, Monday

Budget & Finance Committee Special Meeting, 6:00 p.m.

All meetings are open to the public and will be held in the hybrid format in person at City Hall and virtually via Zoom. Meeting dates and times are posted on the City’s website calendar and agendas containing the Zoom information are available here once they are posted.

Climate Action Committee is Developing a Climate Action Plan

The Climate Action Committee (CAC) has begun its work by beginning review of the 2008 LFP Climate Action Plan. CAC Members are looking at plans from other cities and agencies and collecting data to establish a baseline on local information. Stay tuned, a survey to help measure the community’s knowledge is coming soon to help the CAC learn where education and outreach needs to begin.

In September, the King County - Cities Climate Collaboration (K4C) will release a baseline emissions study that includes Lake Forest Park data. We suspect there are two major sources of greenhouse emissions in Lake Forest Park: burning of fossil fuels in transportation and buildings.

Lake Forest Park will join other cities, counties, states, and nations in developing and implementing climate action plans with each adding to the momentum for reducing greenhouse gasses.

To learn more about the work of the CAC, join the Climate Action Committee Notify Me subscriber list.

Shoreline/Lake Forest Park and Duvall/Carnation Community Van

Hopelink Mobility Management provides trip coordination for the Shoreline/Lake Forest Park and Duvall/Carnation Community Vans in partnership with King County Metro and participating cities. This service is designed to provide residents with customized options for getting around when bus service can’t meet their needs. All vans are driven by Metro-approved volunteer drivers and are dependent on volunteer availability.

Community Van trips are scheduled in advance through a local Community Transportation Coordinator (CTC). To request a trip, or to work with your CTC to propose a new trip, call 425-943-6721, email, or fill out the electronic trip form. If you don’t know the details of your trip or have questions, feel free to email or call Hopelink!

Check the Community Van webpage for more information.

Detective Craig Teschlog holding a certificate

Det. Craig Teschlog

LFP Police Detective Certified as a Community Resiliency Model (CRM) Teacher

We would like to congratulate Detective Craig Teschlog on becoming a certified Community Resiliency Model (CRM) teacher. Certification is through the Trauma Resource Institute, a nonprofit organization devoted to cultivating trauma-informed and resiliency-focused individuals and communities throughout the world.

CRM is designed to assist individuals who have experienced distressing events.

As a police investigator, Det. Teschlog will be able to utilize this new set of skills not only with adults and children who have experienced traumatic events (like victims or witnesses of a crime) but also with coworkers.

If you would like to know more about the Trauma Resource Institute, please check their website.

Flyer with information how to remove grease or oil from cookware and dishes

Keep Fats, Oils, Grease, and Wipes Out of Our Pipes!

Wipes, paper towels, and other “unflushables” can create a sewer backup in your home and the environment. Flush only toilet paper!

Fats, oils, and grease (FOG) are found in common food and food ingredients such as meat fats, lard, oils, shortening, butter, margarine, many sauces, gravies, salad dressings, and food scraps, and usually enter the sewer system by rinsing dishes and washing pots and pans. Protect your home, the sewer system, and the environment—make sure these items stay out of your pipes and go in the trash.

Here are some helpful reminders to keep pipes clog free:

Don’t flush trash, including wipes, hygiene products, FOG, etc. Even if something is labeled “flushable,” these items don’t break down like toilet paper. Use the trash before causing trouble in your sewer pipes!
Never pour FOG down sink drains or toilets.
Use drain screens to capture food particles and dispose of them in the garbage or a rodent-proof compost bin.
Use “dry” clean up methods like wiping with a paper towel or napkin before using “wet” clean up methods for kitchenware and spills.
Collect FOG, hair, and food waste and dispose of them in the garbage.

For more information on how to protect our water, visit the King County Environment and Wastewater Services Education Programs webpage for more information.

Puget Sound Starts Here: This Drains Here

Fall Lawn Care Tips

Fall is the perfect time to get your grass back into shape. Whether you let it go brown during the summer months and need some rejuvenation or just want to give it a bit of extra vibrancy, be sure to take the proper steps to enhance your lawn and protect the environment.

When the rain does arrive (around September), use a slow-release fertilizer, but be careful! Pay close attention to the recommended application amounts. Too much fertilizer can lead to runoff of unabsorbed fertilizer which then flows into the nearest waterway. Also, be aware of hard surfaces like sidewalks, driveways, and roadways near your application area and sweep all fertilizer granules from hard surfaces to prevent pollutant runoff from entering the storm drains.

While you prepare your yard for winter, be sure to keep the leaves at bay. Mulch them using your mower and provide a top layer of decomposing nutrients for your soil and lawn; or, pick them up and compost them as a preventative measure to keep your storm drains free and clear of clogs. When you plan to nourish your lawn, always keep in mind the nearby waterways that could be affected by your activities.

Check the Garden Hotline to answer your questions, attend a class, or find new information!

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