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Capitol Hill Community Council | A brief history of community on the Hill (and why you should get involved)

Zachary Pullin DeWolf is the President of the Capitol Hill Community Council

There is no Capitol Hill Community Council this month but please consider attending Thursday night's Capitol Hill Housing community forum -- Gearshift

There is no Capitol Hill Community Council this month but please consider attending Thursday night’s Capitol Hill Housing community forum — Gearshift
Thu, May 26 at 5pm
The Summit — 420 E Pike
The evening will feature five projects with the potential to increase the resilience of the neighborhood. The five projects:
+ Building leadership and power for renters on Capitol Hill
+ Expansion of the Capitol Hill Business Improvement Area
+ Lidding of a stretch of Interstate-5 at Pike/Pine to create developable land and open space
+Local sharing of meter revenue with the creation of a new Parking Benefit District (also recommended by HALA)
+The creation of a new city program to incentivize developers to build or maintain work or performance space for local artists
On May 26th, five professional urban planners and passionate community organizers will introduce these ambitious projects in a series of rapid-fire presentations followed by an opportunity for each guest to participate in a facilitated discussion about one of the five projects. Presenters include Sierra Hansen of the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce, Scott Bonjukian of the Pike Pine Urban Neighborhood Council, Alex Brennan from Capitol Hill Housing, Zachary DeWolf of the Capitol Hill Community Council and Tonya Lockyer of Velocity Dance Center. Civic leaders (City Councilmembers Kshama Sawant and Mike O’Brien are confirmed) will be there to listen and respond to your comments.
Free online tickets are no longer available but you can sign up to enter at the door Thursday night.

Growing up, my family taught me that service is a first priority, and I’ve worked hard to practice that value. Before I was born, my grandfather was the chairman of the tribal council – it’s long been instilled in me that serving the community is one of the truest, most authentic ways to interact with my community. But that doesn’t make sense or work for a lot of people.

It reminds me of when I was ten years old: I coordinated a mock trial day for my class with the help of my mom. What I remember being hardest to grasp at the time was “making a case” because it’s a different way of thinking. Sadly, I believe I’ve done a poor job at making the case for our Capitol Hill Community Council and the “why” because new people are still discovering us as though we’ve been serving quietly.

So, why should you care? Why should you get involved?

First, it’s important to reflect on our history.

The Capitol Hill Community Council – as a neighborhood group – has existed since as early as the 1940s. Back then, it was called the Capitol Hill Community Club and their main motivation for working together was to fight against integrating “their “neighborhood. In concert with redlining and housing covenants, this dedicated group of neighbors used fear, racial prejudice, and an aversion to change to keep black people out of the neighborhood.

In 1972, when queer folks had only recently began moving into the neighborhood, tension was high between long-time residents and queer people because we were seen as “faggots,” instead of as neighbors. Thankfully, a few friends established a gay community center to provide services to queer folks.

Unfortunately, an arsonist burned it down. To make matters worse, our Capitol Hill Community Council took the time to lobby the city council in opposition to allowing a new permit for a new community center.

Our history is seasoned with distasteful flavors of exclusion. But it does not define or dictate our power and potential to shape the change in our neighborhood in the service of creating share community.

Knowing where we’ve come from and how we’ve interacted in community over the last 70 years reveals the areas we need to reconcile, but most importantly, it reveals the opportunities for us to move forward in a different and better way. The issues facing our community now, while different than the 40s and the 70s, are just as critical for our future and which way we choose to move forward in creating shared community.

Why should you care? Rents are too high, too many people are experiencing homelessness, substance use issues are becoming increasingly hard to ignore, our streets should be safer for bikers, and green spaces are becoming scarce. There are a number of reasons to care about your neighborhood – spend time reading the Capitol Hill blog and learn about how our community is being shaped by change. If you don’t like how it’s being shaped then get involved with groups like ours because your voice, energy, and passion can absolutely shape the change in our neighborhood.

Just last year, our community council successfully lobbied the city council, in solidarity with our friends in the International District, to approve a budget item that expands LEAD and MDT into our two neighborhoods. This is no small achievement and all it took were a few dedicated neighbors armed with the belief that every single person is a neighbor.

Why should you get involved? It’s easy to be witness to the change in our neighborhood, standing back as an innocent and powerless bystander, throwing your hands up and exclaiming, “What’s happening to my neighborhood?” Frankly, far too many of us feel that way – and it’s not your fault.

For too long, the people in power at community councils have actively excluded voices they thought might derail their plans or ask too many questions. When I attend other community councils and neighborhood groups’ events, I often hear “Renters are too transient!” or “They don’t care about the neighborhood!” or “I’ve lived here for 30 years, so I think I have a little more say in this matter!” But, it neglects an important point: every voice has value in shaping the change in our neighborhood, from the person experiencing homelessness (two folks experiencing homelessness are regular attendees at our council meetings) to the single family homeowner in North Capitol Hill.

This month, we won’t be hosting a social event BUT we’re encouraging our community to attend “Gearshift: Capitol Hill Housing’s Community Forum 2016,” which takes place Thursday, May 26 at 5:00pm. The evening will feature five projects, of which I am presenting on one, “Building Leadership and Power for Renters in Capitol Hill,” along with expansion of the BIA, lidding I-5, and parking benefit district.

We’ll see you in June for our elections and an exciting conversation with folks from Yes for Homes.

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Katie W
Katie W
7 years ago

This is great, but other than the event last night (that I wasn’t able to attend), you don’t make it clear how to get involved! You say “see you in June” but where? When?