Copyright 2002 Seattle Sun newspaper. Please feel free to use the article and photos below in your research. Be sure to quote the Seattle Sun as your source.

Basketball refs needed

The Seattle Parks and Recreation Department is seeking paid referees for youth basketball games. In North Seattle, the basketball games are played at community centers in Ballard, Bitter Lake, Loyal Heights, Green Lake, Laurelhurst and Ravenna. Those who are hired will work for the Citywide Youth Games League, which runs from January through March of 2002. There is a special need for officials to work Friday and Saturday evenings, though games are scheduled for other nights of the week too. For more information, call Susan Lee at Seattle Parks and Recreation Citywide Athletics at 684-7093.

Salmon run almost over

Haven't yet been down to Carkeek Park to see the annual November-December run of coho and chum salmon in Piper's Creek? If you hurry over before the first of the year, it might not be too late to catch a few stragglers. Brian Gay, staff naturalist at Carkeek Park, reports that this year's salmon run has been very good. When all is said and done, Gay said the park will probably have seen approximately 150 fish of each species come through.

Gay said those who do want to try for a final glimpse of the fish should stay in the established viewing areas and not get to close to the bank. These fish have survived an arduous journey and can be especially skittish when humans or pets make sudden movements or loud noises from above. Visitors should also be careful to keep dogs away from dead fish along the bank. Not only can the animals be poisoned, but those fish return much needed nutrients to the ecosystem.

Mineral Springs Park named

For years, the four-acre park located at 10556 Meridian Ave. N, has been referred to by neighbors as "North Seattle Park," even though it had never been officially named. Well, now it finally has one. On Oct. 31, the Seattle Parks & Recreation Department, which has owned the property since 1969, announced that the park will henceforth be known as "Mineral Springs Park." The new name was chosen by the Parks Naming Committee because the area in which the park is located is home to several natural springs, including the neighborhood's namesake: Licton Springs, which is located a few blocks south of Mineral Springs Park. In 1935, a spa was developed in the area called "Licton Mineral Springs." Northgate Way, which borders Mineral Springs Park, was also once known as "Mineral Springs Way," according to the Parks Department.