Seattle Sun Newspaper - Vol. 7, Issue 8, August 2003

Copyright 2003 Seattle Sun. Please feel free to use the article and photos below in your research. Be sure to quote the Seattle Sun as your source.

Monorail update

Thank you for covering our work to build the Monorail Green Line ("Making way for the monorail," Seattle Sun, July 2003). Community involvement by north end neighborhoods has been tremendous and will continue to be key to building the project on time, on budget and with excellent design.

In only six months we have held three large community meetings in Ballard attended by over a thousand citizens, sent out several mailings to every address within a half mile of the Green Line and had extensive media coverage. Our Ballard Monorail Representative, Bob Derry, has also met one-on-one with businesses, residents and property owners along the Green Line in addition to providing regular briefings to civic, commercial, and neighborhood groups. While a range of opinions have been expressed, one thing is clear: Ballard is excited about the Monorail.

This spring we announced a "Preliminary Preferred Alternative" early in the planning process to help the community understand our current thinking rather then wait until decisions were being made. The fact so many people know about it highlights our active communication efforts. We anticipate the final selection to be reached after much more community outreach and technical analysis has been conducted.

To help inform the decision process, we are also developing a Draft Environmental Impact Statement that will look closely at the potential impacts of various route and station options available. All of this information will be available for public review and comment at the end of August, followed by a public hearing late September.

Decisions on Green Line alignment and station locations will be made by the Monorail's Board of Directors in early 2004, with construction beginning in 2005 and the initial segment opening in 2007.

The Seattle Monorail Project is committed to working closely with businesses and residents throughout the life of the project. As the Monorail takes shape we need and want the participation of the entire community. We'll continue to do our part by providing lots of information along the way.

VEN KNOX,

Director of Community Involvement
Seattle Monorail Project

More 'piano drop' memories

I was happy to read Stan Stapp's reminiscence of the Great Piano Drop of 1968 (July 2003 issue of the Seattle Sun). My husband and I moved to Duvall the summer of that year so we missed the event. But I do remember the subsequent rock concerts and the old-timers getting mad about all the ruckus (loud music, crowds, marijuana, etc.).

The Great Piano Drop is still talked about in the Valley. For awhile, a replica of the piano was on the side of Gardens & SunSpaces on Main Street as a remembrance. It was Larry VanOver, a hippie artist, who was behind the Great Piano Drop. For years afterward, he didn't want to talk about it since he said "I was busted over it, and I have to live in the area." Apparently, even though the pilot said so, permission was not given to drop a piano in a field.

Larry finally moved to Seattle and the last time I saw him was a couple of years ago when he came into the office (Woodinville Weekly where I am an editor) to talk to the publisher. I think he lives in Eastern Washington now.

Well, Duvall has changed a lot. Hippies have been replaced by Microsofties. Population over 5,000. I have been writing news of the Snoqualmie Valley for 17 years now and I often think of what the town was like when we moved there. (I now live just north of Ballard so we get the Seattle Sun.) I am also working on a second marriage, to Hank Reverman, founder of the Blue Moon in the University District. By the way, there is a picture of Larry VanOver in Walt Crowley's book, "Forever Blue Moon."

Again, I enjoyed your very vivid picture of that day in 1968.

LISA ALLEN, North Beach

Unknown performers revealed

Thank you for printing the picture of my band in your July issue. However, a little research on your part would have revealed that it was, indeed, The Yes Yes Boys performing on that main stage last year.

Come on, who else has a washboard, ukulele, and saxophone in the front line?

Thanks anyway.

MIKE DAUGHERTY

el gran jefe de los Yes Yes Boys

www.theyesyesboys.com

Editor's note: Photos were not taken by the Sun photographers who as a strict policy, painstakingly make every effort to get names of recognizable people when taking photos. Normally, the Sun will not print photos of unnamed individuals, but the article was a service to the Ballard Chamber who provided both the press release the story was written from and the photos. They did research but were unfortunately unable to identify the band. I am sure they appreciate your help in matching a name with a face.