FIRST HILL STREETCAR WATER SHUT-OFF SUMMARY. First Hill Streetcar Water Shut-off Open House. Event Summary August 8, 2012

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1 First Hill Streetcar Water Shut-off Open House Event Summary August 8,

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Overview. 3 Event Notification.. 3 Staff. 3-4 Materials.. 4 Attendees 5 Attendee Questions 5 Open House Outcomes 5 Appendix Event Photos. 6 You re Invited to an Open House (Event Invitation) Notice of Water Shut-off (SPU s shut-off notice). 9 Planned Water Shutdown Areas for August 13, 2012 (presentation board) 10 Other Planned Water Shutdown Areas (presentation board). 10 Information for Water Customers (presentation board). 11 2

3 OVERVIEW As part of construction for the First Hill Streetcar, a new water main will be installed on Jackson Street. This work will require multiple water shut-offs to nearby buildings between August 2012 and December In advance of any water shut-offs, the First Hill Streetcar (FHS) Project and Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) held an open house for residents, business owners and property owners within the Chinatown International District to learn more and ask questions directly of lead staff. Key Open House objectives: Identify for the community the buildings that will likely be impacted by a water shut-off during FHS construction. Outline the anticipated number and duration of planned water shut-offs. Inform residents, businesses and property owners how they will be formally notified, what to expect, and how they can prepare for water shut-offs. Provide information about the First Hill Streetcar Project. Answer questions and take comments. CHINATOWN INTERNATIONAL DISTRICT OPEN HOUSE Wednesday, August 8, 4:00 6:00 p.m. Legacy Community Hall in the Bush Asia Center 409 Maynard Avenue S, Park Level EVENT NOTIFICATION Several methods were utilized to notify project area stakeholders and the general public of the open house. These included: Door-to-door distribution of invitations (in English, Vietnamese, and Chinese) in the shut-off areas 500* Distribution by property managers within their buildings 250 distribution of invitation to contacts in the Jackson corridor 50 STAFF Targeted distribution and notification by community sponsors (phone, and word-of-mouth) *See Appendix for invitation with translations Project and Government Agencies Seattle Public Utilities: Bill Benzer, Karen York, Jim Otte, Elaine Yeung Seattle Fire Department: Gary English, Deputy Chief Seattle Department of Neighborhoods: Karen Ko King County Department of Public Health: Morgan Berry, Alanna Beebe First Hill Streetcar: Josh Stepherson, Bob Derry, Maddie Beeders 3

4 Community Sponsors SCIDpda: Joyce Pisnanont, Nic Li, Willin Hua, Anna Preyapongpisan Friends of Little Saigon: Quynh Pham Chinatown ID BIA: Don Blakeney, Ben Grace Translation Support Chinese Language Translation: Alan Lui Vietnamese Language Translation: Duong Vu MATERIALS Handouts Notice of Water Shut-off 8/13/ PM 8/14/ AM* Information for Water Customers First Hill Streetcar Project* Planned Water Shutdown Areas for August 13, 2012 Other Planned Water Shutdown Areas First Hill Streetcar folio First Hill Streetcar construction notice* *Translated into Chinese and Vietnamese Presentation Boards 6 display boards and a welcome board were utilized at the open house. Display boards provided information about the areas affected by the water shut-off. Boards included: Welcome Sign First Hill Streetcar (multiple languages) Planned Water Shutdown Areas for August 13, 2012 Other Planned Water Shutdown Areas Information for Water Customers First Hill Streetcar Route Map Due to the large number of attendees who were residents, a question-and-answer format was utilized. The Q&A was facilitated by the Chinese language translator. Most of the questions pertained to tenants. Questions were answered by a representative from the most appropriate agency or entity. 4

5 ATTENDEES Most of the attendees were from the same two apartment buildings; they arrived as a group and sat together, away from the established tables. As a result, information boards were moved to the group, a short presentation was provided with the help of the Chinese interpreter, and a Q&A session followed individuals attended the open house meeting 29 attendees signed in AUDIENCE QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS Questions posed during the Q&A session: When will the water be shut off in our building? Will the fire sprinklers work when the water is shut off? Will businesses be able to stay open when the water is off? Should you turn off your water heater before the shut-off? How will we know when there will be future shut-offs? How many more times will our water be shut off? Will the water shut-off damage our pipes or appliances? Will our fire alarm go off when the water is shut off? If there is a fire during the water shut-off, will there be water for the fire department to put it out? When are the shut-offs scheduled on Jackson between 12th and 14th? Should we have a fire watch of our building during the shut-off? Why are you shutting off our water and why are you doing it so many times? What does the water shut-off have to do with the Streetcar Project? Construction in the area is hurting local businesses. How can we change the parking restrictions in the ID? OUTCOMES Note: All questions were responded to during the meeting. Meaningful attendance and public participation - More than 35 people attended the open house and were able to speak directly with project staff. Increased awareness of the water shut-off and First Hill Streetcar Project Resident concerns were addressed in a Q&A session with SPU, Seattle Fire Department, and FHS. Open house information provided residents and business owners with detailed information about what to expect during a water shut-off, the affected areas, the schedule of shut-offs, and how to prepare for a shut-off. Improved outreach and involvement with the Chinatown International District Key handouts were translated into Chinese and Vietnamese. There was notable involvement from the elderly community in the International District. Positive working relationships with major institutions and project area business and community organizations Eight or more organizations participated in the event s planning, promotion, coordination of materials, and staffing. 5

6 Appendix Entrance to event with Welcome display board on the right and signin table on the left. Public Health representative with local business owner at the business station. Q&A session with residents of the Chinatown/International District. SPU representative and interpreter responding to questions in the Q&A session 6

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9 *Notice made available at open house and translated in Chinese and Vietnamese 9

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