You'll Like Tacoma

I have spent roughly the last four years of my life in Downtown Tacoma. Previous to that, I had only driven by Tacoma on my way to other places and was told that Tacoma is not where I wanted to be. As I have come to find, those sentiments were completely false. Tacoma is exactly where I want to spend the rest of my life. I don’t know about all the other Tacoma transplants but I fell in love immediately and claimed Tacoma as my home. 

As someone who grew up in an unincorporated town, I never really had a city to call my own. Without ever moving, my address changed four times due to re-configuring of city lines - I was in no man’s land.  On top of that, the developing suburbs popping up don’t offer the community that I have come to find in Tacoma. There is not an art community.  There are no museums.  There is no night life or wonderful Barre classes to enjoy on Sunday mornings. Coffee is limited to Starbucks and there is seriously only one grocery store. Rather than limited choices and opportunities, Tacoma is full of life and vibrancy.  

You can feel it in the air that Tacoma is the place to be, this is the time that you want to invest and put roots down in the City of Destiny. Tacoma is about to launch into another golden era. 

As our art community grows, as our population diversifies, and as the housing market explodes, Tacoma is sure to become one of the best cities in the country to live in. Whether you are out on your own, happily married, in the middle of growing your family, or entering retirement, our city has so much to offer. We are reaching new medical hub heights, our transportation system is set to expand greatly, and graduation rates are rising. 

While all of this may sound lofty and like a daydream because of the glacial pace that the city is moving, I believe Tacoma will be the next big thing because they are trying to be very intentional on how Tacoma grows. Tacoma cannot just grow for growth sake, it needs to be well thought out and managed otherwise we will be running into problems of the past. Tacoma is ready to launch and I am so honored that I get to be a part of it. 

Tacoma Bike Share Open House

The City of Tacoma is hosting a public open house on February 25th to discuss the prospects of introducing a public bike share system to Tacoma. The City launched an investigative study to explore the viability of bringing a bike share program to Tacoma. The bike share program would be put in place to increase the use of bikes for short-range travel, decrease the use of single occupancy vehicles traveling to Tacoma, and shift to more sustainable transpiration options. 

The open house will teach those who are interested in the types of bike share systems that will work for Tacoma. There will also be an opportunity to provide feedback on the viability, station locations, and the types of technology being proposed. 

The public open house will be held on February 25th, 5:00-7:00pm at 

The Evergreen State College in the Main Hall. 

For additional information you can contact 

Diane Wiatr at dwiatr@cityoftacoma.org or at 253-591-5380.

Read more on the City's work and plans on the bike share program here.

Rad more here: http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/politics-government/article26287957.html#storylink=cpy

University Y One Year Later

One year ago on January 4th, the University of Washington Tacoma and the YMCA opened a student center unlike any in the country. The University-Y Student Center is so much more than the run of the mill student center. First off, one thing that is very unique about this facility is that it is open to not only students but to the public and regular YMCA members as well. As of today the University Y has 4,406 members, with roughly 80% of membership being represented by the UW Tacoma student population. 

People from all walks of life are able to come together under one roof to workout, play volleyball, come to an event, or be introduced to a college setting for the first time in their lives. 

For the students, this is a place to have fun, workout, build relationships, start a club, or go to work. UW Tacoma has all of their clubs housed at the student center along with programs from student involvement and student government. In the Student Center you can find the Associated Students of the University of Washington Tacoma, Student Activities Board, and others. All of these resources are provided for students and open for all students to join or apply to. The University Y is also proud to offer students a reflection room, where any member can come and take time out of their day for quiet reflection, prayer, or meditation. 

The University and the YMCA are big supporters of giving back to the community and are proud to offer services such as the Juvenile Justice Program, clothing and toy drives, health awareness months, and supporting shelters and soup kitchens in the Tacoma area. 

Some of the exciting things that are going on this month at the Y are that they are having their January promotion that waives their joining fee until January 18th, intramural registration is open January 4-18th, and the New Year will bring the new Jillian Michael’s BODYSHRED classes that are sure to ramp up your workout routine.

To find out more on their website here.

Tacoma's First Night Festival

Looking for amazing New Year Eve plans? Tacoma has your answer. For the 20th year, First Night will be hosted in downtown Tacoma. Full of family fun, art, music, fire, ice, and so much more; ringing in the New Year has never been better!

The $10 button required for entrance gives you access to 10 stages, over 50 artists, and all day activities such as, free access to the Museum of Glass, Tacoma Art Museum, Tacoma Children’s Museum, and free skate rentals at Franciscan Polar Plaza. If you don't purchase your button in advance, it will be $14 at the door. 

First night typically draws in anywhere between 10,000 and 20,000 participants so you want to make sure to get there early and grab some parking. They are encouraging attendees to park at the Tacoma Dome and take the Link down to the festival. The Link will be running until 1:00AM and give you plenty of time to get back to your car as hassle free as possible. First Night runs from 6pm-12am on Thursday, December 31st.

There will be food trucks and restaurant deals happening all over town. Be sure to check out their website to get a full list of all the perks and packages available. 

To purchase your button click here and if you want to find out more click here! 

Community Development Practices - Defining Quality of Life

Quality of life – how do you define it and how do you measure it?

I spend quite a bit of time thinking about this question in my work as a community development consultant, working with communities all over the country who are unique and differentiated from one another in beautiful ways.

The optimistic part of me and the part of me that believes in some common universality within the human experience looks for important threads amidst all of that diversity.

Another part of me, the intellectual and philosophical, doesn’t believe we can make statements of objective or universal truth.

Even the image I have used at the top of the post reveals biases about what the artist thinks a quality of life is.

It isn’t that I don’t think there are universal truths, I just don’t think those truth's are ever objective truths, because our perspectives are always mediated through our own or someone else’s experiences and privilege. The bias of the mediation, the others or our own, shape our perspective in ways that can’t be divorced. No one is ever “speaking objectively”, whether I agree or disagree with them.

Something may be VERY true for me, but without a doubt, I will meet someone who can’t affirm that same truth. Still, I’ve never met a person – no matter how different – that I could not find one or two threads of commonality. In the midst of this dance is the art of community development work.

So in my work I try not to run too quickly to the common threads.

I’ll admit it can be hard, both because of timelines and also because of the way my mind works – moving quickly to synchronizing and looking for common elements. I’ve made many mistakes in this regard and I have to work hard to not make them again. I work hard to put my own biases on the table and to always be aware that I speak from a particular vantage point that cannot be separated from my privilege, fears, and personal pain.

So, I have to slow it down - listen deeply and allow for people to be heard.

Often my work is done in the context of community or neighborhood planning, where one of the tools we use is the process of creating an outcome based evaluation tool that starts with creating a baseline for the resident perceptions of the quality of life in the neighborhood.

That baseline is used as a way to prioritize community needs to be addressed by the coalition (usually residents, community groups, the city, etc…). As the work continues, we then re-survey the same residents over time and are able to see whether the quality of life is improving based on the standards that they set.

One of the most interesting parts of this process is getting to the definition of quality of life so that we can even create the baseline survey.

It is true, that the more homogeneous a neighborhood, particularly when it comes to socio-economics, race, and culture – generally the quicker quality of life definitions are arrived at. Still, in very homogeneous communities there can be deep divides around other areas of differentiation. For example single people, partnered people with no kids, and partnered people with kids might have very different priorities around issues affecting children in their neighborhood.

In communities with a great deal of socio-economic, racial, or cultural diversity – the quality of life definitions and perceptions may seem downright antithetical to one another. Yet, in these circumstances, with skilled facilitation, and mature and committed participants, I have often seen how people who seemed to be forever a part were able to come to consensus as they found a deeper understanding of their own perceptions and those of their neighbors.

Don’t get me wrong – I’m not pie in the sky about any of this. Sometimes diverse communities aren’t able to come together.

Sometimes an effort breaks down because there isn’t enough common ground.

Sometimes the scope of a project gets limited to what can be agreed upon and often that is much less than everyone one was hoping for.

Sometimes factions break out that end up working for entirely different visions in the same community. That is also the beauty of grassroots advocacy in a democracy, the choice of differentiating, with each working and advocating for their vision in the public square.

Regardless, generally people gravitate towards very common issues related to quality of life in their community. Things like safety, beauty, economic opportunity, appropriate and affordable housing options, access to food, access to recreation, and many other things. In fact, there are studies and theories that put forth common elements of quality of life - the problem is still in definition of what those mean and how to get there.

The difficulty begins when you try to come to a common definition of something like safety or a consensus on how to create safety.

It is difficult, because an individual’s sense of safety is a very subjective and personal thing. While we might be able to find some threads, those particular differences are often held closely, emotionally, and tied deeply to personal experiences that are hard to question.

What IS common for all of us is that we think about and are invested in our quality of life. We all have the desire to live in a community that supports and reflects that definition of quality of life.

What I have found helpful is the process of examining my own definitions of quality of life.

Where do they come from? What definitions are most different from my neighbors and why? Are there any of my definitions that seem unreasonable? What are my non-negotiable (essential) and what are simply my preferences, but negotiable? On an issue of difference, what is the CORE concern I have – what is the ROOT fear I have that drives my perception?

Spending some time doing this self-reflection work better prepares us to engage in community development work with others. It also helps our awareness of what might be going on for others around their own definitions.

I encourage us to take the time to ask our neighbors some of the questions we’ve asked ourselves, so that we don’t assume we know where their opinions come from, but rather get at the root of their perspective and its genesis.

None of this is magic. But, the process of defining quality of life with our neighbors is a powerful tool that deepens our understanding of our differences and also creates an opportunity to find threads of commonality with which to build consensus in moving forward.

I love trains.

I just took the Amtrak down to Portland a few weeks back for a work trip. It is my favorite way to travel to PDX, which I do for work and pleasure at least a few times a year. Portland’s walk-ability and transit system also make it really easy to be without a car.

You may have heard by now that WSDOT will be breaking ground on the new Amtrak station at Freighthouse Square this next year and that new station is schedule to open in 2017.

Parts of the plans for the new station include a clock tower that WSDOT and the Citizens Advisory Committee on the project have hopes will be an iconic addition to the Tacoma landscape.

The proposed clock tower will stand 80 to 90 feet tall and be located on 25th Street, in front of the Freighthouse Square building and across the street from the commuter parking garage.

Whenever someone uses the word iconic – I’ll admit I get a little nervous.

Not because I’m against iconic structures. No, in fact, I think iconic design and architectural elements are an important factor in a community’s identification with its city.

I get nervous because sometimes what gets produced in the service of iconic is something ugly, something out of place, something that isn’t functional, or something that is trying entirely too hard.

I’m not an architect or a designer, but like most of you, I know when something works and doesn’t work. It’s a fine line – trying to create something iconic

In some ways there are a lot of things out of the control of the designers and decision makers that end up making something iconic. Sometimes it is just about timing. Sometimes it’s about the cultural evolution of a place that can’t be anticipated in the moment.

Interestingly enough, we already have an iconic structure in the vicinity of the new Amtrak station – the Tacoma Dome.

The T-Dome is a good example. I’m not sure anyone would call it attractive and in fact many people might call it an eye sore. Nevertheless, it is iconic and you can’t think about the Tacoma landscape without calling to mind the dome.

The structure itself is iconic and that doesn’t even take into account the history that it holds. I wore out my Sonic’s T-Shirt that had the Tacoma landscape worked into the Sonic’s logo from their time playing in the Woodshed in the 1994-95 season. That’s just one of my many favorite pieces of T-Dome history.

One of the things that will make the Tacoma dome even more iconic (in my opinion) is the Warhol Flower being painted on the top of the dome. I know that everyone doesn’t share that opinion, but what I like about it is that it takes something that is already a known quantity and connects it even more deeply to a significant part of our identity as strong artistically oriented city.

Plus, it takes a bit of a risk – which sometimes is needed when trying to create something iconic.

WSDOT put a call out for residents to weigh in on three proposed designs for the clock tower. Today was the deadline for input. I will be interested to see what the feedback is.

I won’t get into the proposed designs, but if you want to read more about them you can check out Matt Driscoll’s article in The News Tribune. Like Matt, I think the clock tower is a good idea, but I’m not sold on any of the current designs either.

Here is the thing about creating something iconic – you can’t let the limitations get in the way.

There are plenty of potential limitations – cost, the limitations of the location, and trying to meet particular deadlines.

Taking a risk is not the same thing as settling for something less the desirable because we lack the will, the imagination, and the determination to create something that really works.

I vote that we take our time.

Matt points out that City Councilman David Boe (an architect) has some ideas, including a city run open design competition – after all Tacoma is full of many great artists, designers, and architects that I believe have the capacity to imagine something that will indeed be iconic.

In my opinion it would be worth the time and effort – let’s get this right.

If at this late hour you still want to weigh in. You can access the survey here - online survey .

Creative Colloquy - Kicking the Gate Open

In a world full of gate keepers - Jackie Fender, Joshua Swainston, and William Turbyfill have dispatched the guard and kicked the gate wide open.

Together they are the team behind Creative Colloquy (CC), an online literary site that hosts a monthly reading in Tacoma’s Opera Ally at the B Sharp Coffee House (every last Monday of the month at 7 pm). In addition to the site and the readings, CC has an annual print literary review and a regular podcast that William hosts called LiterallyTacoma. CC primarily focuses on short fiction and novel excerpts, but they also include poetry and other prose.

CC was founded in February of 2014 and their mission is to foster relationships built upon the mutual admiration of the written word and provide a platform to highlight literary talent in the South Sound.

This coming Monday May 25th, I will have the pleasure of emceeing this months reading, along with my fellow co-founder and co-producer of the Drunken Telegraph (DT), Megan Sukys.

I don’t know the team at CC all that well.

I have attended a few of the readings, peruse the site regularly to read what local writers are putting out, and of course I bought a copy of this last years literary review, Creative Colloquy - Volume One. Jackie and I have crossed paths in other storytelling and literary circles.

We were grateful when Jackie invited the Drunken Telegraph to host the upcoming show and cross promote our final  Drunken Telegraph show of the season at Studio 3 of the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts on June 13 at 7:30 pm.

However, beyond my gratitude lies my admiration for CC and it’s team. Certainly, we share some things in common - not the least of which is a love for a story well told, albeit our focus is grounded in the oral tradition and their’s in the written word.

However, my admiration doesn’t end with CC’s fine work of highlighting and promoting storytellers and writers, and in fact is highest as it relates to their commitment to build community.

You see it in that one line of their mission statement - to foster relationships built upon a mutual admiration of the written word.

CC & DT have that in common - it’s not just about the stories and the writing - it’s about community and building relationships.

Going back to my opening point, I grow weary of the self appointed or privilege appointed gate keepers of the arts here in Tacoma and elsewhere. They never really grow the arts, they just recycle through the same old manifestations, which rarely serves more then their out of touch donors and their own egos.

This is why CC is so refreshing.

If you read their publications or come to a reading you will find the words of established and talented local writers - as you should. You will also read and hear the words of emerging writers, of writers who are sharing their work for the first time in a public forum, and yes, sometimes you might hear or read something that you think is really bad.

Perhaps that bad writing will never be any good. Then again, with practice, and with the forum they are provided through CC, perhaps it will get better, and even become great.

Right now I am reading the book The Republic of the Imagination: America in Three Books by the author Azar Nafisi, best known for her book Reading Lolita in Tehran.

Both of Nafisi’s books are about the power, the necessity, and the subversiveness of literature (and story) to transform peoples lives and to re-imagine and shape the identify of a generation and even a whole culture.

This is why I think the two most important words in CC’s mission statement are mutual admiration.

Too often the gate keeper approach to things only allows the ones deemed the most talented to get up close. This isn’t just true in the arts.

I think anyone that has lived in Tacoma for a while can attest that part of our problem as a city has been the role of gate keepers who hoard to much of the power within a chosen few and thus stifle the creative imagination of the masses.

Certainly this isn’t the only issue, but you’d be hard pressed to convince me that it hasn’t been part of the problem.

Not every arts based organization can be or needs to be as egalitarian as CC. But, every community needs a few groups like it to create a place not just for the super talented (whatever that means), but for everyone trying to tell a story.

Luckily CC isn’t the only group that refuses to play a gate keeper role in Tacoma. We have a lot of community based and in touch artists who are focused on building community and developing artists, wherever they are at in their development.

It is true that the tellers of stories and writers are transformed by the process and practice of sharing their words and stories. Still, the greatest service of stories and literature is to the masses. It is to the admirers. The readers and the hearers - whose imaginations, actions, and trajectory are forever changed by their encounter.

So, I say thank you to Jackie, Joshua, and William. Thank you for not only highlighting and cultivating the literary talent and culture of our city, but thank you for building community and opening your gates to every budding writer and storyteller that risks sharing their words and story with us.

I invite all of you to come out and join us this Monday night, right here in the Theater District of downtown Tacoma

Bring your own stories or just bring your imagination. Bring with you a belief that part of how we build the strong community we all want, is to build on our already vibrant arts community, and most importantly take the time to listen to one another’s stories - perhaps even risking to tell our own.

Remembering the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The City of Tacoma celebrated the 27th Annual birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. this past weekend and was held in downtown on January 19, 2015 at the Greater Tacoma Convention and Trade Center that drew a crowd of more than 2,000 people.

Many came to the event in a solidarity march with a performance that included several choirs,  several artists depicting the days in the life of the civil rights leader and impassioned words from representatives. This annual celebration was created as a reminder of Dr. King's legacy focusing on the words he once spoke, "Life's most persistent and urgent question, 'What are you doing for others?'"

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray also spoke, “Everybody can be great because everybody can serve,’” Murray said, quoting a King speech. “Let’s take Dr. King up on that challenge for greatness.” Murray urged the community leaders to expand educational opportunities for all and stressed that we should all find a way to serve in our community. Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy and South Sound Democratic congressmen Denny Heck and County Councilmen Derek Kilmer along with Tacoma Mayor Marilyn Strickland were also among the representatives who spoke.

This January let us remember the legacy of our American hero - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by conscientiously living his dream of equality and service.

New Year's Celebration in Downtown Tacoma

Celebrate New Year's with us at the annual First Night festival in the downtown Tacoma theater district. This celebration is an affordable, alcohol free event that gives families an option to ring in the New Year with fun shows, events, and activities. Click here to check the band listings.

A First Night admission is $10 found online here or ($14 Day of Event) and children under the age of 10 are admitted free of charge. A First Night admission ticket also provides free access to skate rentals at Franciscan Polar Plaza, Tacoma Art Museum, as well as the Children’s Museum.

The main event starts at 6 PM with a parade of marching bands, costumes, and giant puppets. Following will be 20 stage events of music, fire dancers, then at midnight we celebrate together at the outdoor main stage to wish well the New Year. Click here to check the schedule of events.

The theme this year will be the Year of the Ram so watch out for how the featured activities, and local artists from the community utilizing the theme throughout their work! Hope to see you there to celebrate 2015 together starting it out right by supporting local artist’s downtown Tacoma.