Bad Signs in Newcastle

We’ve visited the new sign motif in glittering Newcastle. Kind of a green on green with white lettering.


Well it turns out some people don’t like it. The base green is a lime hue and the white lettering is hard to see. The big park signs are essentially bent sheet metal which presents sharp corners. Some of the large park signs have been removed because they interfered with driver sight lines. People are saying it’s just not very cool.

Well, the backlash has arrived. The city person responsible for the “new sign” project has been fired. They didn’t specifically say it was the signs but the signs were mentioned prominently in reporting the personnel adjustment.

Two other directors resigned within days of the firing. Apparently the Parks Commissioner and Public Works Director were not thrilled over the firing and decided to pursue other opportunities.

The newly elected mayor, John, has created two new committees in Newcastle. One is the Library Development Committee. The purpose is to facilitate and ensure the groundbreaking of Newcastle’s library. The ground is already broken. Maybe the committee will fix it in time for the official ceremony in July.

This is the library that has bounced between a standalone library which is part of the massive King County Library System and a multi function behemoth. The lot size is one acre. At one point the plan called for a combination City Hall, Post Office, Library, 80 unit low income housing, car wash, and circus tent. With no parking.

The Postal Service repeatedly refuses to provide Newcastle with its own zip code so we won’t get a Post Office. The last appeal says that since sales tax revenues are distributed to communities based on the buyers’ zip codes Newcastle is losing money because it shares a zip with Renton. The Postal Service says that’s not the purpose of a zip code which means it’s a local problem and not their responsibility. So no new zip code and no Post Office. Maybe Newcastle can form a committee to sneak up on Renton and steal some sales tax revenue. Which brings up the other new committee:

The other new committee is called the Community, Communications and Outreach Committee. First agenda item: Pick a new name. The intent is to improve interaction with residents for decisions like the sign motif but the official purpose is a lot of committee doubletalk. The ground is already broken on this one too.

If you want to be part of the Renton Raid just drop a line to the Newcastle City Council and mention Glen the Lake Boren Carp sent you. I bet that gets you a seat on the committee right away. Or at least a place to sit.

Al