The Yorker Online

Upcoming Events

 

Rock Hill Park Refresh

 

Student Tips

 

Add to the Trees of York

 

Lights On, Please!

 

Welcome to the York Neighborhood Association Website!

Revised 2024-12-02 2352


  “Welcome to York” sign

Click here for the latest issue of The Yorker newsletter (November 2024).

The York Neighborhood Association (YNA) exists to preserve and enhance the community and engage citizens in civic affairs. We work to promote a safe, comfortable, and thriving urban neighborhood bordering downtown Bellingham, Washington.

As a neighborhood, we are involved in planning for the future, historic preservation, traffic and pedestrian safety, social events, and park improvements. If you live or work in the York Neighborhood, we hope you’ll get involved!

Membership:Any resident, property owner, or business owner of the York Neighborhood who attends at least one YNA meeting per calendar year is considered a member.

Use our contact page to subscribe to the YNA List and indicate other interests. And, to help us put on community events throughout the year such as the upcoming Annual Picnic, the Christmas Caroling Party & Horse Wagon Rides, the York Yard Crawl, and more, please consider making a donation, whether by mailing a check or using our Venmo page!



 

 

Upcoming Events

YNA Board Meeting/Social: December 4   |   Holiday Potluck Dinner: December 7   |   Annual Christmas Caroling Party & Wagon Rides: December 14

 

Meeting of the York Neighborhood Association’s Board of Directors, on June 20 2024 at Nelson’s Market.
  • York Neighborhood Board of Directors Meeting

    Date/Time: Fourth Wednesday Each Month (except August & December), 6:30pm meeting
    Next Meeting: Wednesday November 20, 2024
    Instead of a November meeting, the Board will have a “Social” on December 4 to finalize planning of the Annual Holiday Party

    Location - In Person: Aslan Brewing Company—1330 North Forest Street, on the mezzanine

      Agenda TBD but mostly to be about planning for the Annual Holiday Party events and the first General Membership meeting of 2025

      Questions? Contact: Colin Beazley.

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    image of a house in winter
  • Holiday Potluck Dinner put on by the York Wine & Roses Garden Club

    Date/Time: Saturday, December 7, 2024 (the first weekend in December), 4pm

    Location to be announced announced the day before

    We could use:

    • Potluck appetizers
    • Potluck breads/rolls
    • Potluck dessert
    • and holiday cheer!

    Have no fear—people can help out. This will be BYOB. If you’re willing to take part, please contact us at or 360-220-5550 or ask the York Wine and Roses Garden Club on Facebook.

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    Image of caroling wagonload at Nelson’s Market Bellingham Food Bank (logo)
  • 18th Annual Christmas Caroling Party & Wagon Rides!
  • Yorkers & friends, come gather for the 18th Annual Christmas Caroling Party & Wagon Ride

    Date/Time: Saturday, December 14th, 2024, 5pm to 8pm

    Click here for details!

    Benefiting Bellingham Food Bank.

     

  • At the 2016 event, carolers gather to sing at Marlins’ Café

    Thanks to YNA Board member Élan Engel for the 2022 event photos!
    Got more for us to post? Please
     

    Recent Events

     

  • York Neighborhood General Membership Meeting

    Come join us Wednesday, October 30, at Norway Hall for our October General Meeting. The focus will be the availability of free trees (up to $100 in value) for York residents to plant on their property, as part of the Small & Simple Grants the YNA was awarded by the City of Bellingham earlier this year, and Public Works staff will be present to talk about how this project ties into Bellingham’s tree canopy goals (the Urban Forestry Management Plan) as well as to provide tips and resources for planting and caring for new trees.

    Doors open at 6 pm - we will have some refreshments, and the meeting will begin promptly at 6:30. We will also have small pumpkins and markers and Halloween treats to keep kids busy if you want to attend as a family. Discussion will be light and festive. We look forward to seeing many of you there!

    Date/Time: Wednesday, October 25, 2023, 6:00pm gather, 6:30pm meeting

    Location - In Person: Norway Hall—1419 North Forest Street
    Parking is available, but the meeting will be held downstairs; it’s ADA-accessible, but assistance will be required so please notify us in advance if possible.

      Agenda TBD
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    Bellingham Food Bank logo
  • Bellingham Food Bank & York Gleaning

    Date/Time: Saturday October 5, 2024, ~3:15pm

    Location: Nelson’s Market—514 Potter Street

    Bellingham Food Bank will set up their box truck Chili at Nelson’s for York Neighborhood gleaning (fruit/harvest) donations—no groundfalls allowed, but a great opportunity to pick those final apples or tomatoes to share with those in need.

    The Food Bank is open to all; they have no eligibility requirements except that you need food. They will have volunteers and staff on hand to share info about their activities and projects.

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    Harriet Spanel Work Party volunteers
  • Harriet Spanel Park Work Party

    Date/Time: Saturday, September 21, 2024, 9am to noon
    Location: Whatcom & Grant Streets

    We’d love for you, your friends, and neighbors to join us. Our lovely AmeriCorps Restoration Educators Sky and Allison from the Parks Department team will lead the event. We’ll likely focus on weeding, mulching, and other stewardship activities within the “Franklin Street trail island” in celebration of National Clean Up Day! Also, the Parks team will be visiting the site on Friday, September 20th, at 2pm to discuss the work-party details. Please join us if you can!

    Additional information will be emailed to registered participants. If you sign up, please show up!

    Register with the Parks Department early. Space is limited! (Registration is optional, but all volunteers will be asked to sign in at the event.)

    Questions? Contact pkvolunteers@cob.org or 360-778-7105

    This event is Parkscriptions Certified!


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    announcement flyer for York Neighborhood Association’s 2023 Annual Picnic
  • York Neighborhood Annual Picnic

    Date/Time: Sunday, September 8, 2024, 3pm to 6pm, at Harriet Spanel Park (corner of Whatcom and Grant streets)

    Our picnics were cancelled in 2020 and 2021, due to COVID concerns, so we are delighted to once again celebrate as a neighborhood of friends! Check back here later this summer for what the YNA will have planned to be at the picnic.



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    Logo for 2024 York Yard Crawl
  • York Yard Crawl

    Date/Time: Saturday, July 27, 2024, 4pm–8pm

    Location: all around the neighborhood (and nearby!)
    Printed maps of the nearly 50 event locations will be available at Nelson’s Market (514 Potter Street) Saturday morning; toilet and garbage facilities will also be there

    As part of the Yard Crawl, members of the York Neighborhood Association’s Board of Directors will be on hand at a gathering at Hyland House, 501 Potter Street (kitty-corner from Nelson’s Market), 4pm to 6pm, to interact with our neighbors, answer questions about YNA projects and events as well as ways to participate (including by joining the Board!), and hear what matters to Yorkers of all ages and interests.

    Graciously hosted by Board member Megan Doyle, the event will include refreshments and yard games. Come say hello!

    DETAILS HERE

    Sponsored by: Crosby Glass Studio, Edward Jones, Hyland House, Skyline Physical Therapy, Hardware Sales, Nelson’s Market, The Dahlia day spa, and the York Neighborhood Association.

    Crosby Glass Studio logo Jeremy Ferrera :: Edward Jones Hyland House logo YNA masthead logo The Dahlia logo Hardware Sales logo Skyline Physical Therapy logo Nelson’s Market logo
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  • 45th Annual Dumpster Day!

    Date/Time: Saturday, June 29, 2024, 8:30am until filled (and it fills quickly!)
    Location: Parking Lot of Nelson’s Market, 514 Potter Street

    Sponsored by: Sanitary Services Company, Inc. (SSC), Republic Services, Nelson’s Market, and York Neighborhood Association.


  • DETAILS HERE

    Pic of 2022 Yorker Volunteers Thanking Sponsors at Dumpster.

    2022 Yorker Volunteers Thanking Sponsors at Dumpster

     

  • York Spring Painted-Rock Hunt

    Date/Time: Saturday, May 18, 2024

    Location: all around the neighborhood

    For children from birth to 99; hosted by the .

    We do need volunteers to paint rocks!

  • Photograph of a painted rock.  Photograph of a painted rock.  Photograph of a painted rock.  Photograph of a painted rock.  Photograph of a painted rock. 

    Bring your child on a treasure hunt around the York Neighborhood to find rocks painted with spring themes. Be sure to post your finds on York’s Facebook page.

    How to contribute rocks: Rocks can be painted with acrylics or permanent markers; then seal with any clear sealant. If you need help with this step, email Kim Owen at JK_Owen2@hotmail.com. Add the year and your initials if you want. Once you’re done, hide them before 10:00am on the day of the event, along the sidewalks and in the parks, for kids to find.

     

    Harriet Spanel Park
  • Sehome/York Spring Social and Information Fair

    Date/Time: Thursday, May 16, 2024, 4:30 to 6:30
    Location: Harriet Spanel Park—Whatcom & Grant Streets

  • The Sehome and York neighborhood associations invite all neighbors to a Spring Social & Information Fair on May 16, to get to know each other, visit with Board members, and learn about projects with the City of Bellingham, including:

    • the Bellingham Comprehensive Plan Update—Housing and Development
    • Emergency preparedness in Bellingham
    • the Rock Hill Park Refresh

    The event will be an informal potluck, so please bring a dish (appetizer, dessert, main course) if you can but come anyway if not! There will be some seating available, but bring a chair of your own or a picnic blanket to enjoy the full park. In addition to the City of Bellingham tables, neighbors are invited to set up a table of their own, to promote a business or cause; please reach out to president@yorkneigborhood.org if you’d like to set up a table!

    Questions? Contact .


     

    Participants at the April 2022 York Plant Exchange at Nelson’s Market.
  • York Plant Exchange
  • Date/Time: April 26–28, 2024

    Location - In Person: Nelson’s Market—514 Potter Street

    Hosted by the . Got plants in your yard that need to be split, pulled, or condensed? Bring them to share with your neighbors at the table in front of Nelson’s Market. Questions? Ask the York Wine and Roses Garden Club on Facebook.

     

    Rock Hill Work Party volunteers of May 2022

    Rock Hill Work Party volunteers of May 2022

  • Rock Hill Park Work Party

    Date/Time: Saturday, May 11, 2024, 9am to noon
    Location: 1300 Iron Street

  • This hidden park in the York neighborhood needs some love! Join the City and your neighbors in removing Himalayan blackberry and sprucing up the butterfly garden. All ages and abilities welcome. Participants under age 14 must be accompanied by a parent/guardian. Tools, gloves, and instructions are provided. Please dress for the weather and wear sturdy shoes.

    Additional information will be emailed to registered participants. If you sign up, please show up!

    Register with the Parks Department early. Space is limited! (Registration is optional, but all volunteers will be asked to sign in at the event.)

    Register Now!

    Questions? Contact pkvolunteers@cob.org or 360-778-7105

    This event is Parkscriptions Certified!


     

    Harriet Spanel Park
  • Wine & Roses Garden Club June Fęte

    Date/Time: Thursday, June 13, 5pm

    Location: 1410 Ellis Street (in the backyard)

    Hosted by the . We are excited to meet and to foster dreams and ruminations of tentative gardeners.

  • Bring:

  • A goodie or two to share
  • Questions and suggestions of all kinds, such as gardening, socializing, or whatever…
  • See what others bring, and partake. Questions? Please contact us via or on Facebook.

     

  • York Neighborhood Board of Directors Meeting

    Date/Time: Fourth Wednesday Each Month (except August & December), 6:30pm meeting
    Next Meeting: Thursday, April 18, 2024

    Location - In Person: Nelson’s Market—514 Potter Street

      Proposed Agenda:

      1. May 16 York / Sehome Social - we have commitments from the Comp Plan, Emergency Preparedness team, and Parks Dpt - someone from the Sehome neighborhood will join us to discuss planning efforts - Colin
      2. Treasurer’s Report - Opie
      3. MNAC Read out - Élan
      4. Newsletter Distribution - Mark
      5. Dumpster Day Planning

      Questions? Contact: Colin Beazley.

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  • York Neighborhood Historic Preservation Committee Meeting with City representatives

    Date/Time: Tuesday, January 23, 2024, at Noon

    Location - In Person: Nelson’s Market—514 Potter Street

    To discuss the development of the Interactive Walking Map.

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    Rock Hill Park Refresh

    Did you know that Rock Hill Park is due for a refresh this year? It is! The City of Bellingham is partnering with the York Neighborhood Association to make sure everyone that wants to get involved has a voice.

    Let us know what’s important to you when it comes to updating your neighborhood park!

    You can participate now by giving us your perspective and input via the Rock Hill Park Refresh survey here!


     

     




    Student Tips

    Welcome to incoming York student residents!

    Nestled between Downtown Bellingham and the freeway, the York neighborhood is a friendly, green, fun, peaceful haven…an eclectic mix of families and students, homeowners and renters, parks and pets, and a variety of businesses ranging from grocery stores, restaurants, and breweries to healthcare practitioners, social services, and auto shops.

    Every fall, a new group of students arrive who don’t really know where they have landed. Check out the flyer at right for some tips for how you can make your time among us a good one.


    Moving Out? Pack It Out!—Education campaign against refuse in our greenways and alleys

    YNA’s 2020 Dumpster Day and WWU’s 2020 Move Out Madness were unable to be scheduled due to COVID-19 response & concerns. The first annual “Moving Out? Pack It Out!” campaign is providing alternatives.

    The campaign name/slogan is based on the time-tested Leave No Trace—Pack It In, Pack It Out campaign for our wildernesses.
    Think of this as an Urban Leave No Trace (except memories).

    Those interested in a yard sign or poster for your window, please send
    Signs will be picked up after the campaign.

    This campaign is a partnership between the City of Bellingham, Western Washington University, and the York Neighborhood Association.


     

     

     

    Trees of York

     

  • Help Grow Bellingham’s Trees cover of the City of Bellingham’s “State of the Urban Forest Report”

    The City of Bellingham plants thousands of trees on public property each year and is a proud Tree City USA community. Why trees? They provide a wealth of benefits for our community, including shade, cleaner air, wildlife habitat, and more. In 2024, the City began investing in efforts to encourage more tree planting on private property to help grow Bellingham’s tree canopy cover citywide, especially in neighborhoods with fewer trees. While the average canopy cover in Bellingham is 40%, York Neighborhood is much lower than that at 17.7% (learn more about this in the State of the Urban Forest Report, available on the City’s website at cob.org/wp-content/uploads/220428_Bellingham-State-of-the-Urban-Forest-Report_v2.pdf).
     

    To help increase this number, the York Neighborhood Association applied for and received a Small & Simple Grant from the City to fund a tree giveaway. York property owners can sign up to receive a tree, free, from our local native plant nursery, Plantas Nativa, by emailing . Trees will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. You will have a list of eligible species to choose from and can pick up your trees in March or April 2025.
     

    Want a tree sooner? The City will be giving away free shore pine and paper birch trees at the Bellingham Farmers Market on Saturday, November 30. Look for their blue tent next to the goat statue. Once you receive a tree, visit the City’s website for planting tips!
     

    Don’t have your own property to plant a tree? No problem! Join a volunteer work party to plant trees in local trails and parks, including Rock Hill Park in January.
     

    To protect Bellingham’s largest and most significant trees, the City also recently passed an emergency Landmark Tree Ordinance that prevents these trees from being removed or damaged without City approval. You can help grow the Landmark Tree Inventory by nominating a tree online at cob.org/landmark-tree-nomination, but first see if it’s already on the map at cob.org/services/environment/trees/tree-protection.

     

    Big thanks from the YNA to Stefanie Cilinceon, Communications and Outreach Coordinator, City of Bellingham Public Works Department, for writing this for us!

  • Use these maps to explore the historic trees of the York neighborhood as well as the trees of Harriet Spanel Park.

    Historic Trees of the York Neighborhood—February 2019     Trees of Harriet Spanel Park—February 2019

     

     

    Lights On, Please

    Porch lights brighten up the neighborhood and deter unsavory behavior. An LED bulb will save tons of energy ($), alleviating the guilt of leaving outside lights on. And your mail carrier and delivery people will be grateful, too, for safer navigation to and from your door!


     

     

    Samish Way News

    October 2019—Ground Broken! — Take a few minutes to check out the former Aloha Motel site, along Samish Way between Otis, Laurel, Abbott, and Maple streets! At the end of October, the Bellingham Housing Authority hosted the groundbreaking for the new building which will be constructed over the next year and a half, with leasing to start in early 2021.

    This building will house fixed-rent apartments, as well as street-level commercial tenants, and was designed to serve as part of the Samish Way Urban Village Plan (2009). The housing authority will have proprietary interest in this new building, as they will be be among the very first tenants!

    The development will be just across Samish Way from the York Neighborhood’s south leg, so it will be part of our community.

    Regarding the project during the COVID-19 response period:

    “Governor Inslee’s Stay Home - Stay Healthy Proclamation specifically identifies construction of low-income housing as essential work. As you’ve probably noticed, Dawson Construction has prominently posted “Essential Work Site” banners on the construction fence. They have also implemented an impressively sophisticated set of social distancing/pandemic safety protocols in accordance with Centers for Disease Control guidelines.

    At this point, construction continues to move forward and the City is conducting inspections as required by code. Feel free to keep your fingers crossed for us as we move forward!”

    —Brien Thane, Bellingham & Whatcom County Housing Authorities, April 3, 2020



     

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  • If you desire to present something to Yorkers:

    If you have a presentation you would like to give or a question to place before Yorkers and neighbors, we would love to hear from you. Please contact our or , and we will discuss opportunities. Please note meeting time can be limited, and contacting us well in advance really helps us allocate time for your topic.


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