Lakeside School

Dear parents and guardians,

We hope you’ve had a safe and enjoyable summer. Over the past few months, we’ve been working on campus improvements to support the safety and well-being of our students, families, and employees.

As students return to school this fall, it’s important for families to know about the three major construction projects affecting our neighborhood that can impact safety: the City of Shoreline’s 145th Street Corridor Project; the City of Seattle’s NE 130th St & NE 125th Street Mobility and Safety Project; and the construction of our new Upper School academic building and the associated street improvements on 1st Avenue between 140th and 145th (including new sidewalks, bus loading zones, fire hydrants, utilities, and paving). The combined impact of these projects includes lane closures, street closures, limited parking, and regular detours.

Please read the following information closely so you and your student know how to safely travel to and from Lakeside this fall. We recognize that this is a lot of information: some colleagues and I will have a booth at the Party on the Quad on Aug. 28 to answer questions about construction impacts and safety.
 

First and foremost: Be safe!

Parents and guardians: Please talk as a family about safe walking, biking, and driving in the neighborhood. This is particularly important if you have a teenage driver.

• Give yourself plenty of time for getting to and from Lakeside. Most accidents happen when someone is rushing.
• Pedestrians: Keep your eyes and ears open, watching for cars and bikes.
• Drivers: Drive slowly and watch for pedestrians, including ones that may be crossing streets.
• Give bicyclists ample room — at least three feet.
• Be courteous to neighbors: they are members of our community as well.
• Park legally and be considerate of others. Seattle’s municipal code states that there is no parking within five feet of a driveway, mailbox, or alley.

Traveling to campus: Bus stops, pick-up and dropoff, and a closure on 145th

• Buses: Similar to last spring, Lakeside custom buses will pick up and drop-off at the Middle School. Upper School students walking between campuses should remain alert of their surroundings, since the streets tend to be busy during this period.
• Pick-up and dropoff: Before you head to campus, be sure to read the pick-up and dropoff article in the back-to-school Inside Lakeside. Because of the construction on 1st Avenue, the Upper School pick-up and dropoff will be significantly impacted.
• 145th closure: In September, the City of Shoreline will close N 145th Street between 1st and 5th Avenues NE (including the I-5 overpass). This means that drivers travelling north along 1st Avenue will not be able to turn right on 145th. This closure is expected to go through Sept. 17. We highly recommend you review the City of Shoreline’s webpage about this project (including maps of the area). The webpage is updated regularly.

Parking (and how to avoid stressing about it)

School parking lots should be open by the time school starts. However, some lots will have stalls fenced off and other construction work happening through the fall.

Because of the construction on 1st Avenue and the multiple construction projects, street parking may be hard to find over the next few months. We strongly encourage students and families to carpool, take public transportation, and, if spots are available, sign up for the custom bus program. Find information about these options in this article.

Learn more about parking and other ways to campus on the transportation webpage.
 

Upper School construction: What to expect

With construction happening on and around the Upper School campus, here are some things to be aware of.

• Lakeside’s new academic building and the surrounding area is an active construction site. Students should not enter the construction fencing at any time. If, for some reason, access is needed, students should ask a teacher or administrator for assistance with contacting BNBuilders.
• The construction areas on 1st Avenue (sidewalks, paving, and fencing) are also off-limits. Cones and fencing are used to safely delineate the work areas; students and families should treat those the same as fencing, and not enter or cross those spaces.
• Construction workers are specifically asked not to interact with students, staff, or faculty. If students (or parents and guardians) have questions about the project, they can approach a teacher or school administrator who can assist or direct them to the best resource. Do not directly ask the construction workers. They are busy folks working to get our new projects completed.

Progress on community safety infrastructure

Lakeside’s strategic plan, Hope in Action, includes the goal of realizing inspiring and secure campuses that support dynamic learning and community engagement. We’ve made some good progress in this area this summer!

The final phase of the Upper School’s perimeter fencing project, a project that began a few years ago, is underway. We are adding an attractive and architecturally compatible fence and gates along 1st Ave NE and NE 140th Street to ensure a safer and more secure environment for our school community. This project will extend through this fall, and complements the improvements to 1st Avenue.

At the Middle School, we’ve installed new safety bollards at the main entrance — these provide an added layer of protection while maintaining a welcoming atmosphere. In addition, we’ve continued to expand our network of door access control and campus visibility tools, adding cameras in public exterior spaces around the Middle School, including the parking lots. These cameras are standard accepted safety practices in schools and help us ensure a safe environment for all members of our community.

Partnerships

Our community safety team not only patrols Lakeside’s campuses, but also actively engages with our neighbors to foster strong relationships and work together to stay situationally aware of our surroundings. This collaboration helps us be both preventive and responsive to traffic safety and parking situations that arise in our extended community. Safety is everyone’s responsibility, and we appreciate your partnership in maintaining a safe, respectful environment for all.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to reach out to me at info@lakesideschool.site.

We’re grateful for your continued support as we make these important safety enhancements and navigate change in and around our campuses. We look forward to a safe and successful school year ahead.

Warm regards,

David

David Buerger is Lakeside’s director of community safety. You can reach him and other community safety members at 206-440-2794 and info@lakesideschool.site.