Crossing Division

Following the February 21, 2020 Downtown on the Go Friday Forum on Moving Into the Future,  we are talking about the transit options available in Tacoma right now—for everyone, but especially for individuals with mobility impairments and disabilities.

Pierce Transit offers a SHUTTLE flexible bus service for individuals with disabilities. It will come to pick you up (as long as you are within their service area) and drop you off for shopping, meetings, social events, doctors’ appointments, whatever you may need. You can find out more about the service in this episode, and you will also learn about the Bus Rapid Transit line going onto Pacific Avenue, the PT Runner coming this summer to Ruston Way, moving to an electric bus fleet, and other ideas that Pierce Transit has been working on and plans for the future.

It’s an ideal time to visit PierceTransit.org so that you can participate in their long range planning activities and help them develop the transportation options we need. And check out their phone app!

Alex Mather and Cherry Thomas of Pierce Transit have all the transit info, and you will definitely learn something you didn’t know before.

Note that you can listen to the Friday Forum too. Look for it where you find your podcasts or on our Crossing Division website.

Let us know your thoughts on the Forum and podcast. You can message us @Channel253 and contact podcast host Evelyn Lopez @True_Tacoma or [email protected].

And do go to: www.piercetransit.org

Channel 253 is partnering with Downtown on the Go as a media sponsor of DOTG’s Friday Forums. We think that the topic is a good fit with our Crossing Division podcasts, so we will record the Friday Forum and then record an episode of Crossing Division that follows up or expands on the issues in the Forum.

For February 2020 the Friday Forum topic was Moving Into the Future. Learn about the transportation and access needs of our aging residents, how well-maintained sidewalks and parking near destinations help make Tacoma navigable for everyone. You will also learn about Tacoma’s efforts to become certified as an AARP Age Friendly City. And here’s a great tip for thinking about all of these age friendly topics: It’s really about a people friendly community, because what an 8 year old needs to thrive is exactly what an 80 year old needs to thrive.

Panelists:

Listen to the forum, and then cruise over to the Crossing Division podcast “Let’s Talk About Transit Options in Tacoma Now and in the Future!”

Let us know your thoughts on the Forum and podcast. You can message us @Channel253 and contact podcast host Evelyn Lopez @True_Tacoma or [email protected].

‘Virtually sold out.’ Homes priced under $500K in Pierce County hard to find

This February 7 News Tribune article caught our eye, and we thought can it possibly be true? Are there no homes priced under $500,000 in Tacoma??? Well, the answer is no, but our real estate market is tricky. So Evelyn and Joe Lopez called in real estate agent and former City Council Member Anders Ibsen to talk about the current market, how a first time buyer can jump in, and what to do if you are ready to sell. This episode is full of valuable information!

Send us a message or email if you have feedback or ideas for episodes!

Evelyn Lopez  @True_Tacoma, [email protected]

Joe Lopez  @JoeLopezTacoma, [email protected]

Anders Ibsen @aibsenhomes, andersibsenhomes.com

Following the Jan. 24, 2020 Downtown on the Go Friday Forum on Aging in Place, we are talking about innovative, uncommon housing options. One of the challenges when talking about affordable housing is that most of the solutions require a lot of money, and time. What if you have neither? Are you out of luck? Well, maybe not. There are some alternative housing options out there and we focus on two: Renting a room in a senior’s home, and adding a DADU (detached accessory dwelling unit) to a backyard.

Joy Stanford of Shared Housing Services and Ken Miller of DADU Homes talk through the details of becoming a shared housing provider or tenant, and the costs and details of building a DADU. Loads of useful information!

Note that you can listen to the Friday Forum too. Look for it where you find your podcasts or on our Crossing Division website.

Let us know your thoughts on the Forum and podcast. You can message us @Channel253 and contact podcast host Evelyn Lopez @True_Tacoma or [email protected].

And check out: www.sharedhousingservices.org and www.DADUHomes.com

This year Channel 253 is partnering with Downtown on the Go as a media sponsor of DOTG’s Friday Forums. We think that the topic is a good fit with our Crossing Division podcasts, so we will record the Friday Forum and then record an episode of Crossing Division that follows up or expands on the issues in the Forum.

For January 2020 the Friday Forum topic was Aging in Place: Affordable housing is an ongoing issue, and there are unique challenges for older adults in securing housing situations that meet their needs. Leaders and service providers in Tacoma and Pierce County discuss how we sustainably house our aging neighbors and community members.

Panelists:

Listen to the forum, and then hop over to the Crossing Division podcast “Let’s Talk About Innovative Senior Housing Options Available Right Now!”

Let us know your thoughts on the Forum and podcast. You can message us @Channel253 and contact podcast host Evelyn Lopez @True_Tacoma or [email protected].

It’s 2020 and another big, eventful year for Tacoma! Host Evelyn Lopez is joined by Tacoma lawyer and civic observer Joe Lopez to talk through and analyze some of the biggest local issues for this year: Mental health treatment options, homelessness strategies, I-976 reverberations in local politics, and what to look for in 2020 campaigns and elections. Do you agree that these will be the big issues? Will there be others? Let us know what you think!

And here are some dates and events that we discuss, and that you may want to learn more about!

Evelyn Fielding Lopez   @True_Tacoma

Joe Lopez   @JoeLopezTacoma

Tim Eyman. Who is he? Anti-tax crusader? Cynical initiative manipulator? Media attention addict? Maybe all of that, and now a candidate for Governor too!

Crosscut’s Melissa Santos (formerly reporting for the Seattle Times and The News Tribune) recently spent several hours interviewing Eyman and putting together a comprehensive look at his past, his rise to initiative fame/infamy, and the various pickles he finds himself in as he enters the Governor race. It’s a fascinating story, and we thought it provided a great platform to do a joint Crossing Division/Citizen Tacoma episode on Eyman and his activities and impacts on our state.

Here’s a link to Melissa’s story: https://crosscut.com/2019/11/who-tim-eyman-and-why-do-so-many-people-hate-him   Read it, and then give this podcast a listen, and let us know what you think!

Evelyn Lopez   @True_Tacoma

Candice Ruud  @candiceruud

Melissa Santos  @MelissaSantos1