Adversity Builds Community

A proposed "row house" project has mobilized my Alki Beach neighborhood in a way that few events, short of natural disaster, can. We knew for several months that development was planned for three lots on our street. The rumor was that it was going to be a townhouse complex. No one seemed upset by that. But when the land use sign went up and neighbors started looking at what was being proposed, the consensus was, "Whoa!"

Townhouses are one thing. Row houses are another. Townhouse developments are required to provide off street parking for their residents and include green space to mitigate environmental impacts. But row houses are not. Our little beach community has serious parking problems because it is a destination for Seattlites on sunny days. The runoff from this development will flow directly into Puget Sound, 1/2 block away. If this development is allowed to go forward as proposed, it will add to our existing parking and water pollution problems. It will block views for many neighbors, with 3-story buildings set just 5 feet from the sidewalk.

I could write a lengthy post about all that is wrong with this proposal. But for me, the most interesting thing about the situation has been how neighbors have come together to express their concerns and communicate them to the City.

It began with one neighbor photographing this sign and emailing it to others, alerting us to the fact that the comment period was pretty short. Several people wrote the city to request a two week extension and we were granted that. Then at least 6 people wrote to Seattle's Department of Planning and Development, expressing their concerns about various aspects of the project. Their comments (including mine) are part of the public record, which can be accessed at the DPD website.  Enter project number 3014675 and wait a minute for the records to come up. You'll find all documents pertinent to the project there.

After the comment period closed, we asked the city when we would get a public hearing to discuss this project. We were told that public hearings are not part of the process for these types of projects, but that the city planner might give us a hearing if we submitted a petition with at least 50 signatures. I remember saying to neighbors when we got the news, "I can easily see us getting 20, but 50?"

The great thing about this neighborhood is that we are a close community. We get along well, many of us have become friends over the years, and we do things together like summertime potlucks. Because I've been one of the potluck organizers, I have email addresses for many neighbors. So I sent an email to my list, explaining my concerns about the project and that we needed to get a petition circulated ASAP. Over the next couple of days, 10 people came forward to offer to gather signatures. We quickly got the required 50 (one neighbor collected 55 by himself!) and went on to collect 2-1/2 times that many before the deadline.

In the process, friends became closer and acquaintances became allies. We were drawn together in a way that made me appreciate this neighborhood more than ever.

Will we get our hearing? It's only been a few days since we submitted our petition and we haven't heard anything yet. But whatever happens, we are a better community for having had this experience.

Getting Rid of Black Ants with Listerine

Our neighborhood has been overrun with little black ants. These are what some people call "sugar" ants, even though they seem to like protein as much as anything. They're also called  "odorous" ants because of the odor they give off when you crush one of them. That name naturally morphs into the best name of all: "odious" ants. If you've ever had an ant problem, you know what I mean.

My neighbors and I have tried countless sprays, traps and gimmicks. The only product we've found that works with any consistency, and is relatively non-toxic to humans, is Terro liquid ant bait. When the ants come marching in, we put out the bait traps, and in a few days the ants are (mostly) gone. A few weeks later, though, they come back and we repeat the process all over again.

This system worked well for me until last fall, when I had the worst infestation ever. I put out the traps as usual, but this time the ants completely ignored them. There were billions of the damn things crawling up and over every surface of my kitchen.  Putting food away immediately, cleaning countertops, sealing up trash containers - nothing discouraged them. I was so frustrated I was ready to resort to using the most toxic spray I could find, and then I came on a bit of inspiration. I had been reading posts on the People's Pharmacy website about off-label uses for Listerine. People have reported good results using it to relieve shingles pain, get rid of dandruff and cure toenail fungus. I figured that if Listerine could kill a fungus, maybe it would kill ants, too.

So I bought a big jug of good old-fashioned amber Listerine and tried it. Crazy as it might sound, it worked. I put some in a spray bottle to zap the ones on the kitchen counter. (Seems like anything you can use as a mouthwash should be safe to use around food.) The Listerine kills the ants on contact. That was a step in the right direction, but every hundred I killed was replaced by two hundred more. It was time play amateur exterminator and go outside to figure out where they were coming from.

That's where I got the best results, pouring Listerine into ant hills, like the one you see above. I found hills in a few places along the foundation of the house and a huge one near our garbage and yard waste containers. I took a stick, made a little well in the top of each hill, and poured in some Listerine. Then watched and waited. Whenever I saw more dirt pushed up around the hill, usually within a day or two, I added more Listerine. If I saw more ants in the house, I made the rounds again, topping up each nest with more of the golden mouthwash. The more I did this, the fewer ants I found in the house. This took maybe a couple of gallons of Listerine, all told. After a while, there was just the occasional stray and then there were none.

I went for months without seeing a single ant. Then in just the past week, we had a weather change (which does seem to be a trigger for them to start marching) and suddenly there was a trail of little black ants crawling along my countertop again. I put out the Terro ant bait, which they went for this time, sprayed the Listerine, went outside and poured more Listerine into old ant hills, and within two days, no more ants.

From what I've read about these ants, they build deep nests and are adept at adding new colonies. I don't expect I will ever be ant-free. But thanks to Listerine, I think I'll have the upper hand.