The music, dancing and eating lingered late into the night Sept. 1 as thousands of families from around the Seattle area flocked to the Vedic Cultural Center along 228^th Avenue Southeast. The line just to enter the temple stretched through the parking lot and down the sidewalk to the water district’s water tower.

Women hand out cakes at the altar in the Hare Krishna temple Sept. 1. Photo by Christopher Huber

This night was the main event of the five-day Kumbha Mela festival, one of the largest and most significant Indian cultural festivals of the year, said Nanda Suta Das, co-executive director of the center.

By some estimates, 35,000 people visited the Sammamish Hare Krishna temple to celebrate the birth of Krishna during Janmastami Sept. 1 and 2. The finale lasted until 2 a.m. Sept. 2.

“This is the biggest festival we have in this temple,” Suta Das said. “This year is the biggest so far; it feels that way.”

While children performed dances in traditional Indian garb and the older youth entertained visitors with a drum and chant routine, hundreds of families at a time enjoyed free meals at four food stations. The festivities spilled out onto the back patio and parking lot, too.

“It’s truly connecting the communities of varying ages and groups,” Suta Das said.

Throughout the night, various singers chanted and performed as the line of devotees eased toward the main altar. The deities were adorned with fruits, jewelry and fine garments, which were imported from India.[[Show as slideshow]]

In addition to the new custom-made altar, the event featured a Vrindavan village and various other tents and exhibits.

“We have a lot of new exhibits this year,” said Jay Srinivasan, of Sammamish.

The village served to educate visitors about the life of Krishna, who is said to have spent his childhood days in the forest of Vrindavan, India.

Even though the event was late, on a school and work night, Srinivasan said he was impressed with he turnout and amount of people who volunteered to help. At work that day, he said most of his colleagues had planned to attend.

“That’s amazing to see,” he said. “It’s a pleasure to see people want to keep the culture up. It’s important to find a place to celebrate it.”

Reporter Christopher Huber can be reached at 392-6434, ext. 242, or chuber@isspress.com.

A makeshift barricade stands in place of one destroyed by vandals. Photo by Caleb Heeringa

By Caleb Heeringa
While Sammamish’s Public Works department ruminates on the value of a road barricade that separates the Hidden Ridge and Timberline neighborhoods, it seems some residents have made their own decision.The 42nd Street Opticom gate, which could be opened by police and fire officials in the event of an emergency but stopped all other traffic, was dismantled in the early morning of Aug. 14.  Public Works Director John Cunningham said a temporary wooden barrier had been put up since then, but had been moved several times, apparently so residents could drive through.According to a Sammamish Police report, a resident in the 19900 block of Northeast 42nd Street reported that she had seen a group of teenagers pull up and manually open the gate at about 11 p.m. Aug. 12.  Cunningham said Public Works crews were aware that some members of the public had figured out how to manually override the controls to open the gate.When the resident confronted the teens, they threatened to vandalize the gate and the resident’s property, according to the police report.  Sammamish Police responded that night but found no damage to the gate and could not get much of a description of the teens.The same resident woke up at about 6 a.m. Aug. 14 to find a washer and three nuts on her front porch, apparently from a portion of the barricade that was then missing.  The metal gate portion of the barricade had been removed and discarded in a vacant lot near the woman’s house.Cunningham said King County road crews had to construct new parts for a barricade and finished installing it last week.  He estimated the barricade cost between $2,500 and $5,000 to repair.“It’s not a huge amount, but it’s money we’d just as soon not spend,” he said.Cunningham said the new barrier would have its bolts welded down, making it much more difficult to remove.  The city will also look into locking the control box that contains the override mechanism for the gate and giving a key to police and fire crews.The barriers normally automatically open up for emergency responders who are on calls, through strobe lights on the units’ emergency lights, but the gates must have manual controls in case a strobe light doesn’t work.The barricades have been a sometimes contentious issue in Sammamish.  Before the city existed, developers would build roads to the end of their land under the assumption that the developer who owned the land next door would connect to their road and complete the roadway grid in the area.   The city has run into the ire of residents who fear opening the roadways – and the de facto cul-de-sacs the barricades have created – would change the character of their neighborhoods, turning suburban roadways into major thoroughfares.  Proponents of getting rid of the barricades complain they make traffic worse by forcing residents to make longer trips on less direct routes.“If we open them, it has an impact of decreasing traffic on one street and increasing it on another,” Cunningham said.The city estimates there are 22 barricades that need to be reviewed in Sammamish, as well as 25 dead ends slated to become through streets in the future.  Richard Kuprewicz, director of the Hidden Ridge Homeowners Association and proponent of keeping the 42nd Street barricade, said only 10 of those could realistically be opened, since park land, private property or other features get in the way.  Of those 10, he estimated that between four and six are potentially controversial.  Kuprewicz has been documenting the barricades for the advocacy group Citizens For Sammamish.The 42nd Street barricade in particular is in a tough location, halfway down a steep hill and on a route that heads from Sammamish northwest toward Redmond.Kuprewicz said he felt there was slightly more traffic moving slightly faster in his neighborhood without the permanent barricade there the past couple of weeks, but the effect was not drastic.  Kuprewicz said he had to jump in front of a vehicle that was speeding in his neighborhood to stop it from hitting his dog several years ago.  Another Hidden Ridge resident’s dog was not so lucky.“People say, ‘Well, it’s just a dog,’ and we know that,” Kuprewicz said. “But we have kids, too.”Greg Reynolds, who lives in the Timberline neighborhood and has spoken out in favor of removing the barrier in the past, said the dismantling of the barricade was unfortunate, but blocking the route increases traffic in his neighborhood, as residents from the more than 100 homes in Old Mill Point, Weber’s Point and Chrysalis Estates are forced to drive around.  He said for residents west of the gate it takes a three-mile trip to get to Redmond, compared to one mile if the barricade came down“Speeding and erratic driving are not acceptable behavior, but diverting traffic through Timberline is not a solution to that,” he said.Cunningham said his department is in the process of reviewing all of the barricades in the city one by one.  First up is the Southeast 32nd Street barricade – a neighborhood meeting is scheduled for the end of the month.  The city will look at traffic flow models of the area in an attempt to predict what traffic will look like if the barricade comes out.  They’ll also consider whether the affected roads will need safety improvements, such as speed bumps, sidewalks and crosswalks if the barricade does come out.“It’s a much more holistic look at the issue, rather than just taking a vote of the citizens in the area,” Cunningham said.He also said he was unsure which of the barricades would be examined after the 32nd Street process is finished later this fall and said his department didn’t have the resources to speed up the process unless the City Council voted to redirect the department’s work on other projects.Police have no suspects in the vandalism of the 42nd Street barricade.
Reporter Caleb Heeringa can be reached at 392-6434. ext. 247, or cheeringa@isspress.com. To comment on this story, visit www.SammamishReview.com.

Schools enhancecommunity spirit
There are few things that make a community gel like a neighborhood school. Sammamish has many, including the new Creekside Elementary that just opened yesterday. As the school year starts this week, make sure to get involved in a school community near you. For those with children in the schools, this is easy. Do your part as a classroom volunteer and don’t forget to join the PTA, even if you don’t have time to be involved. And if you don’t have children in school, you can still volunteer, and you can still join a PTA. The students may not be your own, but you can still make a difference in a child’s life, whether you are a teacher’s aid, assistant coach, mentor, help in the office or library, or just listen to children read. The Sammamish community at large just wouldn’t be the same without its students, who offer sporting activities, concerts and theater productions for the enjoyment of residents. School activities open to all comprise the bulk of activities in Sammamish. Set your sights on a football game at Eastlake, Skyline or Eastside Catholic one or more Friday nights this fall. Football has the most spirit, but other sports are just as exciting — sans the crowds. Get ready to get inspired!School plays and concerts have come a long way since the last generation was in school. Talented, hard working students and superb production values make these shows top entertainment — not to mention cheaper and easier than heading into Bellevue or Seattle for a night out. Children and grandchildren welcome, too!With school now open throughout Sammamish, take care with your driving. Traffic will be worse until next June, so get used to it and be patients. Students with loaded backpacks may not think to look before crossing. Remember to stop when you see a stopped school bus with its lights flashing. And slow down as you approach a school zone.Schools provide the threads of the community fabric. Get the 2010-11 year started with a commitment to embrace the opportunities our schools provide!

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