Honoring Our Past | Shaping Our Future

In September 2019, the City of Newcastle celebrated its 25th anniversary. To commemorate this milestone, on the 25th of each month, we release a special anniversary edition of the Newsletter from Newcastle City Hall, featuring special projects, events and photos. The goal is to celebrate Newcastle, while showcasing and offering unique community activities each month.

Happy Holidays, Newcastle!

Happy Holidays, Newcastle! We hope you’re spending this special day surrounded by loved ones, friends and family. Today is Dec. 25, which means it’s our final 25th anniversary newsletter. On behalf of the City of Newcastle, we want to thank you for taking the time to commemorate our community’s silver anniversary with us this year. The City has seen its fair share of changes over the past 25 years. The population has nearly doubled over that time, and our rich, community fabric continues to evolve and diversify. We’ve welcomed new businesses, schools and nonprofit organizations. What hasn’t changed is the culture of community that makes Newcastle unique. The spirit of volunteerism is what fuels the upkeep of our scenic trail system and our close-knit community events in the summer. Newcastle remains an idyllic locale that combines the convenience of urban living with the comfort and community of a small town. In one last celebration of our City’s 25th birthday, we’ve compiled our 25 community highlights for 2019. We look forward to celebrating many more milestones with you! See you in 2020!

2019 Community Highlights 25 for 25

Presented in no particular order... 1 - Newcastle Survives Historic Winter Weather : Our small but mighty maintenance crew worked around-the-clock, trading 12-hour shifts to ensure the roads remained safe when our region was hit with a historic winter storm. 2 - Newcastle Commons Adds Businesses : AJI Sushi & Grill officially opened at the beginning of the year, while Overlake Medical Center debuted a dual urgent and primary clinic in April. The City also announced that two new restaurants will open in the Commons area in 2020: Loco Chon Bar & Grill and Blazing Onion. 3 - Neighborhood Representative Group: The City’s Community Activities Commission created the Neighborhood Representative Group, which aims to get Newcastle neighborhoods better involved with the City. Contact Commissioner Stix at nathans@newcastlewa.gov to get involved in 2020! 4 - CrossTown Trail Opens at Risdon : This new segment is a highly anticipated addition to the city’s prized trail system, as it reroutes that portion from a stretch of sidewalk to a more natural, wooded environment. 5 - Newcastle 25th Anniversary Logo: The City debuted a special 25th anniversary logo created by author and illustrator Dana Sullivan. 6 - Trail of the Month: The City put the spotlight on our prized trail system with our Trail of the Month series. Bookmark newcastletrails.org for maps and details about Newcastle trails. 7 - Police Engagement: Not only were the police more visible than ever thanks to Chief Jason Houck’s efforts on Facebook and Twitter , the department also hosted its first Pizza with Police event and revived a popular Police Day in the Park this year. 8 - NYCE Hosts ADOGtion: Newcastle Youth for Community Engagement held a fun and educational fair all about local dog resources at Lake Boren Park. 9 - Aegis Partnerships: The City partnered with Aegis Gardens to host cultural and artistic opportunities, including arts programs and the Mid-Autumn Harvest festival. 10 - Newcastle Food Drive: The City hit (and exceeded) our goal to fill five boxes for the food drive thanks to the generosity of our community. 11 - Community Rock Garden : The Newcastle Arts Council installed a garden at City Hall made up of rocks painted by community members at Newcastle Days and other events. 12 - Earth Day: The City held a tree-planting/composting workshop, and residents were also invited to help remove invasive English ivy at Hazelwood Park to commemorate Earth Day. 13 - Fourth of July : An estimated 5,000 people showed up to celebrate Independence Day at our Fourth at the Lake celebration. 14 - Concerts in the Park : A little rain didn't put a damper on the annual summer series. Residents enjoyed the melodies of Aaron Crawford, Shaggy Sweet, The Kings of Hollywood and Cherry Cherry. 15 - Newcastle Softball Classic : The turnout was amazing at the City's inaugural community softball game. The Revolutionaries defeated the Miners 10-7. 16 - Mayors Reunion : Eight of our City's 10 mayors reunited to celebrate Newcastle's 25th anniversary during Newcastle Days. 17 - Newcastle Days : From new community performances and the 3-on-3 basketball tournament, to birthday cake and superheroes, Newcastle Days 2019 was one to remember. 18 - 25th Anniversary Proclamation : King County Councilmember Reagan Dunn presented a special proclamation recognizing Newcastle's 25th anniversary. The proclamation encourages "all county residents to join in celebrating this milestone event." 19 - Volunteer Appreciation: It was another great year for volunteerism, and we honored all who gave back at our volunteer appreciation event. 20 - 25th Anniversary Poster Contest : Resident Paul Van Atta was named the winner of the City's poster contest. 21 - Council Retirements and Elections: We said goodbye to outgoing Councilmembers Allen Dauterman, Carol Simpson and Gordon Bisset. In January, we'll welcome new Councilmembers Ariana Sherlock, Tony Ventrella and Tom Griffin. 22 - Boocastle : The City partnered with Newcastle Fruit and Produce to hold our first community Halloween event and about 300 people showed up to trick-or-treat 23 - New Park Signs : Newcastle’s 17 parks will finally share consistent signage, uniting our community’s jewel of a park system under one design. 22 - Arts in the Community : The Newcastle Arts Council helped art come alive in the community with several hands-on programs, including activities at the Library and the City sponsored-film series 25 - Arts and Culture Plan : The City embarked on the first phase of a grant-funded opportunity to create an Arts and Culture plan with the help of a 4Culture consultant

Thanks for Reading!

The 25th anniversary publications were brought to you by Community Engagement Coordinator Christina Corrales-Toy and the City's volunteer Community Activities Commission.

Back Row (from left): Commissioners Debbie Polsin, Nathan Stix, Chair Diane Lewis, Vice Chair Patti Magers, former Commissioner Tony Ventrella Front Row (from left): Community Engagement Coordinator Christina Corrales-Toy and Commissioner Kim Van Atta Not Pictured: Commissioners Ed Flash and Erica Wood

Dec. 25, 2019 City of Newcastle |  newcastlewa.gov   The anniversary editions of the Newcastle email newsletter are produced in partnership with the City's volunteer Community Activities Commission. The main Newcastle email newsletter is still published the Friday before every regular City Council meeting. Learn more about the newsletter, see an archive of past newsletters and sign up to receive it at newcastlewa.gov/newsletters .