Little plastic cups of lemonade lined the end of a folding table in the Cascade Center parking lot.

It was the Cascade community’s first picnic since its annexation a year ago, and City Council member King Parker was busy counting faces …or rather the 235 cups of lemonade he served.

“They’re new members into the city, and so to have someone pay attention to them … they were very, very appreciative,” Parker said.

The neighborhood isn’t quite used to Renton’s public services yet, such as the Neighborhood Program’s picnics, said the program’s manager Norma McQuiller.

Though, the neighborhood has participated in other programs, such as the disaster relief preparedness, said Dee Woods, who has lived in the area for about 43 years.

“I think it’s worked out good,” she said.

The picnic was the third of the about 18 planned for the summer.

At a couple long tables, an elderly group of neighbors teased each other about age and chatted aimlessly about the weather over homemade pastas and baked beans.

“It’s wonderful to see the smorgasbord (of food),” McQuiller said. “It’s a good way for neighbors to meet.”

It’s also a great way to meet local police and firefighters, as many cooked the city-provided hot dogs at the July 8 event.

“I just love to get out here and interact with people,” deputy police chief Tim Troxel said.

Off-duty City Council members and Mayor Denis Law gathered around the lemonade cooler, food-in-hand, and watched the line grow and shrink.

“It’s a lot easier to talk to a mayor or council member about something over a hot dog than a podium at City Hall,” McQuiller said.

Council member Parker set a goal of serving 5,000 cups of lemonade at community picnics this year. “I’m over a thousand cups so far, exciting,” he said.

Though the picnic took a section of the Cascade Center parking lot, parking spots in the struggling strip mall were easy to find. The owner of the shopping center has major renovation plans in mind.

“It’s been a cleanup process,” said project manager Doug Dammarell, pointing to a place where overgrown blackberries had been torn out. Dammarell was hired by the center’s owner two years ago to fix up the plaza and attract new businesses.

The neighbors “like what they see, but it’s taking a long time,” he said.

A third party evaluated the area, determining the center would be a great place to put a grocery store, he said.

“I feel safer here, because he’s put in those (security) cameras,” Woods said.

Remodel began of the bowling alley and will include new lanes and a Hooter’s restaurant, which has received little, if any, protest at the picnic.

“It’s going to be an improvement for what’s been there the last 20 years,” McCammon said.

For more information about Renton’s Neighborhood Program and community picnics click here.

Renton Reporter staff writer Celeste Gracey can be reached at cgracey@rentonreporter.com or 425-255-3484, ext. 5052.