Mid Beacon Hill

Three Georgetown Photos from This Weekend

2009-10-25T12:31:00.000-07:00

Great Stuff Friday night:

Nine Pound Hammer Friday night:

Outside Pental Granite & Marble on Saturday:

Mari and Andrew's West Seattle Garden in July

2009-07-20T19:03:00.000-07:00

Chuck visited Saturday, and we took him to Mari and Andrew's garden.

Not my child. Someone else's.

Later that evening we went to Elemental for dinner and had...

Watermelon with garbonzo beans.

Crab, roe.

Roasted red pepper with smoked salmon cream cheese.

Beet hazelnut salald.

(Did I mention the wine pairings with each course and then some?)

Escargot and bone marrow crostini.

Salmon with cherries, grapes, and roasted corn.

Game hen with ratatouille risotto.

Lamb taco with pickled cabbage.

Cheese.

Panna cotta.

Apricot tart with ice cream.

Chocolate crepes.

Then we walked to Gas Works Park.

San Francisco

2009-05-07T21:32:00.000-07:00

Golden Gate Bridge.

To the lighthouse. Point Bonita Lighthouse.

Back in town on Telegraph Hill.

Hanging out in North Beach.

What's in there?

In Vesuvio.

Thanks for alerting me to this photo op, Chuck.

No longer in North Beach. Rectangles.

More rectangles.

Circles.

And more.

And a tribute to the folks who brought us the parking garage.

Elandan Gardens, Note About This Blog

2009-04-19T09:42:00.000-07:00

I'm considering reviving this blog now that I've fallen into the routine of raising a baby and working full-time. I miss it.

To those of you who have been submitting comments, I'm sorry I don't get around to approving them right away. I have it set up so comments on posts less than a month old are automatically posted. But I was getting so much spam on older posts that I instutited moderation on those.

Anyway, here's an off-topic post. I've been showing Chuck B. around Seattle for a few days. Friday we went to Elandan Gardens in Gorst. He took photos of the bonsai, and for some reason I felt like focusing in on the moss and lichen. I forgot to bring my good camera, so these don't really capture the place. Next time.

Elandan is located on an old garbage dump near the Bremerton Naval Base. It's pretty much the perfect destination if you're into bonsai and battleships.

Tonoho Chul Park

2009-04-06T20:50:00.000-07:00

I've been admiring cactuses in the Sonoran Desert. These photos were taken at Tonoho Chul Park in Tucson.

Belle & Wissell Vitrine

2009-02-01T18:04:00.001-08:00

Let's face it, this blog is essentially on hiatus, for an indefinite time. I've gone back to work full-time and I still have that baby to admire.

But occasionally I'll still post relevant stuff, like this video of the beautiful window display at Belle & Wissell in Georgetown.

And a picture of the view from the Pac-Med parking lot.

And occasionally I'll post irrelevant stuff, like pictures of that aforementioned admirable baby.

Planet Georgetown

2009-01-15T23:24:00.000-08:00

Planet Georgetown is closing at the end of the month. A bunch of Georgetowners came by tonight to say goodbye.

They've been here 22 years.

They've served a lot of tan food.

Ice ice baby.

Peace out.

SPU Offers to Help with Christian Restoration Center Cleanup

2009-01-08T16:29:00.000-08:00

After calling to hang up my hat as a graffiti ranger and turn in my little red wagon, I ended up chatting with graffiti guy Anthony Matlock at Seattle Public Utilities. I complained to him that the neighborhood miscreants just can't keep their hands off of the Christian Restoration Center building. And he mentioned to me that his team can help out with that problem. He can send out a team of court-ordered "volunteers" to paint out graffiti on frequently tagged properties like that one at least once a month.

Their help doesn't absolve the property owners from responsibility for the mess. (And I found out that the property manager has been out there as recently as this week to take care of the problem on both the wall and the windows.) But, let's face it, it's going to get hit again, so the building can use all the help it can get.

So I got Anthony in touch with the property owner and manager, and now they're working together on this. Let's hope it helps.

Not Enough Trashy TV in the South End

2009-01-07T13:23:00.000-08:00

Because Netflix has it listed as a "long wait," I just went out to the Hollywood Video north of Columbia City to get the first disc of "The Tudors: Season 2," which came out yesterday.

Yeah, I know it's totally trashy -- the perfect thing to watch during the cold, dark, rainy end of my maternity leave.

But the store manager said they didn't have the Tudors. She said people ask for it, but corporate doesn't send it to them. I asked where the next nearest Hollywood was, and I forgot whether she said 23rd or Rainier Beach, but I do remember that she said that that store wouldn't have it either.

It's not like it's an obscure title, and it's not like they're a small store. They carry thousands and thousands of titles, but not the No. 4 bestselling DVD at Amazon and one of the top-requested titles at Netflix.

I could have tried Blockbuster, but, oh yeah, the South End doesn't have any. And Beacon Hill doesn't have any (English-language) video stores at all, and Georgetown doesn't either.

Oh well.

Seattle Homicides in 2008

2009-01-01T11:07:00.000-08:00

If Seattle loses one of its dailies in 2009, please, God, let it be the Seattle Times.

As far as I can tell, the Times website still doesn't have anything about the neo-Nazi incident in the U-District last night, in which officers shot and killed an armed man in a German military uniform. Instead, they're leading with their continued punishment of the mayor ("Nickels revises salt policy, admits mistakes") and dumb fluff like "Turns out resolutions aren't empty promises." Yawn.

Meanwhile, the P-I already has a lengthy story about the crazy-scary neo-Nazi incident. And Casey McNerthney has a story about the homicides in Seattle in 2008, along with a list of the victims and the circumstances of their deaths.

Later this month when the police come out with their press release about last year's crime, we'll be able to match the numbers with the names. Thanks, P-I.

The Latest on Garbage

2008-12-26T14:24:00.000-08:00

This contradicts the latest report (dated Dec. 24) on the SPU website. As a Thursday customer, I thought our garbage would be picked up today. But no, not till Sunday--

NEWS RELEASE
December 26, 2008
For Immediate Release

Contact:

Andy Ryan
(206) 684-7688
andy.ryan@seattle.gov

OR

Hans Van Dusen
206-310-0341

Seattle Garbage Scheduled for Special Weekend Pickup
Conditions Permitting, Garbage Will Be Collected Saturday and Sunday

SEATTLE -- Special Saturday and Sunday pickup is being scheduled, conditions permitting, for the city's residential garbage, recycling, food and yard waste customers, Seattle Public Utilities said today.

Due to continued inclement conditions, today's customers (Friday, Dec. 26) are scheduled to be collected tomorrow (Saturday, Dec. 27) and Thursday customers (Dec. 25) will be collected on Sunday, Dec. 28.

Thursday and Friday customers are advised to leave their garbage at the curb through Sunday. Collection contractors will inspect neighborhood routes throughout the weekend for service opportunities. Customers scheduled for Monday through Wednesday pickup should set out their materials on their normal appointed days, next week. There will be no additional charge for setting out extra garbage.

Despite inclement conditions, the city's collections contractors have been running limited commercial routes around the clock this week, providing service to urgent commercial accounts where containers are accessible. Contractors are running 40 commercial trucks today to serve locations on major arterials and utilizing extra staff to access snow blocked containers. Approximately 40 percent of Seattle's business accounts have been collected this week.

"We are eager to resume residential services as soon as possible, but safety with our large trucks is our first priority," said Hans Van Dusen, Solid Waste Contracts Manager for Seattle Public Utilities. "Warmer weather is forecast for this weekend and next week, and we expect that will make it safer to send big trucks back into Seattle's neighborhoods."

Customers whose collections have been delayed by a week can set out double their normal amount of garbage at no additional charge. When setting out extra waste, customers are encouraged to place perishable food items in their collection containers and set bagged non-perishable items next to the containers.

Customers who have had their collections missed can also take their waste to Seattle's Recycling and Disposal stations, where it will be accepted at no charge. Seattle's Recycling and Disposal stations will be closed on New Year's Day, January 1.

Seattle Public Utilities' (SPU) web site (www.seattle.gov/util) and call center (206-684-3000) will be updated with the most current collection information. Customers can also be sign-up for CurbWaste E-News service alerts at www.seattle.gov/lists.

In addition to providing more than 1.3 million customers in the Seattle metropolitan area with a reliable water supply, SPU provides essential sewer, drainage, solid waste and engineering services that safeguard public health, maintain the City's infrastructure and protect, conserve and enhance the region's environmental resources.

Dirty Snow on Christmas Day

2008-12-26T12:27:00.000-08:00

I've reported this graffiti.

Snowy Walk to Graham Street Grocery

2008-12-19T17:24:00.000-08:00

I wasn't sure how often the 36 would be running today so I decided to get food from the Graham Street Grocery instead of trekking to Red Apple.

Looking east from the parking lot of the Chinese Baptist Church.

And looking west.

The Orcas/Beacon intersection.

Juneau Street, I think.

Another church.

I did see several 36s.

The west side of Graham was clsed to traffic.

There's the Graham Street Grocery.

The folks at the store could not have been any nicer. I bought a whole bunch of stuff, and they gave me free coffee and a snowman pin.

I passed a P-patch on the way home.

Not much to see there today.

How to Complain About the #36 Passing You By

2008-12-16T14:59:00.000-08:00

Aimee Curl at the Seattle Weekly complained today that the #36 has passed her by two weeks in a row, and this time she and the other passengers had to wait nearly half an hour in 20-degree weather.

One reader commented that she should file an online complaint about the service on the #36 route.

Since there's nothing I love as much as an online complaint form (except, perhaps, whining about the #36), I'll share the link with you all. Let's all file complaints when the #36 passes us by. Try to provide the stop location, time, direction, and bus unit # if you have it.

Metro online complaint form

I'm not sure it'll do any good, but they might at least be forced to keep track of all the complaints somewhere.

I haven't seen any mention of them in their ridiculous annual reports, none of which correlate any rider-focused metrics (such as number of skipped passengers, timeliness of service, number of assaults) to specific routes. But at least we'll know in our hearts that the data exists somewhere.

Reporting Graffiti on Beacon Hill

2008-12-15T13:26:00.000-08:00

Now that the "broken window" theory (the idea that graffiti-spraying and other forms of low-level delinquency promote further bad behavior) is proving to be true, I thought I'd make it easier for everyone to report local graffiti. I'll collect addresses of local commercial properties here -- just tell me where you often see problems, and I'll add them to this list.

ONLINE GRAFFITI REPORT FORM

Addresses of frequently graffitied commercial properties:

Christian Restoration Center
4351 15th Ave. S.

Red Bird Sports (the southern wall, facing the Grown Folks parking lot)
4868 Beacon Ave. S.

(You can use that same link to report graffiti on residential properties, but I am not going to list people's homes on this page.)

Snow on Beacon Avenue South

2008-12-14T19:07:00.000-08:00

This Has Nothing to Do with Anything

2008-12-10T18:52:00.001-08:00

But I am super-excited for my friend Will (below at left in a photo from Election Day), who will be one of three musicians from Washington state to march with the Gay and Lesbian Band Association in Barack Obama's inaugural parade.

It will be the first time a gay and lesbian band will march in a presidential inaugural parade.

Keep Helping Noemi's Kids

2008-12-10T13:16:00.000-08:00

My e-friend Amber, the editor of the Rainier Valley Post, has asked me to help publicize her efforts to collect money and other needed items for the children of Noemi Lopez, who was murdered in her home by her ex-husband a week and a half ago.

She's collected over $3,500 so far, which is fantastic, but doesn't cover the needs of the three kids, whose hard-working mother is gone and whose father is hiding out in Mexico.

You can make a donation through a PayPal link at the top right corner of her blog.

I should have posted this when she first asked me to, or even before she even asked me. I bug her all the time about things I want her to cover, or local problems I want her advice on, and she always does her best to help.

She's been running the whole show in terms of response to the murder, from protesting local newspaper coverage to organizing a community vigil to collecting funds for the children to providing news updates beyond what the police are saying. (Meanwhile, she's also trying to keep up with the endlessly changing news on the school closures and doing on some investigative work on the New Holly/Brighton shooting incident Saturday night.)

Though I wasn't impressed by her blog at first -- I thought she was basically just rewriting stories from the daily newspapers and, worse yet, press releases from the mayor's office. (And I'm still not fully on board with her "Bus Bitch" writer, or with the "hip twenty-something" who writes the "Myra, Myra on the Wall" column.)

However, nowadays, Amber's own posts represent some of the best news reporting in the city. It's advocacy journalism, of course, but, Christ, if any neighborhood ever needed an advocate, it's the Rainier Valley in 2008. More and more, her work shows that she's both a tireless investigator as well as a passionate crusader for a neighborhood that's been ignored by the city for, well, forever.

Anyway, I'm personally uneasy about making monetary donations while I'm on my extended unpaid leave from work, but I'm making a contribution to Noemi's kids, who have been through more than I could even imagine and could really use the help right now. I'm doing it for them, but I'm also doing it for Amber, who always does so much for the rest of us.

Beacon Hill Flats: Apartments, Condos, Apartments

2008-12-10T07:46:00.000-08:00

Even before the severity of the economic downturn became daily news this fall, I thought that the "luxury condo" conversion of the old 1950s Cascade Apartments complex at 14th and Holgate was ridiculously optimistic.

But you couldn't fault Beacon Flats' PR job. They had a snazzy website, Google ads, a trendy type treatment ("b e a c o n F L A T S"), and, of course, their own silly tagline ("city living with an edge").

Back in the spring, I got irritated that the team doing the classy remodel on the building wasn't classy enough to proactively clean up the prominent graffiti on the building. So I filed a complaint with the city about it, and they did clean it up (and even planted some struggling bamboo plants in front of the former mess).

Then the units went up for sale. And mostly sat. Though I do remember checking the website and seeing that at least a couple of the upper units ended up being listed as sold as the prices were dropped.

I'm not sure what happened to those, because now the units are all listed as rentals, and the county classifies the property as an apartment building.

However, there's still a hint that this building once aspired to be a condominium. Some schizophrenic language on the site advertises "Only 1 Condo left for Rent!"

When Is a Store Not a Store?

2008-12-01T22:01:00.000-08:00

When it's a warehouse.

The space at 2510 Beacon Ave. S., current home of Hui Trading, is zoned Neighborhood Commercial 2 ("A moderately-sized pedestrian-oriented shopping area that provides a full range of retail sales and services to the surrounding neighborhood"). In other words, it's supposed to be pedestrian retail.

View Larger Map

However, if you look at the Seattle DPD's own webpage for this
property, you will see that its present use is being listed as a warehouse:

"Present Use: Warehouse"

Which, in fact, it is. It's a food import / wholesaling business, and this is where the food is stored before heading out to restaurants.

The business is mentioned in a P-I story as being a rice importer/wholesaler:

"Wen Hui, the owner of Hui Intertrading, which supplies about 100 restaurants in the Seattle area with rice, said Wednesday that it was now taking seven weeks, rather than four weeks, for shipments of rice to arrive from Thailand."

It's no big secret that this is a warehouse and not a store. The first DPD complaint about this was logged way back in 2004. But someone high up at the DPD must have a crush on Mr. Hui or something, because the Department let Hui Trading fail to pass inspections on this single complaint 11 consecutive times in 2004... and in 2005... and in 2006... and in 2007 without being forced to "comply" until February 2008 -- four years after the complaint was filed.

But they didn't really comply. It's still a warehouse. When Inspector Kevin Hou came around for his 12th inspection, they must have finally used Jedi mind control on him or something to make him think that it was a retail store.

So some pesky neighbor filed another complaint in May. They failed a few inspections by Inspector James Blackmon, so at some point the importer decided to cloak their warehouse with a printout in the window, which you gotta see to believe:

BEACON HILL
FOOD
GROCERY RETAIL
STORE

These are not the droids you're looking for, Inspector Blackmon!

So, anyway, the neighbors have complained again.

They've failed the first inspection. Their front doors were locked during business hours:

BEACON AVE ENTRANCE DOOR TO GROCERY BUSINESS LOCKED. NC2P40 ZONE REQUIRES ACCESS TO RETAIL BUSINESSES FROM STREET.

We'll see how this goes. They've been unlawfully operating a warehouse in that space since at least 2004, and neighbors have been continually complaining about it since 2004. It seems like they get to perpetually be in violation year after year after year after year without any consequences.

I just hope that this complaint doesn't get dismissed if the doors happen to be unlocked during the next inspection. I wish the inspector could just look at that room full of sealed brown cardboard boxes piled on the floor, without any cash registers or salespeople or merchandise displays or price tags, and say, "Duh -- this is a warehouse, not a store," and be done with it once and for all.

November Garden Bloom Day

2008-11-15T22:48:00.001-08:00

Garden bloggers are supposed to take pictures of the blossoms in their yards on the 15th of each month. This isn't really a garden blog (and I prefer foliage to blooms), but I recently rewrote the explanation for this blog so it could cover anything:

"This is a personal neighborhood photo blog about the areas surrounding Mid Beacon Hill in South Seattle, and about other things I see, like, and do."

So here are photos of plants in my Mid Beacon Hill yard on Bloom Day.

Royal purple smoke tree, genus name Cotinus.

Viburnum, an evergreen. It would develop metallic blue berries if it ever got pollinated by a mate plant. I should get it one. I want everyone to be happy here.

I should bring these succulents in for the winter, but I doubt that I will. They'll probably come back anyway.

Raspberries in mid-November. I was surprised.

A couple of Ceanothus "Julia Phelps" blooms.

Ceanothus "Point Reyes."

Some beautiful little sedum.

Donkey tail Euphorbia.

"Angelina," the most thuggish of all the sedums.

Eucalyptus.

I haven't weeded in months, and it shows.

Beautyberry. (Callicarpia?)

Rosemary.

Speaking of plants, I went to a birthday party at a plant store last night.

First I drank aquavit at the Copper Gate in Ballard.

Arthur told us about a funny YouTube video that I still haven't looked up yet. He told us to search for "judas priest shreds." It must be this.

OK, anyway, the party was at the Palm Room on Ballard Avenue.

They had lots of gorgeous air plants.

And a big gray cat.

We got there early, before anyone else. Except the man of the hour.

We drank Sangiovese until midnight then went home.

Grown Folks Coffeehouse Menu

2008-11-08T18:51:00.000-08:00

I've only visited Grown Folks once, for a decaf latte right after they opened. I don't think they were serving meals at the time.

But now that I've heard wonderful things about their salad, and I see they have two soups daily plus custom sandwiches, well, I better go there for food soon. You should too.

See their menus and other info at the Grown Folks website.

Another Reason to Hit Calamity Jane's Happy Hour

2008-11-08T18:39:00.001-08:00

(Besides the great food and drink menu.)

The light in there is fantastic at that time of day at this time of year.

Calamity Jane's happy hour is Monday through Saturday, 3 to 6 p.m.

Erasing History in Georgetown

2008-11-08T18:26:00.000-08:00

Some neighbors complained when the Korean Baptist Church in Georgetown started painting over a historical mural on their property this summer.

So they put up some butcher paper...

...so they could finish painting over the mural without community interference. It's all gone now.

Carleton Market

2008-11-08T17:36:00.000-08:00

I checked out the open house at the new Carleton Market in Georgetown today.

If you like what you see here, pay them a visit on the corner of Carleton and Warsaw. Their for-sure hours are 4 to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, with possible additional hours to be announced later.

This liquor license belonged to the old Country Inn roadhouse, which occupied this building a hundred years ago.

The roadhouse became a grocery in 1911.

According to the Friends of Georgetown History, "Ghost hunters gave identified several spirits residing in this building, including a Mediterranean-looking man in a white apron who haunts the storefront, and a prostitute who leans out of a second-story window."

Not only does this place have a better story than the AM/PM, it has better food too.

I know an actual Swiss person who buys this brand of fondue. It's good.

I was a little disappointed that I didn't see any Cherry Garcia frozen yogurt.

So I added that request to their already varied list.

I'd go to Full Throttle Bottles for my bubbly, but they do have some champagne on hand if while shopping you suddenly decide you need to celebrate something.

They also have some wine and beer. (They don't carry malt liquor, but Duvel's a quick drunk with its 8.5% alcohol content.)

They also have some South Park beers.

Today they sampled some of their selection (not of alcohol, unfortunately) for the neighbors.

The Carleton Avenue Grocery is located on the corner of Carleton and
Warsaw, just south of the Hat & Boots (Oxbow) Park.

Cheap Seattle: Nordic Heritage Museum

2008-11-08T13:38:00.000-08:00

This post has absolutely nothing to do with South Seattle. It's just a bunch of snapshots from Ballard's Nordic Heritage Museum, "the only museum in the United States to honor the legacy of immigrants from the five Nordic countries: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden." I paid a visit on Friday because I'm still on maternity leave and have nothing better to do than to act like a tourist in my own city.

The museum is full of life-size dioramas depicting life in old Ballard and other Scandinavian immigrant communities.

The sauna exhibit in the Finland room:

I inadvertently dressed on-brand for the trip, in a skirt from Finland. It's not Marimekko, but some other brand they sell at Tuuli downtown. I love this print and these colors.

While I did enjoy the dioramas and the current photography exhibit, I wished the museum devoted more space to showcase modern design in Scandinavia, which is home to some of the world's best printmakers, textile designers, glass artists, and furniture makers. (The seating area did have some pieces from Ikea, though.)

The Nordic Heritage Museum is located at 3014 NW 67th Street in Seattle. Museum hours are 10am - 4pm Tuesday-Saturday and 12pm - 4pm Sunday. Adult admission is $6.

Oh, hey, while I'm totally off the topic of South Seattle, I'll add these shots of the Rendezvous in Belltown, where I had a couple of my five (?) vodka sodas last night.

Election Day

2008-11-04T16:48:00.001-08:00

Because Beacon Hill has no Starbucks, I went to my old neighborhood, Eastlake, to get my free cup of coffee.

On my way home, I saw Obama and Gregoire supporters waving their signs at Columbian and Beacon.

And enjoyed the colors of this beautiful November day.

"First Seattle Shooting Homicide Since April"?

2008-11-02T21:51:00.000-08:00

A sloppy new P-I story dated November 2 says the county medical examiner stated that there were no shooting homicides in Seattle between April and October. It was sloppy of the reporters not to check the truth behind the statement (and sloppy of them and/or the editors to refer to October as "earlier this month"):

Seattle police also are searching for the person who killed Corey E. Trainer, a 22-year-old found shot to death earlier this month in North Seattle.

Trainer's death was the first Seattle shooting homicide since April, according to the medical examiner's office.

Hmm. The P-I itself ran this story on August 6: "Teen shot to death in Seattle."

And this one on September 11: "Homeless man found shot to death near I-5."

I'm not sure why the medical examiner would say that there haven't been any shooting homicides since April. And I really don't know why the reporters and editors would repeat that bullshit claim without checking their own recent papers first.

It's a good thing Amber Campbell at the Rainier Valley Post is keeping track of all the South End shootings for us. I'll be interested in seeing how her records match up with the police/mayor's numbers (which will just be lazily parroted without question by the mainstream media, who won't even bother checking their own archives) at the end of the year.

------

Related Post:

* Seattle.gov's Neighborhood Crime Info: Totally Inaccurate

Viva Monstero!

2008-11-02T07:52:00.000-08:00

Monstero! used to be one of Georgetown's most distinctive street characters. A photo from the art walk in July, the month before some asshole set the car on fire:

Last night Monstero!'s keepers, Willow and James Fulton, threw a Day of the Dead benefit party to help with car's recovery fund. They celebrated with alcohol and fire.

The eyes of Monstero!

The party was held in the Miller Building, also home to the lovely Georgetown Pharmacy.

I got my Halloween candy there this year. I chose the good stuff: Kit Kats, Whoppers, Reese's.

(Holy crap, we kept the baby out until 1 a.m.!)

Photos from Last Night's Haunted Brew House Tour

2008-11-01T13:09:00.000-07:00

For the second weekend in a row, Theater Off Jackson is presenting haunted tours in the old Rainier Brew House. I took the 8 p.m. tour on Halloween night. (You still have a chance to go if you're free tonight!)

First I milled around and drank some Manny's while waiting for the tour to start.

TOJ and Friends of Georgetown History teamed up to create a presentation of old Comet Lodge Cemetery materials, including grave rubbings and photocopies of old articles.

Some of my neighbors live on ground that used to be the baby section of the cemetery.

This old photo shows how big the cemetery used to be. A bunch of houses stand there now.

They also posted a photo of the Brew House back in its glory days. It's worth the tour admission just to see the inside of this building -- the music and performances are bonus.

The performances were fun, though. This guy strung solid metal rings together with the help of some magical Rainier beer.

And up the stairs, Ensemble Sub Masa played spooky songs.

The accordionist (my pal and former Eastlake neighbor, the lovely Marchette!) wandered among the crowd like a ghost.

I spent the rest of the tour trying to stand as still as possible to get photos of the dark empty spaces.

Though some of them weren't as empty as they first seemed.

I was one of a couple tour stragglers, both us of fighting over who got to be last one so we could get good shots of all the creepy shadows. Sabey's Jim Harmon patiently waited for us to finally make our exit.

After I finally left, one of the TOJ folks directed my attention to this old poster that Sabey provided for the event. She even showed me how to use the flash on my camera (someday I will learn how to use that thing!) so I could get a picture of it.

"Malt Rainier -- The pure malt tonic for mothers who require additional nourishment and strength."

I hope the Manny's I drank last night has a similar effect. Because it's a heavy burden to be in charge of a baby who measures up in the 99th percentile of CUTENESS.

---------

Related Posts:

* Daytime photos of the Georgetown Brew House

* Last year's Georgetown Haunted Tour

* About the Comet Lodge Cemetery

KUOW Story About Comet Lodge Cemetery

2008-10-29T14:52:00.000-07:00

KUOW is running a story about Comet Lodge Cemetery right now. You can hear it on the archive at minute 0:43.

They just mentioned that residents as far away as 26th and Graham talk about seeing spirits, especially those of children, in their house. (I live closer to the cemetery than that. Eek.) There also have been reports of evil spirits roaming around. They're saying it's an active, restless place.

From the KUOW website (note that there's not actually a dog park there):

At 2:50 p.m. – The Comet Lodge Cemetery
Land is hard to come by in the Seattle area, but this isn't a new problem. Beginning in 1927, parts of Comet Lodge Cemetery were sold off. More than 800 people were buried at this Beacon Hill site. Now, there are only about 20 gravestones left. Houses stand on old burial plots and there's even a dog park on cemetery land. Mercedes Yeager runs Market Ghost Tours in Seattle's Pike Place Market. And she just learned about the Comet Lodge Cemetery recently, including stories of hauntings that so many nearby residents talk about. She shows Jeannie Yandel around what's left of the cemetery.

The KUOW page links to an old post I made about the cemetery, here.

Sunny Afternoon in Columbia City

2008-10-22T17:48:00.000-07:00

An Anchor porter at Lottie's Lounge.

Love the old license plate holders.

Ten years ago I hitched to work every day. I paid cash.

Smoked tukeys.

Gather has a beautiful neon art installation of found letters from signs. It's shocking how many brands you can recognize just from the font and color. Like the "a" from Radio Shack.

The "x" isn't really an "x." It's that Cingular character thing.

This target will one day grace the roof of artist Jeremy Bert's Boulevard Park home. If you don't see it at Gather, you should be able to see it from a nighttime flight in or out of SeaTac.

(I just now realized that I've admired Jeremy's work at McLeod Residence before.)

Then a trip to the last Columbia City Farmer's Market of the season.

This is what I bought.

I doubt there will be a day this nice again for the rest of the year.

Article About Buggy in the P-I

2008-10-18T10:27:00.000-07:00

"Last weekend, Buggy celebrated its first anniversary as a retail hybrid, a children's boutique on Beacon Hill that sells new and gently used clothes -- from new T-shirts for urban toddlers and used ski jackets for babies to organic bubble bath for newborns and slightly worn rain boots for kindergarteners.

Read the article.

Free Seattle: Volunteer Park Conservatory

2008-10-17T17:09:00.001-07:00

My pal Chuck in San Francisco recently blogged about a free thing I should do with my free time here in Seattle: visit the Volunteer Park Conservatory. So I did.

It was nice and warm in there. I should go back in December.

Then walked around Volunteer Park on this beautiful fall day.

To make this post topical, I'll throw in a neighborhood compaint here at the end.

On my way home on 12th -- the major arterial connecting Beacon Hill with the central part of the city -- a produce truck blocked one of the lanes of traffic for a really long time at the start of Friday rush hour. Is that even legal?

Jungle Discussion, New Beacon Hill Blog

2008-10-17T09:25:00.000-07:00

Craig Thompson recently sent the message atthe bottom of this post to the Slumberland neighborhood mailing list. It advertises the Oct. 21 Beacon Alliance of Neighbors meeting, where state and city reps will discuss the future of the Jungle.

Also, the automatically appended signature at the bottom of the mail advertises a new-ish neighborhood blog that the mailing list organizers have started up. That blog looks like it will be an excellent source of information about neighborhood events.

Meanwhile, I've been thinking about whether I want to:

--change this blog's format (like the Capitol Hill and CD blogs) and try to ramp it up a little

--keep it a low-key, infrequently updated, personal blog with random pictures and commentary about how I happen to see the neighborhood while continuing to ignore most announcements I get about neighborhood events like pancake breakfasts and school performances and volunteer opportunities and all those other things that really do need some publicity

--put it to sleep while I raise my kid and go back to my full-time job

Here's Craig's message about the meeting and the sig with the link to the new blog:

Subject: [Beaconhill] Oct 21 7pm BAN Meeting - VIP speakers!
To: beaconhill@slumberland.org

My friend Dean has organized this event - please consider coming.

Hi there,

Come meet with Washington State Representative Sharon Tomiko-Santos and Lorena Eng of the Washington State Department of Transportation. We will discuss the future of the Jungle and the Washington State property along Beacon Hill. We will also have representatives from the City of Seattle Dept. of Transportation, Dept. of Neighborhoods, and Mayor's office, plus directors from the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust and other involved non-profit agencies. The trail coordinators for King County and Seattle will also attend.

This will be an information-packed session with important stakeholders to discuss creating a permanent public safety solution for the East Duwamish Greenbelt, the Jungle, several city parks, and the neighborhoods along west Beacon Hill.

The meeting is this coming Tuesday, October 21, at Quarters 1, PacMed Campus, northwest corner of 14th Ave. S and South Judkins Street, at 7:00 PM.

(FYI, tomorrow, Friday, I'm going to get 50 flyers to Craig for the pancake event. If anyone can help pass them out, that would be great. Unfortunately, I have another volunteer commitment and can't attend the pancake event.)

Thank you,

Dean Olson
_______________________________________________
To post to the Beaconhill mailing list, email post@beaconhill.seattle.wa.us
To subscribe or unsubscribe, visit http://beaconhill.seattle.wa.us/list
Visit the blog at http://beaconhill.seattle.wa.us

Teen Shot by Jefferson Park

2008-10-13T21:33:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure this warranted an actual article, but it made the P-I's Seattle 911 blog. Incident occurred early Sunday morning.

A 17-year-old youth was shot in the leg early Sunday in South Seattle after he and a girlfriend exchanged words with occupants of an SUV.

The incident occurred at about 16th Avenue South and South Spokane Street when the youth and the girlfriend were walking home. Seattle Police spokesman Jeff Kappel said the two decided to try to hitch a ride, the SUV drove by and shots were fired after the verbal exchange. ...

More Cheap South End Fun: Western Bridge

2008-10-11T11:44:00.000-07:00

Friday I finally checked out Western Bridge, a free art "venue" in Sodo.

I love their stealth front door -- clever!

The main exhibit right now is this huge white-on-white painting that stretches across the walls and onto the floor. It looks like shadows of trees coming in through big, high horizontal windows. Which confused me a little at first since the building does have big, high horizontal windows. Except it's on 4th Ave. South, so there are no trees around. (Also, a shadow would bend at the corner.) It's like a trompe l'oeil for the stupid and/or unobservant.

Another exhibit featured very dark photos of the banks of the Amazon. I didn't love the art, but I did love the building itself and decided that I wanted to live there.

This feeling got much stronger when I wandered into the living area upstairs.

The other two patrons were hesitant to enter this section, as it didn't seem like people were supposed to come in. But I told them they had to because it was the best part.

The tub is sunken into the cement.

This place belongs on the hipster street of dreams.

And it's just two blocks from Costco!

Western Bridge is open noon to six, Thursday - Saturday. It's located at 3412 Fourth Avenue South. 206-838-7444. Admission is free.

Cheap South End Fun: Museum of Communications

2008-10-11T11:32:00.000-07:00

I'm in the middle of a five-month, mostly unpaid maternity leave, so I've been searching for cheap (or better yet, free) things to do nearby with the baby. Tuesday I went to the Museum of Communications in Georgetown.

Every Tuesday until 2 p.m., volunteers give free tours of this old telephone station.

I'd tell you what I learned, but most of it went over my head. But still I had fun looking at all the displays of cool old stuff.

Cordless phone circa 1964.

Remember this voice?

The Museum of Communications is located in Georgetown at 7000 East Marginal Way South (at Corson), telephone 206-767-3012. Museum hours are Tuesdays from 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and by appointment. The museum is handicap accessible. There is no charge for admission, but donations are gratefully accepted.

Coyotes Kill Pets on Beacon Hill

2008-10-07T09:24:00.001-07:00

A neighbor who lives near Beacon and Columbian says she saw a coyote kill a tortoise shell cat in her front yard in broad daylight. She sent this photo of her cat keeping an eye on the animal.

Anyway, she asked me to remind everyone to keep your cats indoors to keep them safe from the coyotes that roam our neighborhood. Her mail:

Yesterday a coyote came to my garden and roamed for about 2 hours (from 8 to 10 am), after killing a cat in my front lawn (had to call animal control to pick up the poor victim!). The cat was a tortoise shell cat, no collar, no microchip; never seen it before.

Animal control has not jurisdiction over wild animals, but they said that as long as the animal is not injured and representing a treat to the public, fish and wildlife just leave them alone. I took a picture of my cat looking at the coyote, picture is attached.

I wanted to post this message at the listserv, but the message gets rejected. Could you please post this for me, if it is not too much to ask?! I just want people to know so they do not leave their cats go outside and become a victim of the coyote. BTW, the coyote was gorgeous and skittish. Thanks!

Baby Mama Review of Calamity Jane's

2008-10-04T16:43:00.001-07:00

I promised this wouldn't become a baby blog, and I plan to keep that promise. But now that I have a 5-week-old infant, I'm seeing the world -- and, more to the point here, our neighborhood -- a little differently. From time to time, I'll share some of this new perspective with you. This may be of interest to those of you with infants, or who plan to have kids, and it's likely the rest of you won't give a damn. So it goes.

Calamity Jane's, the restaurant I frequented most frequently before I had the baby, is still my go-to restaurant now that I have an infant.

(I've also taken the baby to Stellar Pizza, Cutting Board, and Via Tribunali, and I keep meaning to go to Hangar Cafe. I'll probably write about those later. Smarty Pants, Nine Pound Hammer, Georgetown Liquor Company, and Jules Maes are totally off limits to minors, though.)

Reasons that Calamity Jane's is great for a mom with an infant:

1. The restaurant side is spacious and feels like it's connected to the happening bar side of things.

(As much as I love Stellar -- another great place to take kids -- I feel like a second-class citizen having to enter through and sit in the family ghetto side. Though as a solo adult, I love that the bar side of Stellar is blessedly kid-free!) The floor plan at Calamity Jane's makes it easy for grownups to feel like grownups even if they have to sit on the north side. You can sit down and still see the taps and bottles.

2. The long bench against the wall leaves plenty of room for stashing a diaper bag and Baby Bjorn and all that extra crap. Request to sit over there if they don't automatically put you there.

3. The happy hour menu is good in the restaurant as well as the bar. A buck off beers! Gyoza dumplings or johnny cakes with mozzarella and marinara or pork sliders for $3.88!

4. No one seems to pass judgment when Mom orders a lot of whiskey. (Hey, it was a long, liquor-free nine months of pregnancy.)

5. Sarah designed the women's bathroom specifically to accommodate easy diaper changing on the long stretch of counter between the sinks. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I promise to bag my, um, garbage every time from now on. I'm prepared now.

6. People you've never met before coo over your baby and offer to take your family's photograph without prompting. Thank you! And thanks also to that friend of Holly and Kathy's who helped our old family friend Ann up the big step outside. And thanks also to our super-hot mama waitress, whose name I can't spell, for buying us a congratulatory drink. The folks at CJ's, both patrons and staff, are the best.

Cell Phone Antennas by Jefferson Park

2008-10-04T16:35:00.001-07:00

T-Mobile was discouraged by the Jefferson Park Alliance's vehement opposition to their putting up a tower in the park itself, so now it looks like they're putting up antennas on the apartment building across the street.

Sorry I'm late on this -- the comment period just ended, though it says it can be extended to 10/15/08 by written request.

Click on the photo to see a version large enough to read:

Or trust my transcription here:

NOTICE OF PROPOSED LAND USE ACTION

Master Use Project # 3009423
Address: 1756 S. Spokane St.
Applicant Contact: Catherine Funtanilla
Phone #: 206-490-3813

DPD IS CONDUCTING ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW OF THE FOLLOWING PROJECT:

To install a new minor communication utility (T-Mobile) consisting of three panel antennas on the roof of an existing residential building. Equipment cabinet to be located in basement.

The comment period ends 10/1/08 but may be extended to 10/15/08 by written request. To submit written comments or to obtain additional information, contact Seattle's DPD, 700 5th Ave., Ste 2000, PO Box 34019, Seattle, WA 98124-4019. Contact by phone (206) 684-8467 or email PRC@seattle.gov. Be sure to refer to project #3009423.

"Just Another Day on the 36"

2008-10-02T22:25:00.000-07:00

The Rainier Valley Post's "Bus Bitch" describes his experience on the 36 today.

The woman, whom witnesses claim was clearly drunk or high, refused to exit, pushing the bus driver away and collapsing on the seats next to the front door. When the bus driver attempted to remove her again, she attacked him, biting his hand with the tenacity of a rabid pit bull. The bus driver then struck her several times with his fists in an effort to subdue her and protect himself.

Not long after “Bus Bitch” got there, police arrived and handcuffed the woman. An officer sought witnesses for questioning, but no one obliged. Several people on the bus spoke with the “Bitch” though— with one claiming, “This is just another day on the 36.”

Jamieson on Violence in SE Seattle

2008-10-02T08:19:00.000-07:00

The P-I's Robert Jamieson wrote about violent crime in SE Seattle today. Looks like he's had as much trouble getting crime stats as the rest of us have. Interesting to see that someone over there is hinting that numbers might finally be presented at the crime meeting tonight -- police officials have just directed community members to the public disclosure department at previous meetings.

It is no secret Rainier Valley gets a disproportionate share of Seattle's gang troubles. Gangs go hand in hand with trigger happiness. But neighbors feel as if the city and police just want them to buck up and deal with it -- bullets come with the territory.

"I never dreamed that I would be telling my 6-year-old that she can't go outside anymore," said Risley, who tells me two of the September shootings happened less than a football field from her daughter's bedroom window. "Tonight I get to explain to her what gunshots sound like and that she needs to lay down on the floor of our home if she hears them."

Did I miss the memo? When did Seattle steal a page from South Central Los Angeles?

Neighbors' perceptions of bureaucratic indifference -- police insist they're on the case -- are bolstered by difficulty they've had getting official crime statistics. I was similarly frustrated Wednesday when I dialed up SPD. A spokesman said I might get numbers galore at a community meeting with police Thursday, a gathering that promises to pack Holly Park Community Church.

I suspect squeaky wheels in other neighborhoods would get answers right away if a half-dozen gun incidents in a month were occurring in Ballard, West Seattle or Fremont, places where neighbors howl if a bullet gets in whizzing distance of the hot tub.

But in the South End that popping sound is no biggie, folks -- just ambiance, a teeny price to pay for life on the south side.

NIMBYism in Southeast Seattle

2008-10-01T20:46:00.000-07:00

A reader asked that I draw your attention to this very long, thoughtful, provocative blog entry about NIMBYism in Southeast Seattle.

When I attended my first Columbia City Community Council (CCCC) meeting last December, I was naive and unschooled in the tender mercies of neighborhood politics. Since then, I've been to meetings all around the Southeast District and made myself a student of the values, grievances, and vendettas that animate the committed core of residents who always show up.

I have been surprised and troubled to find that, in a community famed for its ethnic, racial, and income diversity, one narrow worldview prevails among the small group of people who represent themselves as the leaders of South Seattle. Do you know what your local neighborhood activist is saying about you?

Advance Tickets for Georgetown Haunted History Tour

2008-10-01T20:01:00.001-07:00

Since last year's tour was crazy successful, with people (well, me at least) begging to get in the last Brew House tour, the Friends of Georgetown History are selling advance tickets and expanding the tour to two nights with four tours each night (October 24 and 25). Hurray!

Here are some photos I took during last year's tour.

VP Debate Party at Grown Folks

2008-09-29T13:58:00.000-07:00

An invitation from your neighbors at Grown Folks:

Since the last debate party at Grownfolks was such a hit, we're going to
have a gathering there for all of the Presidential/VP debates. Hope to see
you this Thursday!

Biden/Palin VP Debate
Watch it at Grownfolks Coffeehouse
Thursday, October 2
5:30 - 7:30

Grownfolks Coffeehouse
4878 Beacon Avenue South
Seattle, 98144

Beer, Wine, Coffee, Sodas, Juice, Sandwiches and Salads will be for sale
Plenty of on site parking.
Take the #36 if you're going by bus

Grownfolks is a great coffeehouse and restaurant with two flatscreen tv's on
which we can all watch Thursday's debate. Bring the kids, have some snacks
and grab a beer. It's going to be a relaxed and fun neighborhood evening.

Who Cleans Up Used Needles Near Grade Schools?

2008-09-29T10:15:00.000-07:00

No one. A neighbor wrote to the Slumberland mailing list:

While waiting for the bus this morning (9-29-08) I saw an uncapped hypodermic needle laying on the grass at the 14th Ave S and S Hill bus stop. This bus stop is across the street from Beacon Hill International School.

I asked the bus driver to report the needle to Metro. When I got to my office I called the non-emergency police line, they said they would not stop by to pick it up nor could they do anything unless there was active drug activity. The officer referred me to the Health Dept, who also said they would not pick it up but suggested I dispose of it myself (no thank you). Sooooo after three reports (Metro, SPD, and Seattle Health) I do not know if the needle will be properly picked up and disposed. If any of you know who to call in the City please email me separately, this is not the first time I have seen needles at this bus stop.

Another neighbor has volunteered to pick up the needle with her sharps container. Thanks!

Proscuitto at Via Tribunali in Georgetown

2008-09-28T13:30:00.001-07:00

Overcrowding in North End School

2008-09-23T08:58:00.001-07:00

Funny story in today's P-I about overcrowding in North End grade schools. A school board member claims that he's encouraging creative solutions and that "everything is on the table" in terms of solving the problem.

However, nowhere in the lengthy story does anyone mention improving South End schools to help balance the demand. Just an idea (maybe a little too creative...)!

Man Shot and Killed in Jungle

2008-09-11T08:17:00.000-07:00

This is the entirety of the article on the P-I website. The address they list at the end is just south of Jose Rizal Park by Pac-Med:

Seattle homicide detectives and crime scene investigators are investigating the shooting death of a man found in a transient camp known as "the Jungle" off a wooded interchange of Interstate 5 early Thursday morning.

Police spokesman Mark Jamieson said a patrol officer was flagged down about 12:50 a.m. by a witness who said an injured man was just off an access road next to the freeway just east of I-5 and south of the I-90 on-ramp.

The officer found a dead man with an apparent gunshot wound to the chest. Police searched the area but found no suspects, and determined that the crime scene was several hours old.

The Jungle is a brush area of transient camps near the freeway interchange in approximately the 1100 block of South Atlantic Street.

Here's the Times story, which lists an address of 700 Dearborn St, a block south of Jose Rizal Park.

Rainier Valley Post Editor Working Overtime

2008-09-04T02:35:00.000-07:00

The home invasion robberies in Hillman City and Mt. Baker were quickly followed by a drive-by shooting near Rainier and Mead Wednesday evening.

It seems like the bad news just keeps on coming. A 15-year-old girl who happened to be at the scene of the drive-by got shot in the knee and took cover in a store at the Rainier and Orcas intersection (where I passed through with my 6-day-old baby earlier in the day while thinking about the recent armed home invasion that happened just a couple blocks away). Another passerby reported at Harborview that he had also been shot in the incident.

From the Rainier Valley Post article about the drive-by:

The 911-call came in at 7:36 pm while Councilman Tim Burgess, SPD South Precinct Captain Les Liggins and a handful of other SPD officials were meeting with South Seattle Crime Prevention Council (SSCPC) members at the Southeast Seattle Senior Center.

As if on cue, just minutes after one neighbor in attendance questioned the Councilman's focus on graffiti while gangs run rampant, several police cars raced by the scene of the meeting with sirens blaring on their way to what was later revealed to be the scene of yet another Rainier Valley shooting.

Seattle Weekly Article About Armed Citizen Patrol Group on Beacon Hill

2008-09-04T02:19:00.000-07:00

See the article here.

I haven't contributed much to the discussion about all this on the neighborhood mailing list. I understand people's frustration about lack of police response to neighborhood crime, though I worry that an armed citizen patrol may do more harm than good. And I suspect that's how most people on the mailing list feel -- few others have said much about it either.

OK, this part of the article makes me laugh.

"When asked about police response on Beacon Hill, Officer Kappel points to 2007 numbers that show crime citywide at a 40-year low."

Because those 2007 numbers are totally screwy and everyone knows it and still no one has done anything about it.

Your New Neighbor

2008-09-02T09:11:00.000-07:00

My blogging slowdown/hiatus continues as I look after your brand-new Beacon Hill neighbor, Sylvana Josephine. Here's a picture of her napping on her birthday on Friday.

Grown Folks Coffeehouse Building to Be Replaced by 4-Story Structure?

2008-08-26T11:26:00.000-07:00

I have not been diligent about combing through all my DPD mails. And I haven't noticed a proposed land use action sign at the site. Anyone know what's up with this?

Looks like there's a city meeting tonight at 6:30 p.m., and the design proposal will be made available then. Anyone plan to go? I may go.

Four stories seems out of scale with the surrounding one-story area -- I certainly hope the plan isn't for four ugly stories.

Design Review, Early Design Guidance Meeting for a four story, 18 unit residential building with 3,700 sq. ft. of retail located at grade. Parking for 15 vehicles to be located within the structure. Existing building to be demolished.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008
4878 Beacon Ave S
Design Proposal available at review meeting
Reviewer: Southeast Design Review Board
Review Meeting: 6:30 PM, Rainier Vista Neighborhood House (see notice)
Review Phase: EDG--Early Design Guidance
Project Number: 3009384 (see permit status)
Planner: Holly Godard

Random Photos from Around the South End

2008-08-23T10:01:00.000-07:00

I've been told to take it easy these last couple weeks before the baby comes (one of her due dates is today; the other is Monday). Here are some photos from this weird, boring downtime, which all the new parents I know say I should be profoundly thankful for.

Lunch at Via Tribunali in Georgetown.

Sunset on Airport Way.

Followed by moonrise on Beacon Hill.

Dinner at Pig Iron BBQ in Georgetown.

Fried green tomatoes and chop salad.

Sedum and feather grass in the rock wall at home.

The creeping green plant is Point Reyes Ceanothus, which has proved outstandingly useful to us. It seeks out all the spaces where weeds used to grow.

For some reason, not nearly as many apples (or plums) as last year. But some.

Might we get a second crop of raspberries?

And the incredible growing Eucalyptus. My husband is 6'4, so it's what, 10, 11 feet tall?

Here's the same plant in the back of our truck, standing just a couple feet high, on 9/2/07 -- less than a year ago.

Duwamish Festival Today

2008-08-23T09:42:00.000-07:00

You should go! After all, how many party invitations do you get that advertise both "face painting" and "Superfund cleanup"?

Respect the Spirits of Comet Lodge Cemetery

2008-08-22T20:17:00.000-07:00

I just noticed a beautiful, thoughtful comment on a post I'd made about a visit to the Comet Lodge Cemetery back in March.

It deserves its own post. Here it is.

Anonymous said...

In 1952 my parents bought a house on 23rd and Orcas, one block down from Beacon Ave. At that time the cemetery now known as Comet Lodge, covered a much wider area.

The border of the cemetery is now a Korean Christian church and many houses stand where once there were sunken graves and tombstomes made of wood, carved so long ago they were petrified.

My brother Rick and I played in that cemetery and often ate our meals there. Our lives were hard and our parents were neglectful alcoholics.

We spent every spring, summer and fall in this peaceful and safe place. Every day it seemed to welcome us to play there in the trees and unkept cemetery. We loved it and we both have very happy memories there.

It had been 45 years since I'd been there but always thought of the happiness my brother and I got from being there.

In the spring of this year I was with my daughter and two grandchildren on our way to visit my aging parents who still live on Orcas, and as we went by Comet Lodge, I said "I would love to walk through this place again."

We stopped the car and went into the cemetery, my daughter, my two grandkids and I.
I felt so welcomed and happy to be back in a place that brought me so much comfort and peace and acceptance again.

It was a beautiful warm day and we brought fresh cherries and pennies for offerings to the spirits that dwell there.

I sat under the big tree in the middle of the graveyard and a warm gentle breeze blew acrss my face and it made me smile inside and out. This wonderful feeling had not aged as I had, but remained loving and peaceful as though it had been waiting to see me again, this time with my child and grandchildren. My 7 year old grandson found a deflated ball on the grave of a young boy and played as though he was playing with the spirit of this child.

I just obsereved with deep appreciation, reliving happy memories with my brother. We were there for a long time and what a dear feeling it brought to me and I hope that I left that feeling with "Them" as well.

Don't be afraid because this resting place is for children as well as adults...there is "something special" that watches over children there.

It watched over me and my brother for many years and still watches over the ones who remain there. So, if you go to this place in the future, remember to be respectful and leave offering of some kind (cherries and pennies). This place that has been desecrated and abandoned by the cities is now and always will be SACRED land. When I am only a memory...my ashes will be scattered here in this place that gave me joy as a child and adult.

So when you come here in the future and you see a woman and children playing there, remember that things that frighten some...bring joy and life to others. Respect this sacred place.

Teresa

August 21, 2008 10:57 AM

Georgetown Police Officer Started a Blog

2008-08-20T12:21:00.000-07:00

Officer Sylvia Parker is writing about her police activities around Georgetown here.

Illegal Speed Bumps Removed from NewHolly

2008-08-15T17:51:00.000-07:00

Did anyone read this Seattle Times story about illegal speed bumps at NewHolly without cheering for the neighbors who took matters into their own hands?

Now that I know that in a couple years I'm going to have a toddler whom I may not always be able to stop from running into the street while trying to corral her into the car, I've worked with folks in my area to look into installing traffic mitigating devices around here. Because, even though my residential block is not a thoroughfare, I think some drivers speed down it because it's wider than nearby blocks. (And others speed down it because they're assholes.)

Here's the official city webpage on how to get traffic-calming measures in your neighborhood. (Yeah, good luck!)

A neighbor of mine looked into it further and was told that if our neighborhood proved that it had a whole lot of time to burn by first applying for other small grants for community improvements, we would be taken more seriously when it came time to try to get people to slow down. Huh?

A commenter at Rainier Valley Post recommends skipping the $900 trip to Costco for speed bumps and just making speed craters instead.

Hear, Hear

2008-08-15T17:15:00.000-07:00

OK, my posting "slowdown" is really more of a hiatus. I'm fine and the baby's fine, but until she arrives, I'll be on bedrest (with short breaks for sustenance down the hill at Via Tribunali, Smarty Pants, and Jules Maes). I have all sorts of time to post about the neighborhood, but I just don't feel like it. (This might change when I run out of episodes of "Rome, Season 2.") Anyway, Blogging Georgetown and the Rainier Valley Post are going strong -- if you haven't checked them out yet, you definitely should.

Anyway.

I usually don't post media articles in their entirety, but this one's only two paragraphs, and I don't want to cut a word. A letter from today's P-I:

SEATTLE'S SOUTH END

Once again, I would like to ask for accuracy and precision in reporting covering Seattle's South End neighborhoods. Is the article on Southeast Seattle real estate covering the area east of MLK to the water, south of I-90 to Rainier Beach, or is it the 98118 ZIP code? They are not the same. The real estate agents quoted statistics pulled from ZIP code areas. If 98118 is the area (and it definitely seemed to be the reference), by referring to MLK as a boundary, you have omitted at least 25 percent of the housing area covered by the 98118 ZIP code, which extends up south Beacon Hill on the west side to 32nd Avenue South.

You really should get some better maps, and look at them. I use the Thomas Guide and other maps put out by the Kroll Map Co. -- a local, reputable and, most important, accurate producer of maps. Otherwise, your reporting reads like hearsay -- and leans toward gossip. In which case, it belongs on the editorial page because it is not news -- it is opinion. We deserve better.

Tristin Pagenkopf
Seattle (Hillman City)

SE Seattle Housing Slump

2008-08-07T07:41:00.001-07:00

There's an article in the P-I about declining housing sales in SE Seattle (defined as south of Interstate 90 and east of Martin Luther King Way -- the area just east of Beacon Hill).

Agents offered speculation for southeast Seattle's slowdown.

...

Buyers also are less willing to take a chance these days on a less-established area, Hamilton said.

"I think when things start to slow down, people like to stick with what they're comfortable with," he said. "They want something familiar."

I also wonder if they want something safe. Not an area where:

On Friday a police officer confiscates a semi-automatic weapon from a young teen. (Rainier and Henderson)

On Saturday, a woman in her car is raped at gunpoint by a stranger. (Rainier and Rose)

On Tuesday, a teen is shot to death on the street. (Rainier and Graham)

On Wednesday, a man is shot in the leg while hiding from additional gunshots behind a car. (Othello and 43rd, five blocks west of Rainier)

Anyway, I wonder if the slowdown is not so much because of people's lack of familiarity with the area, or if it's because they're all too familiar with what's going on south of I-90 and east of MLK.

(Though the police make it hard to find out all that's going on. The city still hasn't published any of its mixed-up neighborhood crime statistics for 2008 yet.)

Sorry to sound so negative about South Seattle today. All the crazy nasty health statistics here in 98108, and mercury emission reports to the west of us, and the all-too-frequent reports of violent crime to the east of us are getting me down.

Pictures of the Mural in the Old Hanson's Florists Space

2008-08-05T21:23:00.000-07:00

Pictures of the Georgetown mural that's been partially painted over. I haven't been by there latey. Is it all gone now?

Don't Read This If You're Having a Nice Day

2008-08-04T07:13:00.000-07:00

Just came across a nasty little Beacon Hill story in the P-I's crime blog. The gist:

After dragging a 14-year-old girl by her hair from Holly Park in south Beacon Hill on June 28, two men "forced the girl into a white Cadillac sedan ... [and] took her to Aurora Avenue North and told her 'to have sex with people for money or she and her family would be killed,' the investigating officer said in a statement."

After a while, the girl escaped. One of the creeps is in jail; the other remains at large.

North Beacon HIllers to Be Limited to Two Parking Passes?

2008-08-01T08:23:00.000-07:00

The North Beacon Hill parking zone is not mentioned in this excerpt from today's P-I, but it is on the proposed list of the two-passes-per-household neighborhoods.

Faced with more cars than places to park on Seattle streets, the city's Transportation Department is considering restricting the number of residential parking permits people can have.

In the densest areas – the heart of Capitol Hill around Denny Way, First Hill, Lower Queen Anne, the Pike-Pine corridor, and the Cascade neighborhood – households would have to make do with only one permit.

In others – Wallingford, the eastern part of the University District, Eastlake, less dense areas of Capitol Hill, Ravenna and near Lincoln High School – a household would be allowed two permits.

Aki Kurose, Christian Restoration Center, Wedding Reception Locations?

2008-07-25T07:18:00.000-07:00

Aki Kurose -- The troubled Aki Kurose Middle School is getting a new principal. Also, it looks like the Rainier Valley Post will not be getting answers from the Aki Kurose administration while investigations are underway.

Christian Restoration Center -- Is there still a ton of graffiti on the south-facing brick wall, the one overlooking the parking lot? I don't pass by there every day, so I don't always have the most up-to-date information on the situation there.

The developers told me this week that they've dealt with the graffiti on the back of the building three times, and as of Monday, there was none. And they're strategizing on the best way to deal with graffiti on the front of the building. But they haven't mentioned the side of the building, which is where I was seeing the most prominent problems.

Wedding Reception Locations Around Beacon Hill and Georgetown? -- A reader is looking for a place around Beacon Hill or Georgetown to hold her wedding reception next summer. I've suggested the Georgetown Ballroom. Does anyone else have any other ideas? Sounds like non-traditional venue suggestions, like art and/or industrial spaces, are welcome.

My Excuse for Lazy Blog Posting -- I've whined about all this before, but I might not be posting many photos or much original content over the next couple months. In the next four weeks, I plan to work full-time, attend four showers and three weddings, catch up on months of yardwork on two increasingly weed-choked lots, finish a nursery, and have a baby. (Girl, as yet unnamed.) But I plan to check in regularly and continue to link to other people's posts and newspaper articles, though.

Mercury

2008-07-24T08:35:00.000-07:00

Today the Seattle Times is reporting on the mercury that Duwamish area cement plants are spewing into our air.

It's not clear whether mercury from the Seattle plants winds up concentrated in surrounding neighborhoods. One kind of mercury from smokestacks spreads into the atmosphere, while other kinds are more likely to come back to earth nearby.

There's no evidence that people in the area are at additional risk, Ash Grove Cement spokesman Scott Matter wrote in an e-mail response to questions.

"Operations at Ash Grove and other facilities are closely monitored by EPA and other regulatory agencies," he said.

State and local health and environmental agencies said they knew of no studies looking at the mercury from the Seattle cement plants. The amount of mercury coming from the plant isn't directly monitored by agencies. They rely on annual estimates from the companies.

Yesterday Blogging Georgetown wrote about the West Seattle Blog writing about this same issue.

Georgetown Mural Gone

2008-07-24T07:36:00.000-07:00

Just heard that the Georgetown mural on Bailey St. next to the old Hansen's Florists shop has been removed. I presume the building's owners, the Korean Central Baptist Church, removed the mural as part of their expansion into the lower part of the building. Hansen's Florists, who had been downstairs tenants since World War II, recently had to move to 4th Ave. S. to accommodate them. (According to this Seattle Times story: "Personally, I feel bad and sad about the situation, but the church needs the space," said church elder Paul Seo.)

I wonder if the church elders also feel bad and sad about removing the mural without
giving any warning to the community.

Normally I would include a picture here. But I'm not sure I ever bothered taking a picture of the mural because I figured it would always be there.

(Maybe they're readying the space for some big beer ads?)

It would be totally rude and unneighborly for me to say something like I hope the ghosts who supposedly inhabit this former Masonic temple slam an extra door or two in protest.

Georgetown Rock Wall Coming Down

2008-07-22T08:12:00.000-07:00

The locally celebrated art trio SuttonBeresCuller will be tearing down this old Georgetown rock wall and "reusing" it somehow:

I don't know anything about this; just read about it in the Stranger blog at the link above.

Links to Pinata Party Pics, Times Story About "BeHi"

2008-07-20T19:58:00.000-07:00

I was out of town, but it looks like the Pinata Party was a lot of fun.

The Seattle Times wrote a story about the "BeHi" nickname for Beacon Hill.

The guy who came up with "BeHi" bumper stickers says the nickname "seems to tap into a younger, hipper, urban crowd who lives on Beacon Hill — people who have a sense of humor and don't take life too seriously."

I guess I don't have a sense of humor -- I don't think it's particularly funny to link the term "BeHi" with a neighborhood where people smoke crack on the bus. Commenters on the story don't think it's very funny either.

Quotes in the story, comments on the story, and recent posts to the Slumberland mailing list (regarding this issue and discussion of local grocery options) mention a generational/gentrificational change happening on the hill. Which strikes me as odd because I think of Beacon Hill as the least changed neighborhood in all of Seattle. In fact, one of the comments to the story hits that nail right on the head:

I've lived in Beacon Hill most of my life. For those who say it's not cool or hip, what is your definition of that? Capital Hill and Fremont's got nothing on Beacon Hill. Try finding parking in any of those neighborhoods. We have plenty of restaurants within minutes on any part of Rainer Ave and MLK. Easy access to Downtown and the freeways. Why change the name of Beacon Hill is beyond me.

This person has lived here most of their life, and all they can recommend about Beacon Hill is its ample parking, freeway access, and proximity to other neighborhoods with restaurants.

Anyway, I'm just not sure what the people who complain about change are complaining about. Compared to the goings-on in Georgetown to the west and Columbia City to the east, virtually nothing has changed on Beacon Hill, for better or for worse.

Jefferson Park Funding Upped in Green Space Levy

2008-07-15T20:32:00.000-07:00

Just as I was writing to encourage you all to write to City Council to increase funding for Jefferson Park in the proposed Green Space levy, this came in from Jefferson Park Alliance member (and my dear pal) Mira Latoszek:

Hello all,

Just wanted to send out an update of some info that another JPA member received from Councilmember Sally Clark's office. The funding for Jefferson Park has been increased! (see the copy of the email message below).

With this change to the levy, I am ready to support it. Though the amount is still under what we have estimated is necessary for Phase 2, it get it close enough that we could leverage other funding for the balance of the funding. It is also good news that the Maple Leaf reservoir park is getting increased funding. Maple Leaf Park is heading into Phase 1 and was seriously underfunded in the levy.

Lowering SAAM funding and increasing the levels for defined projects in major parks means that these projects will require less money from the opportunity fund. The opportunity fund should be used for just that, "opportunities", rather than projects that we already know need to be done. There are smaller parks and green spaces all over the city which have not had the level of planning that the major reservoir parks have had - places like Dr. Jose Rizal Park, Lewis Park, and the Cheasty Greenspace in our own neighborhood. I'm sure there will be many others that will come up over the coming years. The opportunity fund should be reserved for these projects.

In addition, I am also hearing that the Council is considering stronger language and better defined guidelines for the $10.8 million that is allocated for synthetic turf. The EPA is about to study the toxicity of synthetic turf and the underlayment of ground tires. It would be a giant waste of money for Seattle to install fields with these materials if it is found to be toxic.

I will send more info as I find out more. But I hope that you will join me in supporting these changes to the levy and encourage the Council to put together a levy package that is green in more than just its name.

Thanks,
Mira

_____________________________________________________________________________________

On Monday, Council just increased Jefferson and Maple Leaf monies to five million, plus Jefferson gets a million dollar skate park, while SAM funding was scaled back. At $6 million, Jefferson is the 2nd biggest recipient of funds in the levy, so I don't hear much conversation to give it even more. That would get some things done on phase 2, but probably not all of it.

Best,

Dan Nolte
Office of Councilmember Sally Clark
Seattle City Council

Hit the Beacon Hill Pinata Party This Saturday

2008-07-15T20:17:00.000-07:00

From Beacon Hill neighbor Jon Gould:

This year’s Beacon Hill Piñata Party will be Saturday, July 19th from 12-3pm at Triangle Park (17th Ave. S, between Forest and Stevens Streets).

This is a free block party for children and families in the Beacon Hill area. 17th Ave. S. along the park will be closed.

Food, entertainment, piñatas, and fun! Everyone is welcome.

Want to help? Things we need are snacks to share and piñatas to hang. Picnic blankets, too.

Here’s a draft schedule of events:

Noon Franklin High School Lion Dancers
12:30 Songs by the Bay Bay Girls
1:00pm Music by Lushy
1:45pm Piñatas (age 10 and under) and watermelon seed spitting contest

Music by Krab Louie

IN THE PARK……

Beacon Lutheran face painters and clown
Mr. Lieu’s calligraphy
Mike Carney’s balloons
Water balloon tossing
Drawings by Aram

For more information or to volunteer, please contact Jon at 206-328-8310 or jongould@cablespeed.com.

Georgetown's Newest Loft Project

2008-07-13T20:18:00.000-07:00

Clean lines. Recycled building materials. Efficient use of space.

Already sold!

"Eclectic Urban Oasis ... close to all the hip Georgetown action!"

Honestly, when I first saw this, I wasn't sure if it was a joke or an actual sales pitch for some new townhouse project. The language used in some of the real press materials for these places sounds just like that.

From a June 18 ek Real Estate Group press release (first mocked at Blogging Georgetown):

The Rebel Is Yelling: Georgetown Development Asserts Community's Gutsy Energy

Sales of Five Industrial Georgetown Lofts Begin

Anyone who steps foot into the artsy community of Georgetown knows that it walks to the beat of its own bohemian marching band. The new Georgetown Lofts, developed by Murray Kahn of Gordian Development, at 6708 Corson Ave. South, is no different. Comprising five, two-bedroom lofts -- priced from the 300,000s -- these offer loft-like living with an edgy, "distinctly Georgetown" vibe.

...

Kahn believes buyers will be drawn to Georgetown's eclectic, tight-knit vibe, where residents and merchants alike are heavily involved in community associations, activities, and events. Larry Reid of Fantagraphic Books says of the area, "The city is in danger of losing its soul, and right now, Georgetown is the soul of Seattle. Georgetown is the last outpost for the blue-collar, bohemian, industrial arts community in Seattle."

So buy some soul before it's all gone?

Photos from Today's Georgetown Art and Garden Walk

2008-07-13T15:33:00.000-07:00

Monstero! Our friend Kevin, a Beacon Hiller, helped build this thing.

I haven't posted anything about James Paroline, a casualty of a terrifying hostility that seems to plague Southeast Seattle more than anywhere else in the city.

The 60-year-old man was a passionate gardener, a Vietnam vet, and possibly a bit of a neighborhood curmudgeon who lived down by Kubota Garden. Wednesday night he was tending to the plants in the traffic circle he'd pushed for, and he put up some traffic cones where his hose stretched across the street, indicating to drivers that they should proceed the other way around the circle while he finished his work.

I haven't read all the stories about what exactly went down, but it sounds like some young women in a car got upset that they were being asked to drive on the other side of the circle, so they got out of the car and started arguing with him. When one of them started moving the cones herself, he squirted her with his hose. (I'm not sure what to make of different stories I've heard about whether or not he pushed one of the girls, whether they stomped on his plants, and whether one of them called her mom, who then had a young man come out to take care of things.)

Anyway, a young man in his 20s got out of his car, and punched Paroline in the face so hard that he fell backward onto the pavement, cracking his skull. The young man, still unidentified, then left the scene, leaving the older man lying there, bleeding and unconscious. He died from his injuries in the hospital the following day.

Oh, this is a sad story to have inserted into these photos of the garden tour. Here's the P-I story about a vigil held by neighbors for the man.

Anyway, the Georgetown gardener paying tribute to Paroline today had an especially lovely garden.

Jules Maes Now Serving Weekend Breakfast

2008-07-13T15:31:00.000-07:00

This morning we acted on a rumor that Jules Maes is now serving breakfast on weekends. It turned out to be true -- 10 to 3 on Saturdays and Sundays.

Georgetown Art and Garden Walk This Sunday

2008-07-06T20:00:00.001-07:00

I'll bring a better camera than I did last year:

Transpo Event on Saturday, Possible Changes to the 36 Next Year

2008-07-06T19:48:00.000-07:00

This Saturday, Sustainable South Seattle is hosting a "hands-on event where you and your neighbors work with transportation experts for a climate-friendly future." Register for free attendance at http://www.climatedialogues.org.

Here's the deal:

More walkable neighborhoods. Better Bus Service. Dedicated Bike Lanes. Regional Rapid Transit.

Build support for transportation improvements underway in your neighborhood. Imagine and plan for an economical and environmentally-friendly transportation future. Learn about key climate actions regionally and nationally. Learn how to make your voice heard by elected officials and policy makers.

"This is a great opportunity for Southeast Seattle to take a leadership role." -- Senator Adam Kline

When: July 12, 2008, 10 am - 2 pm (doors open 9:30 am)
Where: New Freeway Hall, 5018 Rainier Ave S. (4 blocks south of S. Alaska)

Food and drink provided (bring your own mug!)
Free admission – Donations accepted.

Space is limited. Please RSVP online at http://www.climatedialogues.org to reserve your spot.

Climate Action Labs are a project of the Seattle Climate Dialogues and Northwest Environmental Education Council, with help from WSU Extension and TGreen Consulting.

Participants to include:

Bikes: Virginia Coffman of SDOT/Bike Master Plan
Ped: Lisa Quinn (ED of Feet First)
Transit: Jack Whisner (senior transp planner at KC Metro and also Sierra Club/TCC activist)
Funding/Tolling: Michael McGinn (ED of Seattle Great City Initiative)
Land Use: Sara Nikolic (Urban Strategies Director at Futurewise)
Climate: Phil Mitchell

In other transpo news, Roger Pence, a community outreach coordinator for Link light rail, recently wrote to the Beacon Hill Slumberland mailing list about some Route 36 changes that Metro is contemplating to go along with the opening of light rail next year. Here's the bulk of his comments:

Metro is contemplating moving the south terminus from Rainier Beach to the Link station at MLK & Othello. Southbound Route 36 buses would turn east on Myrtle to a new turnaround loop at the Othello Station. The trolleybus wires would be extended for this connection.

Given that travel time to downtown on the rail will be half or better than that of the 36 bus, it is reasonable to expect that many riders will voluntarily transfer, whether at the Beacon Hill station (at Lander St.) or at Othello Station at MLK & Othello. But for those who don't mind the leisurely ride, a direct bus ride will still be there. Riders transferring at Lander St. should also provide more empty seats on the 36 for those riders on the north end of the hill. The elevator ride down to the trains will take about 20 seconds, and the trains will arrive every 6 minutes during rush hours (10 minutes midday). Riders will voluntarily decide whether the transfer is worth it to them. Travel time on the rail from Beacon Hill Station to the Pioneer Square Station, estimated 8 minutes. To Westlake Station, estimated 12 minutes.

If the south terminus of the 36 is moved to Othello Station, the south end of the 36 (south of Myrtle) would be covered by another route, most likely the 106. Every Beacon Hill bus rider would still have available a direct, no transfer ride, to downtown. And the contemplated changes in the 38 would lengthen and strengthen that route (but it won't be extended to First Ave. until we get an overpass over the railroad tracks at Lander St.; otherwise the buses are hostage to BNSF train traffic).

And no, Route 36 ridership does not exceed what is expected on the rail line. The most recent data I've seen show about 9,000 daily riders on the 36. Sound Transit is projecting 42,000 daily riders on the initial segment of Link light rail, a projection made, btw, when gasoline was running below $2/gallon.

Rainier Valley Post Trying to Follow Up on Aki Kurose MS Assaults

2008-07-03T07:58:00.001-07:00

Kudos to the Rainier Valley Post for e-mailing Seattle Public Schools with the questions we all have about the recent student-on-student sexual assault and the instructor-on-student sexual assault at Aki Kurose Middle School.

Here are the questions she's asked.

Regarding alleged staff-on-student sexual assault (2006-08):

1. Where was the teacher during the alleged two years of abuse? If students noticed, took photos and were concerned enough to tell their parents, how is it that the teacher wasn't aware?

2. In light of the recent alleged student-on-student assault, is Aki Kurose having supervision issues? Are there enough adults there to teach and keep children safe?
What was the timeline of events here? When did school officials become aware there was a problem? Who/when reported to police?

3. Who saw what and on what date did they report it and to whom did they report it?
On what date was Urrutia was pulled from the classroom and placed on paid administrative leave?

Regarding alleged student-on-student sexual assault (6/11/08):

1. Why didn't SPS employees didn't call 911, since District spokeswoman Patti Spencer claims that district protocol is for officials to call police "immediately" when a sexual assault occurs on campus?

2. Does the district plan to investigate the school official's failure to call 911 or reach police directly when the girl reported to them that she was raped? If so, when will the investigation begin and how long is it expected to take? If no, why not?

3. This report comes one year to the day after a 15-year-old student at Rainier Beach High School was raped by a classmate and school officials failed to filed a report, and at a time when SPS is investing millions in failing SE schools as part of SE Initiative. Is SPS staff confused about the district's policy? Are there any plans to clarify for all SPS staff?

I'll keep checking the Rainier Valley Post for a followup post; you should too.

Police on Illegal Fireworks: Don't Worry, You Won't Get into Trouble

2008-07-03T07:28:00.001-07:00

Today there are big stories in both dailies about how the Seattle Police Department doesn't plan to cite anyone for illegal fireworks use this weekend.

In the Times:

Jamieson conceded that if police encounter fireworks, it's likely officers will merely confiscate them and not make an arrest.

And the P-I:

To possess fireworks sold on Washington Indian reservations is to commit a federal crime. But fireworks offenders rarely receive even a slap on the wrist.

Seattle police spokesman Mark Jamieson said the department's standard practice is to seize fireworks they come across without issuing citations.

"Typically officers will just confiscate," Jamieson said. "If there's a crime associated with it or people are using the fireworks to blow up something, then it's a different matter."

And they're also telling people not to call 911 with reports of illegal fireworks use. (And please don't. Save those calls for when someone gets hurt or when a house catches on fire. Don't tie up the lines unless there's an immediate danger.)

According to the P-I, SPD spokesman Mark Jamieson said, "residents with fireworks complaints should call their area's non-emergency lines, which are listed in the phone book."

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I won't even bother listing that number here for you. (OK, what the hell, it's 206-625-5011.) If you're reporting a rape at gunpoint, you might get a call back sometime during the next business day. I highly doubt they'll be following up on fireworks reports that they wouldn't even cite someone for if they saw them with their own eyes.

***Update: I changed my mind. I think you SHOULD call the non-emergency number with fireworks reports. If you call the non-emergency number, I promise to follow up with the SPD next week and ask them how they're using those reports, which they specifically asked the public to make.

So I can't see why you'd want to waste your time leaving a message at that number, unless after the fact the police planned to analyze the numbers of calls they received from different areas and use them to help dedicate July 4 resources more proportionally in the future. (But I kind of doubt it, as the SPD doesn't seem to be terribly good at dealing with the metrics it's already collecting...)

Besides, they already know where the problem areas are. The increasingly awesome Rainier Valley Post has reported that the police are closing three parks here in Southeast Seattle "due to a "history of violence and pretty severe vandalism" starting in the mid-afternoon on July 4. These are the only three parks in the city that will be closed tomorrow.

The RVP is also reporting that many community members support the temporary closures. A spokesperson for Friends of Othello Park has described past July 4 situations at the park like this:

All the violence in the park culminated in one of the worst shoot outs with more than 50 rounds fired. Bullets were flying every where and into neighbor's houses and hitting parked cars. A man was killed in the park that night and the suspects are still at large. The year before pitbull dogs were seen hanging from trees from their jaws. It is an ugly sight to see.

Try to stay safe tomorrow, folks. Save your 911 calls for shootouts, killings, injuries, fires, and dogs hanging from trees. (And keep your fingers crossed for a little more rain!)

Baja Bistro Bar

2008-07-03T07:03:00.001-07:00

I hadn't been to Baja Bistro in months and months, so Tuesday was the first time I'd seen their new bar. Looks nice!

Help Improve the 36

2008-07-02T08:10:00.000-07:00

I would be eternally grateful if Beacon Hill residents joined this board and advocated for much-needed improvements on the 36 route.

http://transit.metrokc.gov/up/announce/soundingboard.html

Metro Transit, Sound Transit seek advisory group members

Help form recommendations about bus service and connections to Link light rail

King County Metro Transit and Sound Transit invite you to apply to serve on a community advisory board.

Metro and Sound Transit are considering changes to bus routes in the I-5 south corridor and in areas served by Link light rail, which will begin service in the summer of 2009. Changes might be made to provide bus connections to Link stations from neighborhoods, to improve bus service frequency and coverage, and to avoid duplication of service.

The transit agencies are forming two community advisory groups, called Transit Connections sounding boards. One sounding board will be in southeast Seattle (Rainier Valley, Skyway, West Hill and nearby areas), and one will be in southwest King County (Burien, Des Moines, SeaTac, Tukwila and nearby areas).

The sounding boards will provide advice early in the planning process about what changes would be best for local communities. They will make recommendations to transit agency staff and elected policymakers.

Approximately 30 transit riders and other community members will be selected to represent a broad cross-section of people who live, work, or go to school in the project areas.

The sounding boards will meet together on September 4 and 11, 2008. Then the boards will meet separately from October 2008 through February 2009. The sounding boards will meet together in March 2009 to make recommendations.

Bus routes in the project area: Metro Transit routes 7, 8, 9, 14-South, 32, 34, 35, 36, 38, 39, 42, 48, 60, 106, 107, 126, 128, 140, 154, 170, 174, 175, 180, 190, 191, and 194; and Sound Transit routes 560, 574, 577 and 594
How to apply

To apply for membership on a sounding board, please complete the application below and submit it by Thursday, July 31, 2008
The role of sounding board members

King County Metro Transit and Sound Transit are committed to working with communities as we consider possible changes to transit service in southeast Seattle and southwest King County. Sounding board members will play an important role throughout the planning process by:

* Participating in sounding board meetings between September 2008 and March 2009.
* Attending additional public meetings hosted by Metro Transit in local communities.
* Reviewing communities' transit needs with staff and providing transit riders' perspectives.
* Working together with other sounding board members to arrive at consensus recommendations about changes to bus service.
* Rainier Valley/Skyway/West Hill Sounding Board Meetings
6:30-8:30 p.m. at a location in the Rainier Valley unless otherwise noted
o September 4 and 11, meetings to be held in downtown Seattle
o October 15, 22, and 29
o November 12 and 19
o January 28
o February 11 and 25
o March 5 and 12, meetings to be held in downtown Seattle
* Southeast King County Sounding Board Meetings
6:30-8:30 p.m. at Foster High School in Tukwila unless otherwise noted
o September 4 and 11, meetings to be held in downtown Seattle
o October 16, 23, and 30
o November 13 and 20
o January 29
o February 12 and 26
o March 5 and 12, meetings to be held in downtown Seattle

Transit Connections Sounding Board Application Form

Please note: Sounding Board members cannot be employees of King County, King County Metro, or Sound Transit. If you think you might have a conflict of interest, such as contract work with the county or Sound Transit, please consult with the King County Board of Ethics before applying: 206-296-1586, www.kingcounty.gov/employees/ethics.

Complete and send this application by Thursday, July 31, 2008.

For more information, please contact:

Sarah Luthens, community relations planner
206-684-1154 TTY Relay: 711
Fax: 206-263-3489
sarah.luthens@kingcounty.gov

King County Department of Transportation
201 S. Jackson St., KSC-TR-0824
Seattle, WA 98104-3856.

Aki Kurose Middle School in the News Again

2008-07-02T06:18:00.000-07:00

Back in April, students on the playfield at Aki Kurose Middle School were witnesses to shooting on an adjacent street.

In June, a student was raped at what she believed was gunpoint by another student in the school bathroom. When she notified school administrators, they left a voice mail on the police non-emergency number and sent the students home.

Now the P-I is reporting that an instructor at the school has been accused of "sexually touching two female students over two years during an English language immersion class at Aki Kurose Middle School."

The timeline in the story is extremely vague. The most telling sentence is the last one:

"After one boy took pictures with his cell phone, the mothers visited the school, witnessed similar behavior and notified an administrator, documents say."

So weird. That part makes it sound like school administrators were notified before the police were. However, another part of the story says that "Seattle Public Schools spokesman David Tucker said Urrutia was pulled from the classroom and placed on paid administrative leave earlier this year as soon as police disclosed the criminal investigation." I guess the administrators knew but didn't do anything about it until police got involved?

Anyway, kids, if you want to report sex crimes at Aki Kurose and have someone take you seriously, please try to obtain some photographic evidence. Also, remember that you can use your camera cell phone to call 911 yourselves. It's not like the school officials there, or your parents, are necessarily going to do it for you.

There's actually another story about Aki Kurose and two other South Seattle schools in yesterday's P-I. It's about the Southeast Initiative, which would spend $7 million on improvements to Aki Kurose, Cleveland High, and Rainier Beach High.

But school board vice president Michael DeBell is wondering whether these three schools really need that much help.

"It's a pretty expensive proposition we have now," the P-I reported him as sayinbg. "Part of it is just a question of scale. Do we need to have all these interventions simultaneously?"

I'm guessing his kids are not at Aki Kurose.

Seattle Police Department and My Neighborhood Map

2008-07-01T11:22:00.000-07:00

In case heard me on the radio today and wanted to see the posts about Seattle.gov's My Neighborhood Map program and the Seattle Police Department's crime statistics, here they are:

SPD Crime Data: ? (Jan. 26)
SPD Crime Data: Still Screwy (Mar. 30)
Seattle.gov's Neighborhood Crime Into: Totally Inaccurate (June 27)

Please note that everyone I've talked to at the city has been really, really nice. I think they're doing their best with limited resources. And I have not had a chance to follow up with the SPD yet (I work full-time and am having a baby in seven weeks, so this little research project has not been a huge priority for me lately).

I mentioned that watching "The Wire" helped prompt my interest in this subject, but I have found absolutely no evidence of corruption or anything like that. It's possible that there's a perfectly good explanation about why the mid-December matricide incident was not showing up in the December numbers last time I checked (even though the woman was pronounced dead at the scene and the King County Medical Examiner's office quickly ruled it a homicide).

My suspicion is that there is a fair amount of clerical error at the SPD and at the city, and that's why the numbers are off.

What I'd like to see:

-- More transparency in the crime statistics. For instance, when the mayor's office announces there were 24 murders in 2007, maybe they could include a link to the names of the victims, or at least the dates of the incidents.

-- More information about how the numbers are collected and what they mean. What does it take for a murder to be counted in the reports as a homicide? I would think that the county medical examiner's word would be good enough. Surely they're not waiting until someone's been convicted in court? Anyway, just a little FAQ that addresses these questions would be great.

-- Independent action by the major news media. Instead of waiting for the mayor to come out with a press release about the number of murders in 2007 and parroting that in a news story, why not go through your own archives and tally up the numbers for yourselves?

-- QA on the published info. If you mix up all the August numbers with all the September numbers, well, someone should catch that. And it should be called out on the site.

-- Better disclaimers about the inaccuracy of the information. If you know it's wrong, just say so. Or take it down until it can be fixed.

Kusina Filipina Mural

2008-07-01T06:27:00.000-07:00

I posted some photos of this as a work in progress; now here's the finished work:

Snapshots from the Inaugural Sunday Supper at the Corson Building

2008-06-29T21:54:00.000-07:00

After peeking through the fence so many times, it was fun to finally get a chance to eat at the Corson Building.

They've come a long way since the start of the year. January:

Yesterday:

Sunday nights they're doing a fixed-menu, family-style meal -- Sunday Suppers. Tonight was the first.

They served dinner outside.

They encouraged us to walk around before dinner, and they brought us oysters and iced tea. We ended up sitting by that cool, good-looking couple in the photo, at left. And we sat across from the Belle & Wissel owner and his wife (another cool, good-looking couple), and Curt Doughty, whose photographs are part of the "Accidents Will Happen" exhibit that's there right now. (He's also cool, also good-looking, etc. The whole table was a pretty attractive bunch, and I bet they all vote regularly and clean up after their dogs too.)

While everyone else toured the grounds, I loitered near the table so I could grab one of the seats with its own chair. If you looked like the freaking Venus of Willendorf, as I do now, you'd understand.

Dinner was amazing, of course. I forgot what all we had, though I do remember rabbit liver pate, rabbit legs, king salmon, lovage, fava beans, ham and apple salad, morel mushrooms, baby carrots, strawberries, and fancy cheese.

I want to come here for dinner every Sunday night.

Photos from Artopia

2008-06-28T20:28:00.001-07:00

We stopped by Artopia very early in the day today, and I took some pictures.

I loved the Engine Room exhibits, above, and I also loved Bruce Christian Andersen's Carnaval de Monstruos exhibit at Georgetown Tile Works. I hope it sticks around a while; I want to see it again.

The Eagles!

I've been ready for Via Tribunali to open for months now.

The Corson Building too. And we have reservations there tomorrow night.

Seattle.gov's Neighborhood Crime Info: Totally Inaccurate

2008-06-27T22:01:00.001-07:00

Last Friday I took the day off and finally followed up on a March post in which I questioned the crime data on the Seattle.gov website's "My Neighborhood Crime Statistics Map" section. I met with Terry Wittman, the manager for the My Neighborhood Map program.

And, yep, it's all screwed up. I totally stand by my original warnings:

I'm sure Wittman's doing her best with the resources available to her. (And, as with most of my meetings at the Municipal Building, I came away feeling not angry but sorry for the people working with such large goals and small staffs -- in her case, two.) But, still, with such wildly flawed results, I wonder how valuable the program really is.

She couldn't tell me exactly why all the numbers I checked up on seemed off, but she had some suggestions, which I'll outline below. She also referred me to Shanna Christie, the head data coordinator at the Seattle Police Department. I have yet to contact her; in fact, I have yet to decide if I want to bother to contact her. This whole thing depresses me.

1. The SPD sometimes has negative numbers for certain crimes in a given month, but the My Neighborhood Crime Statistics Map people ignore these numbers. Negative numbers for crimes are listed if, say, a death listed as a murder in February is found to be accidental in March. The SPD would list that as a +1 for homicide in February and a -1 for homicide in March. However, the My Neighborhood Crime Statistics Map only lists positive numbers; "we don't graph the negatives," Wittman said.

2. The system involves a lot of manual spreadsheet futzing, and this leads to error. For example, Wittman said she thought she accidentally inverted all the crime statistics for the months of August and September 2007, and that's why my neighbor's murder wasn't showing up under September. Oops.

3. There is no QA. She and I looked to see if my neighbor's murder was showing up yet -- she thought it would be listed correctly now -- but it wasn't. And she doesn't know why. There is no one looking over the numbers that are posted to the site. She didn't even realize she'd mixed up all the August numbers with all the September numbers until she saw my post.

4. The SPD posts census tract information using 1990 census tracts instead of 2000 census tracts, like the My Neighborhood Map program does. Wittman said this shouldn't make any difference with Beacon Hill numbers (because our tracts haven't changed), but she does have to do some extra calculations for other neighborhoods. I can only imagine this introduces new levels of error.

So anyway. That gave me some insight as to why the My Neighborhood Crime Statistics Map information can't be trusted at all. But I still don't know why, for instance, the SPD doesn't list this murder in its numbers for December 2007.

I got the feeling that the SPD might have its own issues with data. Wittman explained that it's a very paper-oriented process, with each precinct sending its own numbers to Central, where they are then collated. Apparently they've been making the move to a new computerized system all year long, but they still haven't figured it all out yet, and that's why halfway through this year the SPD site is still saying "Statistics available through December, 2007."

So, basically, don't trust the numbers you see at Seattle.gov. They might be right, they might be wrong -- you'll never know.

Living Near Jose Rizal Park

2008-06-27T17:53:00.000-07:00

Today I got an e-mail from a young woman who was planning to rent a house right by Jose Rizal Park with a couple of friends. She's now wondering if they should look for a safer area to live.

I believe she and her roommates plan to park on the street some of the time. Would they be safe walking around that area after dark?

I know there's a lot of car prowls in the area (aren't there?), but that's true of many neighborhoods in Seattle. Their main concern is safety, of course, but it is a pain to deal with car break-ins all the time too.

Does anyone have any advice for this group?

Fifth Sexual Assault This Month Near the Jungle

2008-06-24T08:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday a 21-year-old woman was beaten, choked until unconscious, and raped in the Jose Rizal dog park at the north end of Beacon Hill, by the Jungle. This makes at least the fifth sexual assault in this area this month. (See previous post.) Neighborhood activists are asking that women not visit the dog park alone at this time.

A work party is being held this Saturday, 6/28, at 9:00 to cut down some of the brush that allowed the perpetrator to hide until the victim was in close range.

No story on this has been posted at the P-I or Times yet; here is the Q13 story.

Four Sexual Assaults Around the Jungle Already This Month

2008-06-21T10:32:00.000-07:00

Well, at least four. You have to assume that a lot of assaults around the Jungle go unreported.

The P-I story.

It's hard to know what to say about this. The attacks occurred around the Jungle, a collection of illegal homeless camps in the greenbelt on the northern slopes of Beacon Hill. There's been a lot of outrage from some citizens lately about the city's efforts to remove all the personal belongings along with the debris (human waste, garbage, drug paraphernalia, etc.) from the area. But the city's shelters can't hold all these people, and many of them don't want to stay in shelters anyway.

I'm not sure what the best way is to express concern that these camps may be helping to create an atmosphere that allows for dangerous drug use and rampant sexual violence. I know that I especially hate waiting for the loathsome 36 across from Jose Rizal Park, where the other waiting passengers are often drugged up and really loud and angry and unpredictable and kind of scary. I used to work up there and had to be extra careful when there was a Jungle rapist on the loose.

But it's uncharitable to want to see the Jungle camps removed until the city provides housing for everyone.

Anyway, I obviously have no solution to offer, so I shouldn't say anymore, lest I open myself up for personal attacks. When Beacon Hill blogger Craig Thompson wrote about the situation in the Jungle for the P-I last December, he got a scathing response from Real Change publisher Tim Harris, who called it "fantasy." When Thompson invited Harris to take a walk there with him to see for himself what Thompson described in the article, Harris said, "I briefly considered accepting your offer just so I could get you alone in the woods so a group of homeless people could kick your ass for denying them the right to survive, but my core beliefs in non-violence rendered that strategy unfeasible."

Everyone should feel free to comment on what's happening around the homeless camps, but please, no threats of violence, even if joking. There's enough real violence going on that comments like that aren't very funny.

Green Space Levy Should Go Toward Green Space

2008-06-20T15:43:00.000-07:00

The Jefferson Park Alliance is asking for our help. A City Council committee is working to put a parks and green spaces levy on the ballot in the fall. Unfortunately, even if the levy ends up on the ballot, Jefferson Park and other Southeast parks will still get the shaft unless we can help shape the levy now.

The money currently earmarked for Jefferson Park would barely cover the increased cost of expenses that were already approved in the Pro Parks Levy. In other words, in this $120 million levy, Jefferson Park gets nothing new. However, almost one-tenth of the entire levy would go to building (not green space) upgrades at the Asian Art Museum, including air conditioning. I mean, that's all well and good that the Seattle Art Museum's visitors and collection should be kept cooler, except why should the funding come out of a green space levy, when there's such little money for green space as it is?

Read more about the levy here.

Anyway, the Jefferson Park Alliance is asking that you read the letter below and e-mail parksandgreenspaceslevy@seattle.gov BEFORE TUESDAY, JUNE 24th.

You can contact the Jefferson Park Alliance at JPAlliance@hotmail.com with questions, or post them here.

Hi Neighbors

I am an advocate for the green levy being put together under Council auspices through a 22-member volunteer committee. I am advocating that $3.6 million more be added for Jefferson Park on there (total of $7.6 million), and another $1.8 for other SE Seattle projects that aren't on the list yet. I got really excited about the levy by going to the Great City event at the downtown library earlier this year.

After sitting through the most recent meeting (Tuesday the 17th) I feel totally discouraged. The biggest project on the proposed levy list is to add air conditioning and seismic upgrades to the Asian Art Museum in Volunteer Park. The building is owned by Parks and operated by SAM. This project is currently targeted for $11 million, 9% of the total levy of $120 mil. Meantime, literally dozens of smaller parks projects that acquire and develop green space are being bumped off.

I really think that green space advocates need to cry "foul". I am sure SAM needs to get this work done somehow but I totally disagree with using our tiny open space levy for building projects. Air conditioning may be important for art, but there is nothing green about it.

Anyway, I am looking around for other sources of money for museum at the State and Federal level so we can spend our open space and parks money on things that will grow green.

Please write to your colleagues who are concerned about greening Seattle and ask them to request that this project come off the green levy and receive funding from a more appropriate source so we can get the parks projects built. The community center levy proposed for 2010 would be the right spot.

Write today! The last meeting of the committee is next Tuesday so your voice is important right now. Here is the levy committee e-mail:

parksandgreenspaceslevy@seattle.gov

Frederica Merrell
Jefferson Park Alliance

Beacon Solstice Bike Parade

2008-06-20T15:36:00.001-07:00

Some North Beacon neighbors are having an informal little bike parade tomorrow. Sounds like fun:

Come have some summer fun at the Beacon Solstice Bike Parade and Potluck, happening on Saturday, June 21st, 4-8pm! We'll gather on the 1700 block of Forest, btwn. 17th and 18th, 1 block east of Beacon Hill Library. There will be potluck dining, bike decorating, face painting, bike parading and live music!

Bring your bikes and a potluck dish to share with a crowd. We'll have drinks and dessert available. In the interest of greener entertainment, bring your own plates and silverware to cut down on paper products (we'll have extras if you forget).

Metro Route 12

2008-06-19T21:31:00.000-07:00

I've mentioned before how I don't like the loathsome 36. And the feeling seems mutual. I mean, I'll be standing right there, obviously waiting for it, but it'll pass me right by as if I didn't even exist. So rude!

Today I took the bus from downtown up to 19th Avenue East. I caught the lovely 12.

Even at 5:25 p.m. at 4th and Marion, everyone could find their own seat.

As we went up Madison, the driver played a prerecorded message for us. It was from some Metro goofball, explaining that the high price of gasoline had increased ridership. He apologized for the overcrowded conditions and promised that they'd be adding larger buses to popular routes in the fall.

I wondered why the hell they were playing that tape on this particular bus. Because here we are on Madison, at the peak of rush hour, before we even turned onto 19th, near the fancy pants part of Capitol Hill.

I left my bus pass at home and the smallest bill I had on me was a $5, and I didn't even mind handing it over because the smooth, fast, uncrowded ride was better than a cab ride.

It's not like this is news to anyone here, but those of us only served by the 36 are getting totally screwed.

Isn't Manny's Beautiful?

2008-06-19T21:28:00.000-07:00

Another Call to the South Precinct Non-Emergency Number

2008-06-19T16:47:00.000-07:00

Last time I had a noise complaint, I tried calling the South Precinct non-emergency number. But when I just got an automated response, I escalated my noise complaint to 911, per the instructions on the City of Seattle website.

But I guess the officials at Aki Kurose Middle School (whose playfield users were witness to some shooting a couple months ago) just aren't as persistent as I am. When a 14-year-old student reported to school officials that she had been raped at gunpoint by another student during school hours last week, they just dutifully left a message on that South Precinct non-emergency voice mailbox and waited for the police to call them back the next day.

The story in the P-I, in the Times.

(Honey, are you reading this? Screw the fancy nursery furnishings. Let's start saving for private school now.)

Today's Neighborhood Events

2008-06-14T09:03:00.000-07:00

Georgetown Music Fest.

Georgetown Art Attack.

Maple School Greenbelt Restoration. I should have posted about this weeks ago -- sorry! Here are the details.

Restoration Kickoff Party!
Maple School Natural Area, Beacon Hill
Hosted by the Northwest Environmental Education Council

Saturday, June 14 ~ 10 A.M. – 2 P.M.

Come celebrate the newest addition to our "restoration family" - the Maple School Natural Area! Devastated by ivy and blackberry, this pedestrian corridor and greenspace is in need of some community TLC.

Get outside and join us for an afternoon of food, fun, and good ol' hands-on restoration! Bring your work gloves, comfortable clothes, a water bottle, and lunch. We'll provide tools, snacks, and extra water.

The park is located at the corner of S. Lucile St & 18th Ave. South. Parking is on the street on Lucile or 18th.

Who Knows, Just Allow Them to Get Involved

2008-06-10T21:09:00.000-07:00

I came across an interesting Beacon Hill post in a blog about transit-oriented development in Seattle.

Case in point: Beacon Hill, a low density neighborhood minutes from downtown with phenomenal potential for views. They’ve got a new branch library and Jefferson Park is a stone’s throw away. And they’ve got a light rail station set to open in a year. So what is the prospect for [transit-oriented development] in Beacon Hill?

...

There ain’t no way to turn this neighborhood into a transit-oriented community that can properly support the multi-billion dollar investment [the light-rail station] that has been dropped in its lap without upzoning a good deal of single-family properties. And that is going to be uncomfortable for many people in Seattle. The residents in Beacon Hill have come a long way since the mid-1990’s: at a recent neighborhood charrette some local residents agreed to going up to 85’ at the Red Apple site, and upzoning all along Lander Street to create an east-west neighborhood commercial corridor. This is all a good start, but a long way from what the city, the region, and the transit system needs to happen in this station area. So…how do we get the neighborhood to support a much more significant upzone? And if the neighborhood can’t get there, how does a city infamous for lengthy process and compromise do the upzone anyway?

I agree with the thrust of the post, and the blog -- that urban growth should be concentrated, and that means increasing density, starting near commercial areas and transit hubs. (But, please, could we please have a taste of some big-city amenities, like organic groceries and a restaurant with a wine list, before we get a bunch of ugly-ass eight-story condos?)

Still, as a Beacon Hill resident, I can't help but be put off by some of the condescending commentary. I came away from the post feeling not like "wow, they really make an enticing case for our neighborhood to pursue upzoning by the light-rail station" but more like "we better watch our butts because it sounds like these people want to come down here and give us a spanking!"

Some of the comments:

--This is obscene. They really need to be building AT LEAST 6-8 story buildings around the station.

--Leave the Beacon Hill station shuttered until residents will agree to extensive upzoning in exchange for its opening.

--Maybe even go as far as opening the station, get people used to it, then threaten to take it away unless they upzone.

--Some will come kicking and screaming [to high-density, transit-oriented neighborhoods] when they tire of the gas prices.

--We need to show [Beacon Hill residents] the beauty that density can bring and even let them help design it. Perhaps letting them put in a nice community square near the station (with new Pro-Parks funds?) or a very specific zoning area for where they want commercial vs. residential, or allowing them to put in increased sidewalks or designate specific design criteria for certain areas. Who knows, just allow them to get involved and imagine their own little European vista up on the hillside.

Beacon Hill Festival

2008-06-07T21:50:00.001-07:00

It took longer than we thought to put a coat of paint on the baby's room, so we barely made it to the Beacon Hill Festival before it closed.

The silent auction was pretty quiet.

The gym was livelier, with the last dance performance of the day, by the Jefferson Community Center Breakdancers.

Outside they were serving burgers.

So I got one.

Rosso Nursery had a stand there.

Someone bought some Ceanothus from them, as I did a couple years back.

Coincidentally, we're painting the baby's room a similar color to this. We're having a girl, and we chose blue for her room. Not to be contrary or anything -- I just couldn't imagine hanging out in a pink, yellow, or green room. Plus, I think the cool blue will look great next to the orange-ish oak floor.

Does this seem harsh or reasonable? I can't decide.

After the festival, we went looking for a new dresser. Me looking pregnant at Chartreuse.

And at Inform.

We didn't find a dresser. But we did finish the last coat of paint in the room.

Beacon Hill Festival Today

2008-06-07T09:06:00.000-07:00

Stop by the Jefferson Community Center between 11 and 4 today for the Beacon Hill Festival. I'll try to stop by and post some photos later if I finish my housepainting project in time.

You Have Until 6/11 to Comment on the Christian Restoration Center

2008-06-03T20:52:00.000-07:00

You have about a week left to make public comments about traffic, parking, and environmental issues related to the development at the Christian Restoration Center. There will be at least one more design review meeting later on, but this is your one and only shot at raising concerns specifically related to traffic, parking, and other environmental issues associated with this large-scale project.

Submit your comments here: http://web1.seattle.gov/dpd/luib/Notice.aspx?BID=319&NID=8153.

From a neighbor's e-mail about the situation:

As some of you may have noticed, the white sign is up at the former Christian Restoration Center building on 15th Ave, indicating the start of the 14-day public comment period (you may have also gotten a letter from the Seattle Dept. of Planning and Development regarding this). Based on what the DPD project manager told me (see below), we have until June 11 to comment on traffic, parking, and environmental issues from the project. This is the public's only chance to do so. At the prior meeting in March, it was clear that many in the neighborhood, while pleased with the general direction of the project, are concerned about the potential traffic congestion and parking problems from such a large complex, particularly at the bottleneck turning off 15th Ave S onto S Oregon St. Please let the DPD know your opinions by going to the following DPD link: http://web1.seattle.gov/dpd/luib/Notice.aspx?BID=319&NID=8153.

And here's the DPD's e-mail about it:

The process will proceed as follows (give or take!):

*Report of the meeting will be published and sent to all that attended the Early Design Guidance meeting, 3/11;
*The applicants will move forward to MUP stage and submit full plan sets and a design package that responds to the Board's guidance from the 3/11 meeting. A two week public comment period will open when the MUP application is accepted by DPD, which is when the public will have an opportunity to comment on traffic, parking, and environmental issues relative to the project. Notice of application will be posted on DPD LUIB website, and residents within 300 feet of the project will be mailed the notice and alerted that they may then comment on the proposal, http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/Notices/Land_Use_Information_Bulletin/;
*The project will go to the Design Review Board once again (perhaps two more times, depending on the response to earlier guidance), and the public will have another chance to meet with the applicant and Board to see the progress of overall design;
*The Board will make final recommendations for the project and the applicant will be expected to address those recommendations;
*The entire process could take up to another 10 months or so, and as a recap will entail one public comment period and one more public meeting.

Feel free to stay in touch for status updates. I'm in the office M-F, 6:30-4:00 p.m., off every other M.

Best,
Catherine

----------------------------------------------
Catherine McCoy, Land Use Planner
Seattle Department of Planning and Development
700 5th Ave Suite 2000
PO Box 34019
Seattle WA 98124-4019

Phone: (206) 684-0532
Fax: (206) 233-7902

catherine.mccoy@seattle.gov
www.seattle.gov/dpd

Here's one neighbor's review of the design meeting from a few months ago.

Here's a link to a Stranger blog post about the project.

And you should really check out this big long picture-filled PDF with architect plans for the space. You'll find sketches like this one, their "Scheme 2" proposal: