Halloween is just around the corner. It’s a fun time for adults and children alike. But it can be a traumatic and even dangerous time for your pets.  Seattle Animal Shelter Director Don Jordan offers the following tips to keep Halloween from being a fright for pets and trick-or-treaters:

• Don’t leave your pets out in the yard on Halloween. There are too many stories of vicious pranksters who have teased, injured, stolen, or even killed pets on this night.

• Trick-or-treat candies are not for pets. Chocolate is poisonous to dogs and tin foil and cellophane candy wrappers can be hazardous if swallowed.

• Watch out for the ‘lethal wagging tails’ or curious kittens near lit pumpkins or other flames. Pets can knock them over and cause a fire or burn injuries to your pet and people.
• Don’t dress your animals in costumes unless you know they love it.  If you do dress them up, be careful not to obstruct their vision as even the sweetest dogs can get snappy when they can’t see what’s going on around them.

• Keep your dog(s) in a separate room during trick-or-treat visiting hours as too many strangers in strange garb can be scary for a dog.  If you are having an indoor party, keep pets in a room where they won’t be disturbed or frightened by costumes.

• Make certain your pet is wearing a pet license in case your cat or dog darts out through an open door.

For more information, check the website of the Seattle Animal Shelter: http://www.seattleanimalshelter.org.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is leading a new effort to remodel KeyArena and bring another NBA team to Seattle as soon as 2010, reports the Seattle PI. “It should be noncontroversial, because it’s a city-only tax that already exists and will not be an increase,” said Deputy Mayor Tim Ceis. He said that the city would not spend the $300 million in renovations until a NBA team is committed to move here. The plan needs approval from the legislature.

The off-ramp from northbound Aurora Avenue at Halladay Street, known to many as the Queen Anne exit, will be closed from about 7 a.m. Saturday until sometime Sunday while a concrete panel is replaced. Traffic will be detoured to the exit across the Ship Canal at Bridge Way North in Fremont, and motorists can then circle around and return south on Aurora. Bummer!

The Queen Anne exit ramp will be reopened after the concrete has had sufficient time to cure. The Queen Anne on-ramp to Aurora will remain open.

Jamba Juice has been a welcome addition to the Queen Anne business community for 10 years.

Sadly, a sign in the window of Jamba Juice, located at the top of Queen Anne Ave., near Caffeine Corner, announces that this business is closing their doors on December 16, 2008.  The owners have decided to move to downtown Seattle at the end of their lease.   

According to the announcement,

After 10 years of service on Queen Anne, Jamba Juice will be closing on December 16, 2008.

We sincerely thank each and every one of you for your patronage and support over the years and look forward to seeing you at one of our nearby locations.

Queen Anne residents will have to find an alternative after soccer games.  Jamba, which means “celebrate,” was enjoyed by many who yearned for fresh and flavorful fruit drinks.  For years Jamba Juice made it really easy to for people to enjoy their fresh and tasty treats.  They even delivered to the curb.  

Queen Anne’s most exquisite restaurant has just changed executive chefs. Aaron Wright is moving to California, and Jason Franey — the sous chef from Eleven Madison Park in New York — is taking his place. So what about all those terrific Canlis recipes? “We’re not going to throw them away,” the Canlis brothers told the media at a press conference today. But they said some changes are coming. You can find out more about Franey’s style here, and the Seattle Times’ food writer explains more about today’s “reservations required” press conference at Canlis — a rare occurrence, for sure.

Is this a sign that the local economy is slowing way down?  A sign on the store of the locally-owned, fiercely independent Silver Platters on lower Queen Anne caught the eye of Sam, a reader who asked, “What’s going on with the For Lease signs at Silver Platters?  They just moved in.”

Silver Platters president Mike said that the lease taken by previous owners was “a bit too large for the current store.”  Does anyone really need a translation?

Kidder Matthews leasing agent says that the 14,174 sq. ft. building housing Silver Platters is available for lease or sale. They might consider splitting the space, but only if the new tenants want the majority share of the space.

Speculation regarding Silver Platters future continues. Shoppers hope that this Queen Anne store doesn’t go the way of the Southcenter store which closed its doors earlier this year.

In the meantime, shop local and get ready for the holiday season. Check out the Platter Chatter for upcoming specials. And readers, let us know if you hear of other stores in the area who are feeling the pain.

A number of Halloween activities are coming up in Queen Anne.  Bring out the gremlins and the goblins and walk through the upper Queen Anne business district for the annual “trick or treat” rush.  You won’t believe your eyes when you see a sea of 1,200 kids going through the street in 2 hours!  From 3 to 5 p.m., the stores hand out candy to the little (and sometimes not so little) ones.  Always a “rockin’” Queen Anne event.

Check out the Fall Carnival at the Queen Anne Community Center.  Bring your kids to a safe place to Trick or Treat on Friday, October 31st at 8 p.m. Games, face painting, and lots of goodies. Costumes are optional but encouraged!

The best thing that most people can say about the new transit lanes on 15th Ave is that they are confusing. We can’t really print the worst things that people have said about them.  And now the city says they plan to ticket drivers who are not following the rules.

Now you have a chance to tell the people who came up with the Business Access and Transit Lanes (the city calls them BAT) lanes exactly what you think of them.

The Magnolia Community Club is devoting its November General Meeting to a presentation from the Seattle Department of Transportation to the BAT lanes and how they are impacting commuters.  The meeting will include time for plenty of quesions from affected drivers. 

“We want the city to explain these BAT lanes. The vast majority of people I talk to believe the signage makes no sense.  We need to know where the idea for these lanes came from and what problem is being solved with them.  We just see them creating problems.  We need to let the city know how they are impacting drivers,” says Nancy Rogers, Magnolia Community Club president.

Rogers says the Community Club has been working with the city since the signs were first posted to seek logical access for commuters.  The city has indicated a desire to wait until the project was complete to further discuss whether the designs and lane restrictions make sense or create additional traffic congestion.  Rogers says now is that time.  

The meeting is set for Thursday, November 13 from 7pm to 9pm at Catherine Blaine School at 2550 34th Ave West n Magnolia and the public is invited.     

Neil Callahan was involved with Queen Anne soccer for many years as a coach and the president of the Queen Anne Soccer Club and the 13,000-member Seattle Youth Soccer Association.  His enthusiasm and dedication to youth soccer was never more evident than when he founded the spring soccer program in Seattle.  People never imagined that he could successfully develop this program which now regularly enrolls 3,000 players each spring.

Tragically Neil passed away from a heart attack last December at the age of 55. Seattle Pacific University is honoring Neil Callahan with a presentation to his family at halftime of the SPU v. Cal State LA game on November 1st beginning at 7:00 pm.  A raffle is being held to raise funds for the Neil Callahan Scholarship Fund.  Contributions to the Neil Callahan Scholarship Fund can be made online.

We reported earlier about Blue Highway Games, a unique, interactive environment for children and adults. Used games have been dropped off for the last few weeks and will be available for sale via a silent auction tomorrow (Sunday). A tentative schedule follows:

Noon – 1:00    Kids Games  
1:00 - 2:30     Family/Party Games
2:30 - 4:30     Strategy Games

Bells will sound every ½ hour to close certain sections of the silent auction, so that everyone will their chance to pick up a game at a reduced price.