Forty years ago, on March 8, 1970, over one hundred First Peoples and their supporters scaled the fences of the Fort Lawton Army Base. It was a peaceful takeover of land that was scheduled to be sold or given to the city as surplus.
The Seattle Police Department is investigating an explosion reported in Lower Queen Anne early this morning, Tuesday, March 9. According to the blotter, officers were called to the 100 block of W Olympic Pl. at approximately 1:12 a.m., and upon arrival found “what appeared to be debris from a homemade explosive device that had been detonated.”
There were no injuries reported as a result of the explosion, nor did any property appear to be damaged. Evidence was collected and Arson Bomb Squad detectives are currently investigating. Remnants of the explosive device are currently being processed by a print examiner for fingerprints.
Did anywhere hear the explosion or see the aftermath? Comment below.
Last month the Imperial Flag Football League changed its name to MVP Sports League and launched a new website in preparation for their upcoming spring 2010 season at the Interbay Athletic Complex.
As Seattle’s newest adult co-ed sports league (they were founded in 2009), MVP focuses on co-ed and men’s flag football, though they plan to also offer indoor and beach volleyball, softball, basketball and soccer leagues soon. Their target members? The “everyday and skilled athlete” 21 and over. And aside from being a fun activity for sporty adults, MVP also plans on playing sports for a good cause, participating in weekend tournaments and special charity events.
“We had such a successful and positive turnout to our first season, we knew we needed to restructure to look at the larger opportunities ahead,” President and Founding partner of MVP Sports League Patrick Crowthers said in a press release.
Get more information on MVP and their upcoming spring season offerings here.
The Queen Anne Merrill Gardens is hosting a Family Support discussion group this Saturday, March 13 from noon to 2 p.m. at 805 4th Ave N. Social Worker Cynthia Nava will be leading the talk, covering topics regarding aging, dementia and other family and senior issues. For more information, contact Kelly McBride at 206-284-0055.
Tonight is the fundraiser to help send Ballardite Tracey Higdon back to Haiti to help with the non-profit Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH). Higdon is on the left with a line of incoming patients behind her.
As we previously wrote, Higdon volunteered at the medical clinic last year long before the January earthquake. While there, she will manage the repair and re-painting of the medical clinic used by FOTCOH. The ten-year-old building is one of the last standing clinics in the region and Higdon says it will soon deteriorate if it is not properly sealed and repainted. “A blitz of patients,” Higdon says.
Her goal is to raise $6,000 which would cover her travel, supplies, and hire labor in Haiti. Higdon knows the team of workers she will hire and tells us that each one of them has lost their home.
Tracy isn’t the only one who could benefit from tonight’s event. There will be raffle prizes donated by local businesses including:
-Two night stay at the 4-star Edgewater Hotel
-Free 1-month memberships to the LA Fitness in Ballard
-Paint from Miller Paint in Ballard
-Dinner at Mulleady’s Irish Pub in Magnolia
-Deluxe home coffee supplies from Starbucks
-Free 2-hours of services from OhBeckAndCall
-Free design consultation from One Earth, One Design in Shoreline
-Wine from Laurelhurst Cellars
-Services from Halo Salon downtown
-Dinner at Volterra in Ballard
-Cookbooks from local chef Becky Selengut
and more….
The fundraiser is tonight from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Leary Traveler (4356 Leary Way NW.)
There’s been a lot of construction on Queen Anne Ave N recently, and according to SDOT, the work isn’t going to stop any time soon. SDOT has blocked off much of the sidewalk and street parking from the corner of Queen Anne Ave N and Boston St. all the way down the block to Nancy’s Sewing Basket at 2221 Queen Anne Ave N, while crews dig up the concrete sidewalk and repave.
Although the businesses along this stretch will remain open during the construction, which is expected to continue through Friday, March 19, parking will be blocked off alongside the work zone 24 hours a day through completion. The sidewalk is currently open to pedestrians.
If you’re traveling off the hill tomorrow, keep in mind there may be added traffic. The southbound right hand lane of the Aurora Bridge will be closed on Wednesday, March 10, from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. to allow Seattle Department of Transportation bridge crews to complete repairs on the underside of the bridge.
Many Quee Anne-ers caught a surprise fireworks show on Saturday night. For those of you who, like me, missed out on the action, we hear there’s another show planned over Elliott Bay on Saturday, March 27.
The West Seattle Blog is reporting that General Construction Company will be celebrating its centennial with some big lights at around 7:30 p.m. on the 27th. From the West Seattle Blog,
Coincidentally, that night is also this year’s date for “Earth Hour”– 8:30 pm, an hour after the calendar says the fireworks will be happening.
So there you have it. At 7:30 p.m., climb up to Kerry Park to catch the fireworks show, then go home and turn your lights off for the environment at 8:30. I’ll definitely be there!
(Thanks to the West Seattle Blog for digging this up!)
SDOT crews will be closing two of the three southbound lanes and the far left northbound lane of the Viaduct from 6 p.m. tonight, Monday, March 8, to 5 a.m. tomorrow in preparation for building an overhead “sign bridge” that will span the width of southbound SR 99 and hold an electronic message board. Drivers should expect delays at Ward St. just north of the Battery St. Tunnel.
This work is part of the Intelligent Transportation Systems project. The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is working in partnership with the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to bring more real-time traffic information to drivers on SR 99, and major routes leading to SR 99 in Seattle. The electronic message signs will provide drivers with traffic information such as construction closures, lane status and travel times. Six new electronic message signs will be installed on SR 99 from the First Avenue S. Bridge to N. 137th Street.
Installing real-time traffic information systems now will help keep Seattle moving during construction to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct in the near future.
Crews will install the actual sign bridge in the spring.
For more information on the the SR 99 Intelligent Transportation Systems click here.
After weeks of semi-finals, EMP|SFM’s Sound Off!, the largest underage battle of the bands in the Pacific Northwest, finally has a winner: Great Waves, the a five-piece ensemble from Sammamish.
As 1st Place Winners, Great Waves will get:
To perform at Bumbershoot this year
To give a live on-air performance on 1077 The End’s Locals Only
Have two days of studio time (including space use and engineer) at Orbit Audio
Produce one song with producer Glenn Lorbecki of Glenn Sound Studio
KORG equipment
Epiphone gear
Industry consultation from the Recording Academy
One song featured for sale in Rock Band through the Rock Band Network, the new suite of tools allowing bands to plug their original songs into the Rock Band game
Seattle’s newest community orchestra, Cadence Chamber Orchestra (CCO), will be performing at a free concert in Interbay this Thursday, March 11. The show starts at 8 p.m. at the Q Cafe, at 3223 15th Ave W. They will also be doing a free show the following day in Magnolia.
The program will feature two world premieres by Seattle-based composer Jon Brenner and will include Haydn’s well-known Symphony No. 88 and Mendelssohns Hebrides Overture.
Founded last year by a group of entirely volunteer musicians, the new alternative group hopes to widen the usual orchestral audience through its music, by giving those who otherwise wouldn’t have the chance to experience a live show the opportunity. The group plays free concerts throughout Seattle, performing each program at both an unconventional location, and a more typical performance space. Every concert also includes a world premiere piece alongside some more well known orchestral favorites.
Pedestrian and car traffic will be affected this week by continued construction on the Burke Gilman Trail in Fremont and the Ship Canal Trail near Seattle Pacific University in Queen Anne.
The Army Corps of Engineers “expects to continue work along the Burke Gilman trail through Tuesday, March 9, and also expects to start work this week on the south side of the canal, affecting the Ship Canal Trail.”
It is recommended that trail users follow detour signs. For more information contact Andrea Takash at the Army Corps of Engineers at (206) 764-3464.
Over the last week many in Queen Anne have taken a position concerning a new neighborhood business slated to open its door at the top of the hill next week. The new 5 Corners Mini Mart at 309 W McGraw St. has been mired in controversy since it unveiled signs in the windows advertising the sale of “discount cigarette” and “beer and wine” last week, immediately sparking debate among concerned community members, parents and business owners.
A number of Queen Anne residents argue that the store’s products will draw undesirable customers, increasing crime in the neighborhood and negatively influencing neighborhood kids. Some have started a petition to ban the 5 Corners’ liquor license application with the state on the grounds that it presents a general public safety risk. Others disagree wholeheartedly, noting that Ken’s Market just down the street, 7-Eleven on Queen Anne Ave N, and even a handful of local coffee shops sell alcohol and wine with absolutely no problems at all.
Last Wednesday an estimated 50 people packed into the most recent Queen Anne Community Council meeting to voice their opinions on the new business and discuss concerns with Nicon-McGraw building owner John Nicon and 5 Corners owner Steve Park, taking up half of the monthly meeting time.
“This is the most people that we’ve had at a meeting since I’ve been on the council,” said QACC councilmember Michael Lapin. “It’s one of those once every five years issues that get people to the meeting.”
At Wednesday’s meeting Park made strides to compromise with concerned community members, signing a document promising that he would not sell fortified beer and wine, which has a higher alcohol content, that many believe would draw the “chronically inebriated” to the neighborhood.
I spoke with Park at 5 Corners yesterday just before the signs in the window were replaced to read “Organic Ice Cream,” “Grocery and Beverages,” and “Organic Coffee.” Although Park admitted to being surprised by the reaction the community has had, he said he changed the sign in an effort to appease concerns and show the community that his store will be a “friendly neighborhood grocery.”
“You’ve got to respect the neighborhood,” he said. “I could understand their concern…it wasn’t their choice to tear the sign down. I said, ‘OK, if that signage is giving too much exposure, I’ll take it down.’ I did it for the kids.”
Still, although Park assured community members that he would not sell fortified alcohol or pornographic magazines at the meeting, the opposition has continued to mount.
Hilltop Yarn owner Jennifer Hill was one of the community members who attended Wednesdays’ meeting. An active member of the Upper Queen Anne Merchants Association, Hill said she stayed neutral on the issue of the mini mart during the discussion, focusing instead on a longtime issue among local business owners–what she calls “a very slow uptick in homelessness, vagrancy and chronic inebriation” in the neighborhood business district.
“As business owners, it’s a problem on two standpoints. From the human standpoint, when we see someone lying on the side of the road, that’s wrong and something should be done. From a public safety aspect, when people are being hassled in front of businesses, they don’t want to shop,” she said.
As a result Hill and the UQAMA are working on a project “to ask that any store in Queen Anne volunteer for a ban of fortified wine is liquor.”
Though Park gave his word to this point, re-branded his store with a more community-oriented feel, and emphasized that his store would focus on general groceries and not just alcohol and tobacco products, for many, his promise wasn’t enough. The petition flier (.pdf) asking the Washington State Liquor Control Board to deny the 5 Corners’ liquor license application cites the following in support of their argument,
While many community members welcomed the occupancy of a presently vacant storefront, as well as the efforts of an entrepreneur to succeed in the community, the majority of those present resisted the owner’s plan to sell beer, wine and cigarettes at lower cost (and later hours) than nearby establishments like Ken’s Market. While Mr. Pack vowed not to sell fortified wine and alcohol, there is nothing to prevent such sales if a liquor license is obtained. Stores that sell those products are magnets for the chronically inebriated.
Concerns cited include:
The store is adjacent to school bus stops and within 500’ of a preschool (Alcuin on Crockett)
The proposed hours (to 11 pm on Friday and Saturday) do not complement a residential neighborhood
There is no parking provided for customers or delivery vehicles in an already congested area
Sales of “to go” alcohol are statistically proven to correlate with crime (http://bit.ly/boozecrime)
Queen Anne is already saturated with opportunities to buy alcohol at all hours
The store is adjacent to Queen Anne Helpline, which serves clients with addiction issues
This reaction has surprised many community members, who feel that Park and the 5 Corners are being unfairly targeted.
If they’re really concerned about alcohol and cigarette sales than they should target Ken’s Market just a stones throw west. Have you ever seen the shelf space that store dedicates to booze!!?? There are miles of it! What sort of “message” are they sending?
Or is it OK at Ken’s because they also sell overpriced, organic crap that yuppies love?
How about Bustle? They just opened within the last year and one of the first things I noticed was a huge placard placed DIRECTLY ON THE SIDEWALK advertising wine and “premium beers” for sale. The kids HAVE TO LITERALLY WALK AROUND that sign every single day and it’s literally kitty corner from Coe Elementary.
Nycoug wrote,
I think instead of boycotting this store people should be embracing it. I for one would rather give my money to the local guy trying to make it in this economy than a corporate owned store. Shame shame! I wish them nothing but luck! Some welcome to the neighborhood committee you people are!
Although Park said he understands the concern, he doesn’t see how his store, which he said will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, is any different from the many other shops selling alcohol and cigarettes, among other items, in the neighborhood.
“I don’t see any bums standing in front of Ken’s Market. Why would they stand in from of my store?” he said.
Park said that though his store will sell unfortified wine and beer, assuming the liquor license is granted, and cigarettes, that will not be its focus by any means. His plan is to turn the 5 Corners into a general convenience store carrying products that would appeal to the surrounding neighborhood–everything from organic ice cream and coffee, as the new signs display, to milk, basic groceries and a bakery section stocked with fresh Asian baked goods brought in every morning.
“I don’t’ know if the neighborhood will like it or not,” he said. “I’m trying to bring a little bit of everything.”
Still, some have held on to their first impressions of the store’s aesthetics, complaining that the storefront is too “garish” for the hill, doesn’t fit in, and fails to offer anything that can’t be bought elsewhere. One reader wrote,
I am opposed to this store based solely on their signage: “Discount Cigarette, Beer, Wine”. Too many of these stores focus on selling fortified wine and beer, and become magnets for crime, graffiti, noise and other problems. No neighborhood wants more of that.
There are too many families with kids, and schools nearby. Stores like these are just looking to make easy money on high margin items like alcohol and cigarettes, and offer little benefit to the community; in fact the impact is often negative.
Besides, there is little or no market here for what they’ll be selling.
Another wrote,
I object to the store based purely on the look and type of store. I classify it together with the Pizza Hut on Mcgraw & Queen Anne Ave and the 711 on Queen Anne Ave. All three stores are undesirable for the hill and arguably go against the kind of retail presence we want in Queen Anne.
However, since the location is zoned commercial, the owners have the right to lease the space to whomever they choose. On the other hand, you, as a Queen Anne resident, have the right to boycott the store. If enough local residents choose this course of action, the store will eventually be forced to close.
“I think there are still a bunch of people that would rather have an empty storefront there than anything else because that’s the kind of people some people are,” Lapin said. As for the concern that alcohol sales will increase crime, he said “I don’t know how you can prove that since you can walk three blocks away and get your alcohol at Safeway or Ken’s Market, or Bustle.”
After meeting Park on Wednesday, Hill said, “He is a charming, gracious fellow and I think would be a valuable asset to the Queen Anne business community.”
Hill believes the issue is not so much the market itself, but the outcry at Wednesday’s meeting and the aggressive discussion and name-calling that has ensued, notably in the comments here (this story has received more comments than any other on QueenAnneView). She said her aim was to “calm some of the more extreme neighborhood reactions on both sides.”
“I think people are unfortunately not taking the time to understand what the concerns are,” she said. “Not a single person that I heard who expressed an issue with the mini mart is an elitist, a snob, a self-absorbed NIMBY. I’ve been called all of those things–even racist and classist. I found this really offensive. We’re not any of those things. We care…I think it’s an important issue for our entire community.”
Hill was not alone in her opinion. One anonymous commenter remarked at how ashamed he was to see the community get so heated over the issue,
I am ashamed. I really can’t believe that one bad sign grew into such a huge embarrassment for me and those in my community of elitist puritanical gate keepers. I’m taking a shower right now and heading over there to heal what should be an encouraging handshake and sincere thank you.
As for the argument that some have that the store does not represent the family friendly values of the surrounding community, JT28880 wrote,
There are a lot of other people that live on QA that don’t have children and wouldn’t mind having a close place to go and buy needed goods. As long as they obey the laws and don’t become a public nuisance they should be able to operate a business.
If you want your cookie cutter neighborhoods go to the eastside. Let’s make the area great for everyone not just familes.
Park has expressed a desire to serve the wants and needs of the Queen Anne community for the long term. A family man himself (Park has two daughters), he said he’s planning on moving his family to the neighborhood after the store opens.
“I’m going to be a part of the Queen Anne community too. I don’t want to tear down the neighborhood,” he said.
Apparently there were some pretty stunning fireworks over Elliott Bay at around 8 p.m. this evening. Reader Peggy Fitzgerald wrote,
Really nice fireworks show tonight over Elliott Bay! There’s some news on it from the West Seattle blog (since I had no idea why there was an amazing show tonight – they were really excellent)
According to the West Seattle Blog, Farmers Insurance celebrated its 100th anniversary with a party at the Space Needle and fireworks show off the waterfront tonight. Details here.
I missed the show myself. Did anyone else see it, or happen to catch a picture?
It’s a beautiful morning in Seattle. The sky is blue. The sun is shining. And Queen Anne is the perfect place to grab a perch and soak it all in.
At least that’s the same idea this Peregrine Falcon had this morning when he took in the views from KING5′s Queen Anne tower cam. Apparently there was a falcon nest on top of the WAMU (now Chase) tower, so this little guy might be a Seattle native!
One reader wrote in reporting an early morning fight between two teenage party-goers in West Queen Anne today. They wrote,
There was an altercation at around 1 a.m. this morning (3/6/10) on 10th Ave. W. & W. Crockett. It appears there was a teenage party nearby and two of the attendees got in a fist fight out on the street with many other party bystanders watching. One of the teens fled in what appeared to be a dark colored Jaguar with several other passengers. It was a very loud altercation and could be heard inside homes nearby. The police were called and three cars arrived after the vehicle had left. The other group of kids were still there and were talking outside with the cops for quite a while. Not sure if any arrests were made.
So far no reports have come through from SPD, but we’ll keep you posted if we hear anything.
After nearly nine years running a neighborhood yarn and knit-centric craft shop, Queen Anne resident and Hilltop Yarn owner Jennifer Hill says the store will be hanging up its knitting needles for good at the end of the month.
Hilltop Yarn, located at 2225 Queen Anne Ave N. will be closing up shop Monday, March 29, and is offering sales on its stock from now until closing.
Hill said the decision was not taken lightly. It came after two years of serious consideration–after an electrical fire in their previous location in late 2008 almost burned the shop down and left the entire stock with smoke damage; after sales tax went up, again.
“It’s been coming for a number of years,” Hill said. “I think most small business owners would tell you they have pretty complicated relationships with their business. You’re constantly toying with the idea that tomorrow will be better. We’re pretty optimistic people, small business owners–we’re intrinsically optimistic.”
Like many small business owners, a couple unfortunate events alongside the economic downturn has made it hard to make ends meet. Hill hasn’t been able to take in income for nearly two years. Instead, she’s been looking for jobs.
“I’ve applied for a lot of jobs over the last year. My business really hasn’t paid me any significant amount of money since the fire, so I’ve been applying for the last two years and I’ve been turned down and turned down,” Hill said. “I heard a lot of ‘You’ve been your own boss for a long time. You don’t really want to come here and have me be your boss.’”
Until finally Nordstrom’s saw her years experience as a business owner as a plus and offered her a job. And though she’s sad to say goodbye to her own shop, Hill can’t hide the fact that she’s ecstatic to have a full time job.
“I’m fully employed. I’m thrilled!” she said. “Nordstrom’s was the first place that valued that I’d been my own boss. It’s a good fit.”
Hill, who has lived in Queen Anne since she was 12 and is very involved with the Upper Queen Anne Merchants Association, said she will be most sad to leave the league of neighborhood business owners that work to bring the community together through organizing programs like Holiday Magic and Halloween trick-or-treating.
“It’s been really exciting to work with all the other business owners on the Ave and make the community great,” she said. “That’s the one thing I’m so grateful to my business for–to be able to really make in impact in my own neighborhood. I’ll really miss that.”
And though Hilltop Yarn will no longer be open, Hill has no intention of letting all of the knitting fun born out of the shop go to waste. Over the years she has compiled a network of knitting lovers who frequently attend specialty classes offered at Hilltop or meet for weekly knitting groups.
“I have two amazing women who work for me who are teachers, and I’m meeting with one of them tomorrow morning to get their website set up so she can continue teaching classes,” Hill said, noting that someone suggested she sell her contact list, to which she responded, “These are my friends and neighbors and I’m not going to profit off of that.”
As for the two active knitting groups who meet at the shop on Wednesdays and Thursdays, Hill said she’s talked with Brent, the owner of Muse Coffee Co. on 10th Ave W. and Greg over at Eat Local, just kitty corner from Hilltop, about hosting the group after the shop closes.
As for what is to become of the building, Hill said she’s looking for new tenants.
“The building owner in my new space is probably one of the most positive people I’ve ever worked with–she’s wonderful!” she said. “I’d love to see some exciting entrepreneur jump in there and make great use of that space.”
In preparation for closing, everything at Hilltop is now 10 percent off, and Hill said the discounts will increase every week until the 29th.
“By the last week things will probably be 30, 40 even 50 percent off. So hopefully there will be some good deals to be had!”
Charlie Hoselton has a vision for an urban garden on the west side of Queen Anne hill where neighbors can share organic growing space. He’s been working with the city on getting the permits necessary to begin work on 20 garden plots on two large medians along Gilman Drive W. and 13th Ave. W. and is looking for community members interested in helping to build and use this community garden. He wrote,
How would you like your own little plot of dirt to organically grow vegetables, berries, herbs and flowers.
I am looking for cohorts in creating a living, functional, beautiful oasis…Want to get your hands in some dirt?
He’s holding a Friends of Gilman Urban Gardens planning meeting tomorrow, Saturday, March 6 at 9 a.m. at the medians and encourages interested parties to drop by and discuss the future of the organic urban oasis he envisions. For more information, contact Charlie at friendsofgilman.urbangardens@hotmail.com.
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