The week-long closure will help the Library achieve its $3.7 million budget reduction target for 2011. The closure will save approximately $650,000. The closure will mean salary reductions for nearly 640 employees who will not be paid during that week and who are taking cuts in their cost of living adjustments. In addition, the book budget has been reduced, positions have been eliminated and 2010 cuts to branch hours have continued this year. Fifteen branches are only open 35 hours a week.
No materials will be due and no fines will be charged during the one-week closure, and most library services will be unavailable, including book drops, Wi-Fi, regular programs and events in library meeting rooms, TeleCirc (the library’s telephone circulation service that provides patrons with information on their library account), and text, email or or phone communication with a librarian.
Access to the online catalog will be limited to searching and checking library records, but patrons won’t be able to place holds.
Some online services will remain available, including the calendar of events; the SPL Mobile page; online payment of fines and fees; library podcasts; access to premium online databases, including Britannica Online, ChiltonLibrary.com, Mango Languages, Consumer Reports and Morningstar Investment Research Center; access to downloadable media, such as e-books and audiobooks, songs and movies; and digital collections, such as photos from the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition Collection, the Northwest Art Collection and The Seattle Historical Photograph Collection; the Seattle City Directory Collection; and the Century 21 Exposition Digital Collection.
The Seattle Public Library system will be closing down for the week before Labor Day weekend, from Monday, August 29 through Sunday, September 4 due to citywide budget cuts. All libraries will be closed for the Labor Day holiday Monday, September 5. Regular Library operations will resume Tuesday, September 6.
Most Library services will be unavailable during the one-week closure and will have the following impacts:
No materials will be due and no fines will be charged.
The last day to check out Library items before the closure is Sunday, August 28. The Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave., will be open until 6 p.m. that day and another 11 branches will be open until 5 p.m. Visit www.spl.org or call 206-386-4636 for more information on Library locations and hours.
No book drops will be open. The Central Library book drops will close at 8 p.m. Sunday, August 28 and will reopen at 6 a.m. Tuesday, September 6.
If you’re desperate for library access, the Lake City Neighborhood Service Center and parking garage will remain open. It is co-located with the Lake City Branch, but has a separate entrance. The Ballard Neighborhood Service Center, which is co-located with the Ballard Branch, will stay open as well.
August 29 through September 4 was the week selected for the closure because general Library use at that time is not as high as other times during the year, school is not in session and there are fewer Library programs scheduled.
Now just two years and a few months later, Sezoni has shuttered its doors somewhat suddenly.
“Walked by Sezoni (ex-Vincenzo’s) last night and there was a big Closed sign on the door,” writes Mark. “Another good restaurant gone? Just had pizza from there last week!”
Exactly why Sezoni’s owners decided to close up shop is still unknown, as is what, if anything, will replace it. A voice mail left with the business, as well as a note to its reservations email account, have not yet been returned. While Sezoni’s website is still active, its online ordering system has been disabled. There is no information on its Facebook page as to why the business has closed. We’ll update this story as soon as we learn more.
After 16 years in Lower Queen Anne, Monkey Love Rubber Stamps owner Sandy Ono says she has decided to close the store’s physical location and transfer her business over to its online store full-time.
Monkey Love will most likely close on or around next Friday, June 24, according to Ono, though she has not set a definite close date yet. When it does shut, it will make the third closure this month within one block of Uptown’s retail district–following the closures of Nucleus hair salon just down the street last week, and Wanna Noodle on Mercer the week before that.
Ono says it will be hard to close the store after 16 years on Queen Anne Avenue (11 of those just five doors down from Monkey Love’s current location), but she is ready to move to online-only.
“I decided to just go with my eBay store,” she said, adding that the hardest part about closing will be letting go of the community. “It’s going to be hard not seeing the customers I’ve known for years now, not seeing them as often.”
In the remaining time Ono is clearing out Monkey Love’s stock with a closing sale. The store’s wood mounted stamps are 35 percent off, scrapbook paper and ribbon by the yard are 50 percent off, and almost everything else is at a 25 percent discount, she says.
While Ono will be continuing to sell Monkey Love stock through its eBay store, she says that not everything will be making the transition from the physical storefront to the online one–most of the online store will be made up of wood mounted rubber stamps, with select other items. So if you’re a fan of Monkey Love in need of some of its more obscure items, better stock up now.
If you’ve walked down Mercer Street lately you may have noticed that Lower Queen Anne’s newest restaurant Wanna Noodle, which opened its doors just two months ago, inexplicably closed last week.
Since the closure we’ve received a number of emails from Queen Anne-ers wondering why this new Asian fusion noodle shop left so suddenly, many of whom were disappointed to hear the news.
“We really liked the place and went there pretty often,” Mark Taylor wrote. “It’s very weird.”
There isn’t a lot of information indicating why the new business closed. Wanna Noodle’s website has since been taken down and now redirects to a Wikipedia page on Noodles. Wanna Noodle’s Facebook page has also been taken down, and there are no faulty permit applications, liquor license or restaurant inspection problems for the business on file with the city. An email to the former Wanna Noodle contact address has not yet been answered.
While the reasons for Wanna Noodle’s sudden closure is somewhat of a mystery, Hesch & Shain commercial real estate broker for the space at 12 Mercer Street, Constance Shain, confirmed that the business is officially closed.
“It is unfortunate that the former business has closed,” Shain said. “And it is not because they weren’t doing well.”
Shain wouldn’t elaborate on why the business has shuttered its doors, but she did add that a new operator will be going into the space, “though I can’t confirm what the concept will be,” she said.
We’ll keep following this story, and will update this post with any developments.
Lower Queen Anne’s Nucleus hair salon, at 621 Queen Anne Ave N, is closing up shop at the end of the week, according to owner Will Francalangia. The last day the salon will be taking appointments will be tomorrow, Wednesday, June 8.
Francalangia, who opened the Queen Anne Nucleus two years ago, says he was growing tired of running his own business, and the neighborhood’s customer base never really took off at this location. For ten years Francalangia owned a second Nucleus in Capital Hill, which he sold last year, and he says that location had greater foot traffic and more community interest in the business.
“This particular part of the neighborhood is not really conducive to a cool hair salon,” he said.
“Nucleus was put up for sale on May 5th, and after entertaining a few interested buyers, a suitable offer was not made, and I’ve decided to close up shop,” he said. “Not exactly the way I would have liked to end things, but fortunately, things are working out.”
Francalangia will be taking appointments at Nucleus through Wednesday, moving out by Friday, and will be taking clients at another local hair salon – Mars Hair/Art/Life, located on Lake Union on the east side of Queen Anne at 2046 Westlake Ave N #202. Mars Hair is the new project of former Nucleus stylist Jake Gravbro, and it is becomming home for 3/4 of Nucleus’ staff. Along with Gravbro and Francalangia, Nucleus stylist Kala Armijo has also moved over to the new salon.
“Jake had been working toward opening his own salon for awhile, and when he left, I put Nucleus up for sale,” Francalangia said. “Jake, has all the desire in the world to be a salon owner, and promote the online portion of the salon as well, so I feel like we’re in good hands.”
No word yet on what, if anything, will be replacing Nucleus. But for the time being if you’d like to take a piece of the hair salon home with you, Francalangia is selling the one-of-a-kind vanities (pictured above) that he decorated with favorite hair styles and old family photos for $100 each. There are three left, so if you’re interested in snatching one up, swing by Nucleus this week.
Ballard’s Majestic Bay Theatres (2044 NW Market St) is one of the few remaining independent neighborhood movie houses in Seattle. Lower Queen Anne’s Uptown Theatre closed back in November, and the Neptune Theater in the U District followed soon after, recently closing its doors, the latest casualty to hit Seattle’s small movie houses. Unlike the Uptown Theater, which is sitting empty until AMC’s contract runs out in three years time, the Neptune has been saved from both sitting idle and from the wrecking ball, and will soon become a live music venue.
Students from the UW Entrepreneurial Journalism class, taught by our partners at the Common Language Project, talk with former employees of the Neptune who say the closure could have been prevented.
The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is preparing for more weekend-long closures at the Mercer Street on and off-ramp to I-5 throughout May.
Work that is part of Mercer Corridor Project will shut down the on and off-ramps for at least two weekends this month: Friday, May 6 to Monday, May 9, and Friday, May 20 to Monday, May 23. The Mercer Street exit and on-ramp may also be closed for a third weekend, from Friday, May 13 to Monday, May 16, pending final coordination with other major work projects in the area.
The I-5 on-ramp at University Street will be concurrently closed to provide more efficient traffic flow around the closed Mercer Street exit lane. Fairview Avenue N will also be closed between Mercer Street and Valley Street. All detour routes will be clearly marked to support traffic flow around the closures.
Mercer Street ramp closures are required for utility installations on Fairview Avenue N at Mercer Street, including water, sewer, electrical and communications line installations, as well as to align the existing on- and off-ramps with the future westbound lanes of Mercer Street.
During weekend closures, Metro Transit plans to reroute its bus service on routes 70, 71, 72, 73 and 83 off of Fairview Avenue N from 11:00 p.m. on Friday to 5:00 a.m. on Monday. Buses will be rerouted via Eastlake Avenue E: northbound between Mercer Street and Galer Street; and southbound from Galer Street to Thomas Street. Rerouted buses will serve posted stops on Eastlake Avenue E, but will not make any stops on the cross streets between Eastlake and Fairview.
Queen Anne-ers used to taking the Mercer Street on ramp and exit will have to find another way to and from I-5 this weekend. The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) will be closing down the I-5 on and off ramps at Mercer Street in the first of four upcoming weekend closures due to utility improvements and ramp re-alignment work needed as part of the Mercer Corridor Project.
The closure will begin at 1 a.m. on Saturday, April 16, and run until 1 a.m. on Monday, April 18. There will also be a concurrent closure of the northbound I-5 on-ramp at University Street to improve safety and provide more efficient traffic flow around the closed Mercer Street exit lane.
Detour routes will be clearly market during the closure, though you can download the official detour maps here for access to I-5 and from I-5. From SDOT:
Three additional full weekend closures are tentatively scheduled and closure hours are anticipated to be Friday at 11:00 p.m. to Monday at 5:00 a.m.; further notification will be provided as the dates are finalized:
May 6 – May 9
May 13 – May 16
May 20 – May 23
Travelers are encouraged to carpool and use alternate modes of transportation. Transit information can be found at:
King County Metro at www.kingcounty.gov/metro, or by calling 206-553-3000
Sound Transit at www.soundtransit.org
Community Transit at www.commtrans.org
During weekend closures, Metro Transit plans to reroute its bus service on routes 70, 71, 72, 73 and 83 off of Fairview Avenue starting at 11:00 p.m. Friday night and lasting up to 5:00 a.m. Monday. The buses will be rerouted via Eastlake Avenue East: northbound between Mercer Street and Galer Street; and southbound from Galer Street to Thomas Street. Rerouted buses will serve posted stops on Eastlake Avenue, but will not make any stops on the cross streets between Eastlake and Fairview.
For more information on the closure and the Mercer Corridor Project, check out the project website.
Wednesday will be the last day the store will be renting out movies and games. Starting this Friday, February 25, the store will begin liquidating all of its stock, including DVDS, games, film posters and other paraphernalia, candy and snacks, and all other merchandise, according to an employee who spoke to us on the phone this morning.
“Ballard and Capitol Hill are staying open, but they’re closing five stores in our district, and unfortunately we were one of them,” the employee said.
The employee estimates that the store’s last day will be around April 10. Until then, Blockbuster will continue to mark down merchandise to clearance prices as it approaches the final day.
What will this most recent closure mean for the Lower Queen Anne business district, which is still hurting from the closure of the Uptown Theatre right across the street in November and a number of other retail shutterings over the last several months? We’re following up with Uptown property and business owners to see how these recent closures are affecting both business and the face of the neighborhood. Look for that story soon.
A contractor working for the Seattle Department of Transportation will close one northbound lane on the Ballard Bridge on Saturday, February 19, if weather is favorable. The contractor expects to have the lane closed for approximately six hours sometime between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. Ramps and walkways to the bridge will remain open. The contractor will paint the railing on the east side of the bridge.
A long-standing staple of Seattle’s (and Queen Anne’s) arts community, Intiman Theatre, is facing closure, according to a statement from the Board of Trustees released today.
Due to a number of managerial problems since the Intiman’s former Managing Director departed last fall, the theatre, which first opened in 1972, now must raise $1,000,000, well beyond its 2011 fundraising goal, by September or face the end of its 39-year presence within the local arts scene.
We’ve republished the full letter Intiman sent out to the community below:
February 11, 2011
An open letter to the Seattle arts community
Dear friends,
I want to share some unsettling news about our beloved Intiman Theatre. As many of you know, we’ve been struggling for several months. Since the departure of our former Managing Director last fall, the board of trustees has unearthed a series of missteps and management failings. Inflated budget projections, unpaid bills and a complete lack of financial and accounting oversight have left the theater dangerously low on cash. Sadly, I must report that unless we are able to raise $500,000 by the end of March, an additional $250,000 by June, and $250,000 by September, we cannot continue.
The $1 million dollar campaign is above and beyond the theatre’s 2011 annual fundraising goal.
Our staff and trustees have been tirelessly working to put our house in order – reconciling our books; establishing clear oversight; soliciting the support of independent leaders; paying down our debt; cutting operational costs; and reaching out to friends and family in the local community for help. The picture is now clearer and so is the harsh reality of the current situation.
I find this most difficult because the staff and creative leadership are incredibly strong right now and the quality of work being produced on our stage is of the highest quality and thematically touches on topics that need a public stage.
Seattle is a unique community; we are intellectually curious; progressively open minded; and willing to openly reflect and debate who we are as a community. I’m continually reminded by friends from the national theater community that only a city like Seattle could create a theater like Intiman. I also believe that only a city like Seattle can help preserve a gem like Intiman.
For 39 years Intiman has served as our community’s kitchen table for discussing relevant topics through art. We need your help to make sure that tradition continues. Please make a donation today by visiting http://www.intiman.org. At the website you will find more information on the current situation along with video testimonials from our artistic director, Kate Whoriskey, and acting managing director Melaine Bennett. You will also be able to show your direct support by making a donation.
Thank you for your time and continued support in helping Seattle maintain its reputation as progressive/trend-setting hotbed for the performing arts. Theaters like Intiman are critical to protecting that fragile ecosystem. Please help us protect this local treasure by making a donation to the theater today.
Sincerely,
Kim Anderson
President
Intiman Theatre, Board of Trustees
If you’d like to support Intiman, donations can be made on its website. Intiman also posted the following messages from Artistic Director Kate Whoriskey and Acting Managing Director Melaine Bennett in the hopes of encouraging community support to help the theatre live on.
If you’ve walked by Flame on Queen Anne Avenue N recently, you may have noticed the paper covering the windows and the sign on the door directing patrons to Elliott Bay Pizza Co. two doors down.
That’s because the two restaurants have merged, according to an Elliott Bay Pizza Co. employee who spoke to us over the phone this morning.
While the sign on the door at Flame says it is only closed for renovations, adding “Y’all kin get yer got juicy delicious flame broiled burgers next door at Elliott Bay Pizza,” in fact the restaurant changed ownership this week, the Elliott Bay Pizza Co. employee confirmed.
The man who owned both Elliott Bay and Flame decided to consolidate the two restaurants – and their vastly different menus – and sell the Flame location. The renovations inside are on the part of the new owner, he said, adding that he does not know what the new owner plans to do with the restaurant.
A call to the new owner has not yet been returned. In the meantime, most of the original Flame menu (burgers, fries and onion rings, chicken tenders, BBQ sandwiches, and salads) can be found at Elliott Bay Pizza Co. alongside its existing pizzas, pastas, salads, calzones and subs. The only items not available in the new merger are Flame’s tacos and shakes.
And as for the fate of Flame’s old homestead, we’ll keep you posted as we learn more about what will be moving in.
Photos courtesy of the Department of Neighborhoods.
NSCs provide information on various city programs; connect those in need with food banks and other services; provide forms for passports, business licenses and voter registration; and provide meeting rooms and free Internet access. Some NSCs also act as payment centers for Seattle City Light and Combined Utility bills, traffic tickets and pet licenses.
The Seattle City Council has asked Mayor Mike McGinn to work with the community and the Department of Neighborhoods to figure out a new plan for the Neighborhood District Coordinator Program. That new plan is due to the council by July 1. In the meantime, an interim service model will begin on Wednesday.
Through that interim model, 10 Neighborhood District Coordinators will use a team approach to cover three large geographic areas: South (consists of four districts – Southeast, Greater Duwamish, Delridge and Southwest); Central (consists of five districts – Central, East, Downtown, Lake Union and Magnolia/Queen Anne); North (consists of four districts – Northeast, North, Northwest, and Ballard). Former NW District Coordinator Beth Pflug will work with the North team.
The NSC closest to our neighborhood is the Central NSC, at 2301 S. Jackson St, Suite 208, (206) 684-4767. It is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. The Ballard NSC is also not far, at 5604 22nd Ave NW, 206-684-4060. It is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.
Today is Veterans Day, a national holiday to honor the men and women who have served our country.
Many public organizations will be closed around town for the day in honor of veterans lost. The Metro bus service will be on a reduced service schedule, and there will be no service to the University of Washington.
The following businesses and organizations are closed today:
Banks
Post offices (and no mail delivery)
Seattle Public Library branches
Seattle Parks and Recreation facilities
Most government offices
Schools
Parking is free (you don’t have to pay to park on city streets that are metered today)
There are also several businesses around town celebrating Veterans Day by offering special deals and freebies to both retired and active military members and their families. Take a look at the list we’ve compiled of deals going on in Queen Anne and around it:
Some Seattle Parks and Recreation facilities will be closed on Friday and next Monday as part of the furlough program to fill the budget gap.
All Parks facilities and offices will also be closed on Thursday for Veterans’ Day.
Friday’s closures:
Grounds maintenance
Community centers (except child care and late night programs, which will still operate)
Swimming pools
Environmental Learning Centers
Lifelong Recreation (except Food and Fitness programs, which will still operate)
Business Service Center
Monday’s closures:
Administrative offices (communications, correspondence, Park Board support, web management, public outreach, human resources, finance and administration)
The Washington State Department of Transportation will be closing down the Alaskan Way Viaduct this weekend for a semi-annual structural safety inspection. From WSDOT:
Both decks of the viaduct will be closed from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 16 and 17, between Spokane Street and the Battery Street Tunnel.
During the closure, Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) and city of Seattle crews will inspect the structure for settlement and perform routine maintenance and preservation work such as: Applying a protective covering to exposed rebar; servicing drainage systems and traffic cameras; washing the walls of the Battery Street Tunnel and inspecting its lighting and ventilation systems; and restriping the roadway.
WSDOT will release preliminary inspection results by Friday, Oct. 22.
WSDOT advises drives to leave extra time for commuting, as they increased congestion on I-5 and other major north-south routes is expected during the closure. Drivers may check traffic conditions before they leave at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic, or via the voice-activated driver information line, 511.
The Ballard Locks out of commission since lightening caused mechanical problems on Sunday. Today the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is turning to manpower to get the large lock open and closed.
Mike Likavec , an engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, inspects the large lock during a manual gate operation test. Photo courtesy the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Starting today, October 14, the large lock will be manually opened twice each day—at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. The lockages will go both directions, allowing vessels to head both into Puget Sound and to into Lake Washington. Barges and freighters on scheduled runs will get priority, followed by other commercial vessels. Read the full story at our sister site, MyBallard.
The large lock at the Ballard Locks is still closed after being struck by lightning Sunday night. “We may be out the rest of the week,” Patricia Graesser with the Army Corps of Engineers tells us. It’s taking longer than the anticipated one day to restore the electrical system. The small lock is still open, allowing smaller pleasure boats through. Large ships, however, are stuck on either side of the locks until the power can be restored.
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