Conan O’Brien has been spotted roaming around Seattle this week, posing for a picture outside the new Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation headquarters in Lower Queen Anne Thursday.

*Photo courtesy of @ConanOBrien

While visiting the foundation Conan snapped this pic and tweeted:

Just tried to donate to the @GatesFoundation. Curiously, they refused to accept my ’92 Ford Taurus: http://bit.ly/ne1X3T

Coco is often seen visiting Seattle, his wife’s hometown. He’s been spotted a number of other places around town this week–have you seen him?

The Seattle Department of Transportation began construction today on the West Thomas Street Pedestrian and Bicycle Overpass Project, which when completed, will unite Lower Queen Anne to Myrtle Edwards Park and connect the neighborhood and its residents directly to the waterfront.

Once completed the bridge will provide a safe crossing over the east side of Elliott Ave W at Thomas Street and the nearby railroad tracks, to Myrtle Edwards Park.

Crews kicked off construction on the east side of Elliott Avenue West, adjusting the construction schedule to accommodate Hempfest’s 20th anniversary festival at Myrtle Edwards this past weekend. Crews will commence construction at Myrtle Edwards beginning after next Monday, August 29.

We got a first look at what the bridge will look like in August of last year. In the same month Seattle City Council unanimously voted to remove spending restrictions on the project, giving SDOT the green light to move forward with the plans. The final project design was completed in January.

SDOT estimates that construction will last anywhere from 10 to 12 months. During that time residents can expect intermittent street closures, traffic detours, reduced parking areas and temporary relocation of the existing bike path at Myrtle Edwards Park. Here’s a little more information from SDOT on what to expect during construction:

During construction pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers should expect the following:

• 3rd Ave West from W. Harrison St. to Elliott Ave W will be closed to through traffic. Local traffic and access to parking garages and lots will be accommodated.
• W Thomas St between Elliott Ave W and 3rd Ave W will be closed to through traffic.  Local traffic and access to parking garages and lots will be accommodated.
• Removal of parking along 3rd Ave W and a portion of W Thomas St both east and west of Elliott Ave W for the duration of the construction project.
• Temporary lane closures on Elliott Avenue West outside the hours of 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• Temporary sidewalk closures, parking restrictions and pedestrian detours.
• Noise and vibration during certain construction activities.
• Shaft construction is expected to be completed on the east half of the bridge sometime in mid-September at which time equipment will be mobilized to the west of Elliot Ave.

The W Thomas Street Overpass Project is being funded by the Park Levy I and II, Puget Sound Regional Council Grant Funds, King County Grant Funds, and private donations. The total project cost expected to be approximately $10 million. Initial work on the bicycle/pedestrian overpass project began in 2003.

For more information on the project and construction updates, see SDOT’s W Thomas Street Overpass Project website.

The Seattle City Council passed legislation last month proposing the establishment of a Seattle Tourism Improvement Area, which would create a dedicated source of funding for tourism marketing and promotion for the city of Seattle and a number of neighborhoods in and around the city center. The Council will be holding a public hearing on the proposal at 5:30 p.m. today, Monday, August 8.

Under the proposed plan, hotels with 60 rooms or more within the greater downtown area, or “improvement area,” (pictured above) – including Lower Queen Anne, South Lake Union, Belltown, Pioneer Square, the International District and portions of Capitol Hill – would be required to levy a $2 surcharge per occupied room per night. The money from the new surcharge would then be pooled and used “for marketing and promotional activities designed to draw individuals and families to Seattle for vacation.” The marketing efforts would be managed by Seattle’s Convention and Visitors Bureau.

According to the city, the project will, “Bring more tourists to Seattle, bolster hotel occupancy, protect current jobs, create new jobs, increase business at restaurants and retail stores, and increase patronage at arts, cultural and music venues.”

So far a number of city and county leaders have thrown their support behind the plan, including King County Executive Dow Constantine, Mayor Mike McGinn and a number of community organizations. Lower Queen Anne’s Maxwell Hotel and its parent company Pineapple Hospitality have also shown support for the program.

“Pineapple Hospitality and The Maxwell Hotel supports the Seattle Hotel Association, the Seattle Convention Visitors Bureau and tourism in Washington State. We hope people will continue to visit our amazing city and all that it has to offer,” a Pineapple Hospitality representative told Queen Anne View.

According to the Seattle Conventions and Visitors Bureau, the Seattle Tourism Improvement Area (STIA) would raise between $5-6 million in 2012, create a total economic impact of $34.3 million, generate $3.42 million in state and local taxes, and support the creation of 560 new jobs in the hotel and hospitality sector. The plan would not cost the city of Seattle anything, according to Seattle City Council.

To find out more about the proposed Seattle Tourism Improvement Area and how it would work to promote tourism and bolster economic growth in attraction filled area’s in and around the city center, attend the public hearing at Seattle City Hall (600 4^th Avenue) tonight, Monday August 8. The meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers on the second floor.

To read up on the proposal before the meeting, check out the STIA project FAQs here (.pdf).

Local photographer Chelsea Nesvig snapped these photos from the National Night Out block party at Counterbalance Park in Lower Queen Anne last night, and decided to share them with us.

The Uptown Alliance ran the party, revitalizing a number of popular events from years past all in the name of bringing neighbors together.

Many neighbors brought lightly used clothes to the annual free clothing exchange. All leftovers from the swap/trade event will be donated to local shelters.

Block partiers also indulged in another popular returning event – the “Bite of Uptown,” which provided free food samples from Lower Queen Anne restaurants.

The Counterbalance wishing wall gave neighbors an opportunity to share their hopes and dreams for Lower Queen Anne with each other and local organizations and non-profits.

All in all it was a great time with fun, games and community togetherness.

Check out more pics from Night Out at Counterbalance Park here. If you’d like to share pictures from your Night Out block party, email tips@queenanneview.com or share a link to your pictures online in the comments below.

A new hotel will soon be moving into Lower Queen Anne. The Four Points by Sheraton says it will be opening up its new Uptown location in mid-August at 601 Roy Street, currently the site of the Comfort Suites.

Sheraton’s parent company, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, is currently doing construction on the hotel, which will continue to operate as Comfort Suites until opening. This will be the first Four Points by Sheraton brand in Washington state, according to a Starwood representative.

Four Points by Sheraton director of sales Shanna Kellin says the new hotel is smaller and more service-specific than many of the other brands Starwood runs, which she says will help it cater to the feel of the surrounding neighborhood.

“While we have amenities available that most all travelers come to expect, such as Wi-Fi, comfortable beds and workspace in the guestroom, restaurant and bar onsite with room service, we want for our guests to feel that comfort isn’t complicated and that is the experience of the Four Points brand. We don’t have bellman, we don’t have rooms that you must explain how to operate them, but we have programs such as Best Brews, which feature local micro beer in our bar and we have free bottled water in the guest rooms,” she writes.

Though the hotel is currently undergoing construction renovations as it transitions into the Four Points, it still honoring reservations that were made at the Comfort Suites before construction began. The hotel tentatively plans to reopen as the Four Points on August 11, if all goes according to plan, Kellin says.

While we await word on whether or not King County Metro will cut bus service here in Queen Anne, there is news about a number of proposed streetcar services in the works citywide, including one that would connect Lower Queen Anne to downtown, South Lake Union and First Hill, and another that would link downtown to Loyal Heights via SLU, Fremont and Ballard.

A preview of the report, which serves as a blueprint for the city’s transit planning for the next 20 years, was presented to the City Council’s Transportation committee on Tuesday. A draft of the full report is expected to be presented in September, according to a report by the SeattlePI.

According to the plan, two rail lines are considered to be the preferred option for transit in the “downtown connector,” which includes Lower Queen Anne.

Line CC1 would connect downtown with Lower Queen Anne via streetcar, while CC2 would run between downtown and South Lake Union via SLU’s existing rail tracks. From the looks of the map, it appears CC1 would run up 1st Ave N from S Jackson St. through Pioneer Square and Belltown to Queen Anne, with proposed stations at Denny Way and 1st Ave N, and potential terminal stations west of Seattle Center at 1st Ave N and Harrison, and at the base of the hill at Queen Anne Ave N and Mercer Street/Roy. Both the CC1 and CC2 streetcar lines would then connect to the South Lake Union Streetcar and forthcoming First Hill Streetcar, which is set to open in 2013.

The plans also outlines a Ballard streetcar line would cost about $327 million to build, including a new rail bridge across the ship canal (which would cost about $70 million) and a retrofitting of the Fremont Bridge (which would cost $10 to $12 million). Based on the map, it looks like the proposed rail line would run up and down 36th Street through Fremont en route to Ballard/Loyal Heights in one direction and South Lake Union/downtown in the other.

Of course, don’t get too excited, it’ll take a while to get this up and running. The entire plan is set-up to unfold over the next 20 years.

You can check out much more details on the plan via this PDF link.

Rebecca was walking to her Lower Queen Anne home alone around 1 a.m. last Tuesday when she was assaulted by a man who was not interested in robbing her, she says. The incident, which took place in front of the Iris Apartment building on Roy Street near 4th Ave W, shook her. She writes,

The assailant did not take my purse, and it is clear that his intention was sexual assault. I screamed and fought and someone in the Iris apartment building shouted that they were calling the police, and the guy ran off into Kinnear Park. I managed to walk away with just a fat lip (and some stitches and bruises) – but it could have been much, much worse.

Rebecca filed a police report before going to the hospital, but as of last Friday the suspect had not yet been caught. She provided this description:

It was dark and I can’t be certain, but I think the man was a homeless guy I’ve seen in the neighborhood before: white male, 5’10″, 170 pounds, dark chin/shoulder length hair that is wavy/matted, full beard.

Rebecca hopes that her experience will serve as a reminder to those in the community to be aware of their surroundings, and cautious for themselves and their neighbors, especially at night. She wrote,

I still feel that Queen Anne is a wonderful place to live (the fact that neighbors responded within seconds when I screamed is testament to that) but we shouldn’t be complacent about safety. Gentlemen, please consider walking ladies to their cars/homes late at night. And ladies, trust your instincts – if someone looks sketchy, walk away and go to a well lit place (like Bartell’s) or carry something like pepper spray in your purse.

Also, for those of you in the neighborhood, if you hear a scream or tussle outside late at night, please don’t hesitate to call out and say you’re calling the police. I am so fortunate that the residents of that building didn’t just roll back over and go to sleep, or call the police silently and hope for the best; the reason the guy ran off is because someone shouted “I’m calling the police, and coming right down.”

In February of last year another Uptown resident, also on her way home alone, was pushed down and kicked in the face and chest repeatedly just a block away from this recent incident, at Roy and 3rd Ave W. In this case the suspect was after her purse, but the crime startled both the victim and many of her neighbors, who organized an Uptown block watch program in response. This most recent attempted assault is a testament to the need for continued neighborhood safety programs, such as block watch groups, especially in corners of the neighborhood that are poorly lit at night and susceptible to crime.

If anyone has any information on this incident, please contact Seattle Police right away as the suspect is still at large.

Update 11:40 a.m.: We just received an update from Rebecca, who says her injuries are healing up well. Since the incident she’s been working on ways to improve safety in the neighborhood. She writes,

I’m speaking with a reporter who might do a piece on it, and I’m going to try and have him focus on the response of my neighbors, but also the need for street lighting at the end of West Roy Street and the city/county/state to cough up the rest of the funds to make Kinnear Park safe. It has helped that they cleared out so much of the underbrush, but it needs lighting and the other safety features that are part of the new park design. It would also be great if the city would allow us RPZ zone parking (we keep asking and they keep brushing us off) so that residents on the West Mercer/Roy corridor can park their cars near their homes at night; I often have to park 5 or 6 blocks away if it’s a night that people are out at the bars, or there’s an event at Seattle Center.

I haven’t heard anything from the police, but my hope is that he’ll be spotted now that so many people are on the lookout. I definitely want to make sure that women in the neighborhood are smart and safety conscious late at night.

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.

Neighborhood retirement community Merrill Gardens, located at 800 4th Ave N in Lower Queen Anne, celebrated the completion of a brand new and long sought-after crosswalk on Thursday, June 9 with a ribbon cutting with City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen.

Merrill Garden’s Lower Queen Anne location is home to around 190 senior citizens who live in two buildings on either side of 4th Ave, a busy street which has been a safety concern for the many residents who cross it frequently.

The seniors living at Merrill Gardens and its administrative staff have been trying to get the City to approve a new crosswalk in the middle of 4th Ave since 2006, only to be met with repeated denials. In September they reached out to Councilmember Rasmussen, who got involved and helped bring the project about. From the press release:

He [Rasmussen] convinced the Seattle Department of Transportation to take another look at the request and upon review, SDOT approved plans for a crosswalk with curb cuts and signage. The crossing now provides residents with easier access between buildings, and Thursday’s ceremony will celebrate the retirement community’s victory.

“I’m so glad that Merrill Gardens brought this issue to my attention,” Rasmussen said in a statement. “It’s important that our City responds to requests from its residents. I am thrilled that we were able to get the plans approved.”

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.

The Uptown Alliance’s monthly meeting is happening this Thursday, June 9 from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Lower Queen Anne Metropolitan Market restaurant space. This month the agenda is brimming with transportation issues – from Metro’s D-Line RapidRide stop placement, to its new trolley buses – as well as other hot topics, including the Department of Neighborhoods Alcohol Impact Program and a potential site for low-income housing in Uptown. Check out the full agenda:

• Greetings and introductions
• Adopt Minutes of 5/12/11
• Metro Transit D-Line RapidRide stop placement – Jonathan Dong (SDOT) & Paul Roybal (Metro)
• Committee Reports:

1. New LED lighting in Counterbalance Park: it’s getting better.
2. Department of Neighborhoods Alcohol Impact Area program – Christa Dumpys TBC
3. 8th Ave. N. and Roy St.: Possible near-Uptown, SLU site for low cost housing: Will UA support this site? If so, how best? – Rick Hooper
4. A new generation of trolley buses in Seattle.
5. Letter supporting Alcohol Impact Area Program.
6. Uptown Alliance participation in proposed Center City Neighborhoods group.

• New Business: bring your own topics and comments.

The next meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jul4 14. All future meetings will be held at the Lower Queen Anne Metropolitan Market until further notice.

Want to learn more about the Uptown Alliance and it’s work in the Lower Queen Anne community? Check out its Facebook page for updates and neighborhood information, or contact Rick Hooper at Nsilberg@silberg.net, or John Coney at djohnconey@aol.com.

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.

The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is scheduled to begin construction on the West Thomas Street Pedestrian and Bicycle Overpass, a project designed to improve safety and provide direct access to Myrtle Edwards Park from the Lower Queen Anne area for pedestrians and bicyclists, next month. The project was originally slated to begin in August, but was pushed up after a lawsuit over the project’s schedule, which conflicted with Seattle’s annual Hempfest festival and rally.

In advance of construction time SDOT is inviting the public to learn more about the project, including information on traffic detours and area impacts throughout the construction period, from 5 to 7 p.m. tonight, Thursday, May 26 in the Elliott Bay Room of Homewood Suites, located at 206 Western Ave W, near the overpass site. From SDOT:

SDOT project staff will be available to explain design and construction details, and answer questions. There will not be a formal presentation, so participants may show up any time between 5 and 7 p.m. Complimentary parking underneath the Homewood Suites building is available by checking in at the front desk and obtaining a key card to enter the secure parking garage.

When the overpass is completed it will provide access over the very busy Elliott Ave W and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) railroad tracks to Myrtle Edwards Park. It will also serve as a connection for bicyclists, part of a future Lake Bay Loop – a planned bicycle route that will run between South Lake Union, Seattle Center and the existing bicycle trail in Myrtle Edwards Park.

The project, part of the Walk, Bike, Ride initiative and funded by the Park Levy I and II, grant funds from the Puget Sound Regional Council and King County, and private donations, is estimated to cost a total of $10 million.

For more information visit the project website, or review our past coverage here.

After several years of work, construction on the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation‘s new Lower Queen Anne headquarters is now complete, and the international philanthropic organization is preparing to kick off operations in its new home with a community celebration on Saturday, June 4.

Photo courtesy of NBBJ, via the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The Foundation is inviting community members interesting in touring the 12-acre campus overlooking the Space Needle and the Seattle skyline to attend the opening reception on June 4, which will go on all day, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Due to security and capacity concerns attendees must RSVP for the event beforehand and register for an available one-hour slot during the day in which they will visit the campus.

Photo courtesy of NBBJ, via the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The Foundation will be opening up designated areas on the first and second levels of the North Building for self-guided touring during the reception. There will also be a number of the organization’s local grantees in attendance. Drinks will be served.

While registration will be available day of, but on a first come first served basis, so prior registration is recommended. Attendees may register for a time slot here.

Photo ©George White, courtesy of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Though the Foundation says it has completed construction on the campus, it should be noted that it still plans to add a third building at an undetermined time in the future to match the organization’s growth and meet any future needs.

Learn more about the new campus at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation website, download the frequently asked questions (.pdf) about the new headquarters, and look for our coverage of the opening reception in the week of June 5.

This month’s Uptown Alliance meeting is happening this Thursday, May 12 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Lower Queen Anne Metropolitan Market restaurant space on the far west side of the store.

Among the hot topics this month is the issue of Metro’s RapidRide D line, which aims to connect neighborhoods in heavily used traffic corridors with frequent and fast connections. The RapidRide D line is scheduled to come to Interbay and Lower Queen Anne in 2012.

Take a look at what’s on the agenda this month:

• Greetings and introductions – Approve minutes
• Honoring Uptown Alliance Founder, Janis Ford
• RapidRide D-Line stops

1. West Mercer Street stop consolidation
2. Pedestrian crossings at West Mercer stop
3. Parking loss on West Mercer St.

• Report on pending Small & Simple Grant Application supporting the outreach phase of planning for the Uptown Triangle, bounded by Denny, Broad, and Aurora.
• Committee Reports

1. Parks
2. Events: A drop-in public meeting space store front for Uptown
3. Planning & Transportation: Meeting with Exec. Dir. Kate Joncas of Seattle Downtown Assn. re/urban decay issues.

• New Business: bring your own topics and comments.

The next Uptown Alliance meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Thursday, June 9, also at the Lower Queen Anne Metropolitan Market. For more information, contact Rick Hooper at Nsilberg@silberg.net,  or John Coney at djohnconey@aol.com.

The Seattle Police Department (SPD) arrested a wanted burglar who was caught in the midst of another crime Tuesday night, according to the SPD Blotter.

Even though Club Diamond closed down last year and was replaced by event venue iMusic, it looks like the streak of violence that afflicted the club had has been passed on to the new owners. From the SPD Blotter:

On April 17th at approximately 2:00 a.m. officers responded to a nightclub in the 300 block of 5th Avenue North for reports of a fight disturbance with shots fired.  Investigating officers received secondhand reports that several men were shooting at people in the rear parking lot. The suspects were gone upon the officers’ arrival.

No victims or witnesses were located. Several remaining vehicles in the lot were examined, and no property damage was discovered.

Seattle Parks and Recreation, the Thomas C. Wales Foundation and the Seattle Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs are hosting a dedication for Queen Anne’s newest green space, Thomas C. Wales Park, at 10 a.m. this Saturday, April 16.

The 1.3 acre park, located at 2401 6th Ave North just off Dexter Avenue, opened quietly back in October in the space formerly known as Dexter Pit Park. When the park was redesigned last fall, artist Adam Kuby created five raised gabion “Quarry Rings”, providing an urban wildlife habitat for many birds and bats that nest in the park, and a design that matches the park’s unique history. The stone and gravel used to make the rings are a tribute to the park’s previous use as a gravel pit in the early 1990′s.

A variety of indigenous, bird friendly plants were chosen to support artist Adam Kuby’s vision of creating avian habitat in the gabion-ring sculptures. The elevated, stone-filled rings echo the history of the site as a gravel quarry, and gesture to its future as a wildlife sanctuary

The park was renamed in December of 2007 after the late Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas C. Wales, who was murdered in his Queen Anne home in 2001.

“Thomas C. Wales Park is a wonderful memorial to Tom, who loved Seattle and his Queen Anne neighborhood,” Rick Wales, brother of Tom Wales and founding chairman of the Thomas C. Wales Foundation, said in a press release. “He was a big believer in supporting and developing public spaces in which people could convene and connect, helping to inspire civic engagement and passionate citizenship amongst neighbors. The Foundation is honored to join Seattle Parks and Recreation, and the Queen Anne Community Council in honoring Tom, his vision and dedication to community.”

The dedication Saturday will include a performance by the John Hay Chorus, a chance to learn about birding from Seattle Audubon members, and an official ribbon cutting ceremony with members of the Wales family, the artist, and a number of elected officials, including Mayor Mike McGinn, who will be leading a Q&A in the neighborhood later in the afternoon.

The redesign of the park was funded by the Pro Parks Levy, approved by Seattle voters in 2000. Over the last eight years the levy has provided $198.2 million in funding for more than 100 projects citywide.

After the dedication, Mayor McGinn will be taking a walking tour of Lower Queen Anne and Kinnear Park, followed by a Q&A session from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. at Bayview Manor, located at 11 W Aloha. Community members are invited to pose questions, voice concerns, or simply share what’s on their minds with the Mayor and city department representatives.

For more information on the Q&A portion of the event please contact Liz Birkholz at liz.birkholz@seattle.gov or 206-233-5107.

Queen Anne startup Urbandipity launched its website today after a year and a half of preparation.

The recently graduated co-founders Nick Talwar, Ryan O’Donnell, Hajime Furukawa, Emmett Nicholas and Zachary and Dustin Conrad have worked out of an apartment in lower Queen Anne bringing their creation to fruition, working long hours on Saturdays around their other jobs.

The website, an online social catalyst for meeting new people and exploring new places in Seattle, has allowed posts since mid-March, but today the site is fully operational, allowing new users to view the posts of others and contact each other.

See our earlier post on the new startup for a closer look at Urbandipity.