The Tippe and Drague is almost open! Photo by Wendi Dunlap.Change is in the air in North Beacon Hill these days, with the long-awaited opening of the Tippe and Drague Alehouse just around the corner, alongside some new (and returning) art on view around Beacon Hill Station.
We’ve been hearing that Tippe and Drague (in the old ROCKiT space at 3315 Beacon Ave. S.) would probably open this week or next, but Seattle Beer News provides more details on the new establishment, and says that owners Melissa Cabal and Robert McConaughy plan to open next week if all goes well. SBN reports the opening tap list is heavily local, and the menu will include “simple but good food with fresh ingredients; don’t look for any fried food here.” Hours will be 4 p.m. until late, 7 days a week, with weekend brunches.
You can see in these photos some indications of how the poles have been retrofitted:
The original pole bases looked like this. Photo from March 2011 by Wendi Dunlap.Where one of the pole bases broke and fell. Photo from March 2011 by Wendi Dunlap.The retrofitted pole bases look like this. Photo by Wendi Dunlap.
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Photo by Wendi Dunlap.Just across Roberto Maestas Festival Street from the station, the El Sabroso taco truck is also looking more artistic these days. The truck was closed for a while this week while it was painted with decorative murals.
In recent years, Seattle Parks and Recreation has converted several summer wading pool sites to sprayparks. Currently, there are nine sprayparks in Seattle, with a tenth scheduled to open in 2013.
According to the city, sprayparks use less water and appeal to a wider range of ages of kids than the wading pools intended for toddlers.
While parks staff claim the parks have been a success, they have also created a challenge for staff. The three newest sprayparks—at Northacres Park, Georgetown Playfield and Beacon Hill’s Beacon Mountain playground in Jefferson Park—have been shut off multiple times this past weekend because of very high usage.
Sprayparks operate similarly to swimming pools. The water is filtered, re-circulated, and chemically balanced to meet public health agency standards. If the balance varies from these standards, the system shuts off until the water is automatically rebalanced. The rebalance process generally takes between 10 and 20 minutes.
Over this past weekend with its very warm weather and heavy use of the sprayparks, the tanks at the new sprayparks became clogged; the filters could not keep up with the decreased flow and shut off the systems. Bulbs in the ultraviolet (UV) system, which helps sterilize and disinfect the water, overheated and turned off the spray features.
Parks technical staff who maintain the sprayparks are changing operating procedures to solve the problem, working with the contractor to eliminate shutdowns, and working with the UV manufacturer to find out how to solve the bulb problem.
The city has released this statement:
Parks appreciates the public’s patience while we work to eliminate system shut downs. Spraypark users can help by wearing swim attire and no street clothes or shoes on the splashpad and by keeping dogs off the splashpad.
The Everything For Everyone Festival, a free two-day music, art, and politics festival, is coming to Beacon Hill’s Jefferson Park on Saturday, August 11 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The event will include music and art, as well as political and educational panels and workshops. On Sunday, August 12, the event will move to Seattle First Baptist Church on First Hill for a closing plenary session, followed by a film screening and dance party at Highline Bar on Capitol Hill.
Performers will include The Super8, The Hinges, Eugene Fontleroy, Suntonio Bandanaz, ACAB, Julie C, MC Dee.Ale, Too Quick, and DJ Eazeman (see bios of the performers here).
There are many presentation and workshop topics, including Free U: Abolish Education to Liberate Creation, Religion and Revolution, People’s Community Medics, Occupied Media: Communicating the Rebellion, Fork in the Road: The Path to Revolution through Investigation, and more.
Summer is moving rapidly toward its end, but it’s not too late to learn to grow your own food. This Saturday, August 11, from 10-11:30 a.m., is another in a series of free “Grow Your Own Groceries” classes at El Centro de la Raza.
This month’s topics include:
What to plant Now?
Figs and Kiwi
Seed Saving
The class is led by Master Gardener Mick Duggan. The location is El Centro de la Raza room 310, 2524 16th Ave. S. Mark your calendar: next month’s class, the last of the year, is scheduled for September 8.
Shadow lounging on her kitty tree. (We apologize for the quality of the photo. This was the only photo Matthew had.)Update, late Tuesday night: Shadow is found! Matthew says: “I found her mewing outside about four feet up a bush around ten o’clock tonight.”
Have you seen Shadow? Shadow is a spayed, indoor kitty who made an escape from an apartment window at 17th Avenue South and South Stevens today. She is a very friendly kitty, about 2 1/2 years old and 5-6 pounds. She does have a microchip.
If you find her or have seen her, call Matthew at 206-877-3059.
It’s primary election day, and that means it’s time to get your ballots to a mailbox or drop box today if you want your vote to be counted. Some races will be decided at this primary, and there are also some levies on the ballot, including a library levy.
As long as your ballot is postmarked today, it should be counted. However, if you want to save a stamp, there are a few ballot drop boxes available — unfortunately, none in Southeast Seattle. One is at the King County Administration Building downtown, 500 4th Avenue. Even closer, however, is the Accessible Voting Center at Union Station, 401 South Jackson, which will be open until 8 p.m. There is a ballot drop box there, and you can also vote there in person if you have lost your mail-in ballot or need to use an accessible voting unit. To vote in person at Union Station, you must either show a photo ID or sign a declaration.
It was brought to the attention of the Beacon Hill Blog that there are many more Night Out Against Crime events tomorrow night, August 7, that were not included on the Seattle Police Department’s official Night Out event map. The North Beacon Hill Council website has an updated list of the events in North Beacon (and a few in Mid-Beacon), including:
Next Tuesday, August 7, is the annual Night Out Against Crime. The theme of this year’s event is “Celebrating Crime-Free Neighborhoods.” Neighbors throughout the city and the neighborhood are planning Night Out block parties to get together socially and celebrate their communities with music, food and other activities, as well as to increase crime prevention awareness.
It’s not too late to host your own Night Out event. To register your event, go here. If you register your event, you can close your street for the block party (under certain conditions), and request that police and fire personnel visit your party if possible.
The Friends of Cheasty Greenspace/Mt. View invite you to a community work party this Saturday, August 4 from 10 a.m. until noon. Volunteers are needed to lay surface gravel on the Ridge Trail. The trail is eventually intended to serve both as a commuter route to Columbia City Station and as access to the recreational Hazelnut Loop.
If you’d like to help, meet at 9:45 a.m. at 2809 S. Alaska Pl., one block west of Columbia City Station. Gloves and tools will be provided but please wear sturdy shoes and work clothes and bring your own water. Shared snacks are welcomed.
