Tag Archives: alleycat acres

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: City U not coming to PacMed

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The historic PacMed building. Photo by Wendi Dunlap.
There had been some talk that City University would move into the PacMed/Amazon building at the north end of Beacon Hill. However, the university has decided instead to move to the Sixth & Wall building in the Denny Regrade (or Belltown) area, according to the Seattle Times. The building was once the home of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, and later of Group Health.

The Times reports:

“The university also considered the PacMed building on Beacon Hill—Amazon.com’s former headquarters—but chose Sixth & Wall after taking students to visit both buildings, (City University spokesperson Tarsi) Hall said.

“‘They really liked the neighborhood we’re moving to,’ she said.”

We aren’t sure, but was Beacon Hill just dissed?

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Chef Vincent Rivera of Jazz Alley will be at El Centro de la Raza on Sunday, January 29 at 1 p.m. for a special cooking demonstration, making mole enchiladas and traditional side dishes. The demonstration will include both meat and vegetarian food.

Tickets are $40 and will benefit the El Centro de la Raza Senior Nutrition and Wellness program, which provides meals along with daily social, exercise and educational activities to seniors. Tickets may be purchased online through Brown Paper Tickets.

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Jordan Van Voast of CommuniChi sent us this announcement:

“Happy Chinese New Year all, CommuniChi is celebrating 5 years of service to Beacon Hill and Seattle, offering affordable acupuncture. To celebrate, we are offering Free Acupuncture (to New Patients) on February 1.”

To sign up for a free treatment, visit the CommuniChi website.

CommuniChi is located inside the El Centro de la Raza building, at 2524 16th Ave. S. #301.

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A video look at “another Tuesday night on Beacon Hill,” with Alleycat Acres.

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The Benders art show at NEPO House is extended through January 28 because of last week’s snow shenanigans. More info at the NEPO website.

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Save the date—on February 4 there will be a ROCKiT Art Chair community celebration party at the library, and at Jose Rizal Park, there will be a dedication of a monument to honor World War II Filipino defenders of Bataan and Corregidor. Stay tuned for more information about these events here on the blog soon!

Food and Drink, Neighborhood Pride

Neighborhood cookbook in the works

The folks at Alleycat Acres have a new neighborhood project this winter: a Beacon Hill community cookbook! They are compiling recipes from the neighborhood to put together into an e-book.

To make this happen, they are asking for your recipe submissions. All submitters get a free PDF copy of the cookbook when it’s finished. The current plan is to have the book finished by spring.

To submit a recipe, go to the submission page and fill in your complete recipe there. Each recipe should include “a story about this recipe or a story about your history with food/agriculture.”

Alleycat Acres will also produce a cookbook for the Central District, so spread the word to your friends in the CD, as well as your neighbors on Beacon Hill.

We look forward to reading—and trying!—the recipes Beacon Hill neighbors will share.

Food and Drink, Local Events

Free floats and farming tomorrow at Alleycat Acres

Ice cream floats are coming to the Alleycat Acres urban farm on Tuesday, July 12, from 6-8 p.m. Everyone is welcome to visit the farm, meet the honey bees, check out the new irrigation system, and try a free float made from DRY Soda and Bluebird ice cream.

Alleycat Acres is located at 3656 24th Ave. S. If you can, bring your own spoon and mug, but if you can’t, don’t worry.

Volunteering and Giving

Share locally: food banks, farmers, and families need your help

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Caspar Babypants (Chris Ballew) will perform at the Wellspring Family Services open house on Saturday.
‘Tis the season for sharing good cheer! Here are some ideas to get into the spirit of giving.

Get a great deal on a Christmas tree at El Centro de la Raza and support the many programs they offer our community.

Don’t miss the Wellspring Family Services open house on Saturday, December 4, at 1900 Rainier Avenue South. The event features a free performance by Caspar Babypants (aka Chris Ballew of the Presidents of The United States of America) and other musicians. The open house is free and for all ages, but please bring a new unwrapped toy to support the holiday drive.  You can donate your child’s outgrown clothes and gear (car seats, high chairs, etc.) now and all year-round. Why not start a new tradition and ask your child to make room in the toy box for new things?

Clean your pantry and/or pick up extra items for a Beacon Hill food bank. South Beacon Hill neighbors can donate to Beacon Avenue Food Bank, located at 6230 Beacon Avenue South.  North Beacon folks can donate to El Centro’s food bank. Mid-Beacon neighbors can flip a coin—or donate to both!

The Alleycat Acres urban farming collective relies on donations and volunteers to keep their community-run farming efforts going.

The silent auction is sold out, but you should still make a donation to Open Arms Perinatal Services, a nonprofit agency helping pregnant women.

Do you know a nonprofit we missed?

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Spanish classes, squeaky rails, and help with the bills

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Alleycat Acres and ROCKiT space are planning to transform this yard into an educational garden for the community. Photo courtesy of ROCKiT space.
Alleycat Acres and ROCKiT space have been pretty busy in the neighborhood lately. Now, they are working together to build an educational community garden in the backyard at ROCKiT space. On Saturday from 1:00-5:00 pm, the two groups are inviting the community to a work party to transform the space. They will also sell plant starts and baked goods to help raise funds for the garden, and there will be music and artsy activities as well as a potluck. To help out, email rockitspace@gmail.com or volunteer@alleycatacres.com or just show up on June 12th. ROCKiT space is located at 3315 Beacon Avenue South. For more information, see the website.

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El Centro de la Raza is hosting another series of Spanish classes, to begin on June 28. Classes are instructed by professional native Spanish speakers in an interactive community-based setting. Classes will be on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6:00 pm to 7:30pm. Go here for information and a registration form. If you have questions, please call (206) 957-4605 or email execasst@elcentrodelaraza.org.

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The last two parts of Kevin Minh Allen’s three part series in the International Examiner, “Beacon Hill, Our Story,” are online now. Read the full series here: part I, part II, part III.

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Local Metro driver and YouTuber punkrawker4783 has posted a video tour of Beacon Hill Station.

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Speaking of Link, Mike Lindblom reported in Sunday’s Seattle Times (BHB news partners) that there are still issues with the noise of the trains in Tukwila, along Martin Luther King Jr. Way South, and along the curve near Mount Baker Station and the Beacon Hill tunnel, though a lubrication system added last winter has helped somewhat. Have you noticed the noise, and have you noticed any improvement?

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Dan Bennett took this cool panoramic photo of Jefferson Park recently. Click on it to see a larger version. Once you’re there, click “Original” to see a much larger version.

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A land use application has been filed to allow change of use in the basement of an existing apartment structure at 1731 South Horton Street to a religious institution (Zen Buddhist Meditation Center); it would require approval of an Administrative Conditional Use to allow an institution in a single family zone. See this bulletin for further information. The comment deadline is June 20.

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Lastly, we wanted to pass on some information about a financial assistance program that is currently open for low-income families in Seattle. Central Area Motivation Program (CAMP) offers an Energy Assistance Program that provides financial assistance through LIHEAP and Puget Sound Energy HELP to help low-income families and individuals pay home heating bills and minimize future home heating costs. Eligible clients can receive up to $1,000 through LIHEAP or Puget Sound Energy for utility payment assistance and up to $5,000 for dysfunctional heating system, chimney, or window repair or replacement. For more information, see the website or call the Appointment Hotline at 1-800-348-7144.

Once, many years ago, I was in a very bad financial situation and CAMP’s program was what kept the heat from being turned off in my apartment that winter. I want to take this opportunity to thank them for being there when I needed help. If you know anyone who might need similar help, please do make sure they get information about CAMP’s program.

Volunteering and Giving

Alleycat Acres raising funds and produce

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Alleycat Acres, a volunteer-driven urban farming collective is hosting a fundraiser tonight from 6:00 – 10:00 pm at Grey Gallery, 1512 11th Avenue on Capitol Hill. The suggested donation is $5-20 at the door.

Music for the event will be provided by DJ Colby B. and Brett Law, and there will be a raffle with prizes from local businesses. See more details at the website.

Sunday was the first ever harvest day at Alleycat Acres’ Beacon Hill farm site. Good Magazine filmed the harvest, and the volunteers harvested 129 pounds of lettuce, spinach, turnips, radishes, chard, and green onions, and delivered 120 pounds of the produce to the Beacon Avenue Food Bank.

129 pounds of produce harvested by Alleycat Acres last weekend. Photo by e pants via Creative Commons.
Local Events, Meetings

Places to go, things to do: events and meetings coming up

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Photo of last year's International Children's Day festivities at El Centro, courtesy Elliott Jones.

There are a lot of events and meetings coming up soon that we want you to know about. Updated with late-arriving reminders of ROCKiTspace events and El Centro’s Cinco de Mayo celebration. Here goes:

Sunday, April 18:

Monday, April 19:

  • North Beacon Hill Planning meeting with Marshall Foster, city planning director from the Department of Planning and Development, 5:30 to 6:30 pm at the Beacon Hill Library, 2821 Beacon Avenue South.
  • Beacon Family Bike and Pedestrian Plan meeting, 6:30 to 8:00 pm at the Beacon Hill Library.

Saturday, April 24:

  • Beacon Idol round two, 7:00 pm at ROCKiTspace, 3315 Beacon Avenue South.
  • Seattle Public Schools Family and Community Engagement Symposium, 9:00 am to 3:30 pm at Aki Kurose Middle School, 3928 South Graham Street — free workshops on helping your child with math, science, reading, writing, dealing with bullying, and college and career readiness with keynote speaker Dr. Susan Enfield; breakfast (8:30 am), lunch, and childcare provided.

Wednesday, April 28:

  • International Children’s Day celebration, 5:00 to 8:00 pm at El Centro de la Raza, 2524 16th Avenue South, featuring children’s activities and cultural games, refreshments, and presentations; for more info contact Enrique Gonzalez at 206-957-4605 or email execasst@elcentrodelaraza.org.

Sunday, May 2:

Thursday, May 6:

Saturday, May 8:

  • Meet Laila Lalami, author of the 2010 Seattle Reads selection Secret Son, 4:00 to 5:30 pm at the Beacon Hill Library.

Thursday, May 13:

  • Cheasty Boulevard Plan meeting, 7:00 to 8:30 pm at the home of Amit Ranade and Jennifer Faubion-Ranade, 2615 South Edmunds Street.

Friday, May 14:

  • Neighborhood Plan Update meeting, Mercer Middle School. (We don’t have the starting time for this one yet, but we will post it when we do.)

Sunday, May 16:

  • Beacon Hill Music Backyard Party fundraiser, 3:00 to 7:00 pm — RSVP requested, email beaconhillmusic@gmail.com for more info.

Monday, May 17:

  • Beacon Family Bike and Pedestrian Plan meeting, 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the Beacon Hill Library.

Saturday, May 22:

Wednesday, May 26:

  • Jefferson Park Skateboard Park, Beacon Mountain Playground, and Jefferson Playfield update with the Parks Department, 6:00 to 8:30 pm at the Jefferson Community Center, 3801 Beacon Avenue South.

Saturday, May 29:

Thursday, June 3:

Saturday, June 5:

Sunday, June 13:

Thursday, June 17:

  • Cheasty Boulevard Plan Open House with guided walks, 7:00 to 8:30 pm at the end of South Alaska Place.

Monday, June 21:

  • Beacon Family Bike and Pedestrian Plan meeting, 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the Beacon Hill Library.

Saturday, July 17:

Big thanks to Frederica Merrell for assembling many of these meeting times and locations in a handout from the April NBHC meeting.

BH in the News

Alleycat Acres volunteers dig in

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The Alleycat Acres urban farming collective had a successful “cropmob” work party on Sunday, to dig, till and build more garden beds in their fifth of an acre of urban farmland near Jefferson Park. The Seattle Times (BHB partners) published a great feature about the project, including a photo gallery.

Many more photos of the work party may be found in the Alleycat Acres photo pool on Flickr.

Volunteers getting grubby at the Alleycat Acres work party on Sunday. Photo by e pants (via Alleycat Acres photo pool - Creative Commons).
Clean and Green, Food and Drink

Gardening gets going

Glenn Herlihy issued a call for all interested in attending a Jefferson Park Community Garden and Food Forest meeting (in the Gardening forum and via David Gackenbach):

Good news… is all we got now.

The Parks Department has sent us a letter to go ahead and apply for the second round of applications for the Levy Opportunity Fund.
The application is due April 2nd and we’re going to do it. This has potential to build a lot of our Garden and is a great exercise for all who want understand public fund raising.

The VA Hospital has contacted us and is interested in some P-Patch or garden space for garden therapy. We can help with that.

We now have interested people from the community, Parks Department, Asa Mercer school, VA hospital, Mara Farms, Permaculture groups in the Seattle area and few others I may have missed. On top of that I just learned one of my good friends is good friends with Mr. MacPherson of MacPherson’s Produce. Maybe they would like some local fruit in a few years.

This next meeting will focus on:

  • the Levy Fund application,
  • finding a name for the garden,
  • welcoming the VA Hospital,
  • what to do with the 16th Ave dirt road and other design elements.
  • outreach possibilities
  • review

Please spread the word. All are welcome to attend.
If you have anything interesting flowering in your garden and want to share it with us please bring it.

The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, March 2nd at 7pm at the Lawn Bowling Club House (4103 Beacon Avenue South).

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Richard Kyper writes:

It’s springtime, and the garden is happening again. For those of you who know of, or have visited “The Garden,” and you know where I mean, this “e.” is for you.

Come and enjoy the beauty of the season as much as you like, but I do ask:

  • Please don’t pick the flowers or dig up plants. If you take them, no-one else can then enjoy them.
  • If you have a dog to walk, fine — but please keep your pet on the road, not in the garden, and pick up your messes.
  • Someone has been throwing their doggy doo doo bags into the woods. There is a trash can down at the overview park at 12th and McClellan.

    • Thanks, and cheers to a great early spring.

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Alleycat Acres broke ground this past weekend on Beacon Hill. They’ve got photos on Flickr. Read more on Urban Food Producer and in the forums here.

A work party is planned for Sunday. More information is after the jump.

Continue reading Gardening gets going →