Category Archives: Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Car wash, Lunch Bus, and an Earth Day Work Party

April 15, 2009 Wendi Dunlap 3 Comments

A north Beacon stairway to be improved at this weekend's Earth Day Work Party. Photo by Vicki Grayland.

Dominic Holden discusses the 15th and Beacon car wash, and suggests that whoever filed a complaint about the car wash violating zoning is misguided: “The building, as far as I can see, has no windows facing the sidewalk. No window shopping, candy shopping, or book shopping will be happening in that garage. The pedestrian potential thereâ€”at least for now, with that building in this economyâ€”is probably as good as itâ€™s going to get.” Most of the commenters, however, disagree — Slog
Sound Transit is hosting another Lunch Bus trip at 11:30 am on Friday, April 17. The Lunch Bus is a guided tour of the Link light rail initial segment construction, followed by lunch at a local eating establishment. You are responsible for buying your own lunch. Tours depart and return at the southwest corner of 5th Ave S & S King Street in the International District. You must RSVP today — see the website for info.
Beacon Ridge Improvement Community is hosting an Earth Day Work Party this Saturday, April 18, from 9:00 am until noon. Neighbors will help clean up and beautify the public stairways at South Walker, Hill and Holgate Streets between 16th and 17th Avenues South. Refreshments will be provided. Please wear appropriate clothing and footwear, and bring tools if you have them, marked with your name (weeders, shears, shovels, trowels, rakes and brooms). Questions? Contact David at bricchair@comcast.net. Interested in becoming more involved? BRIC needs committee leaders and board members. See David if you are interested.

(Edited 4/16 to correct photo credit.)

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Park changes, tourist warnings, and home sales

April 13, 2009 Wendi Dunlap 5 Comments

Taejon/Daejeon Park in the snow last December. Photo by Matthew Rutledge in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr.

Travis notices something different in Taejon Park: it’s now Daejeon Park — Madness Hamster
Speaking of Seattle Parks and Recreation, they are holding an open house at Jefferson Community Center, 3801 Beacon Avenue South, on Thursday, May 7, to discuss the possibility of standardizing park operating hours. See the press release here.
How Seattle Works: Seattle City Guide tells tourists “Always stay on well-lit, well-traveled streets, and avoid less touristy neighborhoods such as the Central District, Rainier Beach, and Beacon Hill, especially after dark.” Certainly there’s not a lot for tourists on the Hill, but should we be avoided? I don’t think so — How Stuff Works
Real estate on Beacon Hill showed a mini-boom in March: “The average time on market for Beacon Hill dropped from over 170 days to 68 in a single month. That is the biggest drop I ever remember seeing” — Seattle Home Buying Guide

Beacon Bits, Local Business, Photos, Urban Planning

Beacon Bits: Recession affects light rail area development and local cut glass company

April 6, 2009 Wendi Dunlap

If you’re wondering where the expected “building boom” along the light rail route on MLK is, you’re not alone. The Seattle Times reports that projects are being delayed — sometimes permanently — by the current recession’s tight credit and overall economic malaise. The South Seattle Beacon recently discussed this issue as well, with representatives of the Rainier Valley Community Development Fund and the city’s Office of Economic Development suggesting that the current situation is a “great opportunity” to focus upcoming development.
Speaking of development near the light rail line, we meant to post this last week: a PDF of Sound Transit’s plan for the Beacon Hill light rail station area. The gray areas that say “future development” are not owned by Sound Transit and will be fenced off by chain link fence after the construction is complete. It’s up to the property owners to decide what to do with those areas, and their plans are unknown at the moment.
Also in the Times, Kusak’s Cut Glass, at the foot of Beacon Hill just off Rainier Avenue on 22nd, was founded in Seattle nearly a century ago, in 1914. The company was named “the Northwest’s family-owned small business of the year” by the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Seattle office last year. And now, in the recession, it is struggling, but determined, to survive.

On a positive note, the cherry trees are blooming! (A little late this year, aren’t they?)

Photo by Joel Lee, in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr.

Beacon Bits, Food and Drink, Help Wanted, Local Events, Urban Planning

Beacon Bits: Lunch planning

March 27, 2009 Jason

Hungry Girl visits Lunch Counter
ColorsNW on the Presidential vegetable garden and the Beacon Ave P-Patch
House values down 12 percent in Beacon Hill notes the Ballard News Tribune
Eat The State is looking for south-end distributors
And don’t forget about the Transit-Oriented Development meeting Saturday starting at 9

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: One less editor, one more barista

March 4, 2009 Wendi Dunlap

Can you do this? Then Victrola has a job for you. Photo by Wendi. — Can you create this? Then Victrola has the job for you. Photo by Wendi.

Victrola on Beacon Avenue is hiring a part-time “superstar barista” — craigslist
South Seattle Beacon editor Erik Hansen was recently laid off; the paper will now be edited by Vera Chan-Pool, who also edits the North Seattle Herald-Outlook and the Capitol Hill Times, also produced by Pacific Publishing. The papers will compensate for the reduced staff by sharing more articles in all the chain’s papers, and running fewer stories specific to each neighborhood — Seattle P-I
The Beacon Bluff P-Patch was featured on the Seattle Daily Photo blog
Bruce Gray at Sound Transit gives us further info about the recent gas leak at the light rail station: “Our contractors were removing sound wall support footings along 17th Avenue when they struck an abandoned, unmarked gas line… The old line has now been capped at the main.”

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Pets, books, and a neighbor needing help

February 17, 2009 Wendi Dunlap 2 Comments

It’s not on Beacon Hill, but it’s not too far away — a new pet supply store, Immortal Dog Pet Supply and Bakery, has opened on the 1700 block of Jackson. Despite the name, it’s not for dogs only. It’s nice to have a pet supply store closer to Beacon Hill. (If there’s a closer one, let us know!) — Central District News
Mary Woodward will discuss her book In Defense of Our Neighbors: The Walt and Milly Woodward Story on Thursday, February 19, at the Beacon Hill Library, 2821 Beacon Avenue South, 6:30 p.m. The event is free. — Seattle Books Examiner
Phil Weigel of Motorcycle Services, Inc., down the hill in Georgetown, is a long-time member of the Georgetown community who has run into some hard times after a recent broken hip: while Phil was recuperating in the VA here on Beacon Hill, his landlords terminated his month to month lease, and in a very few days he may have nowhere to go. There are many ways you can help; see Blogging Georgetown for details.

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: delays, development, and free flu shots

February 10, 2009 BHB Admin Leave a comment

Remember the big I-5 repair project we warned you about a few weeks ago? After a weather delay, it starts tonight. One to three northbound lanes between Albro and Columbian will close between 7:00 pm and 5:00 am. There will be other closures soon as well; details here — Seattle Times
It may be a bit late in the season, but there are free flu shots and flu nose sprays available on Saturday, February 14 from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm at the Rainier Vista Boys & Girls Club, 4520 Martin Luther King Jr. Way South. Children must bring parents, and a certified Somali medical translator will be on hand — newrainiervista.com
The City Council’s Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods Committee has endorsed the proposed rezone for the Goodwill site on Dearborn, so the next step is for the full council to consider the rezone on February 17 — Rainier Valley Post

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: A hero, neighbors, and greenery

February 6, 2009 Wendi Dunlap

Earl Johnson was a hero who helped police arrest a man suspected of being the Beacon Hill Groper, but since then, his life hasn’t been very easy. — The P-I
The 15th Annual Seattle Celebration of Neighbors, or Neighbor Appreciation Day, is this Saturday, February 6, and two Beacon Hill community centers are participating. Jefferson Community Center and Van Asselt Community Center will serve cookies and juice “and friendship” from noon until 2:00 pm.
An application has been filed with the city to change an 1,134 square foot portion of a church at 6115 Beacon Avenue South to a child care center for 20-25 children.
And last but not least, this lovely succulent plant was photographed on Beacon Hill recently:

I love how these look good even in winter. Photo by supafly.

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Transit, tiles, eagles, and an Eagle sports legend

February 5, 2009 Wendi Dunlap

This eagle's in the Arboretum, but maybe one will visit the Hill. Photo by Steve Voght.

Sustainable South Seattle emails us that Sound Transit, Transportation Choices and Futurewise will present future transit plans for South Seattle in a meeting next Wednesday, February 11, from 6:00 – 7:30 pm at the Columbia Library.
SEEDArts is offering a public art workshop for youth (fifth grade and up) to create a glass tile mosaic for a the entrance of the new Rainier Vista Boys & Girls Club on Martin Luther King Jr. Way South. Workshops will meet on Thursdays from 4:30 – 5:15 (seventh grade and up) and 5:15 – 6:15 (fifth and sixth grade) until June 4. For information, contact Abbey Norris, Public Art Manager, (206) 760-4289.
Blogging Georgetown notes an eagle sighting on Carleton Avenue South. Might the eagle visit us on the Hill? Keep your eyes open.
The P-I has a lovely “Where Are They Now?” story about one-time Cleveland High School three-sport star David Seguro, who is one of only three people since 1919 to achieve first-team, all-conference recognition in football, basketball, and baseball, and the most recent to achieve that distinction.

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: a new home, bad neighbors, and a local school

January 29, 2009 Wendi Dunlap

Candice would rather not hear a barking dog at all hours. Photo by Ordinary Guy.

Mike Lewis at the Under the Needle blog has an update about Deb Manuma, the single mom who was nearly evicted from her Beacon Hill home through no fault of her own when her landlord neglected to pay his mortgage. Manuma now has a new home in Skyway, though she still lives near Beacon Avenue — Seattle P-I

Beacon Hillian Candice is having neighbor problems — noise, inconsiderate parking, a barking dog, you name it. She says, “we just want it to stop and we don’t know what to do.” Can you provide any advice? — Beacon Hill Blog Forums

Community educator Gayle Johnson suggests the African-American Academy on Beacon Hill should not close and cites WASL results to back it up — Seattle Times