There will be a brief presentation of program highlights followed by the tour of the school building. Registration is not required. Please note that no child care is provided.
Beacon Hill International School is located at 2025 14th Ave. S.
Walkers should dress warmly and bring a flashlight, umbrella, and note-taking supplies. The walk will happen whether rain, snow, or sun. The walk should end at about 9 to 9:30, and will be followed by a wrap-up meeting, but you don’t have to stay for the whole thing. You are welcome to participate for as long as you are able.
Jefferson Community Center is located at 3801 Beacon Ave. S. For more information, call 206-684-7481.
We’ve been holding on to some of these Bits for a while, so no time like the present… here goes!
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The Beacon Food Forest was featured recently in Crosscut, where Robert Mellinger writes:
“There is no other project of Beacon Food Forest’s scale and design on public land in the United States — a forest of food, for the people, by the people.”
The article gives a thorough background on the bureaucratic issues that the Food Forest organizers have had to deal with so far, as well as an overview of future plans.
The Food Forest was also featured in Take Part this week.
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Travelers Thali House was recently touted in the Seattle Weekly‘s Voracious blog as “colorful food kids will eat.”
Travelers was also mentioned in the March issue of Sunset, on page 17. The blurb mentions that Travelers serves Indian street food and gives a couple of examples.
Back to Voracious, where Travelers was featured yet again this week in a “Sexy Feast” review by Jay Friedman:
“My thali looked like an edible artist’s palette. Instead of a paintbrush, I’d dip my fork into the various metal bowls, sampling each carefully and seeing how it blended with the next…
“Exploring and enjoying different tastes and textures, with varied sequences of bites, nibbles, scoops, and swirls, made this a delicious experience.”
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7×7 listed Beacon Hill as “one of the 7 best neighborhoods in Seattle” — specifically, “best for families.” Writer Alida Moore cited our parks, playgrounds, library, diversity, and light rail as reasons the Hill is great for kids, along with one highly-rated school: Mercer.
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Have you noticed that MacPherson’s doesn’t sell sprouts anymore?
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Neighbor Lesley Ernst writes:
“You know the neighborhood is changing when…
“Arriving at my massage office on Hanford St. and Beacon Ave. early last Sunday morning to find that the ubiquitous litter in the parking strip has changed from 40-ouncers to Kombucha bottles and PCC to-go containers.”
The meeting is open to the public and provides an excellent opportunity for Southeast Seattle voters to meet Smith, who will be representing us when the new redistricting plan takes effect, moving Southeast Seattle into the 9th District along with Mercer Island, Bellevue, Renton, Tukwila, Kent, and other areas stretching southward to Tacoma.
Previously, our area was in the 7th Congressional District, represented by Jim McDermott. The new 9th District will be the first majority-minority district in Washington State.
The Beacon Hill Blog contacted the alehouse’s owners, Melissa Cabal and Robert McConaughy, to find out what is happening. Here’s what they told us:
“There’ve been a few snags with the city and permitting but we’re moving forward and hope to open in May—alehouse with food, local beers and wines. One side of the space will allow minors to accommodate the high number of families with small children in the neighborhood.”
They say the liquor license is not an issue, and that they have been granted a provisional license already, with the permanent license to come shortly before the pub opens. It is possible, then, that both the Oak and the Tippe and Drague will open this spring. Big changes are on the way for Beacon Avenue nightlife.
As noted in this previous post, Beacon BIKES has been working with SDOT to plant trees along our planned Neighborhood Greenway routes.  We had a very successful effort last fall planting 70 trees along 18th Avenue South.  Now we are working with SDOT to plant 300 more trees this March.  The City plants the trees, waters them for three years, and prunes for the life of the trees.  Home owners get to pick among three tree types or choose no tree at all.  It is called the SDOT Community Tree program, and you can find out more about it here.
If you have questions about the program email me or come to the next North Beacon Hill Council meeting (March 6th, 6:30-8:00 pm, Beacon Hill Library) where we will be presenting a little more info.  The planting is scheduled for mid- to late March and we will be planning a community tree planting day to plant a few by hand in the same time frame. SDOT has already marked some of the proposed planting locations; you can check out the flags along 14th Ave S to get a feel for how this program can really improve a street for all users.
If you live north of Lucile and would like a tree or two planted in your planting strip let me know and I will forward it to the City.  If you would like a tree for your yard instead of your planting strip, there is another great City program called Trees for Neighborhoods which has been posted about previously here, with more up-to-date info here.
See the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool (and add your own photos!) here.
The Beacon Rocks! summer music series will be back for its third season on Roberto Maestas Festival Street this summer, and performers are needed. This year’s family-friendly events will be June 24, July 29, and August 26, from 1-5 p.m.
Though the festival “Rocks!”, all styles of music and performance are welcome. Previous performers in the series have brought us trip-hop, blues, jazz, marimba, folk, and various kinds of rock, along with belly dancing, martial arts, modern dance, and more.
Performers may audition by sending links to music samples or descriptions of their performances to beaconrocks@gmail.com.
Beacon Rocks! is presented by ROCKiT Community Arts, a non-profit organization dedicated to making music and art available to everyone.
Online reactions to The Oak, the new restaurant/bar planned to open soon on Beacon Avenue South, have generally been positive. However, not everyone is thrilled about the new business. Residents living in the area around the Oak, at 3019 Beacon Ave. S., recently found flyers on their doorsteps bearing the headline “Are You Aware?”
“Are you aware that there is a pending application with the Washington State Liquor Control Board for our new neighbor @ 3019 Beacon Ave. South to operate a TAVERN in our neighborhood? … This will definitely impact all of us (positive or otherwise) but the bottom line is that we should have a say about this matter. We are asking you to get involved!”
The flyer suggests sending objections to Alan Rathbun of the Liquor Control Board, as well as to James Kenny, the Assistant City Attorney, then ends with the appeal “Act Now … Participate … Beacon Hill is also yours!”
Redd Mateo is the contact person listed on the flyer. The Beacon Hill Blog asked Mateo how many people are involved in the group protesting The Oak, and he said “I can’t tell you that as of yet but from the initial input we gather, there is a good number of neighbors (mostly with children).” Asked about his group’s specific concerns with The Oak, he listed several potential issues: littering, noise, crowd control, and public urination. “The bar they operate in Capitol Hill opens from 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. Assuming that they close at 10 p.m., who will stop them from extending those hours to 2 a.m.?”
Mateo forwarded a letter written by another neighbor, Gwen Lewis, addressed to the Liquor Control Board and objecting to The Oak’s liquor license. (Read the letter here.) Lewis’ letter includes a concern that “…Beacon Baptist Church, Beacon Lutheran Church, and the Beacon Hill Library may be within 500 feet.” (According to Google Maps, the Oak would be roughly 630 feet from the front door of the Library, about 730 from the Baptist Church, and roughly 800 feet from the front door of the Lutheran Church. The Lutheran Church no longer operates but there is still a preschool on the site.)
The letter also alleges “chronic illegal activity (Per RCW 66.24.010) associated with the applicants operations of the premises proposed to be licensed AND the applicant’s operation of another licensed premise.” The letter then describes circumstances at the owners’ other establishment, The Redwood, back in 2006 when the bar had newly opened and had problems with some of its neighbors on Capitol Hill, who complained about noise and filed a zoning complaint with the Department of Planning and Development (DPD). However, The Redwood’s case with the DPD has been closed since 2007 and the business is still operating at the same location on Capitol Hill.
Other allegations in the letter include statements that the Oak’s owners have worked on the property without permits and were issued a violation, and that representatives of the Oak “informed neighbors that the applicant was opening up a coffee shop (but) on February 6 the applicant posted a liquor license application notice.” According to the DPD website, there was a complaint and violation last month, but the Oak’s owners have also received two permits since that date.
Lewis’ letter also brings up the 2008 shooting at the Beacon Pub, limited parking in the area, and a “known drug area at nearby Triangle Park” (Stevens Place Park) as additional reasons to object to the Oak’s liquor license application.
Lisa Jack, one of the co-owners of The Oak, was shocked to hear about the flyers and the opposition by these neighbors. She told the BHB, “When buying this building we were told that Beacon Hill would support this move wholeheartedly as they were looking for new fun businesses. The Redwood is an entirely different establishment in an entirely different neighborhood; it would be lovely if one of these disgruntled people would just come talk to us.”
She added, “We have been very honest with everyone, even in the early stages of not knowing what it would be… we have said ‘restaurant/lounge that will serve children as well in the dining area.’ We intend The Oak will be a neighborhood place for Beacon Hill residents and we hope to have weekend brunch too.”
Mateo and Lewis are concerned that The Oak, as a drinking establishment, won’t be a good fit for the location, which is a commercial building but has residences directly adjacent to the south and west. Mateo said, “Please don’t get me wrong. I really welcome new business in our neighborhood… just like that new pizza place. What a great place. But a tavern is totally different. This is something that will impact a lot of people in the neighborhood.”
Jack, who along with co-owner Mat Brooke is moving to the neighborhood herself, is disappointed at the turn of events. “It seems like the responses in your blog as well as passers-by have been very excited by what we are doing. It breaks my heart that we may have to struggle once again to make a good honest business.”