Stuff is happening this weekend! There’s art, music, dancing, and more happening on (or even through) the Hill today. Here are a few of the things you might want to check out.
First, get out of bed and get over to the Maple School Natural Area work party at 10 a.m. today. This is a monthly event, held every first Saturday. Volunteers will help improve the parkland, then have a community potluck. More info here.
After the hard work, it’s time to enjoy some art, music, or dance. You have several choices tonight.
NEPO Little Treats presents Trotter, an exhibition of works by Amanda Manitach. The opening is tonight, Saturday March 5, from 6 until 8 p.m. Bacon-wrapped dates will be served, and there will be a screening of Cremaster 4 at 8 p.m.
Klara Glosova of NEPO House, smiling at last month's NEPO opening while holding a gun-shaped glass bottle. Photo by Dan Bennett in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr.NEPO Little Treats is a series of monthly shows that focus on presenting new work by individual artists and small groups at NEPO House, 1723 South Lander. Regular open hours are Wednesdays and Thursdays 12 to 2 p.m. and by appointment. More information about NEPO House and the show here. Some photos from last month’s opening are here.
If a musical trip is more your speed, Light Rail, Dark Rail is for you. Live performers including the Beaconettes, Cafe Racer Sessions, Jordan O’ Jordan, Tahoe Jackson, and more will liven up Link Light Rail trains.
Start at 5:30 p.m. tonight at the International District/Chinatown Station for a “summoning performance” by Prawnyxx. Then at 6 p.m., enjoy a “Musical Tour Guide and Overture” on southbound trains to SeaTac. At SeaTac, you’ll deboard, then board a northbound train. One is Dark Rail, and the other is Light Rail—you don’t know which you’ll get. Head to Sodo Station for the after party at Radar Hair + Records, 2721 First Avenue South, at 7:30 p.m.
If you prefer swing dancing, stay up on top of the Hill for the Beacon Rocks!swing dancing fundraiser, from 8 until 11 p.m. tonight at the Garden House, 2336 15th Ave South. There will be a live swing dancing performance and swing-dance lesson by Savoy Swing at 8:15 p.m., a live cake raffle, and more. Suggested donations start at $10.
On Sunday at 3:30 p.m., visit our neighbors in Mount Baker to see the Medieval Women’s Choir perform a short concert at Mount Baker Community Clubhouse, 2811 Mount Rainier Drive South. The choir will sing medieval music with soloist Linda Strandberg, accompanied by period instruments played by percussionist Peggy Monroe and harpist Bill McJohn.
After the weekend’s over, don’t forget the UPTUN quarterly meeting, Nightmares and Opportunities: Broadstripe and City Underserving Neighbors on Monday, March 7 at 7 p.m. at Beacon Lutheran Church, 1720 Forest Street South. See our earlier post for more info.
Image courtesy of Klara Glosova/NEPO House.There’s another art show opening at NEPO House this weekend. The Pajama Game, an exhibition curated by Jason Hirata, features works by Gretchen Bennett, Sol Hashemi, Matthew Offenbacher, Daphne Stergides, and Ian Toms. The opening is on Saturday February 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. Afterwards, there will be a movie screening in the NEPO House living room from 8 to 10 p.m.
Klara Glosova of NEPO House tells us,
This is the first installment in our brand new NEPO Little Treats series of exhibitions at NEPO House. We will present a series of monthly shows that will focus on presenting new work by individual artists and small group shows. In order to avoid moving too much furniture the shows will take place only and entirely in our entry room. The openings will take place on the first Saturday of a month from 6 to 8 p.m. (with optional movie screenings afterwards).
NEPO House regular open hours are Wednesdays and Thursdays 12-2 p.m. and by appointment.
The Station will be hosting a Super Bowl watching event on Sunday, February 6. Owner Luis promises “beer, wine, mimosas, sangria and much much more!!” The Station is located at 2533 16th Avenue South, just north of Beacon Hill Station.
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A public meeting is planned for Monday, February 7, to update the community on the city’s plans for a transitional encampment for homeless people and listen to neighborhood feedback. The meeting will include Deputy Mayor Darryl Smith and staff from the Department of Planning and Development, Human Services Department, and Seattle Police Department.
The meeting will be from 6:30-8:00 p.m. on Monday, at the Seattle Department of Transportation Sign Shop, 4200 Airport Way South.
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Jumping ahead to next weekend, local resident Tess Martin, who lives near the library and Stevens Place/Triangle Park, is hosting a neighborhood potluck on Saturday, February 12. If you’re interested in attending, please email tessmartin@hotmail.com for the exact address and time. Tess writes, “Come meet your neighbors! February 12 also happens to be Neighbor Appreciation Day according to the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods, so that’s another reason to attend besides, of course, the good food and conversation you will no doubt encounter.”
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You may want to save the date for these other upcoming events:
El Centro de la Raza community meeting to discuss the development on their south lot, Saturday, February 19, 10 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. at El Centro.
Town Hall meeting with Mayor McGinn, Tuesday, February 15, 5:30 – 8 p.m. at Jefferson Community Center.
More information about these events will be posted in the blog soon.
Walking and driving have been treacherous during our recent cold snap, particularly in places like this 14th Avenue location where there seems to be some kind of water leak. Photo by Robert Kangas in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr.The Friends of Cheasty Greenspace at Mt. View, together with Cascade Land Conservancy and Washington Conservation Corps, are co-hosting a Martin Luther King Jr. service day on Monday, January 17 from 10:00 am to 12 noon. All are welcome to help, including families with children (it’s a school holiday). To participate, meet at 2809 South Alaska Place, one block west of Columbia City Station. Volunteers will work on forest restoration and invasive species removal. Gloves and tools will be provided.
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Mmmmm, pancakes. MMMMMMMMmmm, all-you-can-eat pancakes for $5! The Cleveland High School softball team is hosting a pancake fundraiser on Saturday, January 9 from 9:00 – 11:00 am. Breakfast is served at the Cleveland cafeteria, the same building where the gym is located. Questions? Email Kyrsten at klpratt@seattleschools.org.
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We previously mentioned that Gage Academy of Art is offering free drop-in art classes for teens aged 13-18 in the Rainier Valley. We have more information about the classes now. January’s classes are “Imaginative Plaster Forms” with Katrina Wolfe, February’s are “Cut It Out” (cut paper in two and three dimensions) with Celeste Cooning, and March features “Explorations in Paint” with Jeanne Dodds.
Classes are on Saturdays at The 2100 Building, 2100 24th Avenue South. Classes will be from 6:30 pm – 9:30 pm. For more information, call 206-323-GAGE. Art materials and pizza will be provided.
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There is a new Yahoo group/listserv for Beacon Hill parents. Go here to join and chat with your fellow parents in the neighborhood.
“‘You can’t drive down a block on Beacon Hill without seeing them,’ says Joel Lee of the plant sculptures he refers to as bonsai on his popular neighborhood blog. Lee moved to the area a couple of years ago, drawn by the promise of light rail and the Jefferson Park expansion. But as soon as he started walking his dog around the neighborhood, he became fascinated by the display of sheared and shaped plants.”
Unfortunately, author Valerie Easton seemed a bit put off by the Hill’s topiary art.
The Times is also hosting a “map the potholes” project. There are a few Beacon Hill potholes already included, such as the “giant holes heading west on Holgate at approx 14th” (we hit that one a couple of weeks ago—ouch!), but if your most annoying tooth-rattler isn’t listed, please add it.
Neighbor Robert Kangas has noted some extreme water leakage along 14th Avenue South, west of Jefferson Park. The leaks caused some dangerous ice patches. He posted a series of photos here. In discussion on the Beacon Hill mailing list last week, some folks noted a history of artesian wells on the Hill, and suggested that these are the source of some of the leaks around the neighborhood. Others think it’s a leaky water main.
If you notice a potential water leak on public or private property, you can report it by calling 206-386-1800, and Seattle Public Utilities will then check it out.
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The Seattle Department of Neighborhoods is hosting three free workshops to educate neighborhood groups and community organizations on the funding process and requirements for the Large Projects Fund, the matching fund that awards up to $100,000 for community projects. Next Tuesday, January 11, there’s a workshop in Southeast Seattle, at the Rainier Community Center, 4600 38th Avenue South. The workshop is from 6:00-8:00 pm. More information about the Large Projects Fund and the three workshops may be found here.
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Sustainable South Seattle is hosting the third of a workshop series dedicated towards creating a climate co-op for South Seattle neighborhoods. The event is Wednesday, January 26 from 6:00 – 8:00 pm at the Southside Commons, 3518 South Edmunds Street. Food, refreshments, and childcare will be provided. Please RSVP by emailing climate.coop@gmail.com.
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A new co-ed a cappella group is forming on Beacon Hill, with auditions this month according to a current post on craigslist.org:
We are looking for:
Men and women who are positive, fun and excited about performing and singing harmony. We will possibly be doing 1 to 2 gigs per month starting in the Spring.
We want to be:
16 in total. (We have 10 right now) Put together performances that are tight musically, visually and are funny and entertaining to most people. You don’t have to dance or want to make a fool of yourself, but it is a bonus. Diverse in anyway possible—age, race, musical background, sexuality…
A couple of changes to liquor licenses on the Hill occurred last month. The Station coffee house at 2533 16th Avenue South was approved for a license as a “direct shipment receiver – in WA only.” But every new beginning is some other beginning’s end: on the same day, the liquor license for the ill-fated Tasha’s Bistro Café was discontinued.
Skin Deep Dance troupe is performing tribal-style belly dance at Inay’s Asian Pacific Cuisine on Saturday December 11 and again on December 18. Shows are at 7:00 pm and 8:00 pm, and waiter Louie will also appear in drag. There’s no cover, but bring cash for tips. Inay’s is located at 2503 Beacon Avenue South.
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Photo by emdot via Creative Commons.Neighbor Lily sent this report a week or so ago: “I just wanted to report that I believe I’ve heard coyotes howling a lot this morning near Dearborn Park.” We at the BHB have actually seen Beacon Hill coyotes within the last couple of years, crossing the street near 17th and Walker. It’s definitely not a new problem. Please keep your pets safe.
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El Centro is hosting a tree lighting ceremony later this month. Las Posadas, “A Neighborhood Celebration of the Holidays,” is from 4:30-6:00 pm on Monday, December 20 at El Centro de la Raza, 2524 16th Avenue South.
Besides lighting the Christmas tree, the event will feature caroling by the Beaconettes, a visit from Santa, holiday treats, and more.
Beacon Hill’s own a cappella group, The Beaconettes, recently took the People’s Choice award at the Great Figgy Pudding Street-Corner Caroling Competition for the second year in a row, singing Seattle-centric versions of carols including “My Favorite Things” and “The 12 Days of Christmas.”
The event, a fundraiser for the Pike Market Senior Center and Downtown Food Bank, was held last Friday, December 3 at Westlake Center. 35 choirs competed in front of a large and cheerful crowd. Here are a couple of videos of the Beaconettes’ performance.
The Station coffee shop at 2533 16th Ave South is currently displaying paintings by Angelina Tolentino. There will be an opening reception for the exhibit from 1:00 to 3:00 pm on Sunday, November 21.
The artist’s biography:
I am a designer, illustrator and painter. I was born and raised in California but have called Seattle home for fourteen years. I love to draw and I am happiest with a little paint in my hair. I am inspired by a great number of things: old cartoons, firecracker packaging, bicycles, photo-booths, Japanese packaging design, street art, windup toys, antique stores, gardens, high-fashion, 60s soul music, dinosaur exhibits, old signs, chefs, flowers, sea creatures… just to name a few.
I paint because it’s what I love to do. I describe my painting style as whimsical, colorful, and playful. I have been known to paint women with fantastically long necks who live on tropical islands. I am specifically inspired by the natural world especially the the worlds under the sea. I find water to be a unifying element in my work. I’ve been working lately with other materials like sand and creating three-dimensional altars, exploring death and rebirth, but in a colorful, celebratory way.
One of my most recent projects was a mural on the side of a bridge in the Southpark neighborhood of Seattle. This mural will live for another year before the bridge is taken down and replaced with a new one.
Photo by Anita Hart via Creative Commons.Today is your final opportunity to attend a public hearing to give your opinion about this year’s city budget process.
City Councilmember and Finance and Budget Committee chair Jean Godden will join Council Central Staff Director Ben Noble to answer budget-related phone calls prior to the public hearing. If you would like to ask questions or comment on the budget, please call 206-684-0481 between 4:30 – 5:00 pm.
The hearing itself is at 5:30 pm in the Council Chambers, on the second floor of Seattle City Hall, 600 Fourth Avenue. It will be broadcast live on Seattle Channel 21, and streamed online here. More information on Seattle’s budget is here.
Among the budget’s effects on Beacon Hill is the proposed closure of the Beacon Hill Neighborhood Service Center, along with the centers in Greenwood, Fremont, Queen Anne, Downtown, and Capitol Hill.
After the hearing, come back to Beacon for the Beacon Arts Social, from 7:30 to 10:00 pm at the Beacon Pub, 3057 Beacon Avenue South. BeaconArts describes it thusly:
Come find like minded souls haunting the streets and dives of Beacon Hill. Mourn the passing of our local pub, perhaps write a postcard to support 4 Culture. Discuss application of artistic principles in unused commercial lots. Develop an arts community on Beacon Hill, come short or long. Drink. Be Merry. Or Scary.
These are some of the photos recently uploaded to the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr. Do you have any photos of the Hill? You are invited to add them to the pool, for possible publication here on the blog.
Josephine enjoys the playground at Jefferson Park. Photo by tkml79.The new crosswalk was recently completed in front of the library. There are small flashing lights embedded in the crosswalk that activate when people walk between sensors on either side of the street. Photo by Wendi.Klara Glosova's Oily Pelican sculpture was one of the artworks seen at the latest NEPO art event. Photo by Dan Bennett.A political statement recently seen among other posters on Beacon Avenue. Photo by Wendi.
This Saturday, September 25, is the fourth NEPO art event, this time a “Back to School, Back to Earth Special.” The event is at the NEPO House, 1723 South Lander Street, from 6:00 pm to 12:00 midnight. Curator Klara Glosova describes this edition of NEPO as follows:
“NEPO 4 is about learning. Inspired by the plight of guinea pigs, our brave artists stepped into the role of model organism and subjected themselves to all kinds of experiments (voluntarily or not). The role of our show is to make their failures and successes public, “with the expectation that discoveries made in the organism model will provide insight into the workings of other organisms”. These new discoveries will be presented in the style of a Natural History Museum, where exhibits will contain live humans (performances), objects and missing objects (some exhibits may be temporarily shut down due to lack of funding).
Warning: The museum also serves as a metaphor for our art world, and world in general – and it might reflect its current state!”
After Beacon Rocks! on Sunday, local artists are getting together for a BeaconArts working party to talk about plans for the organization and what to do for the September 18 opening of Jefferson Park. The meeting is from 6:00 to 8:30 pm on Sunday, at Robert Hinrix’ house. For more information, see the BeaconArts website.
