Tag Archives: light rail

Overheard

Quote of the day

From the Lake Boren Rapid Transit Report:

“The last big segment (of the Central Link light rail) is the tunnel and station above it on Beacon Hill. The station is at surface level and passengers will be hoisted up and down via a rope tow or something. Anyway it’s 165 feet from the Beacon Hill surface down to the tunnel and that’s a long way. Maybe they’ll have a fireman pole for going down and a jetpack for going up.”

Getting Around, Urban Planning

Light rail = increased home values on North Beacon?

Will this train soon bring higher housing values to the Hill? Photo by The Lebers.
Will this train soon bring higher housing values to the Hill? Photo by The Lebers.
According to the Denver Post, homes near light rail stations on the new Southeast line there have increased in value by nearly 4 percent since the line opened, even while homes in the rest of the Denver market declined by an average of 7.5 percent. The closer the home is to the station, the more the value increased, with those less than half a mile from the station increasing by an average of 17.6 percent.

The article mentions a similar effect in other markets, with single-family home values showing increases ranging from 2 percent in San Diego to a blistering 32 percent in St. Louis. The article also suggests that it is not just station location that causes the biggest increases, but transit-oriented development (TOD) that adds to the attractiveness of the area. North Beacon and Mount Baker (Rainier and McClellan) will have their stations soon, but will the TOD follow? Will we see a similar increase in housing value here on Beacon Hill? The Othello and Columbia City stations are already seeing some development, but there hasn’t been much up on top of the Hill or at the foot of McClellan.

Thanks to Seattlest!

Neighborhood Pride

What are five things you love about Beacon Hill?

15 Comments
I love that I can get a cappuccino like this only 5 minutes walk from home! Photo by Wendi.
I love that I can get a cappuccino like this only 5 minutes' walk from home! Photo by Wendi.
The Ms. Adventures in Italy blog had a post the other day, “Five Things I Love About San Francisco.” She invited readers to post their own “Five Things I Love About _______” lists on their own blogs. I started thinking about what I love about Seattle, and then thought “hey, why not Beacon Hill?”

So I ask you all, what are the five things you love about Beacon Hill? Please post in the comments. If you have photos, please email them to us or put them in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool at Flickr.

I’ll get things started with my list. I live in North Beacon so this might be biased toward that area:

  • The light rail that will be serving us in less than a year!
  • The lovely old Craftsman bungalows that haven’t been “remuddled” beyond all recognition
  • The tasty food and drink available on Beacon Avenue these days (particularly El Quetzal and Victrola)
  • The new library: beautiful, and full of the best things in the world: books!
  • The sound of the gospel singing from the Baptist Church across from the Library, echoing through the evening air in summer when the windows are open

So what are your five?

Next week I may ask for the five things you’d like to improve about the Hill, but for now, we’ll stay on the positive side.

Local Events, Urban Planning

What do you want to see at the light rail stations?

The train is coming! Photo by Erwyn van der Meer.
The train is coming! Photo by Erwyn van der Meer.
We mentioned this before, but it’s worth repeating.

This Saturday, October 25, the Greater Duwamish Council and the SE District Council are co-sponsoring a community meeting to discuss the new neighborhood planning process and “how to create vibrant, successful neighborhoods” at the light rail stations.

The event will be at the New Holly Gathering Hall, 7054 32nd Avenue South, at 12:00 noon, and snacks and child care will be provided.

Getting Around, Urban Planning

Concerned about where train riders will park?

2 Comments

The Rainier Valley Post notes that the city wants neighborhood input on parking issues around the soon*-to-be-opening light rail stations in South Seattle.

Regarding Beacon Hill:

The ¼ mile area around the Beacon Hill Station involves both commercial and residential areas. Common parking tools used here may include time-limit signs and a residential parking zone. Community concerns to date include several areas of the neighborhood where parking conditions are already pretty congested at different times of the day. 

When: Wednesday, November 5th at 7 pm
Where: St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, 6020 Beacon Avenue South

You can also submit your comments by email. Full details in the article at RVP.

* soon as in next summer! W00t!

Getting Around, Local Events

Transit measure discussion forum, 10/26

Grown Folks Coffee are hosting a community forum to discuss the Proposition 1 mass transit expansion measure, this Sunday afternoon from 1:00-3:00 pm. Lara Fowler is organizing this, and says “We’re working to see if there might be people available from the
campaigns, but regardless, there will be people in attendance who can address the issues.”

Grown Folks is at 4878 Beacon Avenue South, and there is parking available. If you are planning to attend or have specific questions, please let Lara know at lfowler AT gth-law DOT com.

Thanks to Lara, who posted this to the Beacon Hill mailing list!

Getting Around, Urban Planning

Rider’s eye view of Link light rail

I was excited to see this time-lapse video of a trip from Othello Station almost all the way to the Tukwila light rail station:

I can’t wait for the train to open to the public — I just wish we would get more train lines, and faster! But this one will be great for getting from Beacon Hill to the airport, downtown, the stadiums, and just about anywhere in between. Next summer can’t get here quickly enough, as far as I’m concerned.

Via Seattle Transit Blog — thanks!