Saturday news notes: Car vs. pedestrian on 12th Ave, old tree near SCCC loses big branch

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Here are a couple incidents of note from Saturday  on the Hill reported by the CHS community, one involving a woman struck by a car on 12th Ave and another involving an old tree on Boylston near Seattle Central losing a massive branch and closing down the street.

  • In the 12th Ave car vs. pedestrian incident, ras reports details of a woman struck while crossing the busy street just after 1 PM:

My husband was walking south on 12th when he looked up to see a woman on the windshield of a car at the intersection of 12th and Howell. She had been crossing (legally) at the intersection when a car ran into her. Police and ambulances quickly arrived. She didn’t appear hurt, but seemed to be in shock.

We’ve reported on an effort underway by the Capitol Hill Community Council to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety along 12th Ave. The street has been the location for several car vs. pedestrian incidents over the years. You can learn more at http://capitolhillcommunitycouncil.org/campaigns/12-ave-street-improvement/

  • Photographer Rob Ketcherside alerted us to this arboreal issue from the corner of Boylston and Olive St behind Seattle Central Community College:

    Hour 3 of the investigation. Police have cordoned off E. Olive Street and Boylston Avenue after the collapse of about a quarter of the beautiful old tree. The city arborist is on the scene assessing the damage.

Longtime readers of CHS will note, there are only four times a year when trees fall or lose branches around Capitol Hill. When it’s really rainy and the ground is soaked. During heat waves. When the city says so. When it’s snowy. Make it five: When there are a lot of leaves and a little rain. So, basically, trees are always falling or losing branches on Capitol Hill. Look out below.

4 thoughts on “Saturday news notes: Car vs. pedestrian on 12th Ave, old tree near SCCC loses big branch”

  1. When I arrived home this evening there was a group of neighbors watching SDOT remove the fallen branches and trim the elm. We all spoke about how much we love it. For a number of us, it’s our favorite tree in the city. I know we’re not alone.

    Via word of mouth: the City arborist says the remainder of the tree appears to be in good health. They had to cut back quite a bit of the massive canopy on the east side. It’s striking to see so much sky. The branches had formed an umbrella over the intersection. About a 1/3 of that umbrella is gone. Watching SDOT shred the branches just about brought a tear to my eye.

    The responsibility for the tree is in the hands of the adjacent property owner (not the city). It’s going to need some love and protection to make sure that the remainder of the tree is healthy. Someone said it will need to be inoculated to protect the exposed branches from beetles and insects that could lead to its downfall. This could be costly. I wonder if the tree is eligible to be designated a heritage tree? Seems worthy to me…

  2. I live across the street from that tree and just simply adore it, i view it as my favorite neighbor. I rode my bike to QFC and went right under that tree, as it hangs very low into the street. 10 minutes later I’m on my way home and the entire road is covered in branches. I’m glad I (or anybody else) wasn’t injured. Hearing SDOT take the chainsaw to the tree was pretty painful. Glad the rest of the tree is doing okay though.

  3. Interesting contrast in reaction to a tree in peril versus a real live human being HIT BY A CAR. I hope she’s doing okay.