As city considers strengthened rules for Pike/Pine, developer says 8-story project is how preservation should be done

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Preservation of a 40-foot stretch of masonry wall qualifies this 14th Ave project for an extra floor of apartments (Image: CHS)

Preservation of a 80-foot stretch of masonry wall qualifies this 14th Ave project for an extra floor of apartments (Image: CHS)

Meanwhile on E Pike, a leading Capitol Hill developer says his project will be a model for preservation (Image: Hunters Capital)

Meanwhile on E Pike, a leading Capitol Hill developer says his project will be a model for preservation (Image: Hunters Capital)

Last week, the final design plans were approved for the eight-story building at Melrose and Pine that benefitted from generous incentives for melding a modern apartment structure with two auto-row era buildings. One of Capitol Hill’s leading developers says he can do it better.

“It’s clear during the recent uptick in development, especially studying the larger projects going through [Master Use Permitting] that there are loopholes and shortcuts in how the current Pike/Pine Overlay language was written,” reads a statement from Michael Malone’s Hunters Capital sent to CHS about incentives in place since 2009 that trade the right for developers to build larger and higher in exchange for preserving the facades and basic dimensions of historical structures in the Pike/Pine neighborhood. Continue reading →

Pink Pistols? Gay-focused pro-gun flyers pop up across Capitol Hill

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954712_10102042573882468_1723188421_n (1)As one LGTBQ group prepares for a Wednesday night march and rally to launch a new “block watch” program on Capitol Hill, someone else has taken to the utility poles of the neighborhood to spread a much different message.

“Some people dislike gays, others dislike guns,” one posted sheet reads. “We should not base our laws on personal dislikes.”

The rather large leap of an equivalency looks a little like a renewal of a national campaign from the mid-2000s that got some attention on Capitol Hill known as the Pink Pistols. We talked to one person familiar with the group from the days when Pink Pistols “first fired up” who says it is still active in the area but he is not sure if this is a case of old members reviving their efforts or a younger generation of gun activists picking up the torch. We have not yet heard back from our effort to reach a representative for the group. Continue reading →

Capitol Hill pizza driver held up after giving chase to Belmont Ave car prowler

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A Capitol Hill pizza delivery driver reported having his phone taken from him at gunpoint after he tried to chase down a woman who he found prowling his car during a middle-of-the-night delivery on Belmont Ave E.

According to the report on the Saturday morning incident, the driver said he was making a delivery after leaving his locked car in the 300 block of Belmont Ave E around 2:30 AM when he was returning to the vehicle and saw the driver-side door open and a woman rifling through the vehicle. The driver told police he yelled at the woman and began chasing her as she made a run for it.

The driver said he quickly caught the woman and was holding onto her when two men armed with a pistol and a bike chain arrived and yelled at him to let the woman go. According to the driver, he tried to make a phone call but one man pointed the gun at him as the other was swinging something that appeared to be a bicycle chain.

The driver said the men and woman then took his phone and fled from the scene “in all directions,” according to the report. The driver returned to his restaurant and called police.  A search of the area did not produce any of the suspects.

After East Precinct testing, SPD rolling out system to identify crime hot spots

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Screen-Shot-2013-05-17-at-2.06.07-PM-1024x451Though there are no datasets released yet that suggests it is working, the Seattle Police Department is rolling out “predictive policing” software it has been testing in the East Precinct to alert officers to areas of the Hill “to forecast potential areas where property crimes like burglary, car prowling and theft might occur.”

According to SPD, the PredPol software produces maps with red-line boxes to alert officers where crime hot spots are emerging.

Despite implementation of the technology in the East Precinct, there has been an increased concern about crime around Capitol Hill. This week, a rally and march is planned as a new “block watch” program is launched among Capitol Hill businesses. Police say the new software could eventually be extended to identify danger zones for increasing violent crimes like assaults and robberies.

The full announcement on the roll-out is below. Continue reading →

First Hill group tries to scale back 24-story apartment building

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Screen shot 2013-05-19 at 6.20.55 PM

Weber Thompson’s design for 1321 Seneca

A group of neighbors has its turn in front of the Seattle Hearing Examiner in an attempt to scale back a 24-story apartment building planned for 1321 Seneca on First Hill.

The complaints and requested relief, below, call for additional conditions to be placed on the building, more study of the project’s potential impact on traffic and parking in the area, reducing the height of the building by shrinking rooftop amenities and changing the layout.

The neighbors also want construction work — currently permitted to go until 8p — to end at 6: Continue reading →

Hope for summer: First Cal Anderson movie in the park announced

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(Image: CHS)

(Image: CHS)

We’re probably a little too eager to post this. After the burst of warm weather in April, May has been a reminder of what a Pacific Northwest spring is really like. Let us think of summer nights in the park. Also, Cal Anderson could use some hopeful love these days.

Three Dolar Bill Cinema has announced the first film in its summer “I Need A Hero!” series and the schedule for 2013 in Cal Anderson Park:

Look, up in the sky! It’s a small army of super iconic characters, swinging into action and coming to save your summer with FREE outdoor movies!

Three Dollar Bill Outdoor Cinema returns to Capitol Hill’s Cal Anderson Park with “I Need A Hero!” — four nights of action-packed fun!

Friday July 19 – HAIRSPRAY (1988)

Hair hoppin’, booty shakin’ Tracy Turnblad (Ricki Lake) is breaking all the rules for the better and making heroic strides for civil rights in this bouncy & beloved John Waters classic starring Divine and celebrating its 25th anniversary! (92 mins.)

“I Need A Hero!” continues on Friday August 2, 9, 16.

All screenings are FREE and begin at sunset (around 8:30/9pm) at the southeast corner of Capitol Hill’s Cal Anderson Park.

This is a smoke-free event. Bring low-backed chairs or blankets for seating, please.

Hot popcorn, cold drinks, candy and other concessions for sale on site. Limited lawnchair rentals available. Proceeds benefit Three Dollar Bill Cinema’s efforts throughout the year to provide voices and visibility for the LGBT community through film and video. More info at

www.threedollarbillcinema.org

12th Ave still hopping despite end of street festival

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Views of 12th Ave Fests past (Images: CHS)

It’s official—after three years of street-based revelry, the 12th Ave Festival will not be returning this year. Originally created as a way to brand and market the emerging 12th Ave business district, the festival brought together nascent upstarts in the area to celebrate the forming community.

Three years later, that goal has been accomplished.

8443559457_fb9ce74a3e_b“In meetings with the businesses after last year’s festival, people said they really liked it,” said Alex Brennan at Capitol Hill Housing, who helped organize the annual event. ”But we all agreed it felt like we achieved our goals that we set out in the beginning—great relationships between businesses had been formed, and a strong 12th Avenue identity had emerged.”

While the festival won’t be returning, Brennan says there are many more exciting 12th Ave happenings in store.

On June 11th, Capitol Hill Housing will be holding its annual Community Forum to discuss “neighborhood change, affordability, and the neighborhood character,” according to Brennan. “That’s the things that’s exciting about these new relationships on 12th—these new small business communities have informed much of that character we will be discussing at the forum, which is something we want to preserve as we continue to develop.”

On July 27-28, 206 Zulu will be hosting “Boogie Up the Block“ on 14th Ave between Spruce Street and E Yesler Way, and E Fir Street between 12th and 15th Ave. The urban arts festival will include soul, funk, hip hop and reggae music stretching across three stages, as well as a variety of food vendors and arts and crafts activities.

Also in the works for the fall is the grand opening celebration for the 12th Ave Square Park. The park, slated to open up next to Cherry Street Coffee and Ba Bar on E James Court, was funded by a Seattle Parks Levy. The intention is to turn James Ct. into a “woonerf” defined by the Parks Department as “a street where pedestrians and cyclists have legal priority over motorists.”Screen shot 2013-05-19 at 7.14.55 AM

Armed robbery reported at Belmont and Thomas

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Police are investigating an armed street robbery reported early Saturday morning near Belmont and Thomas.

There are few details available yet in the holdup reported in the 300 block of Belmont Ave E just after 2:30 AM Saturday.

According to the preliminary report information on the incident, the robbery occurred on the street and reportedly involved a handgun. No medical units were dispatched to the area at the time.

We’ll update when we get more information from SPD on the incident.

Here’s why 15 fire hydrants on Capitol Hill will soon sport red rings

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Screen shot 2013-05-19 at 6.54.54 AMThey still produce the water necessary for Seattle Fire crews to do battle but 15 fire hydrants around Capitol Hill will receive special markers this week designating them as “low flow” to help responders better plan their attack. Here is an announcement from the city about the project to mark 70 low-flow hydrants around the city with red discs — and the answer to one of those questions that are bound to come up on your next walk through the neighborhood with a 5-year-old.

Project/Description of Work: 
Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) crews will install a red reflective ring on low-flow fire hydrants in your neighborhood. Low-flow hydrants are defined as those that deliver less than 500 gallons of water per minute.

The red ring provides a distinct and very visible way for Seattle Fire Department personnel to quickly and easily identify low-flow hydrants in cases of emergency.

Low-flow hydrants are fully operational, but output less water per minute than other hydrants. The clearly marked hydrants aid firefighters by helping ensure that the best fire-suppression tactics are chosen when operating a low-flow hydrant.

More than 18,000 fire hydrants are located throughout the City of Seattle of which about 70 are classified as low-flow hydrants and will be tagged with the red ring.

Dates/Times: Crews will begin installing the rings the week of May 20 and expect to have all low-flow hydrants throughout the city marked by the end of May 2013.

Contacts: If you have questions about this work, please contact SPU Hydrant Crew Chief Charles Jackson at (206) 396-1826 or charles.jackson@seattle.gov.

For questions about fire safety in your neighborhood, contact Seattle Fire Department Public Information Officer Kyle Moore at (206) 386-1679 or kyle.moore@seattle.gov.

1 Year Ago This Week on Capitol Hill

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Here are the top CHS posts from this week in 2012: