Tag Archives: roy

Kerry Hall hits the market as Cornish College of the Arts says goodbye to Capitol Hill

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(Image: Cornish College of the Arts)

The Cornish College of the Arts is ready to sever its final connection after more than a century of dance and music education on Capitol Hill.

Kerry Hall, the three-story studio and performance hall at E Roy and Broadway where Nellie Cornish called home at the time of the school’s 1914 founding and part of the school for more than 100 years, is now for sale.

“This is an exciting moment for Cornish College of the Arts,” Emily Parkhurst, chair of the board of trustees, said in a statement. “The decision to sell Kerry Hall completes the Board’s plan to unify the campus in South Lake Union, first outlined in 2007.”

CHS reported here in 2021 on preparations for the property sale as Cornish sought to solidify its growing presence in South Lake Union.

The announcement did not include a price tag for the property. Cornish says proceeds from the sale will be “reinvested into Cornish’s existing facilities and operations, allowing the college to continue to grow.” The school says its enrollment is expected to exceed 530 students in the 2024/2025 school year. Continue reading →

Behind the Capitol Hill curtains at a ‘macabre Halloween cocktail party,’ local theater makers and ‘tiny moments to scare the partygoers’

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Showtime on E Roy

 

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You can look at the return of the Haunted Soiree “macabre Halloween cocktail party” to Capitol Hill as the return of a soul-stealing zombie business that haunts the neighborhood sucking dollars from unsuspecting tourists and filling them with watered down cocktails.

Afterall, Capitol Hill does Hilloween just fine on its own. Bars and restaurants up and down Broadway and across Pike and Pine look forward to the weekends around the holiday for almost Pride-levels of business.

It is also true that the concept is part of a nationwide production company’s ventures that swoops onto Capitol Hill once a year to cash in on Hilloween enthusiasm.

But you’ll be missing most of the fun. And some of the cocktails are actually good.

“I’m a teaching artist and I heard about Haunted Soiree through some friends,” cast member Hannah Votel said. “I love the tiny moments to scare the partygoers, luring them in with a false sense of insecurity. You can tell they like to be messed with.” Continue reading →

Joining Seattle’s seasonal run of scarehouses and fright fests, a Haunted Soiree returns for another Hilloween on E Roy

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(Image: Meyer2Meyer Entertainment)

(Image: Meyer2Meyer Entertainment)

The crowds are a little smaller and the hype down a level or two as a seasonal Halloween cocktail “experience” has returned for a second season at Capitol Hill’s DAR Rainier Chapter House

Re-branded as a Haunted Soiree production, this year’s The Volkov Possession continues through Halloween in the E Roy Mansion:

This 21+ immersive experience is part theatrical production, combined with an old-school variety show, dressed up as an upscale cocktail party, inside a historically haunted venue. It’s a night of eerie elegance, featuring themed mini-cocktails, extravagant entertainment, music, macabre magic, surreal specters, and interactive guest experiences.

While many reviews of last year’s visit described an overhyped, oversold experience, the show is still drawing Halloween-happy patrons. Ticket prices range from $64 to $95 depending on how many “miniature craft cocktails” and assorted other upgrades you want.

Unlike other pop-up experiences that have visited the neighborhood, the Haunted Soiree adds a new venue to the area’s October nightlife offerings. Continue reading →

Seattle Police investigate after down man found with knife wounds on E Roy — UPDATE: Self-inflicted

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Seattle Police were investigating Thursday night after a man was found critically injured with knife wounds near Cornish College’s Kerry Hall on Capitol Hill.

Seattle Fire was called to the area near E Roy at Boylston just after 6:30 PM to what was originally reported as a self-inflicted stabbing. Crews were reported performing CPR on the down man before transporting him to Harborview. We do not have further updates on the victim’s condition.

UPDATE: Seattle Fire reports the 45-year-old man was taken to Harborview in critical condition.

Seattle Police were investigating the scene as a possible assault after finding a small knife at the scene that did not appear to be consistent with the victim’s injuries. According to East Precinct radio updates, detectives were being called to the scene to investigate the possible assault.

UPDATE x2: SPD said Friday morning the injuries in the incident appear to be self-inflicted.

There were no reported arrests. E Roy was closed just west of Broadway during the response and initial investigation.

 

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‘The famous eclair? That’s not us’ — The French Guys are now home on Capitol Hill

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Thibault Beaugendre

With photography and reporting by Alex Garland

The French Guys are not open on Tuesdays. They’re closed on Mondays, too. But they aren’t resting.

The Seattle “mobile” French bakery has put down roots on Capitol Hill and the baking schedule at its Tukwila kitchen is as busy as ever delivering its “rustic” creations to cafes and restaurants, supplying its popular presence at Seattle farmers markets, and, now keeping the shelves full at its newly opened E Roy cafe. It is a logistical challenge.

“So, that would be the tricky part, you know,” Thibault Beaugendre tells CHS, “having enough but not too much.” Continue reading →

Cook | Weaver, now 100% chef-owned, is growing its restaurant family on E Roy

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The carrot corn dog stays (Image: Cook | Weaver)

(Image: Cook | Weaver)

By Bjorn Lynge

A Capitol Hill food and drink partnership that has created one of the most creative corners in E Roy food and drink is splitting but it is an amicable break-up that will open new doors for Cook | Weaver as a chef-owned home for eclectic fine dining.

Co-owner and front of house manager Nile Klein recently announced his intention to step away from the establishment. After Klein and Zac Reynolds opened the restaurant seven years ago, the two have received continual admiration for their inventive cuisine and tongue in cheek approach to menus which Reynolds said is largely inspired by his experiences living and eating in Seattle. Now, however, Klein is ready to pursue something new, making Chef Reynolds the sole owner of Cook | Weaver.

Reynolds will also be stepping a little farther out of the kitchen with the change. Continue reading →

A sad goodbye to the American Elms of Capitol Hill’s Kerry Hall

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Two classic Capitol Hill trees are being removed this week from in front of Cornish College’s Kerry Hall.

Photos of the sad removal showing the sliced trunk of one of the large American Elms were posted along with remembrances on the CHS Facebook page Wednesday afternoon. “I am mourning the loss of the HUGE beautiful old tree in front of Kerry Hall,” the person who shared the update writes. “I saw the notice a couple days ago and stunned it’s already gone 😭 That corner will never be the same.”

According to a letter filed with the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections in October, the trees died of Dutch elm disease and would “present a high risk over time” to passersby below in the 700 block of E Roy. Continue reading →

Fais de beaux rêves, Joe Bar — The French Guys are moving in

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Chausson aux pomme (Image: The French Guys)

Seattle’s “first mobile French bakery” will have a place to park on Capitol Hill. The French Guys are making plans for a new cafe and bakery shop in the former Joe Bar.

Thibault Beaugendre tells CHS he hopes to continue the sense of comfort and peace that Joe Bar brought to E Roy for 25 years while investing in repairs and upgrades to the old cafe space.

The charming touches like the mezzanine seating will stay, Beaugendre says, and you will still be able to swing through for a coffee but the new life for the old space in the Loveless Building will also include fresh-baked breads, buttery pastries, and the class and comfort of a French cafe. Continue reading →

At least one more year of music and dancing at Capitol Hill’s Kerry Hall

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Inside Kerry Hall (Image: Cornish College of the Arts)

(Image: Cornish College of the Arts)

There will be dancing and music in Kerry Hall this fall, but what happens in 2022 is still an open question. The Spanish-revival building located on E Roy just off northern Broadway is operated by Cornish College of the Arts and houses the school’s dance and music programs.

Worries have grown that the school plans to close the building after the 2021-22 school year, but no formal decisions have been made, said Raymond Tymas-Jones, president of Cornish.

Most of the rest of the school’s programs are based in South Lake Union, and they also have a presence at the Seattle Center. The school’s Board of Trustees has a long stated goal of unifying the school into a single campus, which would mean the South Lake Union location. When it does happen, it would mark the end of a more than 100-year relationship between Cornish and Capitol Hill.

While the long term decision means the closure is likely to happen eventually, actions have been a long time in coming. Continue reading →

How Capitol Hill’s tile and terra cotta mystery ruins ended up at Harvard and Roy

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The projects are commonplace now. One currently underway is creating a route of accessible curb ramps, raised crosswalks, pavement repairs, and a new Rapid Flashing Beacon on the streets between Lowell Elementary and Meany Middle School across Capitol Hill. But an early effort in the mid ’90s to make a Capitol Hill corner safer also created a mystery at Harvard and Roy.

How did ancient downtown Seattle ruins of terra cotta and tile end up at a corner in the middle of Capitol Hill?

A CHS story way back in 2009 dug up the answers. You can thank a City of Seattle safety program called Making Streets that Work, a $64,000 grant, the Cirque Apartments for maintaining the area over the years, and the work of some community members to change the neighborhood.

CHS commenter Glenn explained the project:

At the time I was a student at the U.W. Urban Planning school and lived just down from the corner (still do). The corners were broadly cut at the time, with huge curb radiuses, mirroring the Cirque. (If you want an idea how wide, they bordered the sidewalk that goes by the building). As a result, for pedestrians crossing Harvard while walking east on Roy meant this meant walking across a lot of road with cars making fast right turns on to Harvard. So I thought it would be a good idea to bring the curb out to closer to a 90 degree angle, create some public space and make things safer for pedestrians.

Continue reading →