Man shot and killed in First Hill apartment building identified

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The man shot and killed in a First Hill apartment building early Wednesday morning has been identified as police continue to search for the gunman seen fleeing from the scene.

The King County Medical Examiner says 40-year-old David Chuyeshkov died early Wednesday inside First Hill’s Tuscany Apartments of injuries from a gunshot wound to the torso.

The Seattle Police Department has declined to release more information on the slaying citing the “open and active homicide investigation.”

CHS reported here on the deadly shooting as police were called to the Seneca at Summit building just before 1:45 AM to reports of someone yelling to call 911 followed by a report of gunfire.

Arriving officers found Chuyeshkov down inside the unit and reportedly suffering from a gunshot wound to the back. Witnesses reported a male fleeing from the scene. He was described as a black male, wearing all black clothing with a bicycle. Police were checking nearby nearby hospitals for the possibly injured suspect or possible additional victims but none were located. A person with a reported grazing bullet wound to the shoulder was also being treated at the scene, according to radio updates but SPD would not confirm those details. Seattle Fire says it is not aware of another person injured at the scene.

Residents say they had complained to property management about drug activity at the building. Continue reading →

City says numbers will determine if Capitol Hill’s rogue stop signs become official

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This video shows the rogue 4-way stop in motion

The Seattle Department of Transportation says even though it rushed to remove the rogue E John stop signs, it gets the message from the guerrilla act of street engineering.

“The installation of unauthorized stop signs indicates a desire from some in the community to have additional traffic control at this location,” a SDOT spokesperson tells CHS. “We’ll collect data to understand if stop signs might be a good option at this intersection.”

CHS reported last month on SDOT’s quick de-installation of the latest vigilante act of Capitol Hill streetscape improvement after somebody unofficially added official looking stop signs along E John creating 4-way stops at 13th and 14th Ave where pedestrians are often left waiting to make dangerous crossings. Continue reading →

Broadway’s Comedy/Bar is now Emerald City Comedy Club and is taking on A-list renovations

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Hesseldahl confronting the old walls before the club’s opening in 2023

By Calvin Jay Emerson

Some jokes go over better than others. Broadway’s Comedy/Bar is gone. With the Emerald City Comedy Club, a new start is underway.

If you ever walk north from Capitol Hill Station, you’ll likely pass under an unlit neon arrow. Wrapped around it is a swirling black ribbon, labelled “High Line”, indicating its former purpose. Given that the dive bar of the same name closed five years ago, it now only serves as a reminder of the changes at 210 Broadway E.

Its most recent identity was as Comedy/Bar, a comedy venue that, despite attracting national controversy, has maintained a friendly following. They’ve provided a space to go for a reliable laugh and discover new comedy talent.

However, owner Dane Hesseldahl knew that the club hadn’t reached its full potential. Continue reading →

Braddock approved as acting King County Executive — the first time a woman will lead the county

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Braddock

The King County Council has approved Shannon Braddock as acting King County Executive while the legislative process plays out to appoint a full-time leader for the county of 2.2 million people and the selection goes to the voters in November.

Braddock has served as Deputy Executive under Dow Constantine who led the county since 2009 before deciding not to run for reelection this year. Constantine has been chosen as the new CEO at Sound Transit.

Depending on how the council proceeds on naming a permanent leader to finish the year, Braddock could fill the executive role through the end of Constantine’s term. King County voters will select a new executive this fall.

“It’s an incredible honor to be acting King County Executive. I’m committed to providing strong and steady leadership for the people of King County and delivering the essential services communities rely on, from roads, parks and trails to public transit, health, safety and more,” Braddock said in a statement. “Thank you to the County Council for entrusting me with the privilege of serving King County as acting Executive during this transition.” Continue reading →

‘We’re the same squad’ — Break Away grows from vintage on the street to a shop on Capitol Hill

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(Image: Break Away)

By Matt Dowell

This weekend will bring a celebration of the continuation of a mission of reuse and community on Broadway as Magpie Thrift hosts its grand opening.

On E Pike, the guys behind a vintage shop that opened on the street last year are also trying to build something new. They have a few things they’d like to clarify. Though their brick and mortar spot is new, they’ve been in the neighborhood for awhile.

And their name — Break Away— has nothing to do with the split from their co-tenant next door at Late Night Vintage.

And their prices are negotiable!

“There’s a big misconception. People think we broke away from Late Night,” laughs co-owner Eddie Duran. “But we were Break Away before this store was even a thing. We’re still friends [with the Late Night crew]. We hang out.”

Break Away Vintage Market has taken the east half of the upstairs space in the auto-row era building that has been home over the years to cafes and nonprofits before its latest incarnation in retail. Someday, a nine-story mixed-use building will stand at the corner. These days, the spacious former auto showroom is now divided down the middle by a makeshift wall of clothes racks separating Break Away and Late Night Vintage.

Break Away was one of the original vendors at Late Night’s vintage clothing market when it opened on E Pike in 2022. They stepped out from the Late Night umbrella last October. Besides the upstairs room, Break Away has also filled out a cavernous downstairs, another fun space to explore.

“It’s like a maze,” said Duran, “We have so many different rooms.” Continue reading →

Seattle Parks working on plan for new memorial in Cal Anderson marking CHOP and the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests — UPDATE

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The CHOP “raised fist” remained for a short time following the camp’s clearance

This May will bring the five year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd by a Minnesota cop. June will mark five years from the Black Lives Matter protests that followed across the country and in Seattle centered around the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest zone and Cal Anderson.

This spring, the Seattle Parks department says it is working on a plan to create a new art installation in the popular Capitol Hill park “to commemorate the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, honor Seattle’s Black and BIPOC communities, and memorialize those lost to gun violence.”

The new project will join the nearby E Pine Black Lives Matter mural in marking the area’s place in 2020’s unrest. It follows the late 2023 removal of the Black Lives Memorial Garden from the park.

This year’s project will create a new memorial. Continue reading →

Officials applaud vote distancing Seattle from ‘defund’ as a final step in SPD reform over biased policing

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Screenshot

Calling the movement “flat wrong, divisive and counterproductive,” Seattle City Councilmember Rob Saka is celebrating Tuesday’s vote approving a resolution shunning the city’s past efforts at diverting spending and resources from its police department and acknowledging the failure of the “defund movement.”

“As a black man, growing up in this country, an Air Force veteran, someone who has busted their hump and was able to overcome the foster care system and any number of life changes that we all face, it didn’t benefit me,” Saka said prior to Tuesday’s vote. “It didn’t benefit any of the communities I have been involved with.” Continue reading →

Man dies in shooting inside First Hill apartment building

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(Image: SPD)

A man was shot and killed overnight inside a First Hill apartment.

The Seattle Police Department reports officers attempted CPR as Seattle Fire arrived at the scene inside a first floor unit of the Tuscany Apartments. SPD says the 40-year-old died at the scene.

According to East Precinct radio updates, police were called to the Seneca at Summit apartment building just before 1:45 AM to reports of someone yelling to call 911 followed by a report of gunfire.

Arriving officers found the man down inside the unit and suffering from a gunshot wound to the back.

Witnesses reported a male fleeing from the scene. He was described as a black male, wearing all black clothing with a bicycle. Continue reading →

‘A home for curious readers,’ Nook & Cranny book shop makes new start off Capitol Hill

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Attendees at Nook & Cranny’s final book club on Capitol Hill (Image: Nook & Cranny)

Capitol Hill has lost a bookstore. Nook & Cranny has packed up its bibliotherapeutic shelves and is nearly ready to open in its new home in a new development in the University Heights neighborhood.

CHS reported here in January as owner Maren Comendant announced the 15th Ave E book shop had lost its lease and was on the hunt for a new location with the help of a community fundraising campaign.

Comendant created Nook & Cranny in the summer of 2022. What if you read about a Capitol Hill bookstore for sale — and bought it? Comendant can tell you. She purchased the business after reading about its previous iteration going up for sale on CHS.

Costs eventually outstripped profit on 15th Ave E and the bookseller’s search took her to Northeast Seattle. Nook & Cranny wound down with its final Capitol Hill book club taking place as March faded — “a lively discussion about Dogeaters by Jessica Hagedorn.”

With the 15th Ave E shop now dark and empty and awaiting whatever business joins the neighborhood next, Comendant says Nook & Cranny could be open any day in its new spot with plans for an official grand opening on April 26th’s Independent Bookstore Day.

Nook & Cranny will open soon at 5637 University Way NE. Learn more at nookandcrannybooks.com.

 

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Seeking connections and data trends, the new Capitol Hill Neighborhood Safety Coordinator is on the job

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SPD VIOLENT CRIME TRENDS — CAPITOL HILL: The Capitol Hill core has averaged about 29 violent crimes a month so far in 2025

SPD PROPERTY CRIME TRENDS — CAPITOL HILL: Property crimes like burglary and theft are a big problem. The area has averaged nearly 200 property crime reports per day in 2025 (Source: SPD Crime Dashboard)

Jen Carl

Since taking on the role of the new Capitol Hill Neighborhood Safety Coordinator with the GSBA chamber of commerce in February, Jen Carl has been conducting initial outreach with members of city departments, and taking a responsive approach by looking into safety issues the neighborhood is experiencing. But, her goal in this position is to uncover crime trends to build more proactive responses, and to strengthen relationships between the community and cops.

Carl is a Lesbian who grew up in Florida in the 1990s, having experienced bias. She went into the criminal legal field after the 2015 murder of Freddie Gray while in Baltimore police custody. She said the legal system is one of the most marginalizing systems in the U.S., and hopes to find ways to truly serve the neighborhood where it’s safe for the community and general public.

“Right now, it’s just a lot of data gathering: understanding where the gaps are in public safety, understanding that Capitol Hill is a very unique community,” Carl told CHS, who noted how Capitol Hill’s economy is driven by visitors and neighborhood-focused small businesses alike.

“Together, they create this wonderful [catalyst] of uniqueness, so understanding that unique vibrancy that Capitol Hill has and pairing that with the challenges that it’s seeing, and figuring out what the best strategies are to overcoming while maintaining the uniqueness.”

The new Capitol Hill Neighborhood Safety Coordinator comes as a response to growing concerns and impatience around street disorder and public drug use — especially in Pike/Pine and especially at the core area around Cal Anderson Park and Broadway and Pike. Continue reading →