Monthly Archives: April 2019

Police search for pink purse bandit after First Hill credit union hold-ups — UPDATE

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Not the suspect’s purse

With the suspect’s reported get-up, you wouldn’t think they would get far but for the second day in a row, a First Hill bank has been robbed by a bandit with a fantastic outfit.

Seattle Police were called to the bank in the 1100 block of Madison Tuesday afternoon just after 4:15 PM to a report of a robbery involving a suspect described as a person in their 60s wearing a scarf, a cardigan over a striped dress, and carrying a pink purse.

The suspect also reportedly had a teardrop tattoo near their eye. Continue reading →

Capitol Hill Community Post | Capitol Hill CSA – Veggie Boxes

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There is no better way to support the farming community, and your healthy eating habits, than purchasing a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) Farm Box. When you purchase a CSA you are not only purchasing farm fresh produce, but you are also making a statement that you care about feeding your family certified organic, ecologically grown vegetables. You are declaring that you care about the sustainability of farm land in the Sammamish Valley.

Ecolibrium’s CSA runs for 20 weeks from mid-June through mid-November. Each week’s box will contain a selection of the freshest from the farm: classic favorites and specialty ingredients all picked at the peak moment of freshness. You will also receive a weekly email containing a recipe to learn how to use some of the more interesting items in your box.

As a CSA Member, you are at the heart of Ecolibrium’s community. It feels essential that we celebrate this connection, so on top of your delicious weekly yield – you will be invited to join all CSA Members for a Fall Harvest Party including a fantastic farm-to-table meal prepared by our in-house Culinary Team. Experience how the farm operates, meet your fellow shareholders, and enjoy a delicious late-summer evening meal on the farm.

WHERE:
The Riveter: Capitol Hill
1517 12th Ave
COST:
$750

About Ecolibrium Farms

At Ecolibrium it is our mission to change the way people think about food. What if we brought the same keen sense of discernment we use when making decisions regarding technology, human interaction, or our jobs and schools to the choices we make regarding the food we feed ourselves and our families? At Ecolibrium we grow food, cook food and bring people together around food. We see connections at every step. We believe protecting the land that supports and nourishes our families also strengthens our bodies, our businesses, and our economy. We think of success in terms of generations, not years. A thriving and sustainable agricultural system will support our entire community, feed us and our descendants in perpetuity, and provide a space for people to celebrate and enjoy nature.

https://www.ecolibriumfarms.com/

Seattle May Day 2019 brings 20th annual march for immigrants and workers to Capitol Hill — and expectations for another ‘riot’-free year — UPDATE

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Seattle’s 20th annual May Day March for the Rights of Immigrants and Workers will again cross Capitol Hill Wednesday afternoon and — for a second straight year — it appears that any planned protests separate from the annual workers rights march won’t be taking place on Broadway.

“This year we march once again to reclaim our struggles as immigrants, workers, and without borders,” organizers from El Comite write about the 20th year of the massive march. The crowds will begin gathering at noon on Dearborn before setting out on a trek across the city to downtown:

We are here because of the insecurity, crime, and corruption unleashed in our countries by bad governments with the support and intervention of the U.S. We are here because of political repression and exploitation of workers and the dispossession of our natural resources and territories. We are here refusing to be victims of the few who benefit from this system and the impoverishment, displacement and death that they wreak upon on our peoples.

Walk with me for justice,
Walk with me for immigrant rights,
Walk with me for labor rights,
Walk with me because this is our struggle!

A quick perusal of the latest edition of our latest this week in CHS history post will catch you up on the recent history of May Day chaos and violence that has broken out on Capitol Hill over the years, sparked by clashes between police and groups from beyond the workers and immigrants rights movements. Damage, injuries, and arrests were typically limited but ugly moments including vandalism against small businesses and the use of dangerous “flash bang” grenades by police left many in the neighborhood unsympathetic to any of the sides in the clashes. Continue reading →

After makeover, Elysian, grandparent of Capitol Hill breweries, reopens its E Pike brewpub

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Elysian’s Joe Bisacca

Elysian, the grandparent of Capitol Hill breweries, is fit for duty again. After a long-announced, four-month renovation of its Capitol Hill location, the 23-year-old E Pike brewery and brewpub is ready to face the crowds again starting May 6th.

Elysian, located in a 1919-era Packard storage building, had been closed since late December last year for both front and back of house upgrades which included a makeover of the pub’s exterior as well as interior, kitchen, bathrooms and the installation of an all-new brewing equipment.

During a preview of the space, Elysian co-founder and CEO Joe Bisacca walked up the stairs of his new brew tanks. They were still empty. In the coming weeks, brewmasters will start filling them, but the brewing process will probably not start here before the new Elysian opens to the public on May 6th, or before its birthday party on May 10th. That Friday, Elysian celebrates 23 years on the Hill and in existence “with 1996 prices,” Bisacca said.

The brewery’s original layout has remained mostly unchanged since 1996, according to Bissaca, except for some maintenance.

“We really needed [an upgrade]. It was looking really dated. This was a full tear-down-to-nothing and build it back up,” he said, “while trying to make sure it kept a feel like it’s been here.” Continue reading →

Capitol Hill private school Seattle Academy has plan to partner with parks department on new sports field… in South Park

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The private Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences is expanding steadily on Capitol Hill. It could also be at the center of a plan to overhaul the fields and amenities around the South Park Community Center.

Wednesday afternoon, the Seattle City Council’s Civic Development, Public Assets, and Native Communities Committee will consider the proposal from the Seattle Academy and Seattle Parks and Recreation for a $4 million donation to power the creation of a new sports field and lighting as part of a larger overhaul of the South Park facility. Continue reading →

Plymouth Pillars, music, and good dogs — Goodbye to the Mayor of Melrose

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Jones in 2011 (Image: CHS)

Friends, family, and City of Seattle officials are remembering Patrick Jones, the “Mayor of Melrose,” and his outsized work dedicated to a small area of the city.

Jones died last week reportedly in his sleep. He was ready to turn 61 this summer.

Jones, with his story of recovery from addiction as a former Marine and hitting rock bottom before arriving in Seattle with almost nothing, is remembered for his dedication to the neighborhood near his Capitol Hill Housing home around Melrose Ave where he made it a point to be a friend to nearly every type of person — and good dogs, too. Continue reading →

CHS Pics | A confluence of authentic, nostalgic Indian food, and socially conscious business at Spice Waala

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What happens when a professor of social work and a brand expert hook up in a love of authentic Indian street food? Spice Waala, the love child of entrepreneurs Dr. Aakanksha Sinha and Uttam Mukherjee opened softly over the weekend in its new brick and mortar space on 15th Ave E.

“Street food is where the common man goes and eats,” Mukkherjee told CHS during the restaurant’s first day of business last Friday. “But it is also where the rich people go and eat. So it’s like a confluence of people.”

This economic theory take on a new Capitol Hill restaurant’s opening are a good representation of the business from the Assistant Professor of Social Work at Seattle University, and her husband Mukherjee, a brand manager at Procter & Gamble, and now a Capitol Hill restaurateur. Continue reading →

Many cranes above Capitol Hill and the CD, few safety incidents over decade of intense development

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In a neighborhood full of construction cranes, you might be looking at the Capitol Hill sky a little differently after Saturday’s terrible accident on Mercer. But with a development wave of more than a decade reshaping Pike/Pine and Broadway, reported incidents involving cranes and Capitol Hill construction sites have been few and far between.

Most incidents CHS has reported on over the years have been minor and fortunately there have been few injuries. In 2013, for example, a crane working on the 12th Ave Arts building dropped a bundle of shoring beams. Nobody was reported injured and the project was not significantly delayed by the incident.

Beyond cranes, the neighborhood’s construction sites have only been the location of a handful of significant emergency situations over the years. Continue reading →

With forum and debate season underway, D3 candidates talk homelessness, small biz, and ‘a Green New Deal for ordinary working people’ with some of their youngest constituents

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In a Sunday afternoon forum and an early test of their platforms as they speed toward an August primary, four candidates for the Seattle City Council’s District 3 seat — including current council member Kshama Sawant who called for a “a Green New Deal for ordinary working people” — answered questions from some of their youngest constituents on a range of issues from homelessness to small business development.

The event, led by the King County Young Democrats, hosted forums for five of this year’s Council races. The other three D3 candidates were urbanist Logan Bowers, Seattle School Board Director Zachary DeWolf, and public defender Ami Nguyen, while neighborhood activist Pat Murakami and Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce head Egan Orion were not invited to participate due to time constraints.

UPDATE 4/29/2018 9:05 AM: KCYD chair Derek Richards offered this explanation for the invitation decisions:

There are about 57 candidates whom have declared for Seattle City Council, it is literally impossible to have a forum to include all of them and not have the meeting be a 12 hour marathon. With the candidates we had it still took 3.5 hours. It sounds like you are more interested in many of the other great organizations and neighborhood councils that will be hosting district specific candidate forums in the months leading up to the primary vote where you will be able to hear all of their opinions and I would encourage you to attend those.

UPDATE x2: Richards provided some more context on the decision around D3 in a message to CHS:

Since we were fitting 5 different districts in our meeting we had decided 3 candidates per district to keep the forum around 3 hours. For district 3 we did number of individual contributors, which gave us Councilmember Sawant, Logan Bowers and Ami Nguyen. Then the day we were going to send invites Zach DeWolf announced and had 2 city council endorsements and all the school board endorsements so we made an exception for D3 to have 4 candidates. However all candidates are welcome to speak at our endorsements meeting on Sunday May 19th at the WSLC between 5 and 7.

No matter the question, Sawant, a member of the Socialist Alternative political organization, pivoted to affordable housing concerns and her push for rent control. She repeatedly decried the council for its handling of the head tax and its overall lack of political courage. Answering a question on waste management, the council member called for a large-scale climate overhaul led by Seattle.

“The bottom line that we need, in terms of a Green New Deal for ordinary working people, is a massive public works program to expand transit and affordable housing and, primarily, what we need is social housing,” Sawant said, calling for a tax on big business to fund this publicly-funded and -owned housing proposal. Continue reading →

Stacey Abrams on our Capitol Hill: ‘I didn’t say I wouldn’t run, I just said I wasn’t announcing anything’

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Stacey Abrams first set the goal of running for the presidency 25 years ago.

After breaking up with a boyfriend, Abrams, who acknowledges she is “bad at dating,” says she created a spreadsheet laying out her goals, including being Atlanta mayor — the ceiling for black people, she thought at the time — a millionaire, and an author.

In about 1994, one of her friends, a white Republican man from South Carolina who she worked in the Clinton White House through a fellowship asked her the shocking question: “Stacey, when are you running for president?”

“President of what?” she recounted asking in response.

He reassured her that she could do it.

“What shames me to this day is that I did not believe him,” Abrams said at a sold-out Town Hall Seattle event Thursday night at Capitol Hill’s Temple De Hirsch Sinai.

“This moment where this person who was becoming my friend saw possibility in me, I immediately rejected it because there had never been a black man, a black woman, a woman ever to be a viable candidate.”

After that conversation, she went home and updated the spreadsheet to say that she would run for president of the United States. Continue reading →