Graffiti, now erased, on the side of the 15th Ave E QFC (Image: CHS)

CHS readers asked, we answered. Here are answers to a Capitol Hill question or three from recent days:

• What’s going on at the 15th Ave E QFC? Nothing. Or, at least, not what you might want to see if you’re hoping for a new tenant in the big, empty grocery. CHS is told that activity around the store this week is related to Kroger auctioning off equipment from the site and completing an internal demolition of the store. The company closed the grocery in April over the city’s COVID-19 $4/hour hazard pay ordinance. The space has been home to a grocery for 77 years.
• Why did the power go out? Capitol Hill has become accustomed to avoiding power outages thanks in part to waves of redevelopment overhauling its infrastructure and major investments in public transit upgrading its electrical grid. So, a relatively brief power outage across parts of the Hill and the Central District Monday evening on a not that stormy, not super hot day was a bit of a surprise.
  

  Around 1500 customers reported by @SEACityLight without power across Pike/Pine and CD. pic.twitter.com/AutoaTqte6

  — jseattle (@jseattle) June 15, 2021

  Seattle City Light says the outage centered around parts of Pike/Pine and the Central District just below E Madison was due to equipment failure when a lightning arrestor failed. “Lightning arrestors are designed to conduct when there is high voltage (spike) to protect voltage sensitive equipment such as underground cables and terminators,” a spokesperson tells CHS. The arrestor failed with “no known trigger (e.g., squirrel, crow, car, etc.),” we’re told. The spokesperson added that “permanent repairs have been completed and we don’t expect further issues at this time,” thus signalling CHS’s opportunities for additional follow-up questions was also likely at an end. City Light said the arrestor that failed was in the general vicinity of Monday night’s outage but couldn’t provide a specific location beyond between Broadway and E Cherry. The Swedish First Hill campus remained without power after service was restored elsewhere, a hospital spokesperson said. Swedish has an extensive backup generator system so there were no “disruptions in care,” according to the spokesperson.

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  (Image: Environmental Works)

  What happened to the Broadway Tacos Guaymas? After making way for Chipotle by taking a smaller space up the street, the Capitol Hill outlet of the Seattle taco chain has closed on Broadway. This time, the restaurant will join neighboring business Follicle Hair Design in moving aside for redevelopment of its portion of the block between Pine and Pike where “LGBTQ-affirming affordable senior housing project” The Eldridge from affordable developer Community Roots Housing is set to rise. The new development is still wrapping up permitting  to create around 80 units of “affordable workforce rental housing” above GenPride’s approximately 4,800 square feet of space for offices and services from community organizations that will call the building home. The new building will keep the old Mission Revival-styled structure’s facade and will take advantage of preservation incentives to boost the project’s size. Tacos Guaymas, meanwhile, has been quite the fighter, surviving displacement on Broadway by massive chain Chipotle and taking down the state of Washington in a $5.6 million tax case. UPDATE: We’re told the Eldridge development’s official name is yet to be announced.
•  Is CHS a little fasterrrrr? A bit! Last summer as we covered COVID-19, CHOP, and months of protest and unrest around Capitol Hill, CHS experienced a huge growth in audience. We also saw unprecedented financial support from subscribers and advertisers during those important, era-defining weeks. Over time, our audience growth has slowed as we’ve continued to cover the day to day happenings across Capitol Hill and Central Seattle, and, yes, some of that financial support also slowed down. But major technology costs didn’t slow down as quickly as the rest. In recent weeks, CHS has been busy behind the scenes overhauling the way the site is published and accessed by readers to help reduce costs and keep our community news experience strong and available to all. That work is now mostly wrapped up and you should notice a very modest improvement in performance across the site. We also hope we can start to restore some services cut during the heavy traffic times like the popular CHS Calendar. Want to help? Consider pitching in anything from $1 to $3 to $5 or more per month as part of our our pay what you can subscription. Neighborhood businesses and organizations can also help support the site while getting the word out about their services and offerings with our affordable CHS advertising. Thanks for reading and thanks for being part of CHS!

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