Monthly Archives: September 2023

Busy as a Bee, Coché Valley Dessert Cafe off to a flying start on Capitol Hill

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Bee prepares CHS a brownie and Oreo crepe

Bee Paisan credits an opening free drink promotion and buzz from a well-followed local food blogger but there are plenty of other reasons her new Coché Valley Dessert Cafe has been busier than expected in its opening weeks. Asian pastries, crepes, waffles, and dessert toasts tend to draw a crowd. Her new cafe’s location at 15th and Pine amid a small mix of neighborhood food and drink also helps.

“Around 10, 11, 12, midnight there are still people walking,” Paisan says of her new business neighborhood.

Paisan said she loves that, here, “people like to walk.”

All those steps, of course, mean more calories available for a visit to Coché Valley. Continue reading →

Walk the Block returns Saturday, turning Central District ‘homes, businesses, parks, porches, and other common spaces’ into art and performance sites

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(Image: Wa Na Wari)

The annual celebration of the neighborhoods, arts, and African American culture of the Central District returns this weekend.

Saturday, Walk the Block 2023 will transform “Central District homes, businesses, parks, porches, and other common spaces” into “art installations and performance sites.” Continue reading →

‘A threat of harm assessment’ — Seattle mayor issues executive order hoped to guide police in enforcing city’s new public drug use law

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A SPD officer responds to a reported overdose near the city’s central library (Image: SPD)

With the new law opening the way for a crackdown on public drug use in the city going into effect October 1st, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell has issued his promised executive order his administration says will help ensure a more equal balance of treatment and diversion efforts as Seattle Police enforce the law by establishing “a threat of harm assessment.”

“We are committed to learning lessons from the past, holding traffickers, dealers, and those causing the most harm accountable, and helping people access treatment and care through diversion services,” Harrell said in the announcement.

CHS reported here on the passage of the new law opening the way for more arrests and prosecution of public use of drugs like meth and fentanyl while also earmarking millions in spending for diversion and treatment programs. While the crackdown could help address concerns about street disorder and overdoses, it also is expected to tax the city’s law enforcement and treatment resources while adding to the challenges already faced by those living with addiction and living homeless in the city.

The new order hinges on a so-called “threat of harm assessment.” Harrell says the executive order “provides direction to officers on how to enforce the ordinance, including examples of how public use and possession can be established and factors that will guide the threat of harm assessment.” Continue reading →

Police search for suspect in deadly 25th and Union shooting — UPDATE

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A man was killed and police were searching for the suspect and the getaway vehicle in a shooting Thursday night near 25th and Union in the Central District.

All details are preliminary at this point and Seattle Police has only confirmed it was conducting an investigation at the scene at this time. UPDATE: SPD confirmed the homicide late Thursday night.

Continue reading →

Seattle Fire rescues injured worker after fall on roof at Garfield High

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A capture from a video of the rescue (Image: James E. Lynch, III)

Seattle Fire rescued an injured school maintenance worker from the roof of 23rd Ave’s Garfield High School Thursday afternoon.

According to Seattle Fire and radio updates, the call began around 3 PM after the worker was reported to have hit her head in a fall and was unable to navigate her way off the top of the three-floor school.

Multiple Seattle Fire units responded including aerial rigs part of the department’s “rope rescue” response. Around 3:20 PM, SFD reported the patient was being lifted down off the roof using a stokes basket on the east side of the school near the football field.

Seattle Fire said the woman was is in stable condition and was transported to a hospital for further care.

The scene was being cleared including multiple Seattle Fire vehicles as school let out for the day.

 

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Capitol Hill classic Coastal Kitchen returns (late) weekday brunch and lunch to the menu — UPDATE

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(Image: Coastal Kitchen)

Its diner-y days are gone. It’s a “fish house” now. But Capitol Hill’s Coastal Kitchen is back in the daily brunch, lunch, and dinner business.

The 15th Ave E stalwart launched new weekday brunch/lunch hours last week joining its dinner and weekend brunch service.

Returning to weekday daytime service marks a milestone for the restaurant which reopened after a lengthy closure with a full overhaul and refreshed concept late last year. Continue reading →

43rd District Democrats back Hudson in Seattle City Council D3 race

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Hudson at the recent labor march calling for higher wages for city workers

One of the area’s most significant political organizations has made its choice in the District 3 race for the Seattle City Council.

The 43rd District Democrats group voted last week to endorse First Hill’s Alex Hudson for the D3 seat on the city council. The group of Democratic supporters draws from the some of the most densely packed blocks in District 3 within the state legislation district that stretches from Madison across Capitol Hill to the north.

The endorsement marks a split with the 43rd’s southern cousin. The 37th District Democrats group covering D3’s Central District-area neighborhoods backed Hudson’s Central District challenger Joy Hollingsworth earlier this summer.

Hudson’s camp says the pick adds to “a string of important endorsements” and says the endorsement illustrates the candidate’s progressive bonafides.

“Hudson is a strong progressive with a long string of accomplishments in diverse policy areas and a proven track record of building coalitions and finding common ground across divides,” the press release reads. “On a broad range of issues, including housing affordability, creating parks and improving neighborhood quality of life, as well as transit and transportation, Hudson has demonstrated an impressive capacity for solving problems and delivering tangible results.” Continue reading →

Metro’s 2025 plan for wire-free electric buses includes bright new look

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(Image: King County Metro)

King County Metro buses are getting a new look for the first time in 19 years. Metro announced  “The New Energy” design of “electric yellow and seafoam blue” intended as “a visual representation of Metro’s commitment to helping combat climate change” will be outfitted on new battery-operated vehicles joining its fleet.

Metro says the new look is “intended to be a visual reminder of the transition away from Metro’s hybrid (diesel-electric) buses to the zero-emission fleet.”

Metro says the new liveries will be phased in as 120 new battery-electric buses start going into service in 2025.

Continue reading →

Seattle’s transportation spending plan for 2024 dented by speeding ticket screw-up

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(Image: SDOT)

Buried in this week’s release of Mayor Bruce Harrell’s proposed 2024 budget are signs of coming tight times at the Seattle Department of Transportation as its planned capital expenditures are being sliced by more than 40%.

One of the city’s most expensive departments, SDOT is planning to spend some $713 million across operations and capital investments like mobility improvements and projects on the waterfront in 2023, according to openbudget.seattle.gov.

Next year’s plan from Harrell’s office calls for more than $150 million of that to be lopped off in 2024 with a major cut to planned capital expenditures. Continue reading →

With Polish donuts in a Polish deli, new owner marks 45 years of George’s Sausage & Delicatessen on First Hill

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Polish donuts in a Polish deli (Image: George’s Deli)

With reporting by Soumya Gupta

George’s Deli just turned 45 and is in new, highly capable hands even as the First Hill fixture struggles through the massive disruptions from the bus rapid transit line construction that has torn up the neighborhood’s main business artery.

Mark Oliver, the paczki Polish donut guy, is now in charge. He celebrated the big birthday milestone earlier this month with free paczki.

“I used to come to George’s with my parents, and I knew that this was something I wanted to be a part of,” Oliver said. “I was familiar with how Janet ran the deli, and it just felt right.”

With its crafted sandwiches, groceries, and European specialities, the Polish deli has stood on First Hill since Janet Lidzbarski founded it in 1983. Now, the deli’s new owner, Oliver intends to carry the legacy of spreading Polish culture through gourmet ingredients and homemade recipes. He says he has spent most of his time creating and learning Polish recipes, and has had a deep passion to share his heritage with the neighborhood.

Oliver says a typical day at George’s starts off with the staff smoking and grinding sausages, which are sold individually or in their crafted sandwiches. Afternoons are the busiest, as they spend most of their time packing sandwiches for a long line of customers travelling from all parts of the city. The Reuben and George’s Special are customer favorites, Oliver says. In addition, the deli also offers an assortment of pickles, jams, jellies, mustard, and Polish beer and cookies. What sets George’s apart is the extensive smoking of their sausages, both fresh and flat, he says. Continue reading →