Monthly Archives: September 2025

Report: King County Council mulling pause in Broadway Crisis Care Center process — UPDATE

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The proposed Broadway site

A member of the King County Council says he has prepared an “emergency resolution” calling for a 30-day pause on the county’s efforts to acquire the Polyclinic building at the corner of Broadway and Union where a $56 million Broadway Crisis Care Center is planned.

Reagan Dunn, representing the county’s southeast, is reportedly mulling the call for a pause over concerns about the proposed property deal raised by “a group of Capitol Hill business owners and residents,” KOMO reports:

The group sent a lengthy letter to King County Executive Shannon Braddock, County Council Chair Girmay Zahilay, and Department of Community and Health Services Director Kelly Rider last week, accusing them of potentially violating laws and triggering a devolving street crime situation like what happed with the failed Navigation Center in Little Saigon.

UPDATE: In a statement provided to CHS Tuesday, Dunn is reportedly pausing his call for a pause. “CM Dunn is not currently calling for the aforementioned delay pending the outcome of tomorrow’s hearing where we will learn more about the issue,” a spokesperson said.

CHS has not been provided with a copy of the letter but representatives from nearby Cancer Pathways and Perkins Glass spoke to the TV station about their concerns over the proposed center.

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Seattle City Council ready to flick on new ‘Real Time Crime Center’ cameras in Pike/Pine and the Central District — UPDATE

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The Seattle City Council is expected Tuesday to approve legislation expanding the city’s Real Time Crime Center with new cameras in Pike/Pine and the Central District plus expansion of the Seattle Police Department surveillance system to use select Seattle Department of Transportation traffic cameras in the program.

The council’s public safety committee including District 3 representative Joy Hollingsworth has signed off on the “surveillance technology implementation” plan. CHS reported here on final debate about data privacy and how the city says it will handle any potential legal wrangling with outside agencies like ICE.

UPDATE: The council approved the expansions 7-2 with Alexis Mercedes Rinck and Dan Strauss opposing the plan over privacy concerns and worries about federal encroachment. Public safety chair Bob Kettle, a former naval intelligence commander, said an amendment approved Tuesday is “aimed at avoiding any cooperation with federal civil immigration enforcement.”

The legislation will expand the SPD Real Time Crime Center surveillance camera system to include the Capitol Hill nightlife core around E Pike and Cal Anderson Park and a major swath of the Central District from E Cherry to Jackson police officials say is necessary to prevent gun violence near Garfield High School. Continue reading →

Capitol Hill: New home of the two wealthiest Puget Sound ZIP Codes

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Two ZIP codes covering Northern Capitol Hill neighborhoods — not Medina, nor Mercer Island — now rank as the wealthiest areas on the Puget Sound. Soaring housing values, booming incomes for some, and economic changes are factors.

So are methodologies. Continue reading →

Amid ongoing twin crises of affordability and homelessness, final debates for Seattle’s next 20-year growth plan include neighborhood borders and ‘bees and trees’

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You can view the “live” proposed zoning map here

Seattle is ready to finalize a new 20-year growth plan including new “Neighborhood Centers” and “Middle Housing” laws expanding zoning to allow a greater range of housing types in more parts of the city.

The process has played out as Seattle’s twin crises of housing affordability and homelessness have continued to grow. In the meantime, core areas of the city have continued to rise as some of the wealthiest areas in the county, state, and nation.

For all the debate, not much will change. Nearly 70% of new construction expected under the plan would be constrained to “Regional Centers,” the plan’s designation for the city’s most densely populated, high transit areas — Downtown, Lower Queen Anne, South Lake Union, University District, Northgate, Ballard, and First Hill and Capitol Hill —- or less dense but still highly developed areas like 23rd Ave from Union to Jackson.

A public hearing Friday will include 100 proposed amendments to finalize the plan — and a day of some of the last opportunities for public comment after years of debate.

The amendments on the table Friday for Seattle City Council’s comprehensive plan committee chaired by District 3 representative Joy Hollingsworth range from large to small, including proposals that would bolster protections for “bees and trees” across the whole of the plan down to a set of amendments that would make final adjustments on select neighborhood boundaries in the plan. Continue reading →

911 | Broadway ATM robbery, gas station hold-ups, and a Pike/Pine drug ‘werewolf’

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See something others should know about? Email CHS or call/txt/Signal (206) 399-5959. You can view recent CHS 911 coverage here. Hear sirens and wondering what’s going on? Check out reports from @jseattle or join and check in with neighbors in the CHS Facebook Group.

  • Broadway gunpoint robbery: A banking customer at the Broadway Chase branch was robbed at gunpoint Saturday night. Police were called to the 300 block Broadway E bank around 6:15 PM where a customer said she had used the ATM and was walking near the back of the bank when the male suspect approached and drew a gun, demanding her money. The suspect grabbed the victim’s wallet and ran. He was last seen headed west on E Thomas. Police searched the area but made no arrest. There were no reported injuries. Continue reading →

Capitol Hill Historical Society event brings author’s stories of early Seattle Jewish families to 15th Ave

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The Gaslight Inn

Treiger

Inspired by her new book exploring the paths of five families through the shaping of modern Seattle, the Capitol Hill Historical Society is hosting a special event with the author at a 15th Ave Capitol Hill landmark at the center of one of the stories.

The Capitol Hill Historical Society will host author Karen Treiger for an evening of local history and storytelling. The event, titled “Jewish Seattle in the Gilded Age,” will take place on Sunday, September 21st from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM at The Gaslight Inn, the historic bed and breakfast at 1727 15th Ave. Continue reading →

This week in CHS history | Fat’s Chicken and Waffles is born, Harvard Market up for sale, 2020 ‘Super Massive’ smoke plume arrives

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Here are the top stories from this week in CHS history:

2024

 

Amid efforts to address Broadway/Pike public safety concerns, Capitol Hill’s Harvard Market put up for sale — UPDATE


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Cafe watch! Café Calaveras, Mintish, and a new Sugar Bakery on Capitol Hill — UPDATE: Eggslut, León Coffee House, and Offline Coffee Co.

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Cafe Calaveras is now open at Broadway and Yesler (Image: Cafe Calaveras)

There may be closings, shutterings, and shufflings, but the Capitol Hill area’s cafe scene seems to be thriving.

Amid a flurry of 12th Ave food+drink closures, First Hill-born Sugar Bakery is making plans for its second Capitol Hill opening in recent months. City permits — and a CHS tipster — indicate a new Sugar is being lined up for the former Plum Chopped lunch and salad spot. Continue reading →

In WA, you can get a COVID-19 shot — no matter what RFK Jr. says

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In a bid to overcome confusion, misinformation, and disinformation from federal leaders, state health officials Thursday issued a Standing Order making all Washington residents 6 months and older eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.

“COVID-19 vaccines are well-researched, well-tested, and have saved millions of lives around the world,” State Health Officer Dr. Tao Sheng Kwan-Gett said in a statement. “The barriers to COVID-19 vaccination are complex, and the Standing Order is just one part of the solution. We want to ensure all Washington residents have access to the protection these vaccines provide based on the best available science.” Continue reading →

New Cal Anderson Emergency Hub launches teaching ‘Urban Survival Skills’ including water sterilization and Narcan administration to help Capitol Hill’s core neighborhoods

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(Image: Seattle Parks Foundation)

A group is coming together to make sure Capitol Hill’s neighborhoods of densely packed apartment dwellers can build resources they need to be resilient during emergencies and natural disasters.

Already having an interest in personal emergency preparedness, Heather Currey attended an emergency hub drill after she learned of the event through Central Seattle Greenways. And while North Capitol Hill has its own emergency hub, Currey felt the need for stronger support in the central part of the neighborhood. Now, Currey is the captain of the Cal Anderson Emergency Hub, which is preparing for its September 7th Urban Survival Skills Fair in the park’s shelterhouse and sunbowl.

“Seattle has a fairly wide hub network, so these are places where under disaster conditions, when we’ve lost electricity and it’s harder for people to communicate with each other, hubs stand up to connect neighbors with neighbors, and neighbors with information,” Currey told CHS.

Currey said these emergency hubs are always needed.

The Cal Anderson Emergency Hub already has over a dozen volunteers who have been meeting for about six months and have worked to obtain grants and jump through bureaucratic hoops with the city, including Parks and Rec and the Department of Neighborhoods.

Those volunteer numbers are only expected to grow, Currey said. Continue reading →