Kha-Bar will dance onto Capitol Hill in 2026

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Chitralekha Majhi

12th Ave will be a busy area for new food and drink in 2026 as Kha-Bar prepares to bring the flavors of East India and Bangladesh to Capitol Hill.

Kathak dancer and choreographer Chitralekha Majhi and husband Manash Majhi are making a leap into the restaurant business with hopes of creating a mellow new neighborhood hangout right next to the NOD Theater and eXit Space School of Dance.

“I want it to be a neat and clean space, not too upscale but at same time nice,” Majhi said. “Not loud with off white, black, and pastel green that is calming and relaxing.” Continue reading →

Hollingsworth joins ‘yes’ vote in approving new contract for Seattle police

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Hollingsworth spoke about cannabis equity later in the afternoon council session

Saka

District 3 representative Joy Hollingsworth joined the Seattle City Council majority Tuesday in approving a new contract with the Seattle Police Officers Guild in an afternoon session marked by a loud protest in council chambers.

CHS reported here on the contract details and criticism that the agreement boosts officer salaries with little new requirements around accountability and oversight.

The new contract also lifts the cap on CARE Department hiring and opens the door for the city to grow the new team of crisis responders to its budgeted capacity, growing to 96 responders in the department’s first 18 months.

Tuesday, Hollingsworth did not comment on the contract before the 6-3 vote as she sided with the majority in approving the pact forged by outgoing Mayor Bruce Harrell’s office.

Five council members on the Labor Relations Policy Committee were part of the Harrell administration negotiations. Hollingsworth joined that group in approving the deal. Continue reading →

‘Caretaker’ — Lewis selected to represent King County District 2 through 2026 election

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(Image: King County Council)

The King County Council has chosen Rhonda Lewis to represent its District 2 covering portions of Capitol Hill and the Central District through 2026.

The former Chief of Operations in the King County Executive office, Lewis becomes the first Black woman to join the council and will give the body its first ever woman-majority. Continue reading →

Man dies in fall from I-5 overpass

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A man fell to his death Friday morning on I-5 south below the Convention Center.

Seattle Fire says it responded to the reported fall from the I-5 overpass from Capitol Hill just after 11 AM in an incident in the southbound lanes of I-5. Continue reading →

Cook Weaver ready to hand over its historic space after a decade on Capitol Hill

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Chef Zac Reynolds and Nile Klein of Cook and Weaver at its opening in 2017

For a chef who creates their own place on Capitol Hill, there are paths that might lead someday to your own restaurant group with 12 unique concepts and 20 locations.

And there are simpler routes that don’t lead to much more than good times and happy memories.

Chef-driven Cook Weaver has announced it will close with one last New Year’s Day of service after a decade in Capitol Hill’s historic Loveless Building.

“Why are we closing? Well, have you ever looked forward to a new chapter with anticipation, while also in tender thanksgiving for all that has brought you to this moment?,” owner Zac Reynolds wrote in the E Roy restaurant’s announcement. “That’s pretty much where I am. In truth, I really want to spend more time with my kid and my wife on evenings and weekends – it’s that simple.” Continue reading →

Seattle Police investigating after Tesla torched on First Hill

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The Seattle Police Department’s arson and bomb squad is investigating after someone busted out the window of a Tesla parked on First Hill early Saturday and set it on fire, destroying the vehicle, police say.

According to police, the incident took place just after 1 AM near Harborview and was captured on video as the suspect can be seen walking up to the car parked near 9th and Alder, breaking the window, and lighting the car on fire.

The incident comes after a flurry of similar acts earlier this year as protests grew against the company over CEO Elon Musk’s short-lived but damaging Department of Government Efficiency and its corporate-style cost-cutting of the federal government under the Trump administration. Continue reading →

City Council set to approve Seattle Police Officers Guild contract that boosts salaries, allows more CARE Department crisis responders

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The Seattle City Council Tuesday afternoon is expected to approve a new contract with the union representing the city’s police officers that mixes big raises with agreements that officials say will open the way for the city to grow its CARE Department and dispatch its crisis responders to 911 situations without a police officer to accompany them.

The collective bargaining agreement forged between the Harrell administration and the Seattle Police Officers Guild comes as SPD Chief Shon Barnes faces an uncertain future under incoming Mayor-elect Katie Wilson. Barnes and his top lieutenants continue to tout a reversal in hiring struggles at the Seattle Police Department and say that improved staffing should begin to bear fruit in the coming year.

Building on a previous 23% retroactive raise, the new agreement grants officers a 6% retroactive increase for 2024 and 4.1% in 2025, followed by annual raises of 2.7% in 2026, and a CPI-based adjustment of 3–4% in 2027. Continue reading →

‘Storefront’ fund — City says your favorite Capitol Hill and Central District business can get $6K to thwart burglars and break-ins

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(Image: Aoki Sushi)

After burning through smaller allocations, city officials tell CHS there is more than $3 million in the coming year being dedicated to helping small businesses deal with burglaries including special funding earmarked for Capitol Hill.

The update comes as CHS reported last week on the headaches of broken glass, plywood, and roll-down security doors Capitol Hill and Central District restaurants, cafes, bars, and shops are dealing with this holiday season.

While TV news follow-ups might make it sound like small businesses are on their own, the city has put more resources in place to help that can do more than just replace broken glass. Continue reading →

One more map from from the November election — and an invitation to Broadmoor to join Seattle

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A few weeks back as CHS examined the progressive sweep in the November election led by Katie Wilson’s defeat of incumbent Bruce Harrell, we looked at the block by block, precinct by precinct maps documenting the victories.

They showed the latest adjustments to the now familiar political fault lines in the city where the less wealthy, more densely developed neighborhoods swing left while the wealthiest areas ringing Seattle’s waterfronts swing right.

A map we didn’t share then, we bring you now as an invitation to a District 3 area to rejoin its city.

In November, there were only two precincts in the city where residents voted against renewing the city’s $1.3 billion education levy needed to support a growing spending plan for childcare and preschool, K-12 academic supports, and the Seattle Promise program. Continue reading →

What’s the status of the Pike/Pine Business Improvement Area?

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By Matt Dowell

Businesses and property owners have continued to call for more to be done to address street disorder and public safety concerns around Pike/Pine — especially as the area is prepared for the opening of a county Crisis Care Center in 2027. But an effort for owners to organize themselves to pay for safety and cleanup resources remains on the drawing board.

The push to form Pike/Pine property owners into a new Business Improvement Area will continue into 2026.

In February, CHS reported that the Seattle Office of Economic Development advocated for a new BIA which would add a special assessment for property owners along Pike and Pine. The fee could directly fund cleanup and safety initiatives within the BIA alongside other business district revitalization and management efforts. Similar organizations fund efforts along Broadway and on 15th Ave E.

Per BIA rules, a coalition of roughly 60% of the property owners within the proposed zone would need to sign on.

Along Pike and Pine, that hasn’t happened yet. Continue reading →