Tag Archives: madison park

Mapping Sawant’s 2019 win shows continued strength of District 3’s political divide

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Sawant again performed strongly in the southwest core of District 3

It was a tale of two districts.

To the east and north were the wealthier homeowners of North Capitol Hill, Madrona, Montlake, and Broadmoor, where voters picked the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce-backed Egan Orion.

Meanwhile, in the more densely populated Broadway and Pike/Pine cores and the Central District, residents sided with the re-election of socialist Seattle City Council incumbent Kshama Sawant.

While the path to victory in 2019 included a dramatic shift from Election Night totals, Sawant’s win, in the end, looks extremely familiar.

To Erin Schultz, a consultant that worked on the Orion campaign, the voting distribution of District 3 looks like what Sawant saw in 2015 as she defeated Pamela Banks for the seat.

“The mapped results are similar to results Sawant has gotten in every election, but we were obviously hoping to close the narrow gap, especially after the Primary performance,” Schultz said in an email. She believes that Amazon’s late $1 million contribution turned the election into a “referendum on corporate influence in elections rather than solutions to addressing homelessness, improving affordability, and the many other issues our city is struggling with.”
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Madison Park resident considers ‘centrist independent’ run for president

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Schultz inside the 23rd and Jackson Starbucks for a 2015 forum on race and policing (Image: Casey Jaywork for CHS)

Could America elect a president who probably couldn’t even win a race for his own district’s City Council seat?

Probably not.

But former Starbucks CEO and longtime Madison Park lakefront mansion resident Howard Schultz is apparently passing up his opportunity to challenge socialist incumbent Kshama Sawant for her seat representing his District 3 on the Seattle City Council in 2019 and, instead, gearing up for a “centrist independent” run for president in 2020. Continue reading →

Madison Park woman killed in Seattle Center domestic violence stabbing — UPDATE

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The 28-year-old who died after what police say was a domestic violence stabbing attack at the Seattle Center Friday has been identified as a Madison Park resident.

Police say Gabrielle Maria Garcia was stabbed multiple times in the attack inside the Seattle Center’s Armory food court. The attack happened in front of the couple’s child, according to the SPD report on the incident.

David Lee Morris, 29, was arrested at the scene and is currently held in King County Jail for investigation of domestic violence homicide. He has not been charged but the court found probable cause to keep Morris jailed in a Saturday hearing. UPDATE 11/7/2018: Morris has been charged with first degree murder with aggravating circumstances of domestic violence.

Garcia was rushed to Harborview where she later died.

 

Moving day in Madison Park at the Russian Consular Residence

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It was moving day at Seattle’s Russian Consular Residence where diplomats, workers, and their families spent the morning packing belongings, gear, and equipment into a small convoy of trucks waiting in the alley. Meanwhile, the Russian flag still flew above the historic Hyde mansion.

The personal scenes of moving out played out under the swirl of geopolitical intrigue that  has touched down here at E Madison and 38th Ave E. In March, CHS reported on the Trump administration’s expulsion of Russian diplomats in response to an alleged Kremlin-backed nerve agent attack on a former spy in the United Kingdom. As part of the diplomatic crackdown, the White House also ordered the closure of Russia’s Seattle consulate in Seattle’s downtown One Union Square over spying concerns. Continue reading →

CHS Pics | ‘Vine-cutting’ at the grand opening of the Arboretum Loop Trail

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The Washington Park Arboretum is said to be home to the largest botanical collection west of the Mississippi, with some 20,000 trees and plants across its 230 acres, and countless birds and rocks and things. Sunday, officials and neighbors gathered along the new Arboretum Loop Trail to celebrate the route’s grand opening with a “vine-cutting,” speeches, and lots of good dogs.

“That is the cutest dog I have seen yet today,” Sally Clark, former Seattle City Council member and the University of Washington’s director of regional and community relations, quipped as a canine in attendance for the grand opening event barked during her address. “And I have seen a lot of dogs this morning.”

The 1.2-mile trail has created a new 12-foot-wide paved path through the leafy area along Lake Washington for walkers, wheelchairs, slow bikes, and strollers and to connect to the park’s meandering trails.  $7.8 million in 520 construction mitigation funds from WSDOT powered the project. Continue reading →

Amid U.S. expulsion, Russian diplomats given until end of April to move out of $4M Madison Park mansion

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Russian consular officials have until late April to vacate the $4 million historic Madison Park mansion the state department has provided them with since 1994.

U.S. Dept. of State officials have given the diplomats until April 24th to leave the property that has been used as the residence for the Russian government’s Consulate General in Seattle since the department’s Office of Foreign Missions acquired the 1910-built landmark in what King County records say was a $1.1 million transaction in April 1994.

The United States has withdrawn its consent for Russia’s consular post in Seattle, “in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations,” CHS is told. The state department could not provide details of any financial arrangements related to the Russian use of the U.S. government-owned diplomatic residence. Continue reading →

Police search for motorcycle helmet-wearing suspect in Madison Park bank robbery

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A man wearing a black motorcycle helmet held up a Madison Park bank Tuesday afternoon and fled the area.

Police were called to the bank near 40th and E Madison just after 3:30 PM to the reported robbery. Police say the suspect did not brandish a weapon during the hold-up and would not say how much cash if any the bandit made off with.

Police were working with a limited description of the suspect due to his covered head and face. The suspect was described as around 6 feet tall, and wearing a black jacket, and gloves during the crime, according to East Precinct radio dispatches. Many banks post notices that headgear like helmets and even sometimes hats or hoods may not be worn inside.

SPD did not identify which bank was robbed. A Wells Fargo branch is located near the intersection where police say the crime took place.

The *5* final projects that could make Central Seattle streets and sidewalks safer

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Olive at the I-5 onramp *AFTER* a previous round of pedestrian improvements. Probably some more work to do, no? (Image: WSDOT)

Olive at the I-5 onramp *AFTER* a previous round of pedestrian improvements. Probably some more work to do, no? (Image: WSDOT)

Earlier in May, CHS shared details of 15 projects that could make Central Seattle streets and sidewalks safer. Each of the 15 probably could. But only five of them will — or will have a chance to thanks to the East District Neighborhood Council and the Neighborhood Street Fund. Below are the five proposals that were recommended by the council and will now be passed through SDOT’s “high level design & cost estimate” vetting process. Once that feasibility analysis is complete in September, the council can rank the five finalists and pass them back to SDOT for possible implementation. There are apparently no guarantees in the world of NSF projects. “There is NO guarantee they will pick any of our ranked projects – they have their own process separate from our own,” an email announcing the East District finalists reads. Continue reading →

Round 2 of District 3 candidate forums a more scripted tussle in Madison Valley

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This week’s second Council District 3 candidate forum was more scripted than the first but Kshama Sawant and Pamela Banks still managed to get in a tussle or two.

“Rent control is not the answer, it doesn’t generate units and it creates false hopes,” Banks said about her opponent’s signature campaign issue.

“Candidates who take campaign funds from companies like Vulcan show they could not create affordable housing,” Sawant said during one of her opportunities to punch back.

Sawant has been clear about her affordable housing goals including support for rent control, linkage fees, and city-developed housing. For Banks, who has served as public relations lead for the Department of Housing and Human Services and served on the board of organizations like Capitol Hill Housing, the affordability platform is more fluid though CHS discussed issues of homelessness and the soaring cost of living in Seattle with her earlier this year.

All five candidates gathered Monday night before a Madison Park/Madison Valley crowd Monday evening. Inside The Bush School’s expansive indoor gym, residents of District 3’s northeastern neighborhoods heard candidates run through the standard gamut of questions, plus a few neighborhood specific ones.

Unlike past forums, candidates were given many questions ahead of time and the crowd was noticeably more subdued. Continue reading →

Dangerous Madison Park crossing, 23rd Ave intersection, First Hill sidewalk considered for city fund

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A proposal to help make for a safer crossing of E Madison near Trader Joe's didn't make the cut -- this year (Image: Doug McLaughlin via Flickr)

A proposal to help make for a safer crossing of E Madison near Trader Joe’s didn’t make the cut — this year (Image: Doug McLaughlin via Flickr)

Last week, a Department of Neighborhoods community group considered nine new street and parks project for central Seattle and Capitol Hill. Below, you’ll find the three projects that made it through and are being studied for feasibility by the city to be part of some $1.2 million in funding through the Neighborhood Parks and Street Fund. We’ve also included descriptions of all the proposals just in case you want to rally around one of the passed-over ideas next year or you find something to inspire a similar project in your own neighborhood. Continue reading →